TomTom ONE Portable GPS Vehicle Navigator
by TomTom
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Our Price: $409.44 Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $35.00 (click here) Category: GPS or Navigation System See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of TomTom ONE Portable GPS Vehicle Navigator
Customer Review: Perfect for me!
Summary: 5 Stars
First of all, if you are trying to decide "TomTom One" or "TomTom One XL"- they only got one thing different (I called Garmin and TomTom before I made my purchase) it's the size, everything else is the same! The hight of the screen is the same as far as I can see , the XL a whopping 100$ more expensive is only a little wider then the One- does one really need a wider screen- no not really! I've seen my Tomtom One in action and it shows plenty, it tells you soon enough when to turn (and you can see where the next turn is going to go by a little arrow in the left corneron the bottom)which makes a wider screen unnessesary! Believe me , I'm a Widescreen person, TV and PC and all, but in this case I'm, glad I didn't waste the extra 100$ for a little wider screen!
I love my TomTom One and it goes with me wherever I go!It is very light and easy to install! First of all, I gotta say the Customerservice is great, they are prompt, very friendly and really take their time to walk you through if you got some questions or problems! It comes with a big variety of voices (some on the TomTom the others free to download on it) but you can also purchase extra voices of celebritys which actually is quite a hoot. My GPS actually gets me laughing with it's funny remarks for example when it litteraly moans to me turn left onto the highway and then go faster, faster, faster..... (it depends who and what voice you got!)
I've used it quite a lot and I found it actually to be very correct, I'd say up to about 10 feet actually! I live in a very small but extremely fast growing city and so far I've only had one problem where it told me that no cars are allowed on that particular street but they where, buit in the end this wasn't even a problem even to me!.
It extremely fast adjusts lets say (at times it draws it's info from up to 10 Satelites (I can see it on the screen upper right corner), it tells me go this way but I was destracted by my son and miss the street, it thinks for a second and then shows you right away the new route to your destination!
there is alos no need to tell the TomTom where you are laving from by adress, since it's by Satelite it knows it right away and will still guide to correctly to your destination! It also shows me Gasstation in Symbols along the road while driving!
It actually very correctly tells you (if you wish) how long it'll take you to get to your destination, given the fact you stick with he speedlimits, it'll also tell you how much time you'll need to make up in order to get to your destination at the time you planned it for!
I just love my little TomTom!
It comes with a USB Cable for the PC you can charge it with anda n Adapter for the Car! Since the battery in the TomTomOne only lasts about 3 hours the Adapter for the Car is great. Sure it'd be better if the Battery would last longer but that doesn't bother me, since it did come with an Adapter for the Cigarettelighter I don't care, my TomTom One will go as long as I need it too as long as the Battery of my car lasts plus 3 hours *hahah&*
the mopunt it comes with is great witht he big suction cup and easily to install and take down! I do wish that it wouldn't be kind of tough to slide the tomTom on the mount, it's easy to do it when you hold both things in your hand but if the mount is stuck on the window it's kind of touigh to stick the TomTom on it! It'd be great if it came with lets say a Velcrowpatch on the mount,t hat way I could leave the mount on the window until I use my Tomtom One again or when I leave my car so it doesn't get stolen. But, since it's easy enough to just pull the Mount of the windshield I still give the TomTom One 5 Stars!
I read other reviews here and some gave the TomTom a very poor judgment which I can't really understand. Like I said I found my tomtom very accurate up to 10 feet and less and yes, the signal can be thrown off with a strong disturbance and then maybe show temporarily a wrong street I guess, but I had that only once. I wanted to go home, I had been at a adress in my city which was kind of hidden adn I knew I wouldn't find my way out. It showed my street kind of messed up, so I again gave the order for the destination and this time it got it correct and the screen looked right too! It works perfect 99,99% of the time!
Even GPS-systems that cost very much can misslead you or mess up, and for that price the TomTom One is top of the line for me and much more practical then many other way more expensive and more complicated GPS systems.
