Garmin's back to take a crack at the smartphone space again. Check out CNET's hands-on photos of the Garminfone for T-Mobile.
Bonnie Cha
Bonnie Cha was a former chief correspondent for CNET Crave, covering every kind of tech toy imaginable (with a special obsession for robots and Star Wars-related stuff). When she's not scoping out stories, you can find her checking out live music or surfing in the chilly waters of Northern California.
Garmin's foray into the world of smartphones wasn't exactly a great one. The Garmin Nuvifone for AT&T was a decent navigator but a horrible smartphone. However, it looks like the company learned some lessons as its second handset, the Garminfone, looks heaps better. The Android-powered Garminfone will be available in June for $199.99 with a two-year contract.
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Better design
To start, the Garminfone has an improved design design. The original Nuvifone was drab and bricklike, but the Garminfone is a bit sexier with a nice shiny finish on the front and a slimmer profile.
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Slim profile
The handset measures 4.57 inches tall by 2.46 inches wide by 0.49 inch thick and weighs 4.9 ounces. With the more compact design, the Garminfone is much more convenient to carry around as a phone and as a handheld navigator.
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Navigation controls
Below the 3.5-inch HVGA capacitive touch screen, you'll find a D-pad and touch-sensitive controls for the home screen, menu, phone app, and back button.
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Car mount
The Garminfone ships with a vehicle mount (windshield and dash) as well as a car charger, an AC adapter, a USB cable, and a wired headset.
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Camera
The Garminfone features a 3-megapixel camera with auto focus and video recording capabilities. It can also geotag photos.
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Picture quality
While color quality was OK, captured photos were a bit fuzzy and soft.
