Turn-by-turn navigation, more memory make GPS V a great little travel companion


June 11, 2001


OLATHE, Kan. — Garmin International Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd. (Nasdaq: GRMN), a leading manufacturer of GPS-enabled navigation, information and communication devices, is pleased to introduce the newest member of its GPS Personal Navigator family, the GPS V.

"We have taken the legacy of the popular GPS III Plus and implemented our latest navigation technology to create an extremely powerful tool for travelers of all sorts," said Gary Kelley, Garmin’s director of marketing. "Whether you are driving, boating, hiking, hunting or fishing — the GPS V will give you a clearer picture of your current position and help you reach your intended destination more efficiently."

The GPS V incorporates the same user-friendly design, two-way display, functionality and portability as the GPS III Plus, but it also boasts longer battery life, higher screen resolution, better accuracy, more internal memory, and superior navigation capabilities for drivers.

Business travelers and vacationers will appreciate the convenience of setting the GPS V on the dash of their vehicle, entering a specific location and allowing the device quickly plot a series of turns to reach their point of interest. Audible beeps will alert drivers when they are approaching necessary turns or their final destination, taking away almost all the guesswork of getting around in an unfamiliar city. They can program a route using the built-in basemap on the GPS V or by downloading map data from select MapSource products.

The GPS V is also a memory-rich device, boasting a tenfold increase in internal memory over the GPS III Plus. Its 19 megabytes of memory allow users to store street-level maps from the new City Select CD-ROM with automatic route generation. The increased memory will also provide look-up capabilities for addresses and points of interests using the dedicated "find" button on the GPS V.

Because the GPS V is enabled to accept enhanced GPS position data from the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), consumers are typically able to see where they are — within 10 feet of their actual location — on a four-level grayscale, moving map display.

Specific features of the GPS V include:



The GPS V is expected to be available in the third quarter of 2001 at a suggested retail price of $535.70. It will ship standard with the routable MapSource CitySelect CDs, PC interface cable, power cable, automotive mount, adhesive mount, lanyard, owner’s manual and quick-start guide.