TomTom GO 720 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
by TomTom
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List Price: Our Price: $199.00 You Save: $250.95 (56%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $64.75 (click here) Category: GPS or Navigation System See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of TomTom GO 720 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
Customer Review: TomTom GO 720 is a winner!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this and returned the Navigon 7100 (see my review on the 7100, which was 4 star).
The reason I initially decided to try this unit was the ability to update the maps by connecting to my computer and then to their website. This of course is a great feature - it allows me to get map corrections on a regular basis, plus loading photos, music, and backing up everything to my computer (and downloading new voices, etc etc). What I did not expect was the software updates... WOW! New features suddenly appeared! Really nice ones.
Once I started playing around with the unit, it became clear that they had a much better user interface than the Navigon - one simple enough that you really didn't need a user's manual to use, with a few rare exceptions for uncommon functions I actually have never used (but played with). Bravo to TomTom for a great user interface!
For images, if you upload larger images, you can zoom in and drag the image around to look at the details. Somewhat like an iPhone, but for zooming, press the + in the upper right corner to zoom in, or - in the upper left corner to zoom out. Very nice!
I like the way the cell phone connection is automatic, and that you can transfer your contact list to select from on the touch-screen. However, what they don't allow at this time is to use the voice command function of the phone - i.e., you can't connect to the phone unless you provide a number to dial, either manually, or by selecting from the contact list. I hope they add this feature in the future.
I like the "quick menu" feature - access by a single touch to selected menu items. I like the graphic menu - a set of icons with text - very large, easy to see, no problem accidentally touching the wrong one. I like the compass display - you can configure it under settings in different ways. I like the "avoid" capability - where you can set it to avoid certain routes.
There are a number of features I can't use, which require a data connection in my phone. This includes weather and traffic updates, fuel prices, and buddies. I plan to purchase an iPhone, and hope it will work with that... if so, that will add to the functionality significantly.
The speed of acquiring GPS, and the 5-bar signal strength indicator are very helpful. This unit is sensitive enough to work even in some parking garages, and in most homes with wood construction.
The display brightness can be set to automatically adjust to the light level - very nice. You can browse the map, and view the map in 3D or 2D. You can make map corrections, which will get uploaded the next time you connect to your computer. You can download maps you need into the unit (such as a Europe map, if you plan to travel to Europe). Multiple language support as well (I only use English, but you can also have British and Austrailian voices if you wish - also male or female).
Overall, a great buy - highly recommended!
Customer Review: Saved me on the road
Summary: 5 Stars
I borrowed the Garmins 350 and 360, very good units, simple to use etc.
However after much research and use of an older TT One. Based on feedback on this site and others I decided to acquire the TT 720 as I wanted the steets names with directions.
I waited for the 720 to come on sale, acquired for $340 w/shipping. Just got back from a 7000 mile trip. Best purchase I made in an electronic device. It made driving on busy freeways much less stressful. It gave us advance information which lanes I should follow on multi-lane/highways. Thats a huge plus when traveling unknown areas, especially in heavy traffic. Not sure if Garmins do this, as the ones I used were never exposed to this scenario.
I quite frankly wouldn't travel in unknown areas again without a GPS again.
I don't need or use blue-tooth, weather, traffic info, however it available if you need it.
It has a neat feature, which allows you to quickly select your current position (1 step return arrow) as a return POI. No need to program street, city etc.
We found this feature great when its dark, late and your tired and you wish to return to your motel etc. I'm sure others may have a similar feature.
Super impressed with tech service, made 5 phone calls, answered within 2 minutes, and someone I could understand, maybe I was lucky. I made an error when I attempted to update the map, it already came with the most current version.
The download took hours, which was the only hassle I had with the unit.
It comes with a selection of different voice, however to get the street name feature, your restricted to 1 or 2 voice signatures, a none issue with me.
I also highly recommend the larger screen (720 has), the smaller one will do just find if your able to locate/position close to your line of vision. I tend to refer to the information displayed while driving and prefer not to have the unit in my line of sight.
Interface, once downloaded has a very user friendly menu.
I have over 6 million POI, but during our travel, many well known attractions were missing. I plan to download from one of the sites which TT informed was safe and recommended.
For those that are concerned about adding changes to planned routes which Garmins tend to be limited to one re-route. I though this would be a necessary feature I would need/want, however during this trip, that feature was not as important as I innately assumed. You can just use points/towns/cities from paper maps and input as favories/POI and then bring them up as you progress on your route. If you prefer to plan your whole route in advance then this unit is more than capable.
On long trips, IMO you still need paper maps to outline your trip to retain interstate travel. The GPS will get you there, but it may be down secondary/state roads etc.
Customer Review: Simply the best!
Summary: 5 Stars
So I've recently been in search of a replacement for my old Garmin c330 (which was a great entry level unit in itself), and I've finally landed on something I'm in love with - the TomTom 720. I originally bought the Navigon 7100, and all I can say about that thing is STAY AWAY!
PROS...
- The unit itself is compact and sleek, but has a massive widescreen. The mount is simple yet ingenious and the sturdiest I've seen.
