Garmin about to get out of Asus Jail?

From GPS Tracklog About Rich Owings

Rich is the owner, editor and chief bottle-washer for GPS Tracklog. Connect with him on Twitter, Facebook or Google Plus.

Screenshots from Garmin Navigator for Australia

When Garmin and Asus ended their ill-fated nuvifone partnership, Garmin gave Asus an exclusive for any preloaded navigation apps through the end of 2012. Because of this, quite a few Garmin watchers expect an announcement of a Garmin navigation app for Android early this year. But that may not happen.

A tough market and another option

The market for Android navigation apps is challenging; the developers must compete with the free and always improving Google Maps Navigation app that comes preloaded on Android handsets. Not that is isn’t without significant flaws, but at free, it’s good enough for most folks. The TomTom USA app has sold less than 1,000 units to date. Garmin has had more luck down under, with over 100,000 installs. Even so, when I saw this morning that Garmin had swung a deal with Samsung for preloading their Navgon app on the Galaxy Note 2, it made me wonder if Garmin wouldn’t be better off striking such deals with manufacturers. This would be a good differentiator for companies in the hyper-competitive mobile market.

We should know soon

Regardless, the picture should be clearer by the end of February, as I’m expecting an announcement one way or the other at Mobile World Congress. Which way do you think they will go – an app you can buy or a deal with a manufacturer?

Garmin Slow to Wake Up?

Apple Knocks Garmin’s Turnaround Story Off the Road

Garmin's comeback attempt seems to have fallen short

Jun 13, 2012, 6:30 am EDT   |   By James Brumley, InvestorPlace Contributor

Assuming you’ve not been on a mission to Mars during the last couple of years, then you’re at least vaguely familiar with the phrase “There’s an app for that” — the running-joke-that’s-not-a-joke describing how smartphones like Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone and Samsung’s Galaxy can be made to do anything from recognize a melody to serve as a voodoo doll.

Oh, and these smartphones can perform some more practical functions too. Just ask the folks at Garmin (NASDAQ:GRMN).

Prior to the advent of smartphones in 2007 with the debut of the first iPhone, Garmin was the name in portable global positioning systems (you know, GPS) and satellite-guided driving directions. However, once consumers started to realize smartphones could do the same — as well as play music, be a flashlight and even test the ripeness of a watermelon — the choice became something of a no-brainer: Smartphones win, and Garmin devices lose. The sales numbers and Garmin’s stock price since then have somewhat — though not radically — reflected that opinion.

Yet, knowing that all things are cyclical, one can’t help but wonder if the worst of the migration to smartphones as a GPS device is over. Said in plainer terms, could Garmin actually be a buy now?
Numbers Don’t Lie

In terms of earnings, Garmin’s best year ever was 2007. It cleared $3.80 per share that year, though the revenue peak was actually in 2008 with a top line of $3.5 billion. Either figure basically supports the notion that 2007 marked the beginning of the downturn, though, for stand-alone GPS as well as digital-roadmap devices. Both have fallen every year since then, save last year’s revenue, which was a tad better than 2010’s $2.69 billion.

The flipside: Although comparably capable smartphone usage has soared from zero in 2006 to the currently active user base of a little more than 1 billion (yes, 15% of the entire world’s population are smartphone users), not all of them have opted to use their phone over a devoted handheld GPS device. Indeed, surprisingly few of them have made the switch.

The proof of the pudding is in Garmin’s still-respectable numbers. Though last year’s $2.7 billion in sales is off the 2008 peak, it’s only 22% off that peak sales line. Even more compelling is the fact that unit sales are still accelerating for the company. Q1-2012’s 2.7 million devices sold was 7% better than the year-ago number, though the sale rate has been increasing for a couple of years.

But wasn’t the widespread adoption of smartphones supposed to obliterate the now-obsolete device? Yes it was, but no, it didn’t. This is where things get interesting for investors.
Not As Good?

Not that smartphones haven’t taken at least a little wind out of Garmin’s sails (and sales), but with three years to study the impact, perhaps the smartphone isn’t as big of a threat as first assumed.

Consumers aren’t shy about telling you why either. Though clever, the fact of the matter is, most smartphones can’t do what hardcore hikers, drivers and lost people really need done.

As for an explanation of why GPS device sales haven’t skyrocketed along with smartphones, that’s relatively simple, too. Mobile phones are viewed as, and almost deigned to be, consumables; techphiles wouldn’t be caught dead with yesteryear’s iPhone. Global positioning toys and satellite-linked dashboard maps, however, don’t become obsolete as quickly as phones do. All things considered, though, GPS equipment sales have held up surprisingly well compared to mobile phone sales.

Could it be Garmin has a prayer after all? That might have been the case until Monday.
The End of an Era, the End of a Company

You hate to see it happen, but then again, it’s not all that unusual.

Yesterday, Apple announced it would be using TomTom’s comparable GPS technology to power the related hardware in devices running its new operating system, iOS 6. In one fell swoop, the functionality gap that had so far been unfilled by tablets and smartphones — the gap filled by Garmins and Harman (NYSE:HAR) devices — was filled. As Apple’s Senior VP of the new operating system Scott Forstall described, it’s a “new mapping solution built from the ground up.” And sure enough, it is, complete with the all-important turn-by-turn navigation feature.

