Sailing Magazine
Last week Garmin held our exclusive partner event where we showcased the African product Collection for 2014 and launched our brand campaign “My Africa. My Garmin. For Life.” From Cape to Cairo, from navigation to health, Garmin is helping to change the face of Africa. It’s time to celebrate our roots, our soul, our fire, in Living Africology. Get excited about the coming year, it’s time to live “A Life less Ordinary”.
The event was held in Johannesburg on Wednesday at the beautiful Katy’s Palace Bar in Sandton and on Thursday at CapeTown’s African Pride Crystal Towers Hotel. The décor set the mood for a Living Africology themed extravaganza, where guests enjoyed face painting, traditional African welcome drinks and some great entertainment from Chiano Sky and The Kiffness.
Garmin addressed some key trends occurring in the broader GPS industry as well as in each individual sector including, Automotive, Outdoor, Fitness, Marine and the new categories including Health and Wellness and the Action Camera market. Jenna Chisnall, Garmin Southern Africa’s Marketing Manager speaks of the changing traditional automotive GPS market, to an advanced motoring technology and connected car approach. Garmin has recognised this and introduced products like the Dash Cam, a driver’s “eyewitness that will never miss a thing.” This standalone HD driving recorder has a built in sensor that automatically saves footage when an incident occurs, the footage recorded is embedded with detailed information including speed, date, time and location data making it a device with technology-rich features.
The Garmin Head Up Display (HUD+) will be making an entrance into the Southern Africa market as part of the African Collection. Working with a mobile navigation app it receives information from your smartphone and projects it onto a transparent film on your windshield. It’s the technological advancements like these that are moving the automotive market to a new platform where connectivity is required and Garmin are the first to bring that to you.
Fleet management solutions have been a mainstay in the automotive industry, and Garmin have developed an intuitive, platform dependent fleet partner approach. So businesses can track their vehicles, providing cost savings through fuel efficiency, on time delivery, punctual customer service, safety and of course security.
Also included in the Motoring technology sector is Garmin’s zumo motorcycle range. “Gone are the days of a unit just providing navigational information, the zumo 590LM is a connected devices that provide you with real time live services like traffic, weather, local search and alerts” says Mathys Thompson, automotive Category Manager. The Connected Motorcycle means you can monitor your motorcycle’s tyre pressure on your zumo screen. What’s more is that the zumo can be paired with Garmin’s virb action camera to start and stop recording while driving or touring.
Garmin’s prides itself in providing technology solutions and advancements in all the products that it creates, pushing the boundaries to offer more and continually create a connected experience and there is certainly no difference in offering this to avid mariners or fishermen. The Marine category introduces high definition technologies, our marine units are used across the board from small RIBS, on military strike crafts and quick reaction vessels, to large motor yachts….. from small cruising yachts….. to Round the Word racing yachts…..and, of course for fishing. The Garmin ClearVu technology provides a clear, nearly photographic view of fish and structure below your boat.
Garmin introduced quatix in 2013, the first marine wrist-worn watch that combines advanced sail racing tools for a competitive edge during a racing competition. quatix can easily set up a virtual starting line between 2 GPS waypoints and then combines the starting line with the built-in countdown timer to calculate both distance to the line as well as desired speed and burn time available, which enables the vessel to cross the line at maximum speed at the exact starting time. Once the race has begun, the watch then switches to Tack Assist mode and indicates whether the vessel is getting headed or lifted based on the optimal tack angle provided and makes for a more efficient and controlled sailing experience. “This amazing watch also features built-in remote capabilities which allows you to remotely control a Garmin autopilot so you can move around the deck of a power boat or sailboat while having information and control right on your wrist” says Adrian van Lieshout, Marine Category Manager.
The outdoor sector introduces the highly anticipated Monterra, an Android based mobile based handheld with connected features and the ability to load mobile apps, and an update to the legendary GPSMAP handheld series as well. The latest trend for the dedicated user, is moving everything to the wrist in the form of a wearable, a band, a watch or a smart device. Wearables such as the Fenix, Tactix and the D2 aviation watch are all testament to this.
Garmin at the end of 2013 launched the Virb Elite Action Camera that pairs with other Garmin devices, so one can remotely control their action from their device. Garmin has taken the action camera market by storm, by combining heart rate and GPS so you can record your speed, distance, route, tracks and altitude that can be embedded in the video when replayed. A first in this market category!
Garmin have done incredibly well tapping into the minds and hearts of sports lovers and their needs as a unique sportsman. “Competition amongst athletes has introduced the ultimate sporting advantage, live tracking and body telemetry. Whether it be cycling, running, triathlon, or golf. We saw the introduction of live tracking on the Edge 810 this year as mountain bike organisers around the world moved to GPS racing” states Walter Mech, CEO of Garmin Southern Africa.
The Garmin vector power meters born out of the training grounds of Tour de France, give cyclists the measuring tools to record their power output from each pedal. Live tracking on cycling and running watches allow coaches, sports scientists, and even friends to track from home. Garmin’s Forerunner 220 and 620 running watches with the new VO2 oxygen metric can be used in conjunction with training programmes and recovery adviser, the new HRM Run also allows one to measure how long your foot is in contact with the ground.
“With 4 different golf units in the market and over 150 000 international preloaded courses, golfers have the bragging rights when it comes to our units as we now offer features like club suggestion, pin pointer, Swing Analysis and wifi capabilities. The Garmin Connect platform has been extended for Golf through a Web + Mobile App, so golfers can analyse their game and create a true Garmin golf community, bringing technology to the forefront of one’s game” says Marc Bainbridge.
Gone are the days when you have to upload your workouts manually via your PC, the new Garmin Connect app allows you to wirelessly transfer your data onto your mobile phone. With a new interface and group track logs it is now the perfect tool to analyse your workout data.
Garmin has expanded into the wellness market with the brand new VivoFit. Our jobs are much less physical than those of our grandparents, where we sit for way too long in an office bound environment and at our desks. VivoFit is your first step to wellness, as it helps you to easily track and monitor your physical activity, calorie burn and sleep patterns and provides individual goals and encourages you to be more active by challenging you and your friends through Garmin Connect. VivoFit is available in multiple colours and at present is the only wellness band on the market that has a battery life of up to 1 year.
Garmin are repositioning themselves as a GPS lifestyle brand that has advanced, connected GPS solutions for drivers, bikers, fishermen, sailors, outdoor adventurists, trail runners, cyclists, golfers and now wellness bands for everyone.
To find out more about Garmin’s wide range of products visit www.garmin.co.za
