Exciting new smartphones on the horizon

Let me highlight a few new smartphones that will be appearing soon:

• New Apple iPhone. On Monday, June  7, when Steve Jobs kicks off WWDC (a conference for Apple developers), we can expect to hear about a new Apple iPhone. My guess is that it will look like the leaked iPhone that we saw circulating on the Internet a few weeks ago.
• BlackBerry Bold 9650 on Verizon. It's good to see BlackBerry adding Wi-Fi to their handsets.
• BlackBerry Bold 9800. This will be the first "slider" that includes a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a touch screen. It could the perfect combination for those who like the STORM but need a hardware keyboard.
• T-Mobile Garminfone. If you need Garmin-style GPS navigation in your smartphone, this could be a nice option. Since it will run Android, you'll have a variety of medical apps you can install on this device.

This is just a short list, but these are some of the devices that are on my radar. I'll want to get my hands on these and test them as soon as they come out.

Garminfone coming to T-Mobile

Our family uses a Garmin GPS for one of our cars. I've also used TomTom and Magellan GPS devices in the past. I still use my Dash GPS that I received for being a beta tester.

Even though I have standalone GPS devices, I also run a TomTom app on my Windows Mobile smartphone. It's always handy to have a GPS in your pocket if you're traveling. I use Google Maps to view traffic data and I've played around with a Garmin GPS app and I also tried iGuidance. Since you can get GPS navigation apps for other types of smartphones like the Apple iPhone and the BlackBerry Storm, the days of the standalone GPS devices are numbered.

The Garmin Garminfone is coming to T-Mobile and it's going to be the first Android™-powered smartphone and Garmin GPS navigation device in one.

* Voice-guided and on-screen directions with automatic rerouting
* Real-time traffic, weather, ETA, and gas prices
* Thousands of downloadable apps from Android Market
* Access to personal and work e-mail, IM, and text messaging

Given that the Android 2.0 and 2.1 operating system already includes turn-by-turn GPS navigation, why would you want to get a Garminfone?  It's for people who want to have the Garmin interface. I don't have a strong preference for any particular interface, so I'll use whatever I can if I need a GPS.

http://garminfone.t-mobile.com/

AT&T and Garmin present the nuviphone

The Garmin nuvi is a very popular GPS car navigation system. Now, we see that AT&T will have the Garmin nuviphone. You'll get a GPS navigation system running the Garmin system and you'll get a phone. What a great combination!

I already have a TomTomPhone on my smartphone with my combination of TomTom navigation software on a Windows Mobile smartphone. You can also load Garming GPS navigation software on a Windows Mobile smartphone (among other types of smartphones)

The nuvifone G60 will be available in AT&T stores or at www.wireless.att.com on October 4 for $299 with a two year service agreement after $100 mail-in-rebate. Nuvifone Premium Connected Services which includes traffic updates, white pages, weather, movie, local events and fuel price content are available for $5.99/month after a 30-day trial.

So what's so exciting about the nuviphone? It's not exciting for medical professionals who want to run medical software. I doubt that the Garmin operating system will run many medical apps.

Creative Zii Egg: Handheld StemCell Computer

What is the Creative Zii Egg? It looks like an Apple iPhone, but it's not a phone. It's advertised as the "World's 1st Handheld StemCell Computer." It will include the Opera mobile web browser, but it's more than a mobile internet device (MID). It has cameras on both sides (HD and VGA). It's the first device running Plaszma OS and it's branded as "Google Android ready."

I'm not entirely sure what StemCell computing means, but it sure sounds interesting:

• Super-charged Android using StemCell Computing Technology

Here's a small blurb about StemCell computing from Zii.com:

Introducing the ZMS-05 media-rich processor, this nano-sized chip that marks a brand new era in technology: StemCell Computing. A complete solution, the ZMS-05 chip offers incredible flexibility, excellent energy efficiency and maximal scalability. Discover the incredible benefits of nano-sized supercomputing and how it can transform your everyday life.

The Zii Egg will have Wi-Fi and an internal GPS, so at the end of the day, maybe this provides us with a glimpse of the next iPod touch. As more of these handheld evolve into GPS navigation systems, I often wonder what will happen to the standalone car navigation systems made by TomTom, Garmin, Magellan, and others.