January 5, 2007

Garmin Zumo 450

Fresh on the heels of the Zumo 550 shipping, Garmin has announced the Zumo 450, a more affordable unit It retains teh glove friendly design, the waterproof housing, the left handed controls, and the oversized buttons. It skips the Bluetooth feature that is present in it's big brother. The Zumo 450 is being launched at CES 2007 along with a lot of other new Garmin GPS units.

"The zumo 450 is positioned towards the budget conscience rider who wants a solid and reliable GPS designed for motorcycles," said Dan Bartel, Garmin's vice president of worldwide sales. "Whether riding a cruiser or sportbike, the zumo's intuitive interface and motorcycle-specific attributes make it ideal for any rider on the go."

For the ultimate convenience and safety, riders will appreciate the zumo 450's glove-friendly design with left-handed controls and oversized touchscreen buttons. The waterproof (IEC 529 IPX-7 standards) device is preloaded with full North American map data that includes over six million points of interest -- including hotels, restaurants, gas stations, ATMs, and attractions. In addition, zumo 450 owners may also establish customized points of interest, such as safety cameras and school zones. Map data is provided by NAVTEQ(TM) -- a world leader in premium-quality mapping.
Riders who want a detailed log of their trips will appreciate being able to download their favorite treks to the accompanying MapSource® software. Zumo owners can also plan routes on their computer and download it to the zumo before they begin their journey. In addition, riders can swap routes and waypoints with other zumo owners via the unit's SD card slot.

Zumo owners can also access trip information directly from the zumo's trip information page. The bright display shows the rider their speed, heading, and a customizable fuel gauge that lets them define the motorcycle's maximum fuel range. If a rider wants to leave the pavement for the trail, the zumo accepts electronic topo maps for off-road navigation.

The zumo 450 also has many security features. It includes a locking motorcycle mount with waterproof power and data cable connections. The mount is designed to withstand the severe vibration environment commonly experienced in motorcycle riding. The zumo also includes Garmin Lock(TM), a unique theft prevention system that disables the zumo from performing any functions until the user types in a specific 4-digit PIN or takes the unit to a predetermined secure location. If the user does not know the PIN or secure location, the zumo will be inoperative.
The zumo 450 is expected to be available in March 2007 at an MSRP of $799.

More at Amazon and Garmin.

Read More in: Garmin GPS News | Motorcycle GPS

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