I’ve got to say I’m surprised that Nextar is the number 3 GPS brand in the United States. Numbers according to The NPD Group’s retail tracking group have revealed that’s indeed the case with a 473 percent increase in American sales from October to November. Nextar only sat at 6th in September, but has moved to remove Magellan (recently acquired by MiTAC) from 3rd spot and also inched ahead of Navigon.
This means Nextar has achieved 181 percent growth year-over-year to November, and I think, surprised most interested in the navigation industry. It’s interesting to note though, that Nextar has been featured in a number of major retailer promotions lately. Plus the La Verne, California-based company mainly offers budget portable navigation devices–possibly significant given the recent economic downturn.
Maybe Nextar’s unexpected success should be a lesson to all PND manufacturers.
