Garmin-Asus announces newest Android smartphone with Garmin navigation

Garmin-Asus, a co-branded alliance between Garmin^®Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN), and ASUSTeK^®Computer Inc. (TAIEX: 2357), today announced the Garmin-Asus A10, a touchscreen smartphone running on the Android™ platform that is optimized for pedestrian and in-car navigation. The A10 is expected to be available in mid-2010 in Europe and Asia-Pacific.

 

For those times when walking is the best way to go, the A10 is ideal for city navigation because of its bright, 3.2-inch HVGA touch screen, electronic compass and long-lasting 1500mAh battery. As with other Garmin-Asus Android-powered devices, the A10’s GPS capabilities are optimized to ensure that customers have the best location and navigation experience a smartphone can offer. Detailed maps are preloaded on the A10 so that users do not have to pay and wait for third party maps to download from a server, nor will they lose their turn-by-turn, voice-prompted navigation if they are out of cell phone coverage. In addition to pedestrian navigation, the A10 is ready for use in an automobile out-of-the-box, and it comes with a powered audio mount that magnifies the volume of the device’s voice commands.

The A10 is a full-featured smartphone on the Android platform that integrates Google™ Mobile Services with one-click access to Google Maps™, Gmail™, YouTube™, calendar, contacts and Android Market™, where users can find more than 30,000 applications to expand and personalize their phone to fit their lifestyle. Android applications that include location-centric content are also able to utilize the A10’s enhanced GPS capability.

 

To optimize a user’s ability to stay in touch with family, friends and business contacts, the A10 is compatible with Microsoft Exchange server and will wirelessly synchronize contacts, calendar and enterprise email. Account setup is quick and easy, and in a few simple steps users will have their contacts, calendar and email ready to go.

Additional A10 smartphone features include a powerful WebKit browser with multi-touch,

five mega-pixel camera including auto-focus capability that automatically geotags images with an exact location reference.  The built-in accelerometer will quickly change the display so that screens may be viewed in portrait or landscape mode.

 

The A10 also supports optional cityXplorer™ maps, which makes it possible to plan and use routes that include public transit options such as bus, tramway, metro and suburban rail systems.

The Garmin-Asus A10 is expected to be available in mid-2010 in Europeand Asia-Pacific. Additional information about Garmin-Asus products is available at www.GarminAsus.com.

About Garmin-Asus
Garmin-Asus is a co-branded strategic alliance that enables Garmin Ltd. and ASUSTeK Computer Inc. to combine their complementary resources to develop world class LBS-centric mobile phones.

About Garmin Ltd.

The global leader in satellite navigation, Garmin Ltd. and its subsidiaries have designed, manufactured, marketed and sold navigation, communication and information devices and applications since 1989 – most of which are enabled by GPS technology.  Garmin’s products serve automotive, mobile, wireless, outdoor recreation, marine, aviation, and OEM applications. Garmin Ltd. is incorporated in the Cayman Islands, and its principal subsidiaries are located in the United States, Taiwan and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit Garmin's virtual pressroom at www.garmin.com/pressroom or contact the Media Relations department at 913-397-8200.

About ASUS

ASUS is a leading company in the new digital era, with a broad product portfolio that includes notebooks, netbooks, motherboards, graphics cards, displays, desktop PCs, servers, wireless solutions, mobile phones and networking devices. Driven by innovation and committed to quality, ASUS designs and manufactures products that perfectly meet the needs of today’s home and office users. ASUS won 3,268 awards in 2009, and is widely credited with revolutionizing the PC industry with the Eee PC™. With a global staff of more than 10,000 and a world-class R&D design team, the company’s revenue for 2009 was US$7.5 billion. ASUS ranks among BusinessWeek’s InfoTech 100, and has been on the listing for 12 consecutive years.

ASUS is a registered trademark of ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Garmin is a registered trademark, and cityXplorer is a trademark of Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries.

Google, Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Android and Android Market are trademarks of Google, Inc.

