Tomtom 910

Belmit · 29-12-2006, 19:59

Using pooled money I got for Christmas I bought myself one of these. I figured that as long as it doesn't get nicked I'm not going to need a new one for a long time so I might as well get the best one I can afford, with maps for Europe, the US and UK. Having tried Garmin and not got on with them very well, I tried my housemate's Tomtom One and found it really easy to use.

I've been up and down the country over the past few days visiting relatives in Swindon, Stockport and Sheffield and decided to trust it completely to take me where I needed to go. I must say I was impressed. Got from Swindon to Stockport in just over two and a half hours without incident, and upon seeing an alert that the M25 was congested on the way back, I simply told it to avoid that part of the journey and it sent me off at Silverstone and down to the A34 at Oxford.

Apart from the obvious features I was really pleased with some of the extra ones as well. After turning Bluetooth on on my phone and plugging a small microphone into the unit it gave me an instant hands-free service. It copies all your contacts into the sat-nav and you can use it to make and take calls all with the phone in your pocket. You can even dial numbers using the touchscreen. Most impressive was when my brother sent me a text and it suddenly said "Incoming message from Rich" then proceeded to read it out! I also downloaded some audiobooks to the unit to listen to on the journey - it really does do everything.

One of the nicest perks from buying the ubermodel though is that if you set it to use the computerised voice it will actually read out the road and place names so "take the second exit at the roundabout, then turn left" becomes "take the second exit at the roundabout, A34 to Newbury, then turn left, Basingstoke Road". Very handy in towns where you have a lot of turns coming up and you're not sure which left or right it is.

My only gripe was that the speed camera database was a bit hit and miss. It saved me a couple of times, but it doesn't seem to differentiate between which side of the road it's on, and occasionally gets the speed limit for the road wrong. One time it alerted me and there was no camera. Still, it's a great bonus feature and I'm sure with the latest updated databases it'll get better as time goes on.

If anyone was thinking of getting a sat-nav unit any time soon, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one of these.

Dr. Z · 29-12-2006, 20:07

They are very, very good indeed but as far as the speed camera goes, it doesnt just warn you for fixed sites. It should beep at you when you go past a common mobile camera location too!

Do you think you will ever make full use of the 20Gb hard drive in it?

Belmit · 29-12-2006, 20:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by DRZ

It should beep at you when you go past a common mobile camera location too!

Nice! I haven't read up on it much, but are these locations updated by motorists themselves? Seems like a really good way to let others know to be on the lookout.

The only way I see me using 20GB is if I use it to play mp3s through the stereo - the built-in speaker is far too quiet and tinny. If I ever get a stereo with a line-in then it could be handy.

Dr. Z · 29-12-2006, 20:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Belmit

Nice! I haven't read up on it much, but are these locations updated by motorists themselves? Seems like a really good way to let others know to be on the lookout.

I believe so, yes.

I have a hacked copy of TTN5 on my phone and on my way back from the swansea meet it took me up through Wales - loads and loads of speed cameras there, so lots of beeping. I noticed started beeping by laybys and stuff. It actually saved my bacon when I came screaming round a corner to a "beep beep". On went the brakes and lo and behold, tucked away to the left was a scamera van!

Flibster · 29-12-2006, 20:44

Just got TTN6 running on my phone - it's substantially slower.

Although - the full europe map will be useful later this year when I go on a tour of the D-Day sites.

Need to get postcode searches working again though. It appears I've broken that bit.

Have often thought about getting a standalone unit - but I've always had difficulties justifying it to myself when I can just have a 2gb SD card with all the maps I will ever need on it.

Simon/~Flibster

Feek · 29-12-2006, 21:15

I've played with earlier versions of Tom Tom and never been overly impressed by them, always much preferred my Garmin, and you can see that from the thread I posted about doing 100,000 miles with it.

But the new model Tom Tom does look very nice. My Streetpilot is getting a bit dated now and I'd seriously look at both the new Garmins and the new Tom Toms if I were to be replacing it.

The trick which you've already found is to rely on it in areas you don't know. There's no real point thinking you can guess a better way, unless you know where you're going then it will do a better job of navigating than you ever can. I really forget the last time I carried a paper map in the car.

Dr. Z · 29-12-2006, 23:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feek

I've played with earlier versions of Tom Tom and never been overly impressed by them, always much preferred my Garmin, and you can see that from the thread I posted about doing 100,000 miles with it.

But the new model Tom Tom does look very nice. My Streetpilot is getting a bit dated now and I'd seriously look at both the new Garmins and the new Tom Toms if I were to be replacing it.

The trick which you've already found is to rely on it in areas you don't know. There's no real point thinking you can guess a better way, unless you know where you're going then it will do a better job of navigating than you ever can. I really forget the last time I carried a paper map in the car.

Indeed.

I find that in areas where I know the way, it often takes me nonsensical routes which must be a mathematical slither faster on paper but in RL would take far, far longer.