The question is, just how much of a blow is Apple’s new maps app to Garmin’s actual revenue? That’s the part that makes you wince.

Recognizing that sales in certain areas were waning, the company was in the midst of a deliberate effort to bolster sales in the arena Apple just likely commandeered, crimping one of its last remaining lifelines. Ironically, had the company not waded into those waters and focused so deeply on the automotive market, and instead developed the daylights out of the sporting and high-end usage markets (like hiking and airplane and aquatic navigation), it’s a conversation that might be moot now. Ugh.

Garmin has publicly stated it doesn’t see Apple’s decision as a problem, though the rebuttal sounds and feels a little desperate, with a dose of denial. And it’s too bad, as Garmin was just starting to look like a decent turnaround story.

Now it doesn’t.

Garmin Keeps Punching Back...

The Blog at GPS Tracklog has constructed a darn-fine review of Garmin's Smartphone Link.  I am going to be digging into this one a bit more as it has some interesting linkage opportunities... if you can only buy-pass is for "fee" services?

Garmin Smartphone Link review

June 11, 2012 By Rich OwingsLeave a Comment


I’ve been living with Garmin’s Smartphone Link Android app for a few months now, and there are a lot of things I like about it. I haven’t tested all the features, but I’ll walk you through the ones I have tried.

About the Smartphone Link app

The Android app itself is available free from Google Play and Garmin is apparently looking into an iPhone version. It is compatible with newer nuvis with Bluetooth, which means you can use it with the nüvi 2475LT, 2495LMT, 2595LM, 2595LMT, 3490LMT and 3590LMT. You may need a firmware update for it to work with your model.

There are both free and premium features available within the app. Free ones include the ability to send a destination to the nuvi from your phone, basic weather, dynamic parking and Garmin tracker. Premium live services include traffic, photoLive traffic cameras, fuel prices and advanced weather.

Let’s look at a few of these in more detail…
Send a destination from your phone

This is definitely one of my favorite features, as it allows you to search for points of interest (POIs) from Google Maps on your phone (see images above and below) and send them to your nuvi. You can even plan trips ahead of time by starring a destination on your computer, accessing it in Google Maps on your phone and sending it to your nuvi. Best of all, this feature is free.
photoLive traffic cameras

This is a premium feature which costs $9.99 per year, but it seems like a very useful one to commuters. You can set it up to show your favorite cameras and then tap on one to see a full screen image. Here’s a link allowing you to check to see what traffic cameras are available in your area.


Basic weather

This free feature provides localized weather forecasts.




Advanced weather

Pay an extra $4.99 per year and you’ll get color-coded animated radar imagery and weather alerts.


Tracker

The free Tracker feature allows you to share your location via an emailed link, Twitter or Facebook. It has some nice flexibility built-in, allowing you to do things like customize how long you can be tracked. The flip side is that it is cumbersome. Garmin seems concerned (and rightfully so) about privacy issues, but they may have gone a bit overboard and made it needlessly complex.



As a result, I encourage you to play around with this feature and make sure you have it working properly before you depend upon it to send your location to anyone.


Your turn

Are you using Smartphone Link? Do you find it worthwhile? Have you tried the live traffic or fuel price services? If so, let us know what you think.

Garmin Nuvi - Car 54 Where are you??

Using Garmin nuvis for fleet tracking

from GPS Tracklog by Rich Owings

Did you know you can use a Garmin nuvi or dezl for fleet tracking? Yes, you can dispatch and message vehicles, track them using a Web interface and more. In order to do this though, you’ll have to turn to one of Garmin’s Mobile Resource Management (MRM) partners. These companies have taken Garmin’s Fleet Management Interface toolkit and built an end to end solution around it. So in addition to the cost of the navigation unit, you’ll also be paying for a transponder, data usage and access to a fleet tracking Web interface.


Ryan Driscoll of GPS Insightwas kind enough to provide me with some sample pricing, which would typically include a:

Garmin cable that plugs into the GPSI-3900 tracking device ($75), and the GPSI-3900 device ($300). Our typical monthly service fee is $32.95 per vehicle and for Garmin integration it is an additional $2. Keep in mind that all of our pricing is tiered based on how many units are being purchased.

If you’re curious and want to know more, their website has some video demos of their tracking solution.

Garmin Sort of Working with Android?

Hey Guys!

I previously had a Windows Mobile phone and the contacts in that phone would show up perfectly in my Garmin Nuvi 765T. However, my Droid doesn't seem to work  I get a Bluetooth connection because the phone icon pops up and I can make a phone call by pressing the numbers on the Garmin screen but none of the contacts are there.

I know the Droid isn't officially supported on the Garmin website but neither were the other phones I had which did work  I'm hoping I'm just not doing something correct and others have been successful in being able to see their Droid contacts on their Garmin devices. Any luck out there and if so which model are you using (did see where one guy had a non Nuvi working)?

