GPS on the iPhone…really?

The rumor mill has kicked in for the 2nd Gen (3G) iPhone that seems to be just on the horizon. The rumors include the addition of a GPS receiver in the new phone. This is a bit curious since there is such a great location based technology in the existing firmware with the wifi location with Skyhook and cellular location from Google. While there are situations in which you may want higher res location than is currently available I am not sure the power drain that a GPS chip would add is worth it. That seemed to be one of the big detriments of the N95, the battery issues associated with the GPS (though I haven’t had the chance the test it myself). Why not just make it possible to connect to a Bluetooth GPS unit? There is already a bluetooth antenna on the phone. We will have to wait a month or so to find out what reality will be, but it is a curious turn.

The second-gen iPhone: 3G, GPS, only slightly thicker – Engadget