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Although Microsoft has sold mapping software for years, it never shipped hardware with its applications.

That's about to change.

You see, when a technology gets hot, it is only a matter of time before Microsoft tosses its hat into the ring. So why should it be any different with Global Positioning System (GPS) hardware.

Early this month, we highlighted how mobile device manufacturers and other providers are helping location-based GPS services find there way into PDAs, cell phones and smartphones (See GPS Taking Hold in Handhelds) . Just yesterday, we reported on a new "hybrid" gaming device from Gizmondo that will integrate these features right into the games people play (see Gaming Handheld Knows Where You Are).

For its part, the software giant is now shipping a new version of its mapping and travel planning software—Streets & Trips 2005—with its first GPS hardware device, called GPS Locator.

In tandem with Streets & Trips 2005, Microsoft's GPS Locator lets you turn a laptop or handheld into a GPS tracking system. You simply plug the GPS Locator into a laptop's USB port, install Streets & Trips 2005, and you're ready to hit the road. An expansion sled, sold separately, lets you use Microsoft's GPS hardware with a Windows Mobile-based Pocket PC, Pocket PC Phone or Smartphone. A sled that connects to a handheld via CompactFlash sells for $45, while a Bluetooth model goes for $99.

Enhanced GPS support in Streets & Trips 2005 includes three new features: a GPS Pane, a GPS Trail and Re-route from Here.

With the GPS Pane, motorists can gauge their direction via an on-screen compass as well as current position, speed, altitude, latitude and longitude coordinates, and the time of day. You can even choose to keep your current position centered in the map view and rotate the map in real time.

GPS Trail graphically tracks where you've been on the map, and the Re-route from Here feature automatically recalculates driving directions from a driver's current location to any other destination he may choose.

Microsoft Streets & Trips 2005 with GPS Locator sells for $129. The software is also sold separately for of $39.95