Garmin or Tomtom?

darkfibre

Hi all,

I have a budget of around £130 to spend. Want the following main features:

- Bluetooth
- TMC (free traffic updates)
- UK Mappings
- Safety camera info
- Free map updates (am I pushing it a bit?? )

Which model of Garmin or Tomtom would you recommend and why?

withabix

Garmin will give you 1 free map update. TomTom don't.

I have Garmin at the moment but have had TomToms before.

TomTom is better than Garmin in terms of user friendliness, camera alerts, voices and POIs.

Do you need UK, Ireland, Europe, USA, Canada mapping?

I needed USA and Canada as well as Europe and got a deal on a Garmin Nuvi 370T, otherwise I would have still been using TomTom I expect.

darkfibre

Only really need UK...can't think when I'd ever use anything else on a regular basis?

Any recommended model numbers?

And how much are map updates in general?

philnicandamy

http://www.tomtom.com/products/product.php?ID=419&Category=0&Lid=1 a little over your budget by £30 has traffic updates free for life of machine, the saftey camera subscription is around £19 a year but to be honest its useless compared to the one offered by www.pocketgpsworld.com I've used both & stuck with pocket GPS (easy to transfer to your tomtom)

loads of reading & comparisons here

www.pocketgpsworld.com

BillScarab

withabix wrote: »

Garmin will give you 1 free map update. TomTom don't.

I have Garmin at the moment but have had TomToms before.

TomTom is better than Garmin in terms of user friendliness, camera alerts, voices and POIs.

Do you need UK, Ireland, Europe, USA, Canada mapping?

I needed USA and Canada as well as Europe and got a deal on a Garmin Nuvi 370T, otherwise I would have still been using TomTom I expect.

I use a Garmin, a basic Nuvi 250. To be honest when I was looking I didn't think there was a lot fo difference in user friendliness between Garmin and Tom Tom. For POI's and the sfaety Cameras use the ones supplied by www.pocketgpsworld.com as suggested by philnicandamy.

If you really want different voices you can bodge it on the Garmins but it's a bit of a gimmick IMO, just like the different vehicle icons on the Garmins.

I'd just go for whichever has the features you want at the best price.

One other consideration is that Garmin use Navteq maps and Tom Tom use TeleAtlas. I have heard that Navteq are more accurate in the UK and TeleAtlas are more accurate in other parts of Europe but I don't know how true this is.

nomoneytoday

I tried a TomTom and Garmin last week before deciding. The TomTom "just worked" out of the box. The Garmin would probably be easy to learn, but couldn't waste time in the store trying.

Play.com and Amazon have good prices on both - £100-120 sounds in your budget

GaryS

I only have a Garmin GPS, so cannot really comment on the SatNav side.

But, I also have Tomtom and AA software on my PDA and TT wins hands down every time.

phatbear

I think you're asking a tad too much for your budget if you want a tomtom, unless you are looking at buying 2nd hand.

Have a look at this site:

http://www.cheapesttomtom.co.uk/

They update daily on prices etc.

I was looking at a traffic tomtom recently as I have an imported ipod stereo in my car which doesnt have rds so therefore no traffic alerts, however on reading up about it apparently the traffic versions of the tomtom are pretty pants, from several reviews Ive read.

Just my tuppence worth.

all the best

the bear

Aiadi

I have both and used different models over the years. I find Garmin to be better in mapping and routing calculations whilst TomTom is better in prior planning and route modifications (alternative routing). So if mapping and accurate routing is more vital then I would go for the Garmin but if you wouldn't mind the occasional odd routing calculation and like more re-routing options then I would go for the TomTom. They'll both get you from A to B one way or the other.

nomoneytoday

I bought a V3 TT europe last week from play.com for £120 - £5 quidco
It was £115 on Amazon, but longer delivery times...

darkfibre

I've noticed that the V2 Tomtom has Bluetooth and an SD card slot. Apart from the updated maps, why should I bother with a V3 when it doesn't have these features? Surely I should seek a V2?