You can hook it up to your blootooth of your Cell and Tomtom One will give you live updates ono Traffic ahead AND lead you around it! Haven't tried that though but I will soon, once I've turn the Bluetooth Capability on on my Cell!
I love it and I'll recommend it to everyone! Read the instructions, call the Customrerserviced if you got a question or problem, there is no long waiting or anything. You'll love Tomtom One too, just like me!
Customer Review: SIMPLICITY AT ITS FINEST...
Summary: 5 Stars
Being a fan of the old analog GPS systems (that's road maps to you) for years I decided to try my luck on the TomTom One (New Edition). I figured that the price of portable GPS systems had declined enough for the average American to afford, (and with the discount that TomTom is presently offering I decided now was as good as time as any to purchase).
The unit itself is ready straight out of the box. The internal battery comes charged and the package also includes a car charger to your cigarette lighter, a USB cable for connecting to your PC, a windshield mount, computer software that includes TomTom Home for easy organization of your TomTom, an instruction manual with easy start guide, and finally a replaceable 1GB SD card loaded with maps and points of interest throughout America and Canada.
Upon initial use of the TomTom One, I found the unit to be light (approximately 7 ounces) and very easy to set up. The onscreen instructions were clear, precise, and specific. I was asked a series of questions that helped me customize my TomTom...my street address, the voice setting I preferred...etc. The 3.5 inch touchscreen with 320 x 240 resolution is large enough to use comfortably and was crystal clear even in direct sunlight. Within five minutes of getting the unit out of the box I was ready to go.
The TomTom One (using its SirfStar III chipset) found my position on the map within 60 seconds. Very impressive considering the 5 minute wait owners are used to with prior GPS systems. I decided to take a 30 mile drive from within city limits to my parents house, which is located in the sprawling cornfields of Illinois.
Once the route was calculated the TomTom One warned me that exact street addresses (house numbers) located in the country were not included in the directions but it would still take me to the road I was searching for. Fair enough.
The route was calculated within seconds, I was given a choice of using either 2D or 3D onscreen maps, and a female voice started giving me turn by turn instructions towards my destination. This is what I have been lacking! It was like having my own personal tour guide for the entire country.
Somewhere along the drive I decided to test the TomTom One to see what would happen if a wrong turn was made. I made an "incorrect left" down a gravel road and the unit had a new route for me within 25 feet. I was astonished. The country roads in Illinois can get very confusing at times, a driver can get lost quite easy because there are no visible reference points to navigate from. The TomTom One didn't hiccup once, it just recalculated a route and kept right on going.
I arrived at my destination (as promised, the TomTom One took me to the country road I needed but not to the street address itself). I was impressed. With rural Illinois conquered, I decided to test the system's point of interest (POI) database. This seems to be a major negative point with other reviewers but I found the database to be very reasonable considering the fact that places of business close quicker than they open. True...some restaurants weren't included in the system's SD card, but anyone that uses even an "up-to-date" phonebook will tell you they have the same problem. I think the POI database was extensive and as accurate as the driving directions the TomTom gives itself.
What the TomTom One does lack however is any video or MP3 playback capabilities. This, to me, was understood before purchasing the unit and incidentally seemed like an unnecessary feature for a GPS system. Unfortunately, the TomTom One does lack features that I would prefer to have. One of which is text to speech capabilities which would allow the voice navigation to pronounce the names of streets rather than just left or right turns (example: "turn left on Progress Boulevard", as opposed to just "turn right")
Also, I really would have appreciated a user-replaceable battery in this product. It seems that the new electronic trend is to make changing batteries in products an impossible task for consumers, unless they're willing to pay more money. True...almost all portable GPS systems have this same feature but that's my point exactly. Great products with cheap tricks built in.
All in all I give this product a commendable review and star rating. It has saved me so much time and frustration on long road trips that I can't begin to express enough gratitude. Before this product I would use nightmarish, printed-out, Internet maps which had me stopping every fifteen minutes, asking gas station attendants how to get to a certain street. Only to drive in circles for another fifteen minutes and arrive at the same gas station. I used to dread getting lost in unfamiliar neighborhoods, now I welcome the challenge.
