Experience with Garmin and TomTom

[cloggienl]

Well, I have used both my ageing TomTom 730 and a new Garmin 2595LMT side by side for a few months and around 20K miles.

Unfortunately, I have decided to go back to my old TomTom, well not my old 730, but I have bought a second hand 930T. The only reason why have bought the 930 is that it has 4Gb memory and not 2Gb, like the otherwise identical 730. I have bought the traffic aerial, as I found the function quite handy in Europe on the Garmin. The 730 with added SD card was just too slow compared to the 930.

The reason for buying a Garmin was that the TT did not give speed camera warnings in France, which was fixed by going to navcore 9401 or earlier. TomTom seems to have blanked the warnings in France in later navcores, probably something to do with the required danger zones in France. I am now running navcore 9051, as it has all the functionality that TT in their wisdom deleted in later versions. I am running the 900 4602 maps.

My Garmin was as it came out of the box, with the latest maps installed.

I found the user interfaces of both units quite good with a couple of exceptions. The Garmin doesn't let you add a 'favourite' with one touch. Not very handy when noting down new speed cameras. And I haven't found a way to navigate to a town center, if the town is in a different country than where you actually are. That might be just my ignorance though.

I find the screen quality and voice quality of the Garmin to be a step above the TomTom. It is easier to type accurately on the Garmin, where on the TT I get quite a few 'miss types'.

For the spirited drivers that use their devices for predicting corners and how fast to enter a bend on unknown roads, the TT is definitely better, both in 3d and 2d view. The Garmin display is not as accurate and corners are sometimes a surprise.

The routing in both units can leave something to be desired but the Garmin really gets confused. Yesterday, I drove from Holland to Burgundy in France, a route I often drive. I know what all the routes are and I have my own fastest route. The TomTom seems to learn fairly quickly, and seems to adapt to my route. The Garmin however, tries to revert to its own ideas rigorously, sometimes trying to make a detour to get to a motorway, adding 100 Kms and half an hour to the journey; other times trying to do the opposite, sending you down a small road that is a little bit shorter but takes ages. The Garmin does not seem to take traffic lights into account when calculating arrival times making its arrival time unreliable. The TomTom is normally way too generous with its arrival time, and actual arrival is normally much quicker, but this seems to be more predictable and reliable.

For me, a major flaw in the Garmin's software is that POI icons like speed cameras sometimes do not display, while giving the audible warning fine. I have tried all sorts of files, but it is hap-hazard. Yesterday, it was fine on most of the journey, but the cameras on the A19 in France and a couple of others were not displayed. But if I do the same journey next week, they might well displayed. Strange.

I hope this helps people when deciding which brand to buy, even though I hate to say it, the older TomTom 730/930 is better for my use. I don't like to advise people to buy a device that is made by a company that seems not to care a jot about its customers and I know their newer machines leave a lot to be desired. But hey, if you need a good unit, find a second hand 720/730 if you only need maps for a few countries or a 920/930 if you need the whole of Europe. Then if you need the speed cam warnings in France, roll back the navcore to 9401 or before and you have a one of the best units in my opinion.

[sussamb]

[cloggienl]

I am sorry if I offended you with my opinions...

Yes, navigating to a street in a city abroad is fine, however when going to a town without having a street address is different. When pressing the 'towns' button there is not a country choice. But like I said before, I might well be missing something.

Camera databases are not illegal in France, they just must be configured to show the area around the camera as a danger zone, and not precisely point at the camera. The missing icons are correctly installed and at the same location sometimes show and sometimes not. It even did this with Garmin's own database before I deleted it.

As for spirited driving, you must have misinterpreted or misunderstood me. Enough said.

I have tried to give an objective opinion about both my Garmin and my TomTom. If you follow one satnav brand like a religion, my opinion might not suit or be of interest.

[sussamb]

[sussamb]

[cloggienl]

[cloggienl]

[sussamb]

Guilty as charged m'lud

OK, I hear what you say but it's difficult to see why you even mentioned it if you don't drive in that manner, but I'm happy to accept that you say you don't

[cloggienl]

I forgot to mention a couple of handy functions the Garmin has that the TT hasn't.
-delete route from the main screen. With the TT you have to press a few buttons to get there.
-height above sea level (or below if you drive through Holland :-)) is a nice feature on the Garmin that the TT doesn't have.

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