GPS unit which doubles as MP3 player announced from Lowrance

Lowrance Electronics, a maker of GPS devices, announced they had won a special award for their recently released iWAY 500C GPS unit which has MP3 player capabilities. The award was Best New Mobile Electronics Entertainment Product for 2005 at the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) 2004 Show in Las Vegas.

As far as what the iWAY 500C specifically does, Lowrance described it in their press release as "a versatile, portable, on-dash automotive GPS that uniquely adds MP3 player functions to precision, auto-routing, turn-by-turn navigation with visual and voice prompts. The sizeable, 5-inch diagonal color TFT touch-screen display features Lowrance proprietary technologies allowing superb viewing, even in direct sunlight. The iWay 500C includes an internal 20GB hard drive, 10GB of which is available for high-detail mapping coverage of the continental U.S., Canada and Europe, and 10GB of free space reserved for MP3 music storage. An internal USB port allows for future map updates from a PC, while the unit comes complete with a full complement of accessories, including two portable mounting fixtures, power-audio-PC cables and adapters, protective cover, and special screen cleaning cloth."

The iWay 500C, which retails for $999.95, is available now.