2010 GPS Sales

I can only suggest, that many people have never owned a dedicated GPS to realize how good they really are.

I think they would be shocked what their phone can't do, never mind the data bill.

and currently own a NUVI 780. My iPad with some of the current navigation applications makes all of the dedicated GPSs I have owned look anemic.
Having to pay for a data plan anyway to get the most use from the iPad is not an issue for me. The constant updates when something changes, the availability and flexibility from these apps is phenomenal. Size of the iPad is a problem compared to the dashboard sized GPS units, but voice directions make it functional.
I completely understand why the buying public may be taking a different point of view toward purchasing a dedicated unit and putting their dollars elsewhere.

Full data is included with most cell phone plans now (at a cost - but many are taking these "everything" plans anyway) so it is not a surprise that with GPS built into the phones there is less interest in a dedicated GPS unit to leave in the vehicle.

I have a 765t and also have a sprint smart phone which offers free nav with my plan. No, nothing is free but for what I need this is the most practicle plan for me. While I have never used it yet if Garmin doesn't get it's house in order I may start using it and never look back.

Still on my 350, need a good reason to upgrade

How quickly did your Ipad recognize the new bridge on US93?

They may not realize that when they're out of cell phone range, they have NO gps either. Not a good thing in the middle of sparse areas.

Fred

The only thing bad about gps in your cell is that it kills the battery fast.

I'm not surprised that sales are down, mobiles are much more convenient and cheaper. I don't use mine half as much as I did now that it's built into the phone.

Are sales down by voulume or quantity?

The pricing of GPS's have dropped so substantially over the last couple of years that it has to affect the bottom line of companies. Add to it that the basic functionality of basic models are very impressive for the normal user, so it tends to move the vast majority of modest priced models over their high priced counterparts.

Some areas don't have digital coverage and you can hit a big city and not have GPS.

I may be a complete dinosaur,but I do have a cell phone but rarely use it. I am retired and keep it with me for safety reasons while driving. I still use a nuvi 350, did I say dinosaur, and it fits me just fine.

I am retired as well. I used to have a blackberry with GPS on it plus my Nuvi 1690. There were times the phone didn't have coverage and it was harder to read. I got rid of it. I now use the phone rarely other than to call someone I have to talk with. I use my GPS unit to get around. My GPS offers so much more than the cell phone did.

I own a 785T, but have found my Evo4G to be vastly superior for most my GPS needs. If I had to pay additional for nav on my phone I might feel different, but it's included in my plan. I'll continue to use my 785 but there's no way I'm paying for map updates. When it's broken/stolen/outmoded I doubt I'll replace it unless it's almost free to do so.

That may have been true in the past, but todays smartphones blow gps devices out of the water. It's not even a contest.

And for those of you who keep repeating the mantra about "you can't use your phone for navigation if you lose a signal", that is no longer true for some apps. There are a bunch of gps apps which now store the maps on the phone itself, so even if you lose your cell signal you can still navigate. Even Google Maps 5.0 supposedly now caches your route so you can navigate offline.

Like it or not the days of dedicated gps devices are quickly coming to an end. I'm sure Garmin will continue to manufacture one or two Nuvi models, but they won't be the mass market devices you find today.

phones are NOT ready to replace PND's as of yet. I have an iphone and none of the programs currently available do not have all the features of the PND's.

it was okay for walking around an unfamilar area but the C530 and Nuvi 1490 are, IMHO, better than a phone for GPS use...YMMV.