If it isn't something that currently works, is it something that is even possible with an app that when running could "port" the contacts correctly to the Garmin?

Thanks for any info or suggestions!


FYI, good news! This actually works right out of the box. I just missed a key step during the pairing process.

Right after the two "connect" there is a breif period where there is a little Bluetooth icon in the notification bar. Swipe this bar down to display the notification and then select the option to allow the Droid's contact list to be sent to the Garmin. If you miss this little step, I don't think you get the option again to do this. I ended up deleting the pairing then re-doing it and was then able to allow this option.

Anyway, just wanted to post back that at least the Nuvi 765T works great with the Droid so long as you don't miss that little notification!

Garmin2575 Nuvi Video?

Garmin Nuvi 2575 with video recording

MAR 23, 2011 

Garmin has a new new GPS navigation system coming out called nuvi 2575. We got the documents from FCC and it looks like the new 2575 and 2575R will support video recording with the help of an camera accessory. That’s not all though. Looks like this model will also come with analog TV with integrated antenna, an external TV antenna connector, and also support from FM TMC traffic receiver.

From some of the screen shots in the manual [pdf] we can see that this Garmin Nuvi may not be intended for US release plus we don’t do much analog TV here in the U.S. of A. – which kinda brings up the question: “why is this going through FCC then?”.

But either way you can expect some sort of Garmin Nuvi 2500 series device for the US market soon hopefully with the ability to record videos. Will this record videos with GPS information embedded? It sure didn’t look like from the manual. Don’t expect this to be a GPS car black box such as Black Vue, Ace, or Mio.

GPS units have been hit hard these couple of years since pretty much all smartphones are capable of giving you driving directions and turn-by-turn directions with apps. Garmin’s nuvi 2575R has a twist to it that could give GPS devices a leg up. The new unit has an optional camera you can attach to it to record your driving.

Being able to record your driving could really help people out in those “he said, she said” situations when a car accident occurs. With video evidence of what happened it could really help, or hurt, your argument. The nuvi 2575R also comes with a TV tuner as well, which I guess is so that you can watch your favorite sports team while driving. That doesn’t make much sense, but I suppose that the resulting accident could at least be caught on the nuvi dash cam.

No price was given on how much the unit will cost you, or how much the extra camera will run you as well should you choose to attach it to the nuvi 2575R. This is definitely something a smartphone can’t do as your GPS directional unit, at least until some developer makes an app for it.


For those of you stateside though, I suspect we will see Garmin units with driving recorders a little later this year. If the 2575R model is any indication, we can expect a separate camera (pictured below), and you’ll probably need to pony up for an add-on subscription. You can hit up the FCC link for more info, but the boys in DC don’t keep their security certificates valid, so you can expect a big old warning from your browser.

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What’s missing from the nuvi 295W?

Garmin nuvi 295W review

from GPS Tracklog by Rich Owings

What’s missing from the nuvi 295W?

Unlike some nuvis, the following features are missing from the 295W:

• Does not warn you when speeding
• Map screen data fields cannot be customized
• Voice commands
• Lane assist and junction view
• 3D buildings
• Bluetooth
• FM traffic compatibility
• ecoRoute
• Audio book player
• FM transmitter

The nuvifone G60 connection

The nuvi 295W appears to utilize components originally created for the nuvifone G60. The case is nearly identical, and the tri-axial compass and accelerometer appear to be holdovers from the design as well. Garmin has apparently found a way to recoup some of their losses from their initial and less than successful entry into the world of smartphones. The only real negatives are that it ended up with the external speaker of a phone, instead of that of a personal navigation device, and the battery isn’t up to constant WiFi access.

Garmin nuvi 295W pros

• Email access via WiFi networks
• Small, pocket-sized
• Easy WiFi and email setup
• Powered mount
• Multi-destination routing
• Fully compatible with pedestrian and mass transit features of CityXplorer maps
• Tri-axial compass

Garmin nuvi 295W cons

• Very short battery life
• Speaker is not loud enough
• 3.5” screen
• 2.5 mm headphone jack
• Very slow browser
• No traffic capabilities (not available as an add-on either)

Recommendation

As I said in the beginning, the nuvi 295W is a good choice for someone who would like email on the go, but isn’t ready to spring for a smartphone data plan. Were it not for the speaker and battery life (more deal killers than the weak browser, IMHO), I’d recommend this without hesitation. As it stands, caveat emptor.

More Garmin nuvi 295W reviews

• Consumer-authored Garmin nuvi 295W reviews have been posted at Amazon
• A user review of the nuvi 295W posted at GPS Review

I’ll be posting more hands on GPS reviews as they appear, but in the meantime, here are some…

Other Garmin nuvi 295W resources

• A PDF version of the Garmin nuvi 295W owners manual
• Want to see how the 295W stacks up against other models? Check out this Garmin auto GPS comparisontool or my own Garmin nuvi comparison chart
• There is a dedicated Garmin nuvi message forum at GpsPasSion
• And another nuvi forum at GPS Review
• The official Garmin nuvi 295W web page