3 Reasons to Sell Garmin Today

As someone who is in the cell phone biz...

If all you've ever experienced was navigation on a cell phone, you'd think that was way cool. But if you've ever had a Nuvi, or TomTom - navigation on a cell phone in primitive by comparison.

I'm a gadget junkie - and am of the belief that the gadgets that try to be the jack of all trades are the master of none.

As far as I'm concerned, Garmin has nothing to worry about.

...only in the sense that some and maybe a growing number of people now want one handheld device that does it all for them: phone calls, Internet access, basic camera, mp3 player, and GPS. And if GPS built-in to cars continues to get cheaper and filters down to become standard equipment, that's also a threat to Garmin's current business model. But I agree with kch that built-in units and do-it-all portable phones don't do GPS nearly as well as Garmin standalones, and I'd still much rather have the Garmin, even with an extra gadget and extra wires and mounts to worry about.

As the Cell/PDA devices progress, it is hard to imagine that the GPS in them will not progress as well. Over time, many people that have not used GPS stand-alones will learn to use the GPS in their cell phones and will not consider carrying two devices. Look what is all in one device now. Many of us average joes never dreamed of such devices, the blackberry, the iphone, etc. It really is amazing. And the younger generations will expect even more from their devices I suspect. Only time will tell.

Deborah

I agree entirely with you

i couldn't agree more-if you want a good gps unit,you buy one
if you want a good phone,you buy one!

I would hate to have my multi-functional phone go out and the GPS still work or vice versa. If these units have all these things built into them....and one part of the equation craps out, what do you do while its getting repaired?
Doesn't sound like anything I would want to be dealing with.

I love PDA/phones but I would not trade my GPS unit for something built-in in a phone. It's just not the same

I'd hate to have a phone with a screen large enough to use for navigation while driving. For those who would hand-hold a cell phone for use as a driving GPS, stop it. "Shut up and drive."

Garmin has been enjoying huge (potential, at least) margins for a long time. I can go to any "big box" retailer and buy a laptop computer with a _much_ faster processer, a _much_ larger display, _much_ more I/O, and a _much_ more sophisticated operating sytem, for a price comparable to a high end Garmin GPS. Volumes of both are of the same magnitude (10's of millions), and there's less competition in the GPS marketplace.

If they want to succeed, they simply need to get their act together, and start delivering a reliable product which does what it's supposed to do.

I couldnt have stated it better myself.

I'd also like to toss in an additional point..

Phones vs Standalone Garmin Devices?
Two words:
SCREEN SIZE

'Nuff said..

I agree that a GPS and a Cell Phone should not be combined.

I have a feeling that a decade from now we will look back and laugh at our current dash mounted GPS units. I have no doubt most phones will have the GPS feature and they will work better than what we are using today. If you hold an iPhone horizontally it has a decent screen size for GPS applications, so I don't see screen size as being much of a problem. The next time you pull your tiny little cell phone out of your pocket remember that a decade ago some people were still using bag phones. Heck, just 4 years ago most GPS units were the size of a small brick. Technology is moving at the speed of light.

It's quite funny... people are buying 50 inch TVs but can download movies to their iPod and cell phone PDAs and cell phones are getting smaller, but as I get older I need BIGGER! So I will pay a premium for functionality over multi-function.

Keith
Your right,
When I want to take pictures of my family, I sure don't use the crappy camera in my cell phone, and it's 3 megapixals. I use my Cannon made for taking pictures of what I find important in my life. If I need a picture of something on the fly the cell phone is better than nothing but thats about it.

The same is true with Cell Phones and GPS's.

Your not going to convince those that believe they have all they need.
If you need a GPSr and not a Cell phone get a Garmin, Mio, Magellian, Navigon or a TomTom but if they just want a combo unit cell phone GPS they should get one and go blind.

But the diference they will find is the same between the camera in their phone and a stand alone camera.

Bob

I would disagree for casual GPS use.

I often use the maps/GPS on my BlackBerry when I am at work and have to go to an address with which I am not familiar.

I typically don't have either of my regular GPS units with me at work, but I always have my phone. It comes in very handy. On the other hand, I would not want to navigate a long trip or try to view the screen for an extended period of time or in traffic.

Here's an article from PC World concerning apps on the new G1 cellphone.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/152384-15/in_pictures_15_kill...

Look how many of those apps are GPS related. More importantly, those GPS apps can do things our Garmins can't.

If Garmin doesn't become more proactive and develop new software for its units, Garmin will be obsolete in a couple of years. Guaranteed.

Garmin will enter build-in car navigation and phone combine in order to survive.

I think dtran1 you hit it on the head there. We can all say how much we LOVE our stand-alones, but bottom line what will it take to keep Garmin, TOMTOM, etc. in business. It is in the numbers. Will there be enough of us to keep it going?