All other brands, product names, company names, trademarks and service marks are the properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

Notice on forward-looking statements:
This release includes forward-looking statements regarding Garmin Ltd. and its business. All statements regarding the company’s future product introductions are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on management's current expectations. The forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in this release may not occur and actual results could differ materially as a result of known and unknown risk factors and uncertainties affecting Garmin, including, but not limited to, the risk factors listed in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 26, 2009, filed by Garmin with the Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission file number 0-31983).A copy of Garmin’s Form 10-K can be downloaded at www.garmin.com/aboutGarmin/invRelations/finReports.html. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made and Garmin undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Dutch KPN and Garmin-Asus announces exclusive marketing and distribution agreement for the new Android nüvifone A10 smartphone

KPN and Garmin-Asus, today announced KPN will *be the first operator in the Netherlands to sell the new Garmin-Asus nüvifone A10, a touchscreen smartphone running on the Android™ platform that is optimized for pedestrian and in-car navigation. The new A10 smartphone will be available for pre-order exclusively through KPN’s Dutch brands in May for delivery in July.

 

Robbert Bakker, director of consumer mobile at KPN said, “We are pleased to be first to market with the nüvifone A10 as this navigation savvy smartphone really gets to grips with all the location based services available through the Android™ market.”

 

Adding, “The combination of smartphone, navigation and location services with our fast and reliable mobile broadband coverage is compelling; this puts interesting new services literally into the palm of your hand. Because the A10’s navigation functionalities of the phone are deeply integrated into the device, users can, for example, navigate to an address, which is stored in an email, text message, on a web site, or in the contact list. On request, the nüvifone A10 will even navigate users to a location where they have previously taken a photograph with the integrated camera or has been downloaded from Panoramio.”

 

For those times when walking is the best way to go, the A10 is ideal for city navigation because of its bright, 3.2-inch HVGA touch screen, electronic compass and long-lasting 1500mAh battery. As with other Garmin-Asus Android-powered devices, the A10’s GPS capabilities are optimized to ensure that customers have the best location and navigation experience a smartphone can offer.

 

Detailed maps are preloaded on the A10 so that users do not have to wait for third party maps to download from a server, nor will they lose their turn-by-turn, voice-prompted navigation if they are out of cell phone coverage.

 

The A10 also supports optional cityXplorer™ maps, which makes it possible to plan and use routes that include public transit options such as bus, tramway, metro and suburban rail systems. In addition to pedestrian navigation, the A10 is ready for use in an automobile out-of-the-box, and it comes with a powered audio mount that magnifies the volume of the device’s voice commands.

 

The A10 also integrates Google™ mobile services with one-click access to Google Maps™, Gmail™, YouTube™, calendar, contacts and Android Market™, where users can find more than 20,000 applications to expand and personalize their phone to fit their lifestyle. Android applications that include location-centric content are also able to utilize the A10’s enhanced GPS capability.

 

To optimize a user’s ability to stay in touch with family, friends and business contacts, the A10 is compatible with Microsoft Exchange server and will wirelessly synchronize contacts, calendar and enterprise email. Account setup is quick and easy, and in a few simple steps users will have their contacts, calendar and email ready to go.

 

Additional A10 smartphone features include a powerful WebKit browser with multi-touch,

five mega-pixel camera including auto-focus capability that automatically geotags images with an exact location reference.  The built-in accelerometer will quickly change the display so that screens may be viewed in portrait or landscape mode.

 

*60 day exclusivity in the Netherlands from start of sales

 

About Garmin-Asus
Garmin-Asus is a co-branded strategic alliance that enables Garmin Ltd. and ASUSTeK Computer Inc. to combine their complementary resources to develop world class LBS-centric mobile phones.

 

About Garmin Ltd.

The global leader in satellite navigation, Garmin Ltd. and its subsidiaries have designed, manufactured, marketed and sold navigation, communication and information devices and applications since 1989 – most of which are enabled by GPS technology.  Garmin’s products serve automotive, mobile, wireless, outdoor recreation, marine, aviation, and OEM applications. Garmin Ltd. is incorporated in the Cayman Islands, and its principal subsidiaries are located in the United States, Taiwan and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit Garmin's virtual pressroom at www.garmin.com/pressroom or contact the Media Relations department at 913-397-8200.

 

About ASUS

ASUS is a leading company in the new digital era. With a global staff of more than ten thousand and a world-class R&D design team, the company’s revenue for 2008 was 8.1 billion U.S. dollars. ASUS ranks among the top 10 IT companies in BusinessWeek’s “InfoTech 100”, and has been on the listing for 11 consecutive years. ASUS was also selected by the Wall Street Journal Asia as No.1 in quality and service.