Customer Review: Best Bang for the Buck
Summary: 5 Stars
For $200, you sure get a lot! I've been wanting a GPS for a long time but they've always been out of my price range (my father dropped almost a grand on his) so when I saw these at $200, my interest was piqued. I read a few reviews and decided that it would be worth picking up and I took the plunge.
I've been using this for half a year now and have traveled through many states with this on. Here is what I've found out about this:
Positives:
1) It's only two hundred bucks. Again, most of them are still in the $500 price range. I've found very little that this can't do for the money.
2) Customizable. There is a wealth of information on the screen out of box but I wanted it to display some other things. After playing around with it for a little bit I found out how to get rid of the estimated time of arrival (very inaccurate) and replaced it with the current speed instead. There are a lot of other tidbits of information it can track but I'm happy with that change.
3) Works great out of the box. In fact, I didn't sync it up to my computer for any firmware or map updates until I had it for a few months. I did update the firmware (not sure what I got out of that), backed up my settings, register it, and no new maps were available but it was great to have a product I had bought five minutes prior working perfectly well in my car.
4) Battery Life. Sometimes I can't have it plugged in, like when I'm hiking, geocaching, need to use my cigarette lighter for something else, or showing it off for friends. That GPS that my Dad spent all that money on... no battery. Once it has no power it goes out like a light. And not only does it have a battery, but a long lasting one at that. A full charge will let this run for a couple of hours.
5) Very accurate. I especially love the MPH on this. Did you know that most cars have their speedometer off by about 5-10%?!?!? Now I have my speedometer on my GPS and it is perfectly accurate. 99% of the time my GPS knows EXACTLY where I am within a couple of feet.
6) USB cable. I love it when electronics comes with a standard USB cable. I hate companies that make you use a cable that is proprietary to the product (Palm, Zune, iPod, some cameras). Thank you, TomTom, for making this simple feature.
Negatives
1) No altitude. I can see Lat and Long, but I have no idea how high I am and in the mountains of Utah, that can be useful information. I'm surprised that didn't come as a feature.
2) Can't categorize favorites. Ah, probably my biggest gripe. I wish I could categorize my favorite locations. For instance, most favorites I only use while visiting somewhere and then I have a handful around town that I use 90% of the time. Since it lists things in alphabetical order I just start my more common favorites with a 00 and then group certain towns in their own code. It's a workaround, but folders would have been much nicer!!
3) Occassional Misreadings. This seems to be more of a problem with the maps then the unit but sometimes I just suddenly go "offroad" 20-50 feet, especially on the highway and a couple of local parkways. I think it is the maps because it always happens in the same places. I wish map updates would come on a more regular basis.
4) Estimated Time of Arrival is wrong. I think it assumed all roads are a set speed, like 40 MPH. But the Estimated Time of Arrival is ALWAYS off, especially on the freeway. I got rid of this and make better estimates in my head, but I wish it would make better assumptions (like Highway = 75, or in my case, about 90 while city streets are about 30 mph on average).
I didn't know where to list this, but the screen size can be both positive and negative. Both my parents don't like the small size and consider it hard to read. So if you need bigger displays just so you can read them, there are other products out there for you. However, I love the small screen size because it makes this device so much more portable and fits easier in my glovebox. My parents' GPS has to be carried in with them or hidden in less convenience locations, like under seats.
In the end, I love this product. For $200 I wouldn't have been surprised if it had done so much less than it actually does. I love this so much, my brother picked up the exact same model. He loves it to.
Customer Review: Plug and Play - ready to go out of the box
Summary: 5 Stars
My wife and I bought this for her parents for Christmas. We played with it the month leading up to Christmas so we could explain it fully to them once we gave it to them.