As stated on an earlier post, the in car systems are getting cheaper, and will probably be in most cars in several years. Just think about electric windows/locks, CD players, Automatic Transmissions. They all started as a luxury, but most of us have them standard today. And with time they will improve as well.

As far as size, if you put a mount in my car today to hold the iphone on the dash, the screen size would be as big as my Garmin.

It you think the average person is worried about combining products, then why is the iphone/ipod idea such a hit (1 of MANY examples)? I believe there are plenty of people that want to keep different products separate, but more that want to buy/carry just one. So as far as what happens when the cell breaks and then you would not have a GPS. Well, we will do what we are doing already, we will "UPGRADE".

Deborah

The addition of GPS to a cell phone is a safety issue. It's for the hiker who has broken bones and needs to direct the rescue team to his/her location, or the motorist stuck in some snowstorm or other situation that needs to let the authorities know where they are.

Thus I consider the addition of GPS to a phone to be strictly a safety issue, rather than a navigation issue. People who want to navigate should get a GPS, others who want additional security should get a multi-task (with GPS) phone.

census1940

I'm happy with my NUVI, I got rid of my cell phone almost 2 years ago because they are a pain in the butt. I haven't missed it at all, but I won't get rid of my NUVI.

Wow, that's a first. You got rid of your cell phone but kept your GPS. How much Garmin stock do you own?

I think a cell phone should be a cell phone, and a gps should be a gps.It will also keep the price low for both devices.

It's actually an FCC request/requirement to put GPS capability into cell phones. See
http://www.travelbygps.com/articles/tracking.php

census1940

How many of us NUVI owners only use the direction capabilities of our GPS, or are we using the MP3 players, weather reports, etc on them, we buy them for the extras that are included also, and want the latest with all the other items, some are linking their phones already with teir NUVIs. So we are heading in the Phone/GPS direction already, its just we're heading from the GPS side to the phone, rather from the phone to the GPS side.

Something else to remember about cell phone navigation, in the case of Verizon, the gps navigation is a function of proprietary "Get It Now" feature of Verizon,so, if you are not on a Verizon network, then no 'Get It Now' and thus, NO navigation. A little too dependent for my taste, but that's just me. If I am traveling across country and lost my Verizon signal, then I am out of business. Also, out of the country......no 'get it now', no signal, no navigation. I'll stick with Garmin.

Having a gps enabled phone is cool as long as it does a good job in it's primary function as a phone and is small and easy to carry in my pocket. For the car though I would prefer a larger screen that would not be practical as a phone. Having both is good as one can function as a backup for the other.

Will grow - should cover most of the country when the Alltel buy-out becomes final. FCC votes on that Nov 4th.

Seems to me, the phone companies touting the GPS features on their phones just want that extra $10/month they are charging to activate the GPS capabilities of their phones. Maybe one day there will be mandated as a safety feature beyond the 911 locators the ability to locate you via your phone.
That is something other than the art of navigation.
I'm a lover of navigation! How sweet it is to find my way and to try to figure out how the GPSr is
going to get me there.

I toyed with the ATT/Blackberry GPS features, until I realized it did not give me the satisfaction of the journey that a real GPSr can.

You are in denial. The stand alone will become a dinosaur, an item that will be expensive and made in very limited numbers. This is called progress.

It's the same when you combine a printer, scanner, fax machine, and copy machine all into one unit. Each does OK but not as good as a a dedicated machine for a specific task.
When you use a Garmin GPS you are getting the "best of breed".
JeffSh

I agree entirely. I carry a cell phone and a pda with wifi capability. Also use a Garmin GPS. I do not want to combine any of them as they each have a individual and unique purpose.
guy
Nuvi 200 and Streetpilot C320

The beginning of the downfall for GRMN stock was when Nokia bought Navteq and Garmin gave up on buying TeleAtlas. Garmin has a contract with Navteq until 2015 with a 4 year option then. When it was just Garmin and Magellan in the GPS game, the prices where much higher thus Garmin had a higher profit margin. No with TomTom and cheap no-name units, the prices have fallen and margins lowered.

The statement about not modifying towers is only partially true. There are too many cell phones still in use that do not have GPS chips. The Cell Carriers have been fighting this requirement for a couple of years, and in another 3 or 4 it will all be moot as over 97% of the cell phones will have been replaced to units having GPS chips.

The choice to use a GPS chip was made by the carriers and is not mandated by the FCC. The FCC says you have to locate a phone, it doesn't say how.

I can't see cell phones replacing portable GPS's.

But then again, I never foresaw so many banks collapsing.

Here here!!! My sentiment EXACTLY!!

The current business model may be unsustainable. It has to adapt or else it will be one of those great companies of the past. There is increase in GPS use but not all new users will buy GPSrs. Casual users will be content with the GPS capabilities of their phones. And if they decide to go beyond that, they will buy those no-names advertised on TV. It is just a matter of time before things get stiffer for companies like Garmin; if they are not now giving thought to their present model, they will be forced later. Events just seem to be passing by Garmin - as an observer from a distance.

