Garmin have announced the new Garmin nüvifone, a new GPS phone that's been designed as a GPS device first and a mobile phoen second. The nüvifone is Garmin's response to the increasing encroachment of their territory by the mobile phone companies such as Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson, each of whom have either released or will shortly release a GPS-equipped phone.

However, whereas these phones are phones first with GPS tacked on as a feature, the new Garmin nüvifone does what Garmin do best - navigation - and then adds a host of superb mobile phone features into the mix to create what looks set to be a superb mobile phone that will really take the fight to Nokia and co.

More details and pictures of the Garmin nüvifone after the jump.

The Garmin nüvifone as a GPS Device

The Garmin Nuvi-Phone is a super-sleek touchscreen mobile phone with huge 3.5" display that's designed to be seen easily in a car when being used to navigate. This is one of the primary differences between the nüvifone and other GPS phones - the nüvifone can easily be used as an in-car GPS device, whereas the GPS phones from the mobile phone manufacturers have screens that are too small for easy viewing when travelling other than on foot.

Switching between phone and GPS couldn't be easier either. Just slot the nüvifone into dash-mounted Sat-Nav cradle, and it instantly switches itself into GPS mode, turning on the navigation menu, and letting you use it just as you would a normal Sat-Nav device.

Naturally, you also get hands free calling from the Nuvi-Phone - what would be the point of building in phone functionality if you weren't going to use it as a phone?!

The Garmin nüvifone as a mobile phone

Speaking of which, how does the nüvifone compare to its rivals from the mobile phone companies when squaring up to them on their own turf - phone features?

Well, surprisingly well as it happens. The nüvifone isn't exactly running at the back of the pack. It features HSDPA for super-fast 3.5G data transfer (up to 3.6Mbps), a glorious looking full featured mobile Web browser that looks great on its huge screen, email, camera, video camera, and MP3 player - in other words, everything you'd expect from a top-end mobile phone!

It does more than that, though, as Garmin have really exploited its GPS features. As well as letting you take your own pics, the nüvifone also gives you access to millions of geo-located landmark and sightseeing photographs available through Google’s Panoramio picture sharing site, and will navigate you their exact locations at the touch of a button,

In addition, you can take a photo yourself, and the nüvifone will save its exact latitude and longitude co-ordinates, which can then be used to direct you back to the exact location by the nüvifone from wherever else in the world you happen to travel to.

Or simply email the photo to a friend with another nüvifone, and they too can be routed to the location using their nüvifone - all at the touch of a button.

This will soon be one of the new features that come with all GPS phones, until we eventually wonder how we ever did without them. I've just moved into a new flat, for example, and had to give directions to 15 different people for my flat warming party at the weekend. How much easier would it have been simply to have taken a photo of my front door and emailed it to them all, knowing their GPS phone would direct them to the right address?!

You can imagine navigating to pubs in new locations, job interviews, business meetings or beautiful views of the countryside, just by viewing a picture and clicking "navigate to this place." Just remember, the nüvifone did it first!

The Garmin nüvifone release date is the third quarter of 2008, by which time Sony Ericsson will have a range of GPS phones out, Samsung will have released its new Nokia N95-killer, the Samsung G810, and Nokia will have replaced the N95 with an even better GPS phone. Mobility is the new name of the game in the GPS market it seems - let battle commence!

[Source: SlashPhone]