GPS fleet management technology company Navman Wireless has rolled out a free over the air software update to its vehicle tracking software, OnlineAVL2.

Back in March, Navman Wireless Asia Pacific VP Ian Daniel told NBR his company had looked closely at iPhone apps but had no plans to release one.

Navman Wireless’ target market would never go for any mobile app, said Mr Daniel.

Commercial fleet managers would always prefer a dedicated, wired unit because a mobile’s battery could die, or a driver could simply turn it off.

[UPDATE: Navman Wireless says it is in the process of finalising a deal with AA Traffic's Geosmart division for real-time traffic alerts. The feature is expected to be added in a few weeks. Navman Wireless will also supply traffic flow information to Geosmart.]

First: a quick history listen for those who don't know their Navman from their Navman Wireless:

You may already know a lot of the bad news: Rich Lister Peter Maire sold Navman to US company Brunswick in 2004.

At that point, Navman, which Mr Maire founded in Auckland in 1986, had around 800 staff.

The Taiwanese owner of the New Zealand-founded GPS company is to lay off 25 of its 73 remaining Auckland staff. The redundancies will take affect next Friday.

For one former Navman manager, the hollowing out represents a sad end for a Kiwi high-tech success story – or at least any meaningful local presence: "When Mitac took over [in 2007] they pledged to keep as many jobs as possible in New Zealand. But even then I didn't believe it."

Navman was founded by NBR Rich Lister Peter Maire.