In areas where I dont know where I am going at all, it absolutely pwns paper-based mapping HARD. On the concentration factor alone it absolutely rocks

Blackstar · 29-12-2006, 23:49

I need a tomtom i was lost for half an hour today

Grandad · 30-12-2006, 19:23

I find the bluetooth phone function to be very poor, I have to lean forward so that I am about 6 inches from the microphone so that the person I am calling can hear me

8 I3ALL · 01-01-2007, 11:46

Im running tomtom 6 on my SPV M3100 and on the way home from tiggys the other night a section of the A1 had been closed due to flooding, a few seconds after taking the slip road it had found me a small road option which took me about 5 miles up along side the A1 and straight back onto the main road

How did i manage without it before !!!!!

29-12-2006, 19:59	#1
Belmit The Mouse King of Denmark Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: The Winchester Posts: 6,476	Tomtom 910 Using pooled money I got for Christmas I bought myself one of these. I figured that as long as it doesn't get nicked I'm not going to need a new one for a long time so I might as well get the best one I can afford, with maps for Europe, the US and UK. Having tried Garmin and not got on with them very well, I tried my housemate's Tomtom One and found it really easy to use. I've been up and down the country over the past few days visiting relatives in Swindon, Stockport and Sheffield and decided to trust it completely to take me where I needed to go. I must say I was impressed. Got from Swindon to Stockport in just over two and a half hours without incident, and upon seeing an alert that the M25 was congested on the way back, I simply told it to avoid that part of the journey and it sent me off at Silverstone and down to the A34 at Oxford. Apart from the obvious features I was really pleased with some of the extra ones as well. After turning Bluetooth on on my phone and plugging a small microphone into the unit it gave me an instant hands-free service. It copies all your contacts into the sat-nav and you can use it to make and take calls all with the phone in your pocket. You can even dial numbers using the touchscreen. Most impressive was when my brother sent me a text and it suddenly said "Incoming message from Rich" then proceeded to read it out! I also downloaded some audiobooks to the unit to listen to on the journey - it really does do everything. One of the nicest perks from buying the ubermodel though is that if you set it to use the computerised voice it will actually read out the road and place names so "take the second exit at the roundabout, then turn left" becomes "take the second exit at the roundabout, A34 to Newbury, then turn left, Basingstoke Road". Very handy in towns where you have a lot of turns coming up and you're not sure which left or right it is. My only gripe was that the speed camera database was a bit hit and miss. It saved me a couple of times, but it doesn't seem to differentiate between which side of the road it's on, and occasionally gets the speed limit for the road wrong. One time it alerted me and there was no camera. Still, it's a great bonus feature and I'm sure with the latest updated databases it'll get better as time goes on. If anyone was thinking of getting a sat-nav unit any time soon, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one of these. __________________

29-12-2006, 20:07	#2
Dr. Z I'm going for a scuttle... Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 2,021	They are very, very good indeed but as far as the speed camera goes, it doesnt just warn you for fixed sites. It should beep at you when you go past a common mobile camera location too! Do you think you will ever make full use of the 20Gb hard drive in it? __________________

29-12-2006, 21:15	#6
Feek ex SAS Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: JO01ou Posts: 10,062	I've played with earlier versions of Tom Tom and never been overly impressed by them, always much preferred my Garmin, and you can see that from the thread I posted about doing 100,000 miles with it. But the new model Tom Tom does look very nice. My Streetpilot is getting a bit dated now and I'd seriously look at both the new Garmins and the new Tom Toms if I were to be replacing it. The trick which you've already found is to rely on it in areas you don't know. There's no real point thinking you can guess a better way, unless you know where you're going then it will do a better job of navigating than you ever can. I really forget the last time I carried a paper map in the car. __________________

29-12-2006, 23:49	#8
Blackstar Ambassador of Awesome Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Edinburger Posts: 3,676	I need a tomtom i was lost for half an hour today __________________ Jim Garrahy's Fudge Kitchen

01-01-2007, 11:46	#10
8 I3ALL Vodka Martini Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: In Forum Heaven Posts: 732	Im running tomtom 6 on my SPV M3100 and on the way home from tiggys the other night a section of the A1 had been closed due to flooding, a few seconds after taking the slip road it had found me a small road option which took me about 5 miles up along side the A1 and straight back onto the main road How did i manage without it before !!!!! __________________ MySpace

29-12-2006, 20:44	#5
Flibster Moonshine Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 3,388	Just got TTN6 running on my phone - it's substantially slower. Although - the full europe map will be useful later this year when I go on a tour of the D-Day sites. Need to get postcode searches working again though. It appears I've broken that bit. Have often thought about getting a standalone unit - but I've always had difficulties justifying it to myself when I can just have a 2gb SD card with all the maps I will ever need on it. Simon/~Flibster

30-12-2006, 19:23	#9
Grandad Old Git Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 2,016	I find the bluetooth phone function to be very poor, I have to lean forward so that I am about 6 inches from the microphone so that the person I am calling can hear me