Garmin rolled out its Nuvi 260 today, the company’s first GPS device in its palm-sized Nuvi 200 series to have Garmin’s sometimes-comical text-to-speech capabilities. We like to make fun of our Garmin text-to-speech talker; for example, when it comes up to Forest Drive, it calls it Fo. Rest. Drive. Hahaha. Anyway, text-to-speech is how Garmin differentiates its “premium” GPS systems with all those other “budget” units it sells in the Nuvi 200 series.
Besides being a source of comic relief, calling out the street names with this text-to-speech capability can actually be useful—keeping your eyes on the road and away from that map on the Nuvi 260’s smallish 3.5-inch screen. Garmin says this Nuvi 260 will be shipping this month, and it’ll retail for just under $500. And that’s a “budget” unit? Expect (hope for) discounts forthwith. [Press Release]