 

ASUS is a registered trademark of ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Garmin is a registered trademark, and cityXplorer is a trademark of Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries.

 

About KPN

KPN is the leading telecommunications and ICT service provider in the Netherlands, offering wireline and wireless telephony, internet and TV to consumers and end-to-end telecom and ICT services to business customers. KPN’s subsidiary Getronics operates a global ICT services company with a market leading position in the Benelux, offering end-to-end solutions in infrastructure and network-related IT. In Germany and Belgium, KPN pursues a Challenger strategy in its wireless operations and holds number three market positions through E-Plus and BASE. In Spain and France, KPN offers wireless services as an MVNO through its own brands and through partner brands. KPN provides wholesale network services to third parties and operates an efficient IP-based infrastructure with global scale in international wholesale through iBasis.

 

 

At December 31st, 2009, KPN served over 41.2 million customers, of which 32.9 million were in wireless services, 4.7 million in wireline voice, 2.6 million in broadband Internet and 1 million in TV. With 20,755 FTEs in the Netherlands (33,148 FTEs for the whole group), KPN reported full-year revenues of EUR 13.5bn and an EBITDA of EUR 5.2bn in 2009. KPN was incorporated in 1989 and is listed on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange.

 

About Google
Google, Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Android and Android Market are trademarks of Google, Inc.

All other brands, product names, company names, trademarks and service marks are the properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

Notice on forward-looking statements:
This release includes forward-looking statements regarding Garmin Ltd. and its business. All statements regarding the company’s future product introductions are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on management's current expectations. The forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in this release may not occur and actual results could differ materially as a result of known and unknown risk factors and uncertainties affecting Garmin, including, but not limited to, the risk factors listed in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 26, 2009, filed by Garmin with the Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission file number 0-31983). A copy of Garmin’s Form 10-K can be downloaded at www.garmin.com/aboutGarmin/invRelations/finReports.html. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made and Garmin undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Garmin® Rolls Out New High-Performance Marine Handhelds

Garmin, the global leader in satellite navigation, is pleased to announce the GPSMAP 78s and the GPSMAP 78 – the latest in the range of next generation marine-friendly GPS handhelds.

The GPSMAP 78 series feature a new contemporary industrial design with rubber side grips that are ideal for navigating the great outdoors. Garmin’s flagship model, the 78s, also adds new high-end features including a 3-axis tilt-compensated electronic compass and wireless data transfer between compatible units. 

Nigel Craine, Marine and OEM Product Manager for Garmin said: “The GPSMAP 78 series demonstrates modern design and high-tech features, whilst retaining the ruggedness and durability that mariners have come to know and appreciate from the GPSMAP series.

“The GPSMAP 78 series is the perfect companion for any grab bag, Kayaker or RIB Owner, giving instant access to important information when you need it most.  It’s simple to use and if you do happen to drop it over the side, it floats!”

Thanks to the bright, highly transflective 65K colour LCD display with backlight, each unit in the GPSMAP 78 series is easier than ever to read and use in all conditions.

Like earlier GPSMAP generations, these new handhelds will keep the same soft-key user interface and overall sleek, easy-to-use design – including a rugged and waterproof housing that floats. Other key upgrades to the GPSMAP 78s include user-defined profiles and a 3-axis tilt-compensated electronic compass, which shows your heading even when you’re standing still. The new GPSMAP 78s also supports wireless exchange of tracks, waypoints, routes and geocaches with compatible Oregon®, DakotaTM, Colorado® and Foretrex® devices.

Weighing just 219g, the new GPSMAP 78 models last up to 20 hours on two AA batteries. Each device has a high-sensitivity GPS receiver with HotFixTM, which automatically calculates and stores critical satellite information and can use that information to quickly calculate a position.

The new GPSMAP 78 models have 1.7 GB of internal memory and a microSDTM card slot for optional map data, so users have the ability to add additional BlueChart® g2 marine charts, topographic maps or CityNavigator® data for turn-by-turn routing on roads. With these units, you can store up to 2,000 waypoints, 200 routes and a tracklog of up to 10,000 points and 200 saved tracks.

A built-in worldwide shaded relief basemap comes preloaded on each new 78 series handheld. The GPSMAP 78 series also supports Garmin Custom Maps – a free utility that transforms paper and electronic maps into downloadable maps for your compatible Garmin handheld device, bringing details, labels and landmarks for your existing paper or electronic map to your device. For more information, visit www.garmin.com/CustomMaps.

