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: tomtom is a dumdum
Summary: 1 Stars
My friend bought a garmin 330 and it was fantastic. so, i though i would one up him and get this tomtom one, because it seemed like it had everything the garmin had plus extras like the buddy system et al. Boy, was i wrong. I hated this thing so much i could make a spreadsheet of all the stuff that was wrong with it. i sold mine on ebay and took a $75 loss and was happy to get rid of it. most of the problems are in comparison to my friends garmin because thats the only other gps ive used.
Problems that i can remember:
1. doesnt update the restaurants list dynamically. what im trying to say is that if you pull up the list of restaurants or shopping centers etc, you get the list as of that exact moment. 2 miles down the road, the garmin keeps you constantly updated on whats closest, how far it is away and what direction it is in relation to you. tomtom just shows you that one list and doesnt update it unless you close the search and research from the beginning.
2. tomtom doesn't break restaurants into multiple categories like mexican, italian, buffet, etc. all you can search for is restaurants and you will inevitably get a ton of results that you cannot filter other than to look down the list and decide if that place has a name that looks like an italian, mexican or buffet style restaurant for example. garmin seems to have an infinite amount of categories for restaurants. even far off stuff like sushi or vietnamese returns results it makes it so easy when you know what you want but dont know what retaurant to go to.
3. tomtom doesnt turn off on its own. the power on the car turns off and tomtom should at least ask me if i am in the car or if i want to turn off. it will just stay on till the battery dies or i turn it off.
4. takes at least 2 minutes for it to find a sattelite if not more. i often turned the device on when leaving my hotel room and by the time i got to the car 3 or 4 minutes later it still had not found sattelites.
5. day mode / night mode isnt automatic. this thing has a clock and should know when daylight is or isn't based on what time of day it is. im not even sure why this has a clock.
6. often tried to talk me into taking turns that didnt exist or were illegal. im sure this was a problem with the maps but its all in the tomtom.
7. garmin has over 6 million points of interest, their websites and spec sheets make that very clear. tomtom states "millions of points of interest" I'm sure that 1.5 is still considered "millions" but, i really felt like the database was very lacking. especially when i would drive by the place i wanted to eat on my way to some other tomtom based destination.
8. wal-marts and targets were not in the database. i was lost in washington D.C./Virginia and i knew there were walmarts and targets everywhere but tomtom had no idea what i was talking about.
9. searching for a mall or major shopping center was impossible. the only way to find one was to either know the name of the shopping center ie "woodland hills mall" or "the shops at utica" you couldn't just search for the gap or tjmaxx or dillards type stores.
10. when searching for the nearest starbucks the results just have "starbucks" listed over and over without any kind of address, store number or reference. so, we were headed a certain direction and didnt want to stop at ones that werent on the way we kept re-searching for updated but couldn't tell which entry we were looking at and kept picking the next one on the list and getting driving directions for the same ones. so, then you have to reopen the search, and you just get another list that all just say starbucks. i know for a fact the garmin 330 says things like starbucks 41st and yale, starbucks on sheridan street etc.
11. adding waypoints to a route: waypoints on a route are confusing. there is not a notifier that says something simple like "you have reached your waypoint" so, if you are driving and not watching the screen, tomtom will just let you drive right past and you wont notice that you passed your waypoint and it will just keep giving you directions to the next destination without confirming that you stopped or even knew you made it to the first one.
12. if it hasnt found a sattelite yet, it will still search and map out routes for you based on some sort of randomness. it will tell you with confidence that things are x miles away from you and let you plan routes. but, once the satellites connect, it redoes everything and a 2 mile trip to mcdonalds might turn into a 12 mile trip that passes other mcdonalds' on the way. i cant understand why it wouldn't just remember where i was when i turned it off and go from there until it connects?
13. if i KNOW the address of a place tomtom should be able to get me there. there were 3 specific times when i had the actual address of a place i wanted to go and tomtom could not resolve the address. it would just point me to an address that looked the same but may have been miles away.
dont EVER buy a tomtom one. this is a mediocre device and isn't really ready for prime time. like my girlfriend would say when i would tell her tomtom would take us there, "TomTom is a dumdum."
