You could be hearing that from your GPS navigator soon, according to this MSN story . Manufacturers of GPS units are going to start having downloadable celebrity voices since people are getting annoyed with the standard voices that come on them now.
"The idea behind this came when we heard anecdotally that a lot of people were frustrated with the voices on their navigation systems and talked back to them," Andre said. "That led to some research and we found that a lot of users referred to their navigation systems by a specific name, like Jane, so we decided to capitalize on that relationship."Give me one that sounds like K.I.T.T..
The idea behind Wanderlust’s new offering is to give drivers something a little different, explains CEO Will Andre. Mr. T not only guides, he also threatens: "Pay attention to what I’m saying," he bawls. "Mr. T gonna get you there in one piece … you gonna be there safely, or else!"
Directions from celebrities like Mr. T will be available for download on to stand-alone, portable navigation devices by the end of the year, while celebrity voices will be available in embedded car navigation devices in the first quarter of 2006, according to Andre.
A single celebrity voice will cost about $10 to download online, while unique character-themed voices — think of a generic surfer dude, or a cowboy — will cost about $5 each, Andre said. More celebrity voices are planned for later this year he notes, although he declined to disclose any specific names.
