The world is divided into those who have discovered GPS navigation and those who have not. With a GPS unit you rarely get lost and the result is very, very relaxing.
The TomTom Go has a lot of well thought out software in the box – then again it still has a good few poweruser features that let you add POI’s (points of interest) to navigate to cash machines, petrol stations, speed cameras, Little Chefs, Travel Inns and more. (If I need to remember to go to Maplin, Halfords or ASDA I can tell TomTom to go 'boing' next time I'm driving past one).
The TomTom gives every feeling of being a fairly mature product: basically it kicks.
The TomTom 700 has an all Europe map which is a lifesaver for even occasional breaks away. If you haven’t ever been to another city and wondered where's the station, airport, hotel and so on, then you could save money and get a UK only map. However when you realise how good GPS is, you might well spend the extra money on the bigger map.
There’s a remote control - I use it, some people do not.
A Bluetooth wireless headset feature works well and lets you chat fairly safely on the phone. You can avoid needing to shout with a regular 3.5mm jacked mike – but it’s good to start with.
The traffic service is pretty good – the traffic service has the feel of a first generation product so you’ll have to contend with frequent ‘can’t connects’ and possibly even old information. However, when it helps me avoid any traffic, I’m a happy bunny. It’s hard to assess its effectiveness but there was no better way of avoiding a jam in an area I did not know.
Itineries can be set up – these are for your journeys with multiple stops. You enter all your way-stops and off you drive – though I’d caution on these. For example, if you stop short of a way-stop, you’re never logged as having been there. The result is that you’ll be redirected back to the stop. For these you have to be on the ball about telling the box where you’ve gone and been – I’d not recommend this feature to the whole world.
Favorite destinations – now these are fantastic: I recommend you prime the box with all your friends places and phone numbers. Then pay them surprise visits.
Issues to note:
maps - not perfect - I do get the occasional glitch (eg I’ve been directed to the back of the shopping centre, some roads do not exist and yet some are being built and appear on the map. Overall its better than good enough.
shape - this is fine mounted in a car but in your hand it is a bar of soap
phones - there is a list of supported phones and this is worth believing. Not being able to absorb the phone's phonebook (P910) or read SMS's was a trivial issue as all else worked.
don't 'use' whilst driving - if you buy a TomTom (even for someone not-so technowise) do them a favour and add addresses and POI's - download POI’s from tomtom forums and usb them over.
gprs - if you find you cannot set this up you may need to get O2 or Vodafone to let you have the full GPRS service.
Yesterday BBC’s Watchdog programme took on the case of someone who couldn’t use the TomTom and wanted to take it back. They'd been driving in circles with it in their home town. The shop refused and a fight ensued. Ultimately Watchdog wins because they have to – but frankly Watchdog could fight more deserving consumer injustices. Instead they rushed to rescue a consumer crybaby who wants the moon on a stick. The TomTom is a fabulous device, it’s imperfect but its every imperfection is worth working round.
Overall: best gizmo in years. Wife agrees, saynomore.