Manufacturer’s suggested retail prices are as follows: £349.99 for GPSMAP 78s and £299.99 for GPSMAP 78. The 78 series is expected to be available in May, 2010. For more information, visit www.garmin.co.uk/onthewater

The all new Garmin® nüvi® 3700 series A personal sat nav with style, personality and attitude…

Garmin, the global leader in personal satellite navigation is proud to announce the thinnest sat nav ever.

The award winning sleek and blade-like design matches the beauty of the new nüvi 3700 series user experience, with its capacitive multi-touch screen, voice activation and multitude of all new navigation features. The nüvi 3700 series which includes the nüvi 3760T and nüvi 3790T finally makes personal navigation devices (PND’s) truly personal.

“The new nüvi 3700 series is really making navigation personal for you and the environment you are in,” said Garmin’s Automotive Product Manager, Colin Lee. “It’s like having a guiding angel watching your every journey. The nüvi 3700 series also looks after you out of the car by helping to guide the way on foot or when using public transport. This sat nav really has style, substance and personality which go beyond anything available in the market today."

Here is how we’ve done it…

Guiding Angel - Name it, talk to it…
The new nüvi 3700 series really takes personalisation seriously, the top of the range nüvi 3790T lets you name it and even create a voice for it. By giving it a name, such as “Hello Angel”, you can wake him or her up and have a conversation. And if you want to take it one step further, you can even give it its own voice using Garmin’s Voice Studio, downloaded at www.garmin.co.uk/garminExtras/customise-your-sat-nav/voice-studio to make your sat nav come alive with any voice you know and love. The nüvi 3790T gives you a truly hands-free experience, tell “Angel” where you want to go and you will be looked after all the way.

Knowing you and the environment - nüRoutesTM technology
The 3700 series ultra-intelligent software is tailored to meet your needs and find the best route designed specifically for you. The innovative nüRoutesTM myTrends™ feature analyses your driving behaviour and predicts where you are likely to go and then links to the trafficTrends™  application, which looks at what other people are doing using tools such as historical traffic information and period of day. This then helps to ensure your journey goes as smooth as possible whatever time of the day it is.

PhotoRealTM View - Enhanced navigation
The all new PhotoRealTM Junction View helps you navigate tricky junctions by representing exactly what’s in front of you, including junction signs, layout and what lane you should be in, to the finer detail of what the surrounding area is like, with trees, bridges and even electricity pylons. This is combined with an unprecedented level of details showing 3D terrain, buildings and landmarks* meaning the road ahead has never looked so realistic. You can also flip the 3700 from landscape to portrait, whether in or out of the car, and the sat nav will automatically adjust showing Real Junction View in a split screen mode for exceptional clarity.

 

Slim and sensitive - Seamless interaction
The responsive, crystal clear LCD display is thinner than a CD case at just 8.7mm and has a dual touch capacitive screen with “Pinch” gesture technology. This enables users to zoom in and out of the detailed maps by gently running their fingers across the ultra sensitive screen, great when you want to explore an area you have never been to before or find a location using the onboard maps.

An award before it’s even launched…
The new nüvi 3700 series has just won the coveted Red Dot Design Award - the world’s largest and most renowned design competition. Not bad, considering it was in a field of more than 4,000 submissions from 57 countries.

And finally - we didn’t forget everything else you’d expect from a flagship Garmin sat nav
•Subscription-free premium pan-European lifetime traffic alerts
•Bluetooth®** hands-free calling
•Cyclops speed camera alerts
•ecoRoute™ to help drivers save on fuel costs and reduce carbon footprint
•Lane Assist and PhotoRealTM Junction View
•"Where Am I?" safety feature
•Expense reports through Excel
•Park Position Recall
•Full European Map (44 countries)
•60 Day nüMap Guarantee
•Optional public transport and pedestrian navigation

For more information see www.garmin.co.uk/3700 and visit the Garmin Press Room at http://garmin.blogs.com/ukpr/ for all of our latest news.

*The nüvi 3700 series is available as nüvi 3760T and 3790T. Only the 3790T is voice activated and has 3D terrain.
 **“The Bluetooth® word mark and logos are owned by the Bluetooth SIG, Inc.and any use of such marks by Garmin is under license.”