Hasta La Gadget!

Garmin has announced the Windows-Mobile-powered nuvifone M20, the second handset in the nuvifone series after the G60, in a preview ahead of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next week. The nuvifone M20 runs Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional and sports a 2.8-inch touchscreen full VGA (640-by-480-pixel) LCD, 4GB or 8GB of storage, and an HSDPA 7.2 3G data radio.

In addition, the handset features the same level of satellite navigation as Garmin’s standalone units, according to the company. It comes preloaded with maps and points of interest for North America as well as Eastern and Western Europe. It also features Connected Services, a suite of online applications and data from Garmin-Asus that adds location intelligence to navigation, phone and browser functions, for real-time traffic information, White Pages, weather, flight status, local events, and movie times.

Finally, the nuvifone M20 works with Ciao, a location-based social networking service that keeps owners in touch with their friends and family. No word yet on pricing or availability; expect an announcement from Garmin sometime in the first half of this year on that front.