TomTom XL IQ Routes Edition Satellite Navigation Unit UK & ROI

Very easy to use. Long journeys now made simple.
Was recommended a TomTom by a few people and really pleased i bought it. I was never confident when travelling a longer distance.I now can drive to many places and not have to worry. Maybe a woman thing! (for me anyway)

A fatally flawed piece of kit.
The first Tom-Tom I owned was a Tom-Tom 300. This was a fantastic bit of kit back in 2004; although it had a relatively small screen it was fast, and seemed to pick up satellites quickly. OK, it didn't have speed cameras on, but this was sorted out by me in about half an hour using an internet connection and a bit of nous.

It wasn't perfect by any stretch - the cradles had a tendency to break after a while and were tricky to attach, the map was a bit out of date and it wasn't particularly simple to update it, and they also had a small capacitor in them which often blew rendering the Tom-Tom useless. But still, for the money, the Tom-Toms we got at work paid for themselves within a day or two so the odd one breaking after 14 months was neither here nor there. Sure, sometimes it asked you to take a left-turn when going through the Blackwall tunnel, sometimes it got confused and spun wildly round and it could be confusing when telling you where to go at complicated junctions. Generally though, it was great.

So, nearly five years later I am at a new company and need a new one. Browsing my local globalised electronics shop, I see the new Tom-Tom XL 'with IQ routes' - 'wow, it must be the one that calculates the best journey for you, avoiding traffic jams and so on' I think to myself, squinting at the little illustration of a laughing executive roaring down an empty lane in his 5-series whilst a huge traffic jam wells up a hundred yards away. Sadly, I was wrong. The one I was thinking of is the Tom-Tom live - it has a little mobile SIM in it and you pay a subscription to access the traffic information. This was something the salesman in the shop failed to tell me as I waffled on to him about what a great idea it was having traffic updates to avoid jams and so on (watery smile and slight nod of the head, 'yes Sir...'). However, I suppose thinking that was my fault.

IQ routes are, it would seem, optimum routes going from one place to another, after Tom-Tom have studied millions of journeys at all different times and found the best way to go depending on time of day. I found this out when I got home and opened up the box. 'So still useful, then' I thought to myself, a small feeling of disappointment inside.

So, am I happy with IQ routes?

After owning this Tom-Tom for 6 months I have to say I'm not convinced this feature actually does anything. I try keying in a route on an old TomTom 300 and my Tom-Tom XL and they are always the same. I have never come across anyone who has said how IQ routes has come up with some 'secret' way to get somewhere they didn't know about or that was any different to the way everybody goes. Still, I could always be wrong eh? After all, I only spend most of my journey times in the south and London. I mean, I doubt there are any little shortcuts around London are there? (that's sarcasm there just in case you were wondering).

So, am I happy with my new Tom-Tom?

Ok, so IQ routes are not great - but that's hardly cause to slag the thing off. Fair enough. And look at how much better it is now - thinner, better dock, bigger screen, new nav features.

All true as well. I won't even go on too much about the irritating USB power connector underneath it that takes ages to plug in which is REALLY ANNOYING.

So what's the problem then?

The thing that makes me so frustrated with this Tom-Tom is that not only is it agonizingly slow and jerky, but it seems almost entirely unable to find satellites. A five year old Tom-Tom 300 kicks its arse. Once you select your journey and press 'GO' you can wind your seat back, set your phone to wake you up in 20 minutes, have a small snooze, and the thing will still be jerkily filling out all the little map lines when you wake up again. It is SLOOOOOOW to the point of exasperation. The number of times I have fantasized about ripping the damn thing from its cradle and hammering it into the tarmac beneath my heel must run into the thousands. But of course, I am getting ahead of myself - the thing has to find a few satellites first. If it manages this in 3 minutes I am going really well. 11 minutes is not unusual, and I have seen 20 minutes before.

"Aha", I hear you cry, "but you live in a concrete bunker don't you?" Well, actually, NO. I live on the south coast and anywhere in Sussex or London I will see these times. Again, insanely annoying - especially if you are in London, are not sure where you are going, and are staring at your Sat Nav, begging it to come alive before a Traffic Warden comes along. I believe that the Tom-Tom uses the "CHEEZA" satellites which circle the earth, fired up there by Azerbaiijan in the 1970's using a converted SCUD launcher and guided using audio-cassettes.

So, anyway, it finally creaks and groans it's way into calculating the journey. You drive 100 yards down the road and.... its decided it needs to RECALCULATE the journey again. There you are, at a roundabout with 7 exits, a bead of sweat trickling down the side of your face as you watch the bar at the bottom agonisingly crawl along, Taxis and lorries queuing behind and beeping you. Hell, I better get going and take a guess! Uh-oh, wrong way! I better RECALCULATE your journey AGAIN... and then, it says "Turn right in 20 yards"... you turn right... only for the map to jump forwards 100 yards... oh look! you took a wrong turn you silly man. I better RECALCULATE.... AAARGH! Cue repeated head banging and finally, weeping as you pull over because a cloud has appeared and the Tom-Tom has lost contact with both of the CHEEZA satellites again. But here comes a Traffic Warden. "Move along, Sir"... The Tom-Tom sits there, humming to itself, lost in a trance as it stares out the window. "Oh, what was that? Satellites, Ah yes, sorry, forgot all about them. Hold on. Ah, there you go. Now hold on while I RECALCULATE your journey again..."

If this Tom-Tom survives the next week or so, until I can afford to go and buy a Garmin Nuvi, I will sell it, and my face will be burning as I pass the filthy thing on.

PLEASE save yourself hours of pain and frustration and don't buy one! Yes, it's thinner, Yes, its got a wider screen, yes the dock is better and the updates are better and its easier to navigate complicated junctions. But it is so poor at finding satellites and is so painfully slow and inaccurate that an old 300 makes it look positively arthritic.

TomTom XL IQ Routes
This is an upgrade from my older TomTom One. Much better display and I like the route indicators at major intersections. Readily locks on to Satellites and displays location. Clear and concise instructions. Good value for money.
Did require software update from the box but this seems the norm with TomTom. Connector can be fiddly but with care does not cause any major problems. Like the new windscreen mounting much better than the older type. Pity no Bluetooth though, this is a backward step.
If you want a basic model that is capable of updating planned route (due to diversions etc) then this is the one for you.

good but has it's faults
I originally had a tomtom one and decided to upgrade to a better model so opted for this, (i've also owned a garmin and find them useless for my work as a delivery driver down west wales).

Good points: Good build quality on first impressions, easy to use straight out of the box, maps show 99 percent of roads and farm lanes correctly and good, clear directions.

Bad points: The socket that you plug the charge lead into is very very fiddly and when the device is on the map of the area you're in, there seems to be a horizontal line across the screen with the top half slightly darker than the bottom half. I assumed it had a fault so returned it to Amazon who duly sent me a brand new replacement but the second device seems to have the same problem. If anyone else has/is experiencing the same problem please let me know if this is the norm or have i just been unlucky to have been giving 2 faulty products?

Accessories:

TomTom USB Home Charger - Power Adapter

TomTom Maps of North America IQ Routes v8.30

TomTom Travel Case

TomTom USB Car Charger

TomTom One / XL IQR Additional Mount Kit

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