TomTom first impressions

A neighbor who recently bought a TomTom on QVC didn't even open the box. Chris grabbed it and brought it home for me to figure it out and train the owner. Out of the box, I have to say that the TomTom was a pleasure to set up. In fact, no setup is required. It found our house and locked onto the GPS signal in almost no time.

The touch screen and GUI interface are a pleasure to use. One of my rules, for both hardware and software, is that if it's not intuitive, out it goes. No such problems with the TomTom.

I popped the CD into my PC and the TomTom into a USB port, and software updates were a breeze. There are also management features that can be easily administered from the PC interface.

Yesterday I put the TomTom on the dash while Chris and I drove around several towns. I entered a destination before we left home and Chris proceeded to throw it some curves by driving her favorite farm & back roads. The TomTom caught it pretty fast and re-routed us along those roads.

Last evening I took the TomTom back to the owner, an elderly lady, and gave her some simple instructions. She was using it quite proficiently in no time. This afternoon I stopped by to drop something off, and the owner told me she'd been putting routes and stuff in.

Part of the QVC deal (I don't know if they're part of the standard package) are a USB cord, a car charger, a home charger, and a set of plugs for virtually any country in the world.

Overall, my first impressions of this machine are very favorable. At $199, the price was also right. I might even buy one of these for my car.

Thanks for the report.  Sounds like it might be just the ticket.

Which model?

And it's got a pretty cool name, too 

It was TomTom ONE XL, although the price on their web site is different ($212.80). I suspect that she got the $199 price with the freebies thrown in because she ordered while it was on the air. I saw the invoice, so I know for sure she paid $199 for the bundle. Shipping was extra.

That's my twin brother Wendy  ;D

Any truth to the rumor that the TomTom was invented by the Fugawee Indians?

Tom,

How is the screen in daylight? One report I read said the TomTom had the poorest viewing in daylight.

Thanks for the reminder Jim. I forgot to mention that direct sunlight was an issue, and I occasionally needed to change the angle of the screen slightly to make it more viewable while it was on the windshield of the Suburban. I figured that, if it were in my car, I'd mount it away from the windshield anyway, so as not to obstruct vision.

Also forgot to mention that the available choice of voices (male/female/accent/language) made it possible to select a less objectionable one.

Do they have a selection for accents?

Yes they do Robert. That was one of the options I mentioned. There's a male and female Brit accent, neither of which Chris liked. The French language voice(s) have a French accent, which Chris and the neighbor both liked (but neither of them speak French). Similarly for the Italian voice(s).

What, no Welsh accent?

You wouldn't understand it even if the Welsh voice spoke in English  ;D  Besides, a Welshman would probably sing rather than speak the directions.

Ned said:

What, no Welsh accent?

Click to expand...

Too hard to understand if you speak English. ;D

You beat me to it Tom.

Not bad for a hunt and peck 1-finger typist eh Jeff  ;D

Folks,

If anybody is looking make sure you check out the new "large screen" Garmin Nuvi 5000.  I tested it at the CES show and we are going to get one.  It should be released this month (February 2008).  Price $800 with some vendors already advertising $660 street price.  I downloaded the User Manual in order to get a better feel for how it woks.

JerryF

Tom,

I suppose one could devise a shade for the unit that might block some of the sun. Moving it too far inboard may make it more difficult to pick up the satellites though Steve & Hazel have the Garmin on the windshield of a Class C with overhang and still get reception.

Jim,

I held the TomTom in my hand for part of the trip (Chris was driving), but probably not long enough to know if it will lose signal. It showed full strength all the time, as it did inside the house.

One challenge we had with the iWay with the larger screen is that it flags an overtemp alarm after being on the dash of the coach in bright sunlight for several hours. Chris made a shade for it that keeps the sun off while allowing sufficient convection to allow the large heatsink to get the heat out. I was happy with the cardboard shade I made, but Chris wasn't having that as a permanent fixture on our dash.

The iWay also works out OK in the Suburban, but it's physically too big for my car. That's one reason I looked at Garmin Nuvi, but they're priced quite a bit higher.

In addition to the Nuvi, I also saw a Magellan with a similar form factor, and the price is closer to the TomTom.

I really had dismissed the TomTom without ever trying it. So it was quite a surprise when Chris brought this one home from the neighbor's house for me to "set up". The lady called me this morning and told me she's been putting in routes, finding POIs and generally playing with the intuitive GUI. I don't think she's put it in the car yet  ;D

Tom,

Well, it sounds like the TomTom could be an alternative to others. I did see one two years ago and it worked in the house. Even my SPIII can be hard to see at times but is generally pretty good. Ease of use is certainly a big factor. I find it very tedious trying to find addresses, POIs, etc with the SPIII. I don't have the touch screen and scrolling up and down is not fun.

It's funny but Thursday I was watching a lot of the cars we were near on our loooong trip back from the Space Center. Many of them had GPS units attached to the dash or windshield. I'm sure there were as many built in as well. Unfortunately I think many people may become to reliant on them and find themselves in a problem if it fails. That's why the Naval Academy still teaches Mids how to use a sextant!!! ;D