I look at Garmin pricing and would say, it is the main reason it will be passed by and the second would be the lack of features for the money spent. And you don't even need to be a observer from a distance to see the writing on their walls.

Garmin thinks too highly of itself. Look at these new 7x5 models. They are priced WAY too high for the limited added features they offer over the existing 7x0 models.

The days of the mass market spending $500 or more for a GPS are over. Garmin just hasn't figured that out yet.

My GPS always works BUT not my cell phone. I guess cell phone GPS will be OK when they get rid of those cell phone towers and start using Satellites. Until then my Nuvi will have to do.

I 'would' agree with you..but when you look at closer...not so much.
Things you mention have always been WAAAAYY overpriced when included with a new car.
Things like gps and cd players..dvd screens can easily be had in the aftermarket for 1/3 of the cost and often of better quality.
I havent met a cheaper after market stereo system that hasnt blown away any factory install.

In terms of Geepussuss? Past factory installs can run up to and over a grand..easily.
And the quality certainly doesnt match the price.
They rarely, if ever, include the easy upgrades, and user-added goodies. Ya think you'll be able to easily add your own icons, voice prompts or even POI's in an easy way?
Upgrade costs are always more expensive as well.

Performance? Has anybody found a factory installed GPS system for any car matching the abilities and routing engine of the garmins?
I havent. (I've only encountered two..both owners said they sucked and they use portables.)

And finally? A portable GPS is...well PORTABLE. Take it with you..slap it in your other car..a friends car..take it on a hike.

What "I" see in Nuvi's is a portable device thats the fraction of the cost of a factory installed unit, includes more options, better performance, and is not nailed to the dashboard.

Imagine the 'fun' when that factory unit dies. There's a huge dent in your wallet.
A portable NUVI? Just buy another one. And when you do, odds are you'll be getting more features and goodies.

Thats my take on factory gps's vs portable units.

As for phones.
One word: PRIVACY.
With a portable gps 'reciever', I'm not broadcasting my location to the phone carrier. I dont care what they 'say' they do with that data. But the fact is..that data exists.
While not the 'paranoid' type, I still dont like my location information being warehoused by anybody.
A portable receiver..is just that..a receiver. My 'data'..is mine. Not the phone company's.
I'm not one to be 'dataminded' to be 'better targeted' for advertising or whatever excuse they come up with...

So...for me anyway, I have no intentions of ever buying an overpriced factory GPS built into a car.

I will never use a phone based GPS that allows the warehousing of my location data.

Cliff notes:
Money..privacy.
I'll keep my Nuvis thank you...

dood - if you are truly concerned about your privacy you might want to think twice about your Garmin. Because most units can and do keep a hidden track log. Of course, the stated intent of those track logs is for the owner to see where they travelled.

But an unstated use of those logs is for sites to access the log and gather your data. Think I'm kidding. I can provide a link to Garmin's developer website which actually tells web developers how to code their sites to access the data.

Here's one of many threads discussing how to access your gpx file (which stores the track log info)
http://developer.garmin.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=365

I know exactly, I guy that I know bought a smart phone for navigation and then bought a Mio for better navigation.

With a GPS phone you have to pay a monthly subscription

It is my Cell Phone thanks to its great Blue tooth. I could never navigate very far with a Phone. I would rather use my Etrex...

Yup.. I'm aware of the hidden logs..at least on some units
I wish we could easily use em for our own purposes..
Yet.. as you state, hidden or not, its still on the device and in one's own possession..

As long as basic GPS service is free when I have a Garmin, I will stick to the stand-alone unit and not worry about paying monthly fees for a data plan. On the other hand, if the companies pays for the plan, I would switch

There is no comparison to a cell phone gps system and stand alone unit. Comparing apples and grape fruits. Would never rely on a cell phone gps unit.

I'll never pay that much for a GPS again. When you think that you can get a decent computer for the price of a GPS, then go off to yahoo or google maps and print out driving directions, red camera and speed camera locations, rest areas, etc., why would anyone pay that much for a GPS?

Long live the Aviation division because it alone probably subsidizes the rest of the Garmin empire.

I thought the same thing til I got my G1. The use of google street maps is awesome and i like the ease of gps tracking on the phone as well as my 3g. (but im in nyc so it might be different for others)

I think the reason most people can't imagine using their cell phone as a GPS is that they still have a "traditional" flip phone with a 2" screen. But those folks need to remember that the large touchscreen phones (iPhone, Dare, G1) will be the standard phones in a few years.

Even today the leading cellphones (iPhone, Dare, G1) can almost compete against Garmin. Imagine what they will be able to do in one or two years!!