As with Navigon’s booth yesterday, Garmin’s CeBIT showcase was overflowing with Earthlings. Many of which, as you could likely guess, were swooning over the recently announced nüvi 1200 and 1300 series navigators. Naturally, the flavors found here in Hannover were those with different variations of European maps, but aside from the routes, everything will be the same on North American versions. The hippest addition to these two are the public transit maps, which inform individuals on foot what subway / tube to hop on, where to get off, which bus to take from there and how long to stay on. Frankly, it’s a Euro-tripper’s dream come true. Check out the photo gallery below, and if you’re wondering, there’s evidently no “Engadget” within the confines of “Germany.” We’d argue otherwise, of course.

Filed under: GPS

Garmin nüvi 1200 and 1300 hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Asus’ P565 superphone canned due to Garmin partnership? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Feb 2009 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We know, there was an absolute flood of news from Mobile World Congress today, but day one in Spain has finally come to a close, and it looks like Microsoft is flexing all its muscle to try and lock up partners and rejoin the fight for mobile dominance. Seriously, this is Redmond’s show: we haven’t seen a new, non-prototype Android handset powered up yet, and that’s frankly astonishing and somewhat disappointing. What else did we learn?

Continue reading MWC day one: the Empire strikes back

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MWC day one: the Empire strikes back originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Feb 2009 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/gadgets/Garmin_Asus_nuvifone_G60_hands_on_Engadget’; We got a bumpy car ride through Barcelona, and handled the newly spruced-up and official Garmin-Asus nuvifone G60 along the way. The phone has come a very long way since we last saw it, with a snappy, smooth interface, and nary a glitch or crash. The touchscreen keyboard — usable in portrait and landscape modes — is no pretender to the iPhone’s throne, but is one of the best we’ve seen on a resistive touch device. We also found the WebKit-based browser to be one of the smoother ones we’ve seen outside the T-Mobile G1 and the iPhone. The phone is pretty slow when reorienting itself or entering certain applications, and, as feared, there seems a general lack of depth to the functionality of the actual “smartphone” features like calendar or contacts, but the location-based services — in the car and out — really do bring a lot to the table.

Update: we added a video after the break, pardon the bumps!

Continue reading Garmin-Asus nuvifone G60 hands-on (Update: now with video!)

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Handhelds

Garmin-Asus nuvifone G60 hands-on (Update: now with video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 15 Feb 2009 17:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So, we played around with the new Windows Mobile-sportin’ nuvifone M20 from Garmin-Asus this evening, but there’s really not much to say: the software is barely even alpha at this point. Most every tap or swipe of the screen was met with a two or more second delay, and we managed to crash a couple of the phones. That said, it’s clear that Garmin-Asus aren’t just adding a pretty launcher to Windows Mobile and calling it a day, there’s some good navigation and location-based stuff happening here, and we look forward to playing around with it all once it’s closer to reality. We don’t look forward to meeting the resistive touch screen a second time, but we’ll just have to live with that fact — at least the Garmin-Asus apps are all touch-optimized, but you might have to pull out the stylus for a gander at the rest of Windows Mobile 6.1.

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Garmin-Asus nuvifone M20 hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 15 Feb 2009 14:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know it people. It’s the Engadget Podcast, back on the most terrifying Friday in February (or any month for that matter) — the 13th. This week you get to hear the dudes discuss the Kindle 2 / Stephen King encounters, new offerings from Garmin on the mobile front, predictions for Mobile World Congress (which starts next week), and so, so, so much more. Settle in and get ready to glide on the gentle sounds of Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, and special guest host Chris Ziegler. We guarantee you’ll love it.

Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel
Special guest host: Chris Ziegler
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Song: Friday the 13th theme

00:02:00 - Kindle 2 first hands-on!
00:07:25 - Know Your Rights: Does the Kindle 2’s text-to-speech infringe authors’ copyrights?
00:16:33 - Palm’s done with PalmOS, plans to get Pre on other carriers in 2010, speaks to patent issues
00:22:27 - Sprint Treo Pro getting delayed into a bleak, uncertain future?
00:31:45 - Data tethering is a go on Palm Pre
00:37:40 - Garmin-Asus announces Windows Mobile-based nuvifone M20
00:38:50 - Garmin slips out a few more nuvifone G60 details
00:50:15 - An Engadget adventure with TeleNav’s G1 GPS software: hands-on, impressions, and video
01:00:30 - Samsung Acme i8910 gets caught flashing its S60 5th Edition
01:05:25 - MWC predictions

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Engadget Podcast 133 - 02.13.2009: Pre-MWC edition originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Feb 2009 15:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Even a solid year after its announcement, we still don’t have an exact price or date for the nuvifone G60 — but we do have a little bit better of an idea of what exactly we’re going to be getting. We already knew that it’d feature a 3.5-inch (well, 3.55-inch, to be exact) display and HSDPA, and now we know that it’ll feature the same Ciao! buddy-finding software found in its M20 stablemate. There’ll be a 3 megapixel autofocus cam complete with geotagging, WiFi, preloaded maps for either North American or Eastern and Western Europe depending on your region, and dummy-resistant tools like “Where am I?” that should be familiar to current nuvi users. The interface looks promising — and the specs are still reasonably competitive by 2009 standards — but all will be revealed when the G60 gets put through its paces in a few days.

