Garmin Announces GPS Product Support for Mac OS X

[allory]

http://www.garmin.com/pressroom/corporate/011006.html

MACWORLD EXPO, SAN FRANCISCO/January 10, 2006/PR Newswire — Garmin International Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd. (Nasdaq: GRMN), today announced that it will immediately begin to make its line of GPS and mobile electronics devices compatible with Mac OS X version 10.4 "Tiger." This makes Garmin the first major GPS designer and manufacturer to announce direct support for Mac OS X.

“We are very excited to be supporting the many tech-savvy Garmin users who are also Mac devotees,” said Min Kao, Garmin Ltd.’s chairman and CEO. “Mac users have been encouraging us to make our GPS units Mac compatible, and we’ve listened. We hope this brings the many benefits of GPS to current Mac users and invites future Apple customers to the Garmin fold.”

"The popularity of Mac OS X is attracting many first time developers to the Mac and driving astonishing innovation," said Ron Okamoto, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations. “We're thrilled to welcome Garmin to the platform and look forward to exciting new applications that take advantage of its GPS-based products and Mac OS X."

Beginning in spring 2006, Garmin will offer a Mac version of its popular Training Center software. Used with Garmin’s line of Forerunner and Edge series of fitness products, the Training Center software lets users plan and analyze workouts. Fitness enthusiasts can create their own workouts or use workout templates that can be downloaded into the unit for any level of personal training. The software also offers interactive analysis tools that will now allow Mac users to chart their performance information like speed, heart rate, cadence, elevation, and pace.

Also in spring 2006, Garmin will make the www.MotionBased.com upload interface Mac compatible. MotionBased.com translates GPS data into performance analysis, online mapping, and route sharing for endurance and outdoor athletes. Data collected by a Garmin GPS device is uploaded to MotionBased.com where time, distance, speed, elevation, cadence, grade, and heart rate analysis is displayed through charts, illustrations, and reports. This activity data can also be displayed as a route and replayed on street, photo, topographic, and elevation maps as well as the popular Google Earth service. Members can also use the TrailNetwork database to seek out and download new activities in their region, to find popular routes while traveling, or to engage in "virtual races" with other MotionBased users.

By the end of 2006, Garmin intends to have made all its popular hardware and software applications Mac OS X compatible. This includes the ability to load MapSource map data to Garmin units via a Mac, as well as waypoint and trip planning applications. Additionally, the Garmin nRoute application will allow Powerbook and iBook users to turn their laptop into a powerful street navigation tool with Garmin’s GPS 10 or GPS 18 sensors.

[JGB_PA]

No wonder Apple stock went up $4.81 today!!

[Last Mrk]

That's good news. Lot's of great stuff happened at MacWorld today including the news of Apples earnings last quarter.

I was watching a financial program with all the talking heads about 6 months ago and it was a consensus of these experts that Apple's stock would stall at $40 and never get to $45 for quite some time. It's @ $80.86 today.

[JGB_PA]

Ann is gonna put this into the OT bin.......but, I bought APPL back in 1985 for about $13 as I was a Mac enthusiast from the getgo and I have enjoyed my association with the company and products for a long time. Garmin's association now may take me back to the "fold" and that excites me! I just sold a bunch of APPL in December at $75 so I just may go buy the new MacBook Pro. As my dear, departed Dad used to say, "you won't go broke making a profit." Glad I held on to a chunk, though.

I also heard the talking heads back 6 or more months ago and sold some then at $45, but then again as dear, old Dad said............

[reinbeau]

Nah, no OT bin, as long as Apple is going to enable your use of their OS and Garmin insists on allowing it there's nothing we can do about it

Seriously, I couldn't believe Palm removed support for Macs the way they did, it just seemed so wrong-headed. I'm glad things are turning around for all of you (even if I'll never understand why you like them - and yes, I have spent time trying to appreciate them! )

[JGB_PA]

Ann - it all started for me with the old Apple II, then IIe, (even had a black Bell & Howell Apple II) as I was in K-12 education. Then the Mac hit in 83-84 and it was just a natural progression (had a Lisa too). Ended up supporting Macs, Apples in the K-12 segment for 15 years. And to this day I still do not know where the Registery is on a Mac - just never needed to go there all those years. It always just behaved like the PhD system it is. Also brought the Palm into the work environment across the state and I like those, so I'm not all that "bad". That is what steered me to the IQue after my SP3, 2610 et al.

Jim

[Last Mrk]

In other Apple news, Google released Google Earth for the Mac yesterday also. I've been playing with it and it's great. (kind of on topic)

As a side note, Apple said that they will not thwart users who would seek to run Microsoft Windows operating system on the machines. With Intel processors inside the new Macs, their owners could run Microsoft Windows and software designed for it at full speed.

Apple went up $3.04 today.

[rkevwill]

Yep folks, you beat me to it. Mainly cause I have been busy enjoying the sights and food of San Francisco.

Here I was walking through MacWorld, and I see a Garmin booth. I walked up to one of the folks and asked "what the HELL are you mac haters doing here?" (nicely however). Thats when they told me, they are rolling out support for the mac, on all of their USB connected navigation devices.

Gotta tell you, they sound extremely excited about this mac support.

One person was there talking to a Garmin engineer, asking how in the world he could use his current handheld garmin, with VPC, saying it always crashed. I walked him through the mac support, gave him my email to lead him to this forum and Lycestras site.

Below are some pics of the Garmin booth, as well as the MarkSpace booth, which is equally as important for us mac folks Sorry the quality is so poor, but they were taken with a Treo 600, which HAS to be the worst camera on earth.

BTW Ann, and other proclip fans....ProClip has some badass new palm and PPC mounts, WITH a speaker, that will be perfect for GPS 10. Look for them on their website. These are complete holders, with power, audio cord, and power pass through, so looks like Seidio is gonna get some competition!

[rkevwill]

Oh Ann, btw, it wasn't palm that said they were not going to do any more mac support, it was palmSOURCE. And we all know what happened to PalmSource. Besides, MarkSpace came in and blew them away. Support for Palm devices has NEVER been better, or more advanced than it is presently. We can now do things with the palm that Windows users only dream about now (or need several different programs to accomplish).

[reinbeau]

Oh Ann, btw, it wasn't palm that said they were not going to do any more mac support, it was palmSOURCE. And we all know what happened to PalmSource. Besides, MarkSpace came in and blew them away. Support for Palm devices has NEVER been better, or more advanced than it is presently. We can now do things with the palm that Windows users only dream about now (or need several different programs to accomplish).

Such as? I mean, all I want to do it hotsynch.......not such a big deal