If you're thinking of getting a more up to date mobile phone this year, you may want to wait until the autumn - when “the next level” will be available.
Garmin, the world's leading GPS manufacturer, today announced its entrance into the mobile phone market with the nüvifone - “an all-in-one, sleek and slim, touchscreen device that combines a premium phone, mobile web-browser and cutting-edge personal navigator.”
The nüvifone, described as “a work of art in features, design and functionality” is expected to transform how individuals connect, communicate and navigate their life.
“The nüvifone is an all-in-one device offering unmatched integration of utility and function in a single mobile device,” said Cliff Pemble, Garmin's president and CEO. “This is the breakthrough product that mobile phone and GPS users around the world have been longing for - a single device that does it all.”
The all-touchscreen device is claimed to be the first to integrate premium 3.5G (HSDPA) mobile phone capability with an internet browser, data connectivity, personal messaging and personal navigation functions. When powered on, the 3.5-inch touchscreen display reveals three primary icons - “Call,” “Search,” and “View Map.”
Calls are made by tapping the “Call” button and selecting a name from the contact list or by using the on-screen keypad. When the nüvifone is docked on to the vehicle mount, it automatically turns on the GPS, activates the navigation menu, and enables hands-free calling so that the user can continue a conversation and begin routing to their destination simultaneously.
The nüvifone includes preloaded maps of North America, Eastern and Western Europe, or both and allows drivers to find a specific address, establishment's name or search for a destination by category using a built-in database with millions of points of interest. Turn-by-turn, voice-prompted directions guide the user to their destination. If they miss a turn, nüvifone automatically recalculates a route and gets them back on track, speaking the names of the streets.
The nüvifone is Garmin's first device to include Google local search capability. Users can search for locations like “coffee shops” and Google will sort the results based on current location and relevance. The nüvifone also includes personal messaging functions, including email, text, and instant messaging.
A “Where am I?” feature lets users touch the screen at any time to display the exact latitude and longitude coordinates, the nearest address and intersection, and the closest hospitals, police stations and petrol stations. The nüvifone also helps drivers find their car in an unfamiliar spot by automatically marking the position in which it was last removed from the vehicle mount.
In addition to navigation, the nüvifone includes access to Garmin Online, offering constantly-updated information such as real-time traffic, fuel prices, stock prices, sport scores, news reports, local events and weather forecasts.
The nüvifone also includes numerous mobile entertainment applications. The built-in camera can tag pictures with the exact latitude and longitude reference of where they was taken. The user may then save the image so they can navigate back to the location, or email the image so that the recipient can navigate directly to the location. The nüvifone also provides direct access to millions of geo-located landmark and sightseeing photographs available through Google's Panoramio picture sharing site. Other multimedia functions include a built-in video camera, MP3 and MPEG4/AAC.
Garmin says that the nüvifone will be available in the third quarter of 2008. Specific details about pricing and sales partners have yet to be announced. There's no information yet on whether it will be able to take marine charts for navigation at sea. But as it can do almost everything else, there seems no reason to believe it won't!
For more information visit www.garmin.com/nuvifone
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