In addition to the typical Garmin road navigation functions for cars, motorcycles and scooters, the new all-rounder has special outdoor navigation features and is also equipped with special functions for marine use. Thanks to four predefined profiles, the compact, robust and waterproof all-rounder can be transformed from a car or motorcycle sat nav into a mobile leisure companion or boat guide at the touch of a finger.

"Whether it's a weekend trip to the lake, a scooter jaunt through the city, hiking and mountain biking tours through the foothills of the Alps - the nüvi 550 is the ideal companion for people looking for a single navigation device for all occasions," explains F. Zehnder, Product Manager at Garmin Switzerland.

The waterproof, fuel- and UVA/B-resistant 3.5-inch display of the nüvi 550 is also very easy to read in sunlight. In addition to car navigation, the ability to display altitude in three dimensions is particularly useful for outdoor use. Other features include a compass display, the option of trip recording and a replaceable high-performance battery for extended use outside the vehicle. With the tried and tested "Where am I?" function from other nüvi series function allows you to determine your exact location at any time. A very useful function, especially for outdoor use. The new all-round navigation device features Garmin HotFix(tm) technology as standard for even faster satellite positioning and can optionally handle automatic traffic jam avoidance using TMC traffic information.

Another special feature of the new Garmin series is image navigation via Garmin Connect(tm). At www.connect.garmin.com you will find millions of geocoded photos posted by Google's Panoramio photo sharing community. These can be quickly and easily loaded onto the nüvi and used for navigation. For the growing number of geocaching enthusiasts, a connection to www.geocaching.com has been implemented, which makes it easy to download new geocaches for the next "digital scavenger hunt". For advanced geocachers and those who want to become one, the Whereigo Player from Groundspeak.com is on board. This enables real-time GPS adventures to be downloaded to the new all-round partner via www.whereigo.com.

Maps for driving, mountain tours and regattas
The nüvi 550 comes pre-installed with detailed street maps of 33 countries in Western and Eastern Europe as well as main roads in 7 other countries. For extended outdoor use, Garmin offers additional topographical leisure and hiking maps for Switzerland and many other countries worldwide. Supplemented by optional BlueChart nautical charts, with detailed information such as water depths, tidal zones, wrecks, harbor plans, restricted zones and much more, the nüvi 500 series is particularly suitable for recreational boating.

Accessories, availability and prices
The nüvi 550 is available from specialist retailers for CHF 599. The range of accessories includes various mounts for cars, scooters, bicycles or motorcycles, the TMC traffic receiver GTM25 and extensive map material and travel guides for many regions.

www.garmin.ch