Almost 80 per cent of mobile phones to have integrated GPS by 2011
By James • Jul 22nd, 2010 • Category: Sat Navs
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The good folks at research firm iSuppli Corp predict that in the final quarter of 2011, 79.9 per cent of mobile phones that are shipped will have integrated GPS technology in them, totaling 318.3 million units.
Location and navigation driving the trend
This represents a 23.8 per cent increase over Q1 2009’s 56.1 per cent of out the box smartphone GPS technology available on handsets. iSuppli Corp cites the growing market for location-based services, like Foursquare, Gowalla and the like, as well as traditional navigational software being the main drivers for GPS technology integration in mobile phones.
Thank you, smartphone
Where once having GPS on a phone was a novelty and a competitive advantage, now contemporary smartphones are expected to have GPS right out the box. Dr. Jagdish Rebello, principal analyst and director at iSuppli, said, ‘The smartphone is the key product driving the technology industry today – and social networking services and applications spurred by GPS-related features are critical elements in the smart phone market today.’
He continued, pointing out that a core part of the Google Android strategy is GPS, saying, ‘This is illustrated by Google Inc.’s decision to make turn-by-turn navigation, LBS and mobile ads the central features in its bid to take on Apple in the smart phone market, and make up the central pillars of its strategy to increasingly monetise mobile search.’
Garmin and TomTom’s worst fear
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iSuppli Corp also unequivocally stated that smartphones were taking over from ‘Portable Navigation Devices’ – stand-alone GPS devices – and that by 2014, people will navigate with smartphones more than they do with GPS devices – an issue we touched on earlier this year.
Of course, between now and 2014, it is possible Garmin and TomTom (as well as other GPS manufacturers) will find a way of altering their core business and adapting it to the requirements of the times, but this will certainly be a worry for the companies. Smartphone GPS technology is only another step in a long line of mobile phones innovation disrupting portable consumer electronic devices.
The whole report makes for fascinating reading if you’re at all interested in the implications of the growth of smartphone GPS technology.
Tags for this article: GPS, Mobile phones, smartphone, smartphone GPS