- Sound is exceptionally loud and clear - and you are given several options for how to hear the unit (through the internal speaker, built in FM transmitter to your car stereo, or through the AUX output). The unit comes preloaded with several voices... sounds like just an added gimmick, but nobody likes a bitchy voice that many GPS units come with - now you can choose from several already in the unit, or download them from the internet pretty easily. Text to speech engine is pretty good on pronounciations from what I've heard so far.
- The menus are easy to navigate and pretty intuitive. The buttons are large and need only a gentle touch, the touchscreen is very responsive. The device is very highly customizable - down to being able to choose what elements are on the navigation screen or appear on the quick menus.
- MapShare is AWESOME... TomTom is really the only manufacturer that has stepped up to the plate and acknowledged the dynamic nature of the roads we all drive on. Two new rotaries have opened near my home in the past month, and I've been able to update my own maps in a matter of seconds to reflect the new traffic patterns, and broadcast the changes via MapShare. Very cool!
- When looking at a route, the refresh rate on the screen is WAY, WAY quicker than any other unit i've seen - meaning the map moves in a much more fluid manner than the garmin units i've seen, which more closely resemble a very quick slideshow. Purely aesthetic, no doubt, but it's worth nothing.
- Connecting the device to your computer is easy - the software interface is GREAT - very easy to use. (I run MacOS.)
CONS...
I have only a couple of grievances, and they are minor. One is that the unit is customizable to the point that you can easily hide main operating buttons, like the "cancel route" button, which is in kind of an akward place and is hidden by default. In addition to this quirk, I can't seem to find the full manual on the TomTom website.
All in all, a GREAT unit - i've seen many and this is the best. I LOVE IT!
Customer Review: TomTom is the best car navigation system
Summary: 5 Stars
I received a Tomtom go 720 for Christmas and I have been very impressed. We were vacationing in Ruidoso New Mexico and I was surprised to find that even the un-named dirt roads in that area were on the built-in maps. These were "open" roads through public lands. No one can live out there, yet still the TomTom identified each intersection and told me which way to turn. Amazing...
I have used several GPS systems, both car and handheld types and the Tomtom is the drop dead easiest to use of any I have tried. Even though its simple to use, most things can be modified in the preferences. Want to use a "qwerty" keyboard instead of the default alphabetical one, no problem. Change the symbol of your car, sure. Color schemes, voices, left hand or right handed operation, start up screen, you name it, I think it can be changed. Even though its easy to make these changes, no changes are needed to use the unit.
The routing I have found to be superior to other GPS systems - this is especially true of the built-in units the high end cars sell for $2,000 or more (I have experience with the BMW, Lexus, and Caddy Navigation systems). Sometimes these units come up with some truly weird ways of getting somewhere. IMHO most navigation systems need some help with the routing, but the TomTom needed the least amount of help. Also with the Tomtom it is very easy to modify the route the system comes up with by specifying you want to travel "via" and type the city. TomTom also does require you to specify the exact address you're traveling to, you can easily pick the city center. This is something that the other systems need badly as they make entering the information so difficult in the first place that you only want to enter the bare minimum of information. The other units frequently force you to use the entire address, and then make it difficult to fix a mistake without starting over.
I have yet to use the iPod features of the TomTom, but If those work well, that's just free bonus feature.
The upshot here is that all GPS receivers are going to be similar in accuracy so it's just ease of use and completeness of the maps that make the difference. On both of these marks, the go 720 is way beyond the competition.
Customer Review: The Mercedes of GPS Receivers
Summary: 5 Stars
This GPS really looks cool. With its' thin, sleek, black finish with silver trim. Nice !
The 400 MHz processor is very fast at route calculation. The unit is VERY easy to use and you have all the features you want and need readily at hand.
They gave me the latest map version for free. I just downloaded it using the nice TomTom Home Software and now I am at 710. It is a large download at 1.7GB, but adds quite a bit of detail to your maps. The 710 version maps even include building footprints and excellent park and water detail. They have greatly more detail than the map found on the less expensive TomTom units. Another reason why the TomTom 720 is well worth the extra money.
The SD card slot is extremely handy and you can add any SD card. I put in an 8GB high speed SDHC card it works great giving me tons of room for music ( 100's ) and photos ( 100's ) and extra maps. So, with the 2GB of internal memory and my 8GB card I have 10GB of storage on my TomTom. The TomTom 720 lets you access both the internal memory and the SD card at once and takes the new high capacity cards. The less expensive TomTom units cannot do this, they do not accept high capacity cards, and only allow internal or SD card access, not both. Once gain, another reason why the TomTom 720 is worth a few extra dollars.
The MapShare feature of the TomTom units is a really nice feature that competitors don't have and it a really cool community that let's you receive and send map updates from your unit through the TomTom Home Software. Very nice feature.
The bluetooth feature works very well with my Apple iPhone wireless phone. Making the initial connection was very easy and snag free and the connect automatically whenever they are in range of each other. The audio on the TomTom 720 while on a call is excellent, much louder and clearer than my iPhone speakerphone. Calls can hear me easily and my hands are free and eyes on the road. Very Nice feature. You can call POI phone numbers also with ease.
If you want to own a really nice GPS with excellent looks, good maps, rich feature set, and great PC software to keep your unit up to date, then this is the one. I highly recommend it.