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Handhelds

Garmin slips out a few more nuvifone G60 details originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Feb 2009 02:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’d been secretly holding out hope that Garmin-Asus would pull an Android piece out of its pocket in time for MWC next week, but it’s looking pretty unlikely with the announcement of the M20. The second model in the nuvifone series following the G60, the new piece runs Windows Mobile 6.1 and features a 2.8-inch VGA touchscreen, quadband EDGE / triband HSDPA up to 7.2Mbps, WiFi, Bluetooth, and — naturally — Garmin-provided satellite navigation. You’ll also find support for real-time traffic, weather, movie times, and other tidbits of information you’re probably interested in when you’re navigating, either 4 or 8GB of onboard storage, and a service Garmin is calling Ciao! — basically a friend-finder along the lines of Google’s Latitude. Look for pricing and availability to be announced in the first half of the year.

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Handhelds

Garmin-Asus announces Windows Mobile-based nuvifone M20 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Feb 2009 01:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Friends — the Engadget Podcast is here for you once again. It’s time to kick off your shoes, twist your hat sideways, whip the tie across the room, and settle in for some good old, homespun tech punditry. Join Josh, a newly-healthy Paul, and Nilay as they whisk you away to the promised land of gadgety goings-on. Today you can hear the boys discuss Windows 7 SKUs, rap about Nüvifone developments, answer reader questions, and so much more. Strap in for the most thrilling ride you’ll ever take. Ever.

Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Paul Miller, Nilay Patel
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Song: 4 Minutes

00:01:09 - Engadget’s recession antidote
00:04:35 - Buy this book: Chris Ziegler’s ‘T-Mobile G1 For Dummies’
00:06:23 - BlackBerry Blowout: Storm vs. Bold vs. Curve 8900
00:16:45 - Windows 7 SKUs announced: your worst nightmare has come to pass
00:35:10 - Windows 7 multitouch: it’s a gimmick (for now)
00:47:08 - Toshiba TG01 GUI, video playback demoed on film
00:53:45 - Garmin, ASUS form partnership for phones, nuvifone G60 first model
01:03:54 - Reader questions

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Engadget Podcast 132 - 02.06.2009 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Feb 2009 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We knew the nuvifone was an ASUS-sourced piece, but who knew the partnership was going to run so deep? Garmin and ASUS have joined hands to create the Garmin-Asus strategic alliance with the goal of designing and producing a whole line of co-branded handsets. The first model will be what we’ve come to know so well over the past year simply as “the nuvifone,” but it’ll be branded as the nuvifone G60 by the time it actually comes to market in the first half of the year. Several Garmin-Asus phones are expected in 2009, and it sounds like the second model in the series will be announced at MWC later this month. Now, wouldn’t it just be great if we had a G60 here that we could use to navigate to Barcelona?

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Handhelds

Garmin, ASUS form partnership for phones, nuvifone G60 first model originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Feb 2009 01:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’re not quite sure what’s up with Garmin, a company known almost exclusively for its navigation technology, releasing watches that lack GPS, but it seems to be a trend on alternate years. Back in 2007 there was the receiver-less Forerunner 50, then the happily GPS-enabled Forerunner 405 made made an appearance last year, and now we have the FR60, new but again bereft of any ability to tell you where you are. It sounds much the same as the older 50, including wireless connectivity with ANT+ devices to monitor heart rate, running pace, cycling cadence, and cycling speed, as well as the ability to sync automatically and wirelessly with a PC or Mac. New is the slim and (debatably) fashionable package — that’s the men’s above, women’s model in lovely lilac shown below. No word on availability or price, but we certainly hope the company won’t charge a premium for a styling tweak and a shorter name.

Update: Looks like they’re up for pre-order at $129, shipping next quarter.

[Via gizmag, thx Noodlehead]

Continue reading Garmin’s FR60 Fitness Watch won’t help if you’re lost, might help you lose weight

Filed under: Wearables, Wireless

Garmin’s FR60 Fitness Watch won’t help if you’re lost, might help you lose weight originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Feb 2009 09:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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nüvi 885T reviewed - speech recognition ‘great,’ detour function ‘not so much’ originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Jan 2009 10:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So Garmin’s coming out swinging in response to that Digitimes piece this morning suggesting that Android-based devices are on the way — sort of. The company says that “the story contains a number of inaccuracies in both sales figures and product rollout schedules,” and while it does say it has “an Android-based phone under development,” it also reminds us that Nuvifone won’t be it; instead, Garmin’s first modern entry into the world of telephony will be based on a proprietary build of Linux, as was originally planned. We have to question the wisdom of this two-pronged approach since it almost obsoletes the Nuvifone before it’s even released, but then again, maybe they’re just pushing to get something out the door — we’ve been waiting for this puppy for a year now, after all. See the full statement after the break.