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: Very poor navigation, otherwise nice features
Summary: 2 Stars
I recommend avoiding the TomTom One. It gives wrong or at best misleading directions almost everytime I have use it in the last 4 days.
The TomTom One is easy to use, intuitive, and has a lot of nice features. But the all-important algorithm for routing needs major improvement. I have not used other GPS devices, but Mapquest, Google Maps and other internet services are much more accurate than the TomTom.
On one occasion, I would wind up traveling to the wrong state! Other occasions the directions will get me there, but taking an obvious round-about route. Many times the voice system says to do one thing that would have me miss an exit or take the wrong exit while the on-screen graphic shows the correct move (for example, the voice says to "exit left" while the graphic - at the last moment - implies a right exit). Since I rely on the voice more than the graphic, it's easy to get into trouble with this.
I cannot emphasize enough how many times there was something wrong with the directions, and for that reason I recommend avoiding this model. Below are several, but not all, of the problems I encountered in a 4-day test.
Example: Ambler, PA to PHL airport, and avoiding I-76. The directions start out wrong - it takes me on longer, slower local roads filled with traffic lights rather than using the shorter and faster Rt. 309 Expressway to the PA Turnpike with no traffic lights.
The directions end incorrectly - and somewhat disastrously, when it passes exit 12 of I-95 (which is the airport exit that takes you directly into the heart of the airport) and instead takes exit 13 and 3 local roads with multiple traffic lights (adding over 5 minutes to the drive).
Example: King of Prussia, PA to 923 Fairmount Ave, Philadelphia, PA. This was another disastrous error, where the TomTom gave incorrect directions that would have me drive into New Jersey. It said to take the 6th Street exit of I-676, and turn left. But only right turns are allowed. Then when I turned right, it said to then make a left. Doing so forces me onto the Ben Franklin Bridge and into New Jersey. It should have me get off of I-676 at the 8th Street exit, continue to 7th Street, and then turned left.
Example: PHL airport to Ambler, PA. There are 3 problems. One is nearly disastrous. First, it has me on I-476 and going to I-276 EB. Just before the toll booth, the voice says to keep right. If I did that, I would be forced to take the fork for I-276 WB (the opposite way). I need to keep left for the toll booth, then after the toll plaza keep right.
Further on this trip, I am on Rt. 309. The "voice" and the lower left of the screen says to "exit left" from Rt. 309 to Highland Avenue. It's an exit right. Funny that the screen graphic get's it right just when you are on top of the exit, but the advanced warning and voice has it wrong.
Then, even through it knows exactly where my house is, it takes me on a round-about path in the last block or so.
Example: Chicago to Ambler, PA, it says to take I-80 from Illinois straight to Rt. 309 in Ambler, PA. However, I-80 is about 50 miles away from Rt. 309 at its closest point. The real issue is that I-80 becomes I-76 in Ohio, near the Pennsylvania border (to stay on I-80, you have to take an exit), and then I-76 becomes I-276 near Philadelphia (to stay on I-76, you have to also take an exit). Since there are no turns off the highway, the device never notes that you do not stay on I-80. The 3D graphics have it right, but its very misleading to have the directions say I-80 when you need to go onto I-76 (and later, onto I-276).
It would be nice if the directions included where to pay tolls.
Example: It locates my mother's apartment building in Jenkintown, PA about a half mile from its actual location. To be fair, so does Mapquest and Google Maps.
Example: Traveling to Patten Rd, Highland Park, IL - it magically wants me to cut across a park to get from 1st Street to Patten Rd.
Example: Traveling to 125 Village Blvd, Princeton, NJ. It says there are two Village Blvds, one in "Kingston" and one in "Plainsboro" (Princeton is merely the post office box). Plainsboro police (not Kingston police) serve this location, so I picked the latter choice. Wrong!
Example: I asked for points of interest of rest stops and service stations to be displayed. They never showed while drive I-80, I-76 or I-276, yet there are service areas every 35 or so miles.
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.