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TomTom for iPhone with car kit review

By Benny Har-Even, 24 Nov 2009

Rating:

Price as reviewed:£99 inc.VAT plus £59.99 for UK and Ireland maps

TomTom's long awaited car-kit for the iPhone has been released. In this review, we take it for spin to see if it's worth the outlay.

While IQ routes are used, the iPhone app also lacks features such as the Live Taffic info – so it can’t warn you in advance of major holdups on your planned route. We also missed things such as local fuel price lookups. There's also no Map Share feature either, which enables users to upload details of recent changes such as new speed cameras or roadblocks.

TomTom has announced that some features such as Advanced Lane Guidance and Text-to-Speech and full iPod control are going to be added via an update, so it does raise hopes that TomTom could add other missing features should it so wish.

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As it stands however, while it works effectively as far as it goes the TomTom iPhone and car kit combination feels incomplete, and as such, overpriced.

What’s more Google has recently announced that it will be bringing real-time turn-by-turn instructions with Google Maps Navigation. Initially this is only coming to Android phones, but that itself could sway people away from the iPhone. If it comes to the iPhone too, then TomTom could find that Google has killed its market stone dead. As such, TomTom needs to make the most of its windows of opportunity and make its app as good as possible, as quickly as possible.

The app and car kit work very well indeed but we can't help but feel that it could be even better, especially at the price.

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2 comments

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So where's the benefit?

Let's say I have an iPhone and a bluetooth hands-free kit; now I need Sat-Nav. My options - £158 for a solution that runs on my iPhone or a dedicated Tom-tom for less. I've had an integrated solution before and the observation that the map disappears for an incoming call reminds me of the time that happened approaching a complex junction on the edge of Leeds - several miles and many minutes later I was eventually back going the right direction! Sorry - not convinced!

By CoxJul on Friday Nov 27

Correction

Your first paragraph must be incorrect because both TomTom and CoPilot work on the 3G as well as the 3GS. A compass is most useful when walking or stationary, but is not essential for turn-by-turn navigation and is often not a feature of stand-alone units. Apple's ban on turn-by-turn must have either been commercial, or perhaps the realisation that it would just highlight the shortcomings of the built-in GPS.

By JohnHind on Friday Nov 27