Chances are that if you own a smartphone sold in the last few years, it already has GPS in it. I know that’s true of everything from the Nexus S to the iPhone 3GS. However, there are still some folks out there with feature phones and “dumbphones” that aren’t as navigationally friendly. The FCC wants to change that.

It’s not official yet, but the FCC is trying to pass a ruling wherein all mobile phones sold in the United States must have GPS chips embedded in them by the year 2018. That gives cell phone manufacturers a solid six and a half years to get their stuff together, but seeing how so many phones already do the GPS thing, it really shouldn’t be that hard. It just means that they’ll have some added cost to lower end phones.

The rationale is that the GPS would be used in tandem with an enhanced emergency 911 service. When you call 911, the dispatcher can then track your cell phone location using GPS and get help your way even if you’re not entirely sure where you are. For your protection of course. That’s under an ideal situation, but we all know how well GPS can work if you’re buried under a multi-level parkade, under clouds, or inside a building… and there’s a strong possibility that you may need help when you’re in one of these situations. What then?

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You would have to sign up for a potentially pricey wireless data option for your older Motorola RAZR just yet, but they are looking to force data plans on anyone with an “enhanced multimedia phone.” What does this mean? Well, it points toward the “feature phones” in their lineup that aren’t technically smartphones.

You could look at something like the LG enV Touch, for example, that comes with smartphone-like features without having a true smartphone platform. More specifically, Verizon is eyeing any handset with a QWERTY keyboard, high-speed EVDO Rev.A, and a true HTML web browser.

If you are looking to pick up one of these kinds of phones, Verizon will get you to choose between a $10 a month plan for 25MB of data or a $20 a month plan for 75MB. This does away with the cheaper “unlimited web surfing” type options that usually accompanied these so-called feature dumbphones.

The policy goes in place for all phones launching as of September 8th of this year.

Source: Gizmodo

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