TomTom GO 930 4 3 Inch Touchscreen Portable GPS Navigator
portable GPS satellite navigation unit with built-in antenna * 4.3″ color (480 x 272 pixels) touchscreen control * 5 million points of interest * SD card slot * Bluetooth 2.0 wireless technology for hands-free calling with a compatible phone *
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars Well-Thought-Out Features
Pros:
* Ability to enter address using voice command
* Advanced lane assistance
* 3D renderings of complex intersections
* Ability to use historical traffic data to optimize route
* Keyboard option for left-handed users
Cons:
* Voice command feature not as accurate and sensitive as could be
* No dashboard mounting disc included in box
* Lane guidance feature not available for all roads
* To change preferences, need to navigate through several sub-menus
My favorite feature is the IQ route. No I don’t want a route based on what the speed limit is supposed to be but on what it actually is.
For a more thorough review please check out http://gpselector.com/TomTom/tomtom-go-930
5 Stars Comparison with Garmin Nuvi 370
[Introduction] I bought this product after much frustration with Garmin Nuvi 370 and could not be happier. Of course 370 is about 100 dollars cheaper (street price wise, although the official price is a lot higher — I wonder why) and people might say they should not be directly compared. However, functionwise the only difference between the two are (1) screen size and (2) voice input feature availability and since these two add at least 100 dollars value in today’s navigation market and since the fundamentals are not affected, I think this head-to-head comparison is fair. As far as I know these two are the only models that come with European maps pre-installed. Below is the review that I put under Garmin Nuvi 370. I simply paste it here for the benefit of full, detailed comparison. If you don’t need the review on 370 and simply want a review on 930, I suggest you skip the first half.
Garmin Nuvi 370
There are 3 fatal flows with this product: (1) announcing too late and (2) giving confusing directions at complicated lane guidence situation and (3) taking too long to find satellite initially. I have been testing this product for a month in San Francisco and the Bay area.
(1) announcing too late
When your car is about to pass the intersection at which it is supposed to make a turn, then and only then it announces you to prepare for a turn. I missed so many turns because of the late announcements. It is also incredbly dangerous as you are tempted to attempt last-moment lane changes in order to make the turn. Also the distance to the turn is not that accurate — when you are almost already at the intersection it shows you are 200 meters away (I changed the measurement setup to meters). SUGGESTION: Certain navigations have a bar-graph showing countdowns to the intersection, and perhaps that’s what this navigation must have as well. Also certain navigations ask you to prepare well ahead. Make a customizable setting how long before to make the pre-announcement.
(2) giving confusing directions at complicated lane guidence situation
Time and time again, I missed the right exit on the highway. The map is absolutely no help. The multiple lanes look all overlapped!!! Red lines are cofusing as hell. Annoucement is in this fashion: “Keep to right and then keep to left.” What is that supposed to mean and which lane are you supposed to be in? In a fast highway situation, this is incredibly dangerous. I almost got into accidents at many interchanges as I was trying to look both the road signs and my navigation and could not make any sense. SUGGESTION: the map needs major improvement on interchanges — show us the way!!! Also get rid of “keep to right and then keep to left” style BS for a clearer direction.
(3) taking too long to find satellite initially
If you park your car outside, that would be fine but if you park it in a garage, woe to you. It will take at least 20 blocks to find the satellite and you will be either parking your car on the roadside waiting for godot or meandering down the street without knowing where you are going for very very long time. This is not acceptable. I used other product (magellan) before, and it found the satellite so much quicker. SUGGESTION: technological improvement or better processor.
TomTom 930
[ADDED TO THIS AFTER I BOUGHT TOMTOM GO930 AND TESTING IT FOR A WEEK]
After my much frustration with Garmin NUVI 370, I purchased a Tomtom GO930 from local Best Buy. (The price of TomTom 930 at Best Buy was the same as the price at Amazon at USD 450, although I had to pay the tax.)
Wow, what a difference. That’s all I can say. TomTom 930 is a bit more expensive than the street price of Garmin NUVI 370, but is so much better that the price difference is immaterial.
(1) prepare… prepare…
TomTom announces well before each turn and actually tells you on which side of the lane you should be in for the next turn. Incredibly friendly announcements. The arrow direction on the map display shows whether you should be making left or right turn as well. I never missed a single turn thanks to the ample announcements.
(2) guiding complicated lane situation with ease
the roads never appear overlapped like the NUVI 370. If there are five diverging roads, all are clearly shown, with the clear indication where you are and where you should go. Mind you, I haven’t seen that many Advanced Lane Guidance screen yet as TomTom advertised (I hear that they don’t have this on every intersection yet) but even without this, lane guidance is incredibly clear and easy (they show both on the map and on the status bar with muted arrows and one clear arrow). What a refreshing change from Garmin NUVI 370. The voice direction is a lot more clear and easier to understand as well — it is as if somebody is actually speaking fine English to me. I never missed the right exit.
(3) lightening fast in finding satellites
It actually finds satellites when I am in my room with 4-5 bars. Need I say more?
(4) extras… extras…
TomTom has voice address input feature that is very useful. There are many situations that you hate to put in long characters (In California there are so many cities starting with San…). Simply pronounce it and the machine finds it for you, including the streets. I find this to be working well about 95% of the time. Also it gives you a few choices so that what you pronounced is almost always among the choices. SUGGESTION: This voice feature is not available for Place Name under Point of Interst (available only for the actual address).
Point of Interest feature in TomTom is incredibly extensive. I tested many restaurants listed in Zagat survey and found out that almost all (even obscure ones under “Best Value”) restaurants have been registered in TomTom by names and phone numbers. I did not find that to be the case with Garmin NUVI 370 (I actually had to type in the exact address under my favorites). This makes inputing job so much easier. I typed in “Marshalls” under Point of Interest in Sunnyvale, and TomTom returned 7 results, some of them are as far away as San Jose, Mipitas, etc. Again, not so with Garmin.
