Garmin's iOS Apps To Include City-Centric, Google 3D Maps Features This Fall

Garmin has announced new updates to their popular line of navigation apps for iOS. Announced at the IFA Consumer Electronics Show in Berlin, Germany, these updates largely focus on city travel, and include new Google Maps features announced earlier this year. With Urban Guidance, users are able to integrate public transportation into their route, and include detailed intineraries of transit stops. The new feature will be available for the StreetPilot Onboard iPhone app and the NAVIGON app for iPhone as an in-app purchase. Originally priced at $4.99, the Urban Guidance feature will be available at a reduced price of $2.99 for the first two weeks. Last Mile Navigation, by contrast, automatically saves the location of the user’s car when continuing by foot. Naturally, this makes it easier to find your car once you return. This functionality is already available for the NAVIGON Android app but will be new to the NAVIGON iPhone app with the upcoming update. The Last Mile feature will not be available for the Garmin StreetPilot iPhone app at this point. Finally, Garmin is implementing Google Street View and Panorama View 3D technology into their StreetPilot Onboard app for iPhone. The latter will be available as an in-app purchase of $9.99. Google Street View and Panorama View 3D are already available for the NAVIGON Android and iPhone apps but will now also be added to the Garmin StreetPilot Onboard app for iPhone. In June, Apple announced that they would be replacing Google Maps functionality in their native Maps app. Instead, Cupertino will be using technology from Garmin's main competitor, TomTom. According to Joern Watzke, vice president mobile phone business at Garmin:

Taking into account the specific needs of city navigation, our upcoming app updates streamline directions for driving, walking and public transportation. Users can now get directions for different forms of locomotion, all integrated in one app right on their smartphone.

Garmin will release updates for the StreetPilot Onboard iPhone app, and the NAVIGON apps for iPhone in the fall. Garmin StreetPilot Onboard for iPhone is available in two versions: Garmin U.S.A. ($49.99) and Garmin N. America for $59.99. NAVIGON for iPhone is available in the following versions: U.S West ($29.99), U.S. East ($29.99), USA ($49.99), and North America ($59.99).