Continue reading Garmin says Nuvifone isn’t Android-based, but Android stuff is on the way

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Garmin says Nuvifone isn’t Android-based, but Android stuff is on the way originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Dec 2008 13:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Some interesting news is coming out of the Garmin camp this fine morning, including word that the company somehow managed to buck all manner of economic trends and boost its holiday sales by 50 percent over 2007. (Apparently peoples’ 401(k) valuations weren’t the only things getting lost this year.) The company also confirmed that its Nuvifone, which is getting a bit long in the tooth despite being unavailable, is indeed still coming — but won’t be hitting Taiwan at least until Q2 of next year, and there’s no indication of whether we’ll be seeing it a little earlier ’round these parts. Finally, and most intriguingly, is confirmation of what the company plans to do first with that freshly laminated Open Handset Alliance membership card: multiple new Android phones are said to be in the works, due for release sometime in the second half of 2009. No further information is available, and while the smart thing might be for Garmin to focus on getting its first handset out the door before drafting a successor, we think any excuse for a new costume on our favorite green Android is a good one.

[Via GPS Tracklog]

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS

Garmin planning Android-powered handsets for late 2009 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Dec 2008 09:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: GPS

Garmin launched its updated 7×5 series of nuvi navigators back in August, but the high-end MSN Direct-equipped 785T is just hitting stores, and GPS Magazine says it’s a solid improvement over previous nuvis — but if you’re not willing to pay the $50 / year for the MSN service, you’re probably not going to miss it. The 785T drew high marks for its fast frame rate, nice 3D lane guidance / upcoming turn features, and semi-realistic building displays, but the MSN Direct traffic implementation was less accurate than the free traffic service built into lesser T-series nuvis, and download speeds for the service weren’t particularly swift. We’re not all that sold on the connected GPS concept yet, so we’re inclined to take the reviewer’s advice and pick up the otherwise-identical non-connected 765T, but click on for the full exhaustive review to decide for yourself.

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Filed under: GPS

We get plenty of emails from big-time drug smugglers in Miami who want to know: “When will Garmin provide a comprehensive, affordable GPS solution, at home both on the road and the water?” Looks like we’re one step closer to an answer with the GPSMAP 600 series. These rugged, portable touchscreen nav units feature a 5.2-inch display (800 x 480) and come with two mounts: when placed in either the marine or auto mount, the device will start up in the appropriate mode. On the road, the domestic GPSMAP 640 ($1,199 MSRP) provides the maps, turn-by-turn directions, custom POIs and proximity alerts you expect. On the water you get aerial POI views and optional BlueChart g2 Vision for underwater 3D perspective. Rounding things out, XM WX Satellite Weather data, XM Satellite Radio and XM NavTraffic are available with the optional GXM 40 antenna and subscription. The international GPSMAP 620 ($999 MSRP) is a bit scaled down, with street maps and marine chart data available through the SD card slot. There you have it, kids — and keep an eye out for Crockett and Tubbs!

[Thanks, Rich]

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Filed under: GPS

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Filed under: GPS

We got a brief glimpse at Garmin’s new nüvi navigators, the 7×5 Series and 2×5 Series. Since we weren’t on the road, the 755T treated us to 3D views of the IFA building we were chilling at, spinning at a blistering 10 fps. The Lane Assist also does what it says on the box, giving you a crystal clear look at your next merge. The 265T was considerably less dramatic, and both units show a considerable amount of boredom on the industrial design front. Garmin clearly knows what it’s about when it comes to navigation devices, but we could use a bit more spice with those maps to keep us coming back.

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Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Handhelds

Oh, Nuvifone, how you disappoint us. Over here at IFA we just managed to get a Garmin rep to whip out his Nuvifone prototype for a quick look, but sadly, almost a year after the device was first announced, there really wasn’t anything new to see. We still aren’t allowed to take video of the interface, or really see much of the phone other than the home screen, and when the rep tried to show us how the Nuvifone kicks the iPhone’s ass in navigation, the Nuvi promptly crashed — so at least those two have that in common. Not that we should be surprised, Garmin mentioned last month that the phone had been delayed into 2009, but we’re quickly running out of patience, as well as any scrap of remaining hope for this thing to actually matter when it does arrive. Peep the gallery for a little bit of iPhone 3G versus action.

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Filed under: GPS

Garmin’s Oregon 400 nav comes in a few different flavors depending on how you like to experience the outdoors, but the essential 3-inch touchscreen package is the same, and it looks like it’s a winner — the folks at PC Magazine just put the 400t variant through its paces, and found that it’s an “excellent hiking companion.” Of course, for six bills you’d damn well better get a sensitive GPS receiver with quick acquisition times, but the 400t also impressed with solid battery life on just two AAs and easy set up. Of course, as an outdoor-centric PND, the highway guidance features are a bit lacking compared to devices like Garmin’s Nuvis, but if you’re looking to tromp around the woods in style and you’ve got cash to spare, it sounds like the Oregon series is worth a look.

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