Okay, we knew this was in the works, but it caught just about everybody by surprise last night when Garmin uncorked its upcoming iPhone-like handset, the Nuvifone, without nary a hint or warning that an announcement of any kind was forthcoming, for anything. And while we admire their anti-guerilla marketing technique in the age of teasers and spoilers, Garmin's first (and only) smart phone is shaping up to be gadget worth your time.
What we're seeing so far is essentially Garmin transferring it's GPS touchscreen technology to an iPhone-sized case, shoving in all their normal GPS functions, then adding phone, media player (MP3s and MP4s), camera and web surfing features on a home-grown browser. An iPhone, basically, only with a few uniquely Garmin touches. Such as real-time traffic, weather, stock, and fuel price reports, a handy "where'd I park?" feature, and location-tagged photos. It'll also be the first Garmin to perform Google local searches (stomping right on Apple's firmware 3.1.1.), all from its iPhone-sized 3.5" screen. There will be voice prompting on directions, but no word yet on whether it'll have text-to-voice (which is the difference, for those who don't know, between "Turn Right Here" and "Turn Right on Market Street"). Garmin's release photos strongly suggest it'll flip between portrait and landscape views just as easily as a... well, you know.
The Nuvifone is targeted for a Q3 release, and it'll be eligible for a SquareTrade cell phone warranty when ours it finally arrives. We'll hopefully find out who's carrying it and how much it'll cost by then, too.
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