Microsoft announced its NavReady 2009 operating system today for GPS and navigational hardware. The embedded OS is aimed at helping hardware developers bring navigational equipment to market faster and easier by using NavReady 2009 features such as Internet Live Search, integration and syncing with Windows-based PCs, and other communication goodies.

Some personal navigation devices are already based on Windows CE embedded, including the Mio, but big players in the market like Magellan and Garmin still use proprietary operating systems.