The delay creates a significant setback for the nuvifone, which would have originally launched in the same general timeframe as the iPhone 3G but will now appear at least six months later. Apple's device also now has similar cellular Internet access features as well as the defining GPS receiver, although the current implementation is less advanced than what Garmin has promised, with an interface that would effectively replicate the company's stand-alone nuvi GPS units' turn-by-turn directions.

Garmin is also facing increased competition from the BlackBerry Bold and an increasing number of other smartphones that make GPS standard and can use it for non-mapping functions, such as geotagging photos or running location-based social networks.