Navdy proves to be a hit, gains $1 million in first week pre-sales
We have to admit, when we first told you guys about Navdy — a HUD projector for your car that displays notifications from your phone — we thought it was cool, just not $300 cool. I guess not everyone felt the same way. The device, described by many as “Google Glass for your car,” seems to have been an early success, gaining over $1 million in first week pre-orders (that’s roughly around 3,333 units sold). But that’s only half the story.
According to TechCrunch, Navdy CEO and co-founder Doug Simpson says he’s been seeing a huge response not only from consumers, but from developers looking to get their apps up and running with with the new tech. What’s more, Navdy seems to have caught the eye of automakers who are also expressing their interest in Navdy, but more to the tune of having the device pre-installed into vehicle dashboards.
Using a combination of voice-guided gesture controls, Navdy will display notifications from your smartphone over a Bluetooth connection. The device then projects it’s UI on a transparent display acting similar to the way the prism in Google Glass works, forcing the driver to focus further away than just the display. Of course, the device doesn’t come without it’s share of controversy, mostly from safe driving proponents who feel this is yet another way to distract drivers from the current task at hand (like getting home in one piece).
Just like we saw with Coin, Navdy is using direct pre-order system, skipping fund raising sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo altogether. For those interested, there’s still 20 days left to pick up a Navdy at a discounted $300 (40% off) before it jumps up to the full price offering of $500 early next month. You can pre-order a Navdy here.