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GpsPasSion is reporting that Garmin has announced two additional members of the nuvi family for Europe -- the nuvi 200W and nuvi 250W, wide-screen versions of the nuvi 200 and nuvi 250. Details are scant at this point and there is no word on whether the purported units will show up on this side of the pond.
UPDATE: Read our eTrex H-series reviews:
Last week I reported on rumors of a new Garmin eTrex lineup with a high-sensitivity chipset. Today it's official -- Garmin has announced, and put up product pages for the following units:
It's nice to see features previously limited to the 60 and 76 x-series in a compact unit. I've included the manufacturers suggested retail price (MSRP) above as we're also seeing a price drop compared to some past eTrex models and units with comparable features.
All models are capable of accepting detailed maps except for the basic eTrex H. The Summit HC and Venture HC map capacity is limited, due to their 24MB of internal memory. The Legend HCx and Vista HCx offer autorouting.
The new eTrex line is expected to be available in the third quarter of this year.
Garmin has published an API and taken several steps to open Garmin devices to third-party generated content.
The Garmin Communicator Plugin API beta "allows developers to transfer location data – such as waypoints, track logs, maps and points of interest (POIs) – to and from a website and Garmin device." I find it especially interesting that maps are included in that statement. Perhaps we'll start seeing more third-party map providers now that Garmin has given them tacit approval. Geocaching.com and Motionbased.com are both using the technology behind this, though users may have to download a plugin to ensure that it works with their browser. Currently IE 6+ and Firefox 1.5+ are supported. Mac support is "coming soon."
Many of the other tools announced today move Garmin farther into the location-based services game:
I’ve been playing with a Garmin nuvi 680 for the past couple of weeks, checking out MSN Direct services. I live a few hours away from a major metropolitan area, so I had to make a couple of trips to the city to try it out.
Along the way, I discovered a (to my knowledge) previously unreported touchscreen problem / firmware bug.
For all the details on the bug and on MSN Direct services, head on over to my Garmin nuvi 680 review page.
It's been a bit of slow week in terms of GPS news. Nevertheless, here are the links I've collected for you...
Garmin
The Garmin nuvi 270
Garmin continues to improve its nuvis; the 200 series units are a little thinner, thanks to an internal antenna, rather than the flip-up type found on previous nuvis.
Assuming that you're after European maps, you have a couple of other options. Step up to the nuvi 370 and you'll get Bluetooth for hands free cell phone use, an MP3 player, live traffic info and a unit that calls out the street names on upcoming turns - so you'll get "turn left on North Main Street in 500 feet" rather than just "turn left in 500 feet." Garmin's other transatlantic model, the nuvi 670, adds an FM transmitter to stream directions, music and cell phone conversations over your car stereo, and bumps the screen size to a wide 4.3". The latest, the nuvi 770, adds even more features. To compare other nuvi models, check out our Garmin nuvi comparison chart.
Garmin has announced an updated version of its backcountry maps for the U.S. - Garmin TOPO U.S. 2008. There's not a huge amount of information available yet.
What's known now is that the maps use 1:100,000 scale data, not 1:24,000 - a disappointment. The maps do include some new features, including the ability to generate elevation profiles on your PC or compatible Garmin receivers (shown below, after the jump), though that will be of little use if they are generated from straight lines rather than along trails. No word yet on whether there is auto-routing for trails or roads, nor do we know if this map product will be locked.
TOPO U.S. 2008 will be available on DVD or micro SD cards. Garmin has not posted an availability date.
There is a discussion thread on Groundspeak, Geocaching.com's message board.
Via Allory.
A couple of days ago, I posted a story about several new Garmin eTrex GPS units due this fall. At that point, the Canadian PDF catalog page was not available online, but it's back now and the full story can be told.
The big news isn't the high-sensitivity chipset, it's this blurb from the ad...
Also “GALILEO” (the new navigation system under development in Europe) ready as a future path that will accommodate a drop–in chip when available in the future.
That's pretty exciting except for the fact that Galileo literally can't get off the ground. According to what I've been able to find, only one of 30 satellites has been successfully launched. So Galileo compatibility, while it does show Garmin adding a (potential) new feature to its handhelds, is hardly a good reason to buy one of the new eTrex units.
GPSReview.net is reporting that a Magellan CrossoverGPS 3150 is on the way, There aren't a lot of details yet, though the report states that Bluetooth appears to be added to the basic CrossoverGPS feature list. I'll keep you posted as more info becomes available.
GpsPasSion is reporting that Garmin will be adding high-sensitivity chipsets to their eTrex product line this fall. The chipsets would be SiRFstar III or something similar. Apparently a Canadian retailer jumped the gun and posted a sneak peak of their fall catalog, which has since been pulled from the Web. For the most part, the reported models mimic the current units, adding the new chipset to existing features:
It appears from the report that the new Venture will not have an expandable (micro SD) memory card slot.
UPDATE: There's a discussion thread on Groundspeak worth checking out.
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