Quality Assurance, Players’ First Choice — Exclusive Interview with Garmin North China Marketing Director Huang Heng

　　ISPOBeijing 2012Green FieldExclusive Report, February 28, 2012:

　　With the rise of domestic hiking, trekking, running, cycling, and other sports, the need for specialized GPS features tailored to each activity is growing. During the ISPO Beijing 2012 event, Green Field Outdoors interviewed Mr. Huang Heng, Marketing Director of Garmin (Garmin) China’s North China region. We’ll give you a full overview of the exciting offerings Garmin (Garmin) has prepared for outdoor enthusiasts this year.

　　Mr. Huang Heng, Marketing Director of Garmin (Garmin) China’s North China region, explained that currently, the navigation device market mainly focuses on two areas: in-car navigation and handheld navigation for industry clients such as forestry, agriculture, and land resources/mining, where handheld devices serve as production tools. However, overseas, the primary users of handheld navigation are individual recreational hikers and explorers. The proportion of individual users in China is not high yet, but there is tremendous potential for growth. Garmin (Garmin) plans to introduce more GPS devices launched overseas to China to meet the increasing local demand.

　　Mr. Huang revealed that there are currently no products specifically designed solely for the Chinese market, but all Garmin (Garmin) GPS devices undergo localization before being introduced to China. Prior to launching new products, they are translated into Chinese and further refined and upgraded based on the needs of domestic customers. For instance, Garmin (Garmin) products entering the Chinese market come with Pinyin input and area measurement functions. This year, Garmin (Garmin) is launching up to 16 types of handheld products, covering various activities such as driving, cycling, and mountaineering. However, the focus of future products will be on civilian use. To help domestic customers choose easily, Garmin (Garmin) has introduced industry and consumer editions.

　　Compared to other brands, Garmin (Garmin) has the greatest confidence in the advantages of its products. Mr. Huang said that one Garmin (Garmin) product, the GPS 12, has been a bestseller for 10 years—an incredible feat for an electronic device. The biggest strength of Garmin (Garmin) products lies in their quality, with an emphasis on sleek interface design and simple, convenient operation. As an example, he cited two bicycle navigation devices—EDGE 500 and EDGE 800. Both can connect with heart rate monitors and cadence sensors. The EDGE 800 can display over 70 types of data, including maximum speed, average speed, calories burned, cadence, heart rate, and gradient. The difference is that the EDGE 500 lacks a touchscreen and maps, making it more suitable for workouts and training, while the EDGE 800 is ideal for long-distance cycling, especially in unfamiliar areas.

　　At the exhibition booth, we saw Garmin (Garmin) products for cars, bicycles, and mountaineering participating in ISPO. Mr. Huang introduced the features and advantages of each type of product in turn. For example, the car-specific NUVI series offers a lifetime free plan and comes with a driving recorder. The camera is fully integrated with the navigation device and includes track memory functionality. The time is based on satellite time from GPS, ensuring completely continuous video recording. The video compression is space-efficient and supports external memory cards. Handheld products are mainly for outdoor sports, featuring waterproof, shockproof, and dustproof capabilities, with up to two days of battery life. Additionally, there will be a smartwatch launching mid-year, suitable for running and triathlons, with internet connectivity and swimming data analysis, as well as two-way radio products.

　　At the end of 2011, Garmin (Garmin) introduced a “pay once, free for life” commitment. Our reporter asked Mr. Huang Heng about the rationale behind this promise. The domestic navigation device market is crowded with many brands, all fairly evenly matched. Especially with the prevalence of counterfeit products, the low prices of knockoffs are a major temptation for prospective or new customers. However, many counterfeit devices use cracked maps, which are not very accurate. Even if other brands use legitimate maps, customers often have to pay for updates or map downloads, negatively affecting the user experience. Therefore, Garmin (Garmin) made this commitment by bundling upgrade packages for every customer who purchases a Garmin (Garmin) product and delivering them in one go to the map producer, thereby eliminating customers’ concerns, as Mr. Huang explained.

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