Mio to introduce PDA phone with integrated GPS in 2H

Mio Technology, an own-brand division of Mitac International, expects to debut a PDA phone with a built-in GPS module in the second half of this year, according to Michael Hsu, Marketing Director of Brand Marketing Division at Mitac.

GPS capabilities will be one of the key features for Mio’s smart handheld devices, said Hsu, noting that built-in MP3 player functionality will be the other key feature.

Europe is currently Mio’s largest market, and it accounts for 65% of the company’s sales, Hsu stated. South Korea is the company’s next biggest market, and Mio has been expanding its presence in Japan and North America starting earlier this year, Hsu said.

The Mio-brand business currently accounts for 35% of Mitac’s handheld device business, said Hsu, adding that Mitac’s other business is all ODM/OEM. All production for the handheld devices is done at Mitac’s Kunshan Plant, Jiangsu Province (China), according to Hsu.

In related Computex news, Mio was also showcasing the Mio 268, its first mobile navigation system with a hidden antenna. Rivals Acer, Asustek Computer and Leadtek Research also presented similar devices.

Source: companies, compiled by DigiTimes, June 2005.