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WirelessDevNet.com Press Release
Nextel and Trimble Join Forces to Offer The Only Outdoor Recreation Product
SUNNYVALE, Calif. and RESTON, Va., Oct. 25
Trimble (Nasdaq: TRMB) and Nextel Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXTL)
announced today that the companies will launch Trimble Outdoors service in
time for the holiday season. The service is an online solution that enables
customers to plan an outdoor adventure, share their trip with friends and
family, and research trips taken by others, including reviewing routes and
points of interest on street aerial, or topographic maps covering the
continental U.S. and parts of Alaska and Hawaii. Targeted to outdoor
enthusiasts, Trimble Outdoors' users will be able to download, from the
Internet, their trip planning information and maps onto several of Nextel's
mobile phones with global positioning system (GPS) capabilities such as the
Motorola i710, Motorola i730, Motorola i830 and the recently launched camera
phone, the Motorola i860.
With the Trimble Outdoors mobile GPS software, Motorola phones from Nextel
can display:
GPS satellites that are available in the sky
A navigation page with a digital compass showing heading, altitude,
speed and bearing to waypoints
A track page that shows where the user has been over time so they can
find their way back to a location
Digital topographic maps, aerial photos, and street maps complete with
the users position and direction on the maps
Digital photos, when using the Motorola i860, that are stamped with GPS
location and time
The alliance, part of an ongoing effort to deliver location-based
solutions to mobile devices, enables Nextel and Trimble to offer customers an
economical and convenient way to add additional GPS functionality to their
mobile phones. The solution allows the Nextel phone to act as a stand-alone
GPS navigation receiver comparable to recreational GPS receivers offered
specifically for outdoor activities.
"We are re-entering the outdoor enthusiast market with an innovative GPS
solution," said Mark Harrington, Trimble's vice president of Strategy and
Business Development. "Nextel had the unique foresight to build its
infrastructure to support GPS phone operation whether in or out of the
network, allowing our Trimble Outdoors vision to become a reality. We're
excited to partner with Nextel for the launch of Trimble Outdoors."
"Trimble Outdoors provides our customers with an additional value-added
service available on Nextel's GPS-enabled phones, with the convenience of
buying and carrying one device," said Danny Bowman, Nextel's vice president,
Wireless Data Services. "Now, customers can turn their Nextel business phone
into an outdoor recreation tool. They are able to embark on an outdoor
adventure using a Motorola phone from Nextel for navigation, mapping, Push To
Talk(SM) walkie-talkie services, and even taking photos."
Customers planning a trip go to the Internet site,
http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com - a free, community-based Internet service
specifically designed for outdoor activities including hiking, biking,
boating, fishing, geo-caching and more - then use the Trimble Outdoors
software to download their trip information.
Individuals with a subscription from Nextel can download the Trimble
Adventure Planner(TM) application from the Trimble Outdoors Web site to allow
seamless trip planning in conjunction with the Trimble Outdoors mobile GPS
software. The Trimble Adventure Planner eliminates the need to purchase
mapping software and makes planning trips easy with three different map types:
street, aerial and topographic maps.
In addition, the Trimble Adventure Planner application allows users to:
Plan trips - define routes, points of interest, elevation profiles, and
digital map segments for use on the Motorola phone from Nextel.
While on a trip - use the Motorola phone from Nextel to mark new points
of interest, take photos, navigate routes, and create written trip
reports to share with friends and family. This trip information is
wirelessly uploaded from the phone to the Adventure Planner.
Share a trip - if users choose to share their trip with friends and
family, the trip information is then available for viewing by community
members on the Trimble Outdoors Web site.
Nextel will offer two wireless service plans for Trimble Outdoors on its
GPS-enabled phones.
Gold Package - $4.99 a month
Navigation tools with digital compass, speed, heading, altitude, and
latitude/longitude
Create and utilize trips, routes and waypoints
GPS tracking for creating bread crumb trails
Wirelessly download and upload trips to the Motorola phone from Nextel
Platinum Package - $9.99 a month
In addition to Gold Package capabilities:
Wirelessly download topography, aerial and street maps to the phone
Wirelessly insert pictures and notes into your trips from your mobile
phone. Images require the Motorola i860 phone from Nextel
About Nextel
Nextel Communications, a FORTUNE 200 company based in Reston, Va., is a
leading provider of fully integrated wireless communications services and has
built the largest guaranteed all-digital wireless network in the country
covering thousands of communities across the United States. Today 95 percent
of FORTUNE 500R companies are Nextel customers. Nextel and Nextel Partners,
Inc. currently serve 297 of the top 300 U.S. markets where approximately 259
million people live or work.
About Trimble
Trimble is a leading innovator of Global Positioning System (GPS)
technology. In addition to providing advanced GPS components, Trimble augments
GPS with other positioning technologies as well as wireless communications and
software to create complete customer solutions. Trimble's worldwide presence
and unique capabilities position the Company for growth in emerging
applications including surveying, automobile navigation, machine guidance,
asset tracking, wireless platforms, and telecommunications infrastructure.
Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., Trimble has more than
2,000 employees in more than 20 countries worldwide.
For an interactive look at company news and products, visit Trimble's Web
site at http://www.trimble.com.
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