Garmin’s Entrance into Smartphone Market Confirmed

That Garmin has entered into the smartphone market is no longer a speculation, it is a fact that has come to stay and this was made available by Garmin itself on Wednesday evening.

With its Nuviphone which comes with powerful features, Garmin is ready to contribute its own quota to the smartphone market.

Garmin revealed that it will make the Nuviphone available by the third quarter of this year with the promise that it is going to be a "work of art in features, design and functionality". The device features a 3.5-inch touchscreen; 3.5G cellular connectivity, including data, Internet, e-mail, and messaging capabilities; a built-in camera and multimedia file playback functions; and of course GPS-based navigation.

As a hybrid product, Nuviphone combines features of cell phone, a Web browser, and GPS into just a single device. The device features a 3.5-inch touch screen ; 3.5G cellular connectivity, including data, Internet, e-mail, and messaging capabilities; a built-in camera and multimedia file playback functions; and of course GPS-based navigation. The home screen consists of three major features namely; call, search and view map synchronized to function as cell phone, Web browser and GPS respectively

According to the company, when Nuviphone is powered on, the touch screen display reveals three primary icons for calling, searching, and map viewing functions, according to Garmin. When the Nuvifone is docked onto a vehicle mount, it automatically turns on the GPS, activates the navigation menu, and enables hands-free calling.

Garmin also said that the Nuvifone shares the navigation capabilities found in the company's line of Nuvi PNDs. The device also includes Google local search capability, the first Garmin device to do so, as well as access to Google's Panoramio, the search engine company's photo sharing site. It will also feature access to Garmin Online, an online service offering real-time traffic reports, fuel prices, stock prices, sport scores, news reports, local events, and weather forecasts, according to the company.

The company promised that details about the pricing and market would be revealed in due time.