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Navigation shakeup: Garmin announces they're buying Navigon

Navigon works very well, I would hate to see it being modified to a worse version... which is very often what happens when a larger group buys another one out.
 
I get the sense from the release that Navigon's mobile apps were one of the reasons for the acquisition. I would imagine they'll simply re-brand and build on the current platform. Let's hope it's for the better. I suspect we'll see more recurring fees now though.:(
 
With Navigon, we are also acquiring one of the top-selling navigation applications for the iPhone and Android platforms – something that we expect will help drive revenue for the combined company going forward. Combining Navigon’s and Garmin’s strength also improves our competitiveness and standing particularly in Europe.
...
Navigon will operate as a subsidiary of Garmin Ltd.
Click to expand...

So basically, Navigon will (at least for the time being) continue to exist as a subsidiary and iPhone apps are one of the key reasons for acquistion.

That said, I don't see Garmin maintaining two iPhone app products. At some point, they will need to merge. When that happens, I hope we won't need to re-purchase the app.
 
I've been an avid user of GPS receivers since they hit the consumer market a zillion years ago and have owned a number of them for use in most every condition one can think of. Verdict? Garmin lost the plot long ago. Been to their site to try and choose a GPS receiver within the past few years? An maddening mountain of choices, each with a tiny difference here or there, making it near impossible to pull the trigger on any one of them. Even worse, most of their recent receivers reliably garner less than stellar user reviews. And Nuvifone? How on earth did that thing live long enough to see the light of day? How many people OK'd that? What a colossal waste of time and resources. Then everyone was waiting to see if they'd ever remove the blinders long enough build an iPhone/iPad app. True to recent bad form, they finally push one out that requires a cell signal for map data. Useless.

And despite impossible to ignore computer market trends, Apple users remain a side note at Garmin. They can't even be bothered to turn perpetually balky & flawed RoadTrip or BaseCamp into one proper piece of mapping software for Mac.

If anything good comes of their purchase of Navigon, I'll believe it when I see it. Likely best case scenario is that Garmin doesn't take what Navigon has created and turn it into yet another of their misguided experiments.

I'd love to be proven wrong.
 
I agree with iArch. Garmin is the first GPS navigation hardware that I've used, about 6 years ago.

Using the latest and greatest Garmin hardware, as well as the iPhone app, not much has changed. While it has many new features and thinner and better hardware, usability hasn't evolved all that much. It even has the same exact Windows 3.x like color scheme.

With Navigon, I would like Garmin to tackle usability issue that plagues most GPS navigation software (including Navigon) once and fall all. And make the iOS app best-in-class rather than a crippled stepchild that it is today.
 
Looks like I'm going to have a permanent '1' notification on the App store whenever the Garmin acquisition makes the Navigon app upgrade.....:mad::mad::mad:
 
This is exactly what Garmin bought up navigon -to move into the iPhone market. They know Garmin isn't cutting it so it's the best strategic move.
 
Is there any way to see navigon maps and routes on mac?
Navigon fresh do it or other application?
 
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