What's the most popular brand of GPS?

location based services

Google Trends, a tool that allows you to compare the frequency of searche terms, was released earlier this week. I've been having a little fun tonight comparing the major brands of GPS. Worldwide trends are shown at left. Now remember, these charts are based on search term frequency, not market share. Garmin and TomTom are the clear leaders, with Magellan and Lowrance trailing significantly. TomTom appears to have surpassed Garmin in the first half of 2005.

Us_1 The picture in the United States is a little different, with Garmin clearly out in front, as shown at right. Here Magellan comes in a strong second, with TomTom tied with Lowrance for third. This surprised me, given the reports that TomTom had taken the number two spot in the U.S. market from Magellan. Sales are what counts though, and we do see evidence of a fourth quarter 2005 holiday spike for TomTom, which I recall being a period where they really ramped up their U.S. presence.

Uk Finally, lets take a look at the U.K., where TomTom rules the roost, as you can see at the left. What really struck me in this graph was the well-defined holiday spike. You guys across the pond must do all your shopping on Christmas Eve, whereas its a little more drawn out on this side. Anyway, I'm sure there's not a perfect correlation between search and sales, but it's fun to look at anyway!

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