It is not a brand that comes to mind when you think of Android smartphones, but the latest effort from Garmin-Asus, the Nuvifone A10, is a stable performer. Powered by Android 2.1, the Nuvifone is a sturdy, if somewhat average looking smartphone. Because it's built on the Android platform, you get the benefits of the almost unlimited Android App Market plus features like multitasking.
Garmin-Asus has done a complete customised layer over Android, but the nice part is that you can choose your home screen style; the customised one called 'Classic Home' or the more conventional Android one with multiple homescreens called 'Breeze Home'. The maps application works as expected and is fairly accurate and intuitive to use — no surprises here.
A nice touch is the included Garmin Voice Studio app. You can record your own (or anyone else's voice) to use as the default voice during navigating. There are a total of 65 phrases that need to be recorded for the navigation app, and this little extra bit of customisation really helps this device stand out from the crowd. Other pre-installed apps include a unit converter, flight status and weather app. Of course, with the Android App Market at your beck and call, the possibilities are many.
The phone features are good too. It has clear audio, a very responsive touchscreen and good battery life. Multimedia is handled well too. A micro USB slot does duty for data transfer and charging. The two slight issues are the plain-jane looks of the device and the overly sensitive softkeys at the lower edge of the LCD.
To use the GPS navigation in your car, buying the car kit is necessary. That's an additional Rs 2,200; add the Rs18,990 cost of the device and you get a total of 21,100. You could use a 'plain' cellphone mount to use in the car, but that won't be able to charge the device, amplify the sound from the speaker or remember the last GPS position (all of which the official car mount enables).
With the Garmin-Asus partnership set to come to an end early 2011, the Nuvifone A10 might very well be the last phone we see sporting both names. The A10 is at its core a GPS navigation smartphone, and it does that well.
However, you should consider the LG Optimus One P500; a capable Android smartphone with GPS built in. It's priced at Rs 13,000, has the latest Android 2.2, 600Mhz processor, same size battery and a capacitive touchscreen with the same size and resolution as the A10. Even if you add on a GPS application like the Sygic Mobile Maps with all-India maps from MapmyIndia (Rs 2,490), the total price is Rs 15,490, well under the Rs 18,990 asking price of the A10.