Navman MY Series MY80T, MY85XLT and MY Escape

Navman MY Series MY80T, MY85XLT and MY Escape

If you are like many Australians who don't get around to planning weekends away and long holidays, Navman have put together a list of short getaway ideas to ensure you get enough rest and play in 2012. All you need is a Navman MY Series MY80T, MY85XLT or an especially travel savvy MY Escape sat-nav to take a spur of the moment trip.

The range has handy travel tools like a TrueLocal search for businesses near particular locations, while the MY Escape also includes specially designed features for drivers of larger vehicles including suitable route information for those towing a caravan or boat and Lonely Planet Guides to make it possible to go on a spontaneous driving holiday. Safety features found in the entire MY Series range such as spoken speed and red light camera warnings will also help you feel more confident and assured during your time away on the road.

'It's easy to get caught up in the rat race and sometimes big holidays seem so far away and not often enough. That's why we created the MY Escape GPS and other travel features on our Navman models that make it easier for people to plan for short mini breaks even at the eleventh-hour. There are so many great opportunities to have a short holiday including Australia Day, Mother's Day, the Easter break or even someone's birthday weekend. Make 2012, the year to take advantage of as many of these opportunities as you can. Here are just a few ideas of short getaways you can try," said Wendy Hammond Marketing Manager Navman Technology, Australia.

1. Have a saltwater/ freshwater holiday by choosing locations that are close to the coast and freshwater sources like a lake. Make water the theme by packing in as many activities as possible –swimming, surfing, fishing, canoeing, water skiing and more. The Navman MY Escape includes a Large Vehicle Assist feature that provides specific route information if you are towing a boat or even a caravan so you don't get caught on narrow roads. All you have to do is add in your vehicle's weight, height, width and length to the GPS and it will find a route suitable for your larger vehicle.

2. Do your own 'Food Safari" tour enjoy the amazing produce Australia has to offer by venturing into the country and picking fresh apples and berries from the trees or enjoy wine tasting. Navman's Lonely Planet Scenic Drives has loads of information like places of interest and restaurants to give you plenty of suggestions to start you off.

3. Organise a Man vs Wild break with your most adventurous friends. Challenge your friends with a real adventure into the bush and head off the beaten track with the help of information from HEMA 4WD maps included on the Navman MY Escape. The tracks can also be downloaded on the MY80T and MY85XLT models from the Navman online store www.navmanstores.com.au.

4. Get the kids away from the computer and bring the past to life with a history themed holiday. Teach them something new in a fun way – for instance, look for gems in a gold-rush themed tour of Ballarat, go on a Ned Kelly trail around Bendigo or relive the times of -The Man from Snowy River" horseriding in the Australian alps. To find accommodation for the family you can also purchase an AAA Tourism download from the Navman website for $19.95. It provides you with AAA's STAR Ratings to help you select where to stay and information on amenities, surrounding activities as well details regarding if accommodation is kid friendly and pet friendly.

3. Forget camping; try 'sophisticamping"'sophisticamping" holidays turn traditional camping into a more elegant experience. A Navman MY Escape can help find the perfect spot with over 8000 camping and fishing spots included in its HEMA maps. You can also use the TrueLocal search engine on the MY Series models to find cool restaurants and shops in the area so you aren't roughing it out too much.

7. Picturesque drive take your partner or best friend on a scenic drive. The Navman MY Escape includes 25 of Australia's most visually beautiful drives on its Lonely Planet Scenic routes feature. Lonely Planet Guides on the model will also give you recommendations on accommodation as well as shops, restaurants and tourist attractions to visit. All Lonely Planet Guides can be downloaded on the MY80T and MY85XLT models.

All models in the MY Series range also include Premium Safety Alerts such as spoken and timed school zone alerts that only go off during school hours, red light as well as speed camera alerts to ensure you don't return home from your trip to a painful fine. The MY85XLT and MY Escape also include Premium Driver Alerts that give you the heads up when there are changing road conditions such as lane merges. Meanwhile, free SUNA LIVE Traffic on the MY Series range provides accurate real time traffic information that is verified by road traffic authorities, to help you relax on your trip by helping you avoid frustrating traffic congestion along the way.

The Navman MY Series range is available at all major electronics retailers.

Recommended retail prices:
MY80T RRP$249
MY85XLT RRP$299
MY Escape RRP$599

Navman and Driver Reviver team up to beat another road hazard – bored kids
When you are on the road these holidays, one potential hazard is the distraction of bored children in the car; another is driver fatigue and not taking a regular break. So Navman and Driver Reviver have teamed up to give the young, and young at heart, hours of fun with the MY-Spy game cards. The MY-Spy cards will be available free at Driver Reviver locations around Australia from December 2011 to February 2012, while stocks last.

Drivers can pick up a deck of MY-SPY game cards while taking a break with a free cup of tea or coffee and biscuit, at Driver Reviver sites open right across Australia.

The MY-SPY deck of 24 cards has been designed so that kids can colour in the pictures as well as make up a puzzle from the pieces.

HOW TO PLAY MY-SPY:
1. Shuffle the cards and place them face down between the players.
2. Each player takes a card from the top of the pile and must -spy' the object in real life.
3. Once a player has spied the object, they can then pick up another card from the pile and spy the next object.
4. This continues until all cards have been picked up.
5. Players keep the cards of things they have spied.
6. The player with the most cards at the end of the game is the winner.

'While the MY-SPY cards are fun, road safety is no laughing matter for us. We want to support programmes that contribute positively to road safety. Working with Driver Reviver is especially appropriate as every year 30 per cent of all fatalities on country roads are caused by driver fatigue. It is really important for people to take a break every two hours when driving continuously which is why Navman units come with Driver Fatigue alerts, which flash a reminder to take a break after you have been driving continuously for two hours," says Wendy Hammond, marketing manager, Navman Technology.

Navman, a world leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of global positioning system (GPS) products, has more than 20 years experience in GPS, and as such is now widely recognised as a pioneer in portable, in-car satellite devices. Navman began life in New Zealand, specialising in marine electronics and even today software design and development is still undertaken there. Today the Navman brand is owned by MiTAC International, a leading worldwide maker of wireless communications products and one of Business Week's top 100 Global IT companies. For more information, visit www.navman.com.au