Sat nav - what do you recommend ?

[johnsco]

Mrs J says I need a sat nav to help me find my way about.
It will be an add-on to our old E300TD.
Something simple to use.
Traffic updates ... Are they worth it ?

Any advice on what is recommended and best deals would be welcome.
Thanks in advance.

 

[trapperjohn]

TomTom GO 750 LIVE - Europe 45 Automotive (Excellent Condition) (0636926030601) | eBay

The above gets me around. Traffic updates. For me - No.

 

[This is Pete]

TomTom for me as well. I wouldn't worry about traffic updates or speed camera downloads. You pay a premium for both for a feature that you hardly ever need.

 

[wemorgan]

For me the choice was between TomTom and Garmin. I went with TomTom in the end as I thought the user interface a little slicker, but there's little to choose between the two. If I had to buy another one now, I'd go with a Garmin for the change. I use their kit for walking and their customer support is excellent

TomTom have a 'LIVE' range that John mentions. It's not worth the money IMHO. But you can get free traffic updates by plugging in a TMC aerial. Some get this bundled in with the satnav and is worth the one off extra cost of you regularly travel in congested areas.

I bought mine from: Buy Sat Nav TomTom Garmin HTC PDA Tom Tom GPS Cheap - Reviews who were the cheapest at the time.

 

[This is Pete]

I get my free traffic updates just from listening to the radio that'll normally mention anything worthy of avoiding.

 

[s500colin]

I've had 4 Tom Toms the last 3 have all died in under 2 years hence I'm now looking at Garmin sat navs .Two things that I've noticed is Garmin offer better support when you have a problem ie easy to access phone support in the uk and updates are often free on Garmin where as Tom Tom charge

 

[BTB 500]

I'm also a happy TomTom user. We had the standard Traffic service for a while but it's not accurate enough to be worthwhile IMO, and I don't think TMC would be any better. The newer 'Live' version looks pretty good though, at a price. I do use the speed camera database.

One thing with TomTom, they regularly have sales & special offers on downloads. I've never paid full price (or anything near) for new maps or the speed camera subscription.

 

[zenman63]

Tomtom app on the iphone 4 works a treat.

 

[reflexboy]

I have the original Tom Tom Go classic and it's still working 100%. Never has a problem. I have udated the maps once and took it to Florida with me too. I cannot comment on 'Traffic' but would not be without the camera database, especially when on holiday or in an area I'm unfamiliar with. I think most of the modern ones need to plugged in all the time. As mine is a slightly larger unit (bigger/better speaker etc) the battery life is excellent. I can drive from Surrey to Cornwall on a single charge.

 

[Ream]

Same as above an old Tom Tom one, like a tank abused and used every day for 5 years and still going.

 

[BTB 500]

Yup our TomTom is about 6 years old, battery life around 4 hours per charge.

 

[removed]

I use Garmin both in North America and here, in the UK, and found it to be excellent. I tried TomTom, but didn't like the interface. I have a simpler Garmin nuvi 1490 in Nassau and the 3790T here, and although it has free traffic updates for life, this is the least used feature for me. On the other hand, voice command, bluetooth and the fantastic ecoRoute gadget (plugs into your OBDII port - Garmin ecoRoute) are absolutely brilliant, just as the 3d view of junctions and lane assist

 

[tpwuk]

Google maps and google street view on an Android device. It's free and works a treat!

 

[johnsco]

Thanks All for your replies.
It rather looks as if I will be giving the Tom Tom a run --- On the balance of the responses.
Some interesting replies ...
Don't have an iphone.
Don't have modern flashy electronic communications systems in a 1997 E300TD.
Don't know what an OBDII port is.
Don't know what an Android device is.

I'm 64 ... With no kids.

Thanks a million.

 

[This is Pete]

Good choice. A nice modern widescreen TomTom with lane guidance should fit the bill nicely.

An Ozzy Osbourne celebrity voice is pretty much mandatory too.

 

[davidjpowell]

Tom Tom Traffic HD is worth investing in, if you get about.

I use it extensively and it's pretty acurate - far better than Standard Traffic and a million times better than TMC.

 

[Benzmanc]

Bargain especially with lifetime map updates

Halfords | Garmin nuLink! 1695 LMU Sat Nav UK, ROI & Europe

 

[BTB 500]

I've got GPS & satnav with spoken instructions on my phone, but never used it in the car. The screen is far smaller than the TomTom's.

But I did buy a windscreen mount 'just in case', which I keep in the glove box. I always have my phone with me, which isn't true of the TomTom.

 

[ringway]

I had a TomTom 910 Go for around 6 years until the battery died a few months ago.
I bought a new battery but it was never quite the same afterwards and eventually died.
It was a very good unit and I don't really have any complaints.

I replaced it with a TomTom XXL which has a 5" screen and overall is a good piece of kit. I travel a lot and the lane guidance is excellent.
The only downside with modern Tom Toms is the fiddly screen mount which is tricky to attach to the back of the unit at first.
My unit came out of the mount on a few occasions until I got the hang of it.

That said, the mount does facilitate a handy little mod if you have a Vito.


The windscreen mount (this can also attach to a Sendai Pad on the dashboard).

The simple Vito Mod. Extend the screen mount to 90 degrees and slip under the stowage flap. The unit stays completely stable and there are no tell-tale sucker marks on the windscreen.

On no account should a NAVMAN unit be considered. I had one before my TomTom Go and it was horrendously poor. Not as bad as their customer service though, which (I think they were inundated with complaints about the poor product and gave up) was truly appalling.

 

[@MARK]

I bought a TomTom GO 825 in the summer to replace my old TomTom One just before we headed off to France for a couple of weeks.

The GO has it's own built in SIM card so can access live traffic (much quicker than TMC) but also allows you to search Google for places and stuff with the bonus being that the SIM card works anywhere in Europe with no usage charges. The service is free for the first year then £50 per year (flat fee) after that.

The ability to do a Google search whilst on holiday without worrying about cost it excellent.

The only reason I sold it was upon returning from France, I bought the C350 with Nav built in but cannot recommend it highly enough.

Ignore the 1000 version though. This has a capacitive screen which is a lot harder to deal with when in a car.

Finally, if you are thinking of heading into Europe, ignore all the calls about using your phone with Google maps. The data roaming fees will kill you.