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March 24, 2003
Garmin® Creates New Niche with GPS-Based Games
on Geko™ 201
OLATHE,
Kan. — Garmin International Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd.
(Nasdaq: GRMN), today announced that the company is patenting
a series of geolocation games that turns the great outdoors into
a virtual gameboard using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology.
GPS games are currently available on three Garmin products, including
the new Geko 201, which was strategically designed to create
a new niche and increase the benefits of GPS technology in the
outdoor recreation market.
As a slender, lightweight, waterproof GPS device, the Geko
201 provides basic navigation capabilities using waypoints, track
points and routes. It is one of the smallest, most affordable
GPS products to offer satellite-differential WAAS accuracy, which
pinpoints a user’s location within 10 feet.
"
The Geko 201 is the kind of product that compels users to go
outside and play," said Gary Kelley, Garmin's director
of marketing. "The Geko's GPS games bring people together
and also teach them how to use GPS technology while they’re
outdoors having fun."
Garmin first incorporated geolocation games on its Rino® 110
and Rino 120 devices — innovative, patented FRS radios
that combine short-range, two-way voice communications and GPS
navigation
capabilities. Several of the games take advantage of these integrated
technologies. While the games add value to the Rino series, the
game pack on the Geko 201 is one of its primary features.
The Geko 201 contains four geolocation games — Virtual
Maze, Memory Race, Nibbons and Geko Smak. Participants need an
area of roughly 360 square feet to appreciate these geolocation
games.
Think of a human version of the popular Pac-Man® video
game and you get the idea behind Virtual Maze. The player walks
through
a labyrinth on the screen in search of markers. The goal is to
collect all of the flags within the maze in the fastest time
possible. There are three levels of difficulty as well as three
sizes of mazes for additional adventures. Each maze is randomly
generated, making each game a new challenge. For more competition,
get a few of your Geko-toting friends together and synchronize
the start of Virtual Maze. That way, all gamers compete against
each other and against the clock in the same maze on their Geko
201.
For people with a passion for the outdoors and lots of concentration,
Memory Race fits the bill. In this geolocation game, players
attempt to match different symbols inside treasure chests within
a grid system, using the great outdoors as their gameboard. Like
Virtual Maze, gamers can choose higher levels of difficulty and
larger playing areas for more enjoyment.
Nibbons is a game of navigational strategy. Players travel
to a numeric marker, leaving behind an electronic breadcrumb
trail.
After reaching the marker, they need to walk to the next sequential
marker. The catch: Reach the next marker without crossing your
tracks. If you do, you’ll need to start over. When you
get the gist of the game, you’ll step up to the next level
of competition.
For the hunter-gatherer in the crowd, Garmin added Geko Smak
to the game pack. Based on the Whac-A-Mole® carnival game,
the object of this activity is to "smack" the virtual
lizard before it disappears from the display. The lizards appear
within close proximity to your current location and you must
reach each lizard and hit the "OK" key. The game gets
progressively more difficult at higher stages in which lizards
appear quicker and farther apart.
Geolocation games are in their infancy and Garmin plans to
develop more games to enhance outdoor activities in current and
future
GPS-enabled products. In the meantime, outdoor enthusiasts
and game fanatics can get outside and enjoy the current game
pack
on the Geko 201, which retails for a suggested price of $149.99. Garmin International Inc. is a member of the Garmin Ltd.
(Nasdaq: GRMN) group of companies, which designs and manufactures
navigation,
communication and information devices — most of which are
enabled by GPS technology. Garmin is a leader in the general
aviation and consumer GPS markets and its products serve aviation,
marine, outdoor recreation, automotive, wireless and OEM applications.
Garmin Ltd. is incorporated in the Cayman Islands, and its principal
subsidiaries are located in the United States, Taiwan and the
United Kingdom. For more information, visit Garmin's virtual
pressroom at www.garmin.com/pressroom or contact the Media Relations
department at 913-397-8200. Garmin is a registered trademark,
and Geko 201, Rino 110, Rino 120, Virtual Maze, Memory Game,
Nibbons and Geko Smak are trademarks of Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries.
All other trademarks may be the property of their respective
owners.
Notice on forward-looking statements:
This release includes projections and other forward-looking
statements regarding Garmin Ltd. and its business.
Any statements regarding
the company’s future financial position, revenues, earnings,
product introductions, plans and objectives are forward-looking
statements. The forward-looking events and circumstances discussed
in this release may not occur and actual results could differ
materially as a result of risk factors affecting Garmin. Information
concerning risk factors that could affect Garmin's actual
results is contained in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended December 29, 2001 filed by Garmin with the Securities
and Exchange Commission (Commission file number 0-31983). A copy
of Garmin’s Form 10-K can be downloaded from www.garmin.com/aboutGarmin/invRelations/finReports.html. |