Downloading updates and changes through computer seems painless and efficient as well. Works perfectly and took about 3 minutes to get the latest updates. Again, Garmin NUVI 370 does not have this feature. I don’t know how actually useful the updates would be, but it is assuring that I am using the latest whatever.
Time estimation in TomTom is so much more accurate than Garmin. I found Garmin to be always a bit on the optimistic side (ie I never actually arrived as Garmin estimated especially in a city traffic). I don’t know if it is because of the IQ Routes feature of TomTom but the timing estimate seems to be right on and there is little need for any traffic subscription service.
CONCLUSION: I will be updating this review to find any shortcoming of TomTom 930 (and I am sure there will be many) but so far it seems that TomTom is a very clear winner and fully justifies the extra USD 100. If you are looking for a navigation that includes both American and European maps, I guess your choices will be cleary limited: you would have to go for either the Garmin NUVI 370 or the TomTom GO 930, and my recommendation would be the latter — not for the extra features but mainly for the basic abilities that I listed earlier in this review.
ADDED Later: I have been using TomTom for some time now, and again the fundamental qualities are excellent. In addition to reliable guidance, I find the voice address input feature truly useful and accurate. I use it all the time.
Another incredibly useful feature is the initial preview of the whole route (Garmin Nuvi 370 does not do this). When I used Garmin 370, I did not even know highway 280 existed since it almost always guided me through 101! However, with TomTom 930, at the outset I have the chance to view the entire route, pick and choose any alternative routes from it. This is just so convenient. 280 may be a tad bit longer route, but it has much less traffic than 101, with much better road conditions and scenic views, and just whole a lot better than 101 — I can’t believe Garmin simply never showed it to me!
However, here are a few suggestions to make TomTom better: (1) “Clear Address” is not immediate. If you want to clear the previous address input, you have to touch the screen a few times. This is not convenient. There must be an instant way to clear address. (2) Occasionally (bur very rarely) it misses U-turns. (3) When you turn off the ignition, it does not automatically turn off (unlike Garmin). You must push the button on top. This is not very convenient.
5 Stars Tom Tom GO 930
Am enjoying using this product and it continues to amaze me with what it can do
5 Stars The Tomtom 930 delivers as promised
I have had the pleasure of using the 930 in Europe and in various major cities in the U.S. and I have never been disappointed. I have found myself in obscure areas of Italy, Spain and France not adequately reflected on paper maps and the 930 was successful in guiding the way every time. It has proven to be an indispensable navigational tool. All other GPS devices referenced in other reviews here simply pale in comparison. Is the device entirely fool proof, no, and neither are those devices from Tomtom wannbes such as Garmin and Magellan, but it is the best available product on the market in this price range. I have owned many Tomtom devices over the years including various PDA versions of the software and each has provided years of reliable service. Further,I have had the occasion to contact Tomtom customer service/technical support from time to time and in each instance the support proved both prompt and curteous. That being said, I am not suggesting that there is no room for improvement. However, I am confident that it will be Tomtom that will lead the way in improving the navigational device experience in the future. By the way, the lane guidance feature of the 930, when available, is phenomenal.
1 Star It Works, but not worth it …
Purchased this unit as my first TomTom unit, after using several different GPSs over the previous years.
It works, but there’s nothing special about the TomTom. Several months ago, this unit had unique features. However, there are now common from many different makers … which are either the same cost or better.
When I received this, the RDS antenna was the wrong one. I had to send it back *AT MY OWN COST* so they could send me the proper one after two weeks.
If you talk to TomTom Support (East Coast Business Hours Only) be prepared to send proof that you purchased this unit from an Authorized Vendor only – otherwise you will NOT be supported.
All the connectors for this unit are on the bottom. This may not be an issue unless you want to use a dash mount (required for California). About the dash mount – you’re going to have to buy one from a 3rd party – TomTom doesn’t sell one (at least I couldn’t find one on their site).
After about 2 months of use the unit stopped working. Actually worse – it began acting erratically.
Unit would turn itself on at random (draining the battery)
The battery charge indicator was a joke. Even after charging overnight and verifying the charge was 100%. Attempting to use it an hour later would show a dead battery.
When it did turn on, it would constantly reboot itself.
Had to RMA this unit (after providing proof-of-purchase). Note had to send it via UPS/FedEx/etc… They DO NOT accept USPS for RMA. Seems the mailclerk who receives USPS is somehow unable to take packages back to the dock where UPS/FedEX delivers.
The TomTomHome s/w. What a joke.
Graphical & Slow.
Expectation seems to be that you will only ever have ONE TomTom Unit at any time in your life. After I received my RMA GO930, I had to DOWNLOAD all the maps again to the new unit via TTH. Note – I already had the maps for the unit I returned.
Somehow the maps are locked to an individual unit when they are downloaded! SO be prepared to have a high-speed line and wait as maps are downloaded while your TOmTOm is docked and otherwise useless.
This was suppose to be a top line GPS from TomTom when I bought it 3 months ago. It was NOT ready for use.
It shipped with incorrect parts, which made it non-functional and which *I* had to pay to receive the correct parts.
The TTH software is NOT user friendly, nor is it fast for any activity which it does try to perform.
The GUI on the GPS is nothing to speak of. It’s there, but lacking in thought. Once you get to the configuration menu, any change you make will automatically take you back to the main screen. This means you have to constantly walk the menu trees to make another change. In fact this happens at most of the menus … make a change/selection and get dropped back at the main screen.
Bottom Line… But ANYBODY ELSE but TomTom. You’ll probably pay less, and get an equal of not better product and support.
Buy/More Info