The navigator comes with a suction mount, plug for the cigarette lighter, the USB cable, and a CD-ROM - which we haven't used yet. Being a touch screen display - each menu is very understandable and specific to what you are trying to accomplish. There are some opening questions it asks you for - such as your home address and what locations you'd like it to display while driving (pharmecies, churches, zoos, concert halls, swimming pools, etc.). Those were all very accurate. I was excited to see that there was an option to search all the nearby resturaunts and so forth were all listed by name - Little Caesars, pubs, and the like.
The volume is going to be sufficiently loud enough for my father-in-law who sometimes doesn't hear everything.
While it doesn't name out street names, it does speak to you about turns - giving you about a 500 yard warning and then when to turn. When you have a lot of immediate turns, it will condense the instructions, "Turn left, then get into the right lane, and take the first right."
The routes it has given us so far are accurate. A friend chose to take an alternate route on the way to a certain location - but I followed the TomTom and got there must faster on the route it chose for me.
Unless money is no object and you have the desire to keep up with the Jones' - or actually be the Jones' - you will be completely satisfied with this. It is perfect for directions and the menus are self-explanatory, simple, and concise. Inputting directions couldn't be easier. It sorts your results while you type and puts up the streets alphabetically while you continue your typing - then you just select. It also remembers your proximity, so you don't have to re-input your city each time - you can just quick-select from the history it lists on the same screen where you would type in your city.
I am unsure what features the more expensive models have. Do they actually provide you the menu of resturaunts, make your reservations, order for you, and pre-chew your food? Then, don't go with this one.
If you use Bluetooth technology, then you can also have it communicate through your phone and calculate routes based on traffic and weather. I haven't used that feature - but it is available on this product. With the use of your phone - you can also track other friends who are doing the same thing - and that would make caravanning easier. You can also make yourself "invisible" to them. I assume that means digitally, not physically - but that would be cool too (and dangerous on the roads) - could lead to an insurance nightmare.
Customer Review: IMHO Better than Garmin Nuvi 350!
Summary: 5 Stars
Ok, since there's already so many reviews I doubt mine will get read, however I just wanted to add a few points for those considering this and the Garmin Nuvi 350.
My experience with navigation units includes OEM GUI based navs in Lexus, BMW & Mercedes, the text-based Becker Traffic Pro (used in Porsche's, BMW's, Ferrari, etc.) and now the TomTom One and Garmin Nuvi 350.
I purchased two TomTom's as gifts because of the Best Buy rating by Consumer Reports. I really wanted to get the Garmin Nuvi 350 based on advice from a friend who has done a lot of research and said it was the best for the money, but that would be too expensive.
Let me tell you, after driving using both units I prefer the One to the Nuvi 350. The Nuvi has more features, great battery life, better voice directions and faster calculation, but the One is clearer/easier to drive to, updates faster in tight areas where there are many turns and can be found for less than half the price.
The Nuvi 350 has some nice features; it can play MP3's, it has a long battery life without being plugged in, thus can be used for walking directions, slightly easier to use interface, blue tooth interface for phone and auto dimming. Maybe others... however, most of those features aren't needed in a navigation unit--better save the money and put it towards an unlocked iPhone instead :)). It all boils down to which unit is easier to drive to.
When you're in a big city with one turn after another, when you approach an "X" or "Y" intersection instead of "+", when the highways split funny, etc. in those cases I prefer the One. I don't recall once making a wrong turn with the One, however when my friend and I went to New York City (following Nuvi 350 directions), he made 3-wrong turns (didn't get on the correct highway) and lost 15-minutes, according to calculations, before he let me drive his car to actually get us to where we were going. Driving to his Nuvi 350 was a chore compared to the One. I almost took a few wrong turns myself... constantly had to read what's coming up next on the screen (it's TINY); It's dangerous and I'm sure the people driving behind us weren't very happy with the way we were driving.
Sorry for the run-ons, but if anyone is considering the Garmin Nuvi 350 over the TomTom One, I seriously hope that you try both before making your decision. I feel that the One is much easier to drive to, which to me is the point of having a GPS navigation unit. TomTom One certainly has some drawbacks to the 350, however given that the One can be found for hundreds cheaper, it's definitely the best buy. Two other friends have also purchased TomTom One's since.