Garmin should leave the smartphone market before it's too late. It's upcoming M20 GPS phone will be made by Asus
Unlike rival TomTom, Garmin‘s finance is healthy and sound despite the faltering economy.
The debt-free U.S.-based GPS maker could even buy the Dutch company… cash!
TomTom is currently valued at approximately $543 million. And that’s even after last year’s $3.7 billion acquisition of map maker Tele Atlas!
On the other hand, Garmin boasts $697 million in cash at the end of last quarter.
Yesterday the Kansas-based company posted total revenue of $3.49 billion for 2008 – up 10% from $3.18 billion in 2007 – and profits of $732 million. Last year, Garmin sold 16.9 million units, an increase of 38% from 2007, versus 12 millions for TomTom.
Garmin should get rid of its GPS smartphone
Despite heavy competition, the GPS maker still plans to launch its line of GPS smartphone dubbed “Nüvifone” during the first half of 2009.
The G60 model will be co-branded Garmin‐Asus following an alliance with the Taiwanese company known for its EeePC netbooks.
Garmin will also release the M20, a Windows Mobile‐based smartphone with some unique LBS (location-based services) applications and functionality.
