Garmin-Asus announces Android-powered nuvifone A50

After building their own operating system for the Garmin nuvifone G60 caused the handset to take roughly a decade (in smart phone years, that is) to come out, it’s no surprise that Garmin-Asus is steering clear of that route. They announced back in June of last year that they’d be bring Android into the mix, and this latest handset reflects that.

The handset you see up top is Garmin’s first foray into Android, which they’ve lovingly dubbed the “nuvifone A50″.

They’re not saying which version of Android comes tucked in side (though Engadget has been tipped that it’s running 1.6, which seems perfectly likely), but here’s what we do know so far:

• Screen: 3.5 inch, Half VGA (480×320) capacitive touch screen
• Internal Storage: 4GB flash
• Camera: 3 megapixels with autofocus
• Hardware Features: microSD slot, accelerometer, compass, car mount and car charger included
• Software Features: Exchange support, Garmin navigation

There’s no word yet on pricing nor US availability, but look for it in Europe sometime in the next four months.