TomTom GO 700

Summary: This is about the 10th GPS I have purchased. I was very excited to purchase the 700 (TOMTOM 700) after being frustrated with the Garmin CXX (C330 and C320). However, after using the 700 I will keep my C330. There are many GPS systems today and I have certainly not tried them all, the big weakness the 700 has is in the points of interest lookup.

Once you find a location you want to navigate to there is no way to determine the address or destination unless you try to decipher the turn-by-turn instructions. Another weak point is the POI category; I was searching for a specific bank and did not know the address. I could not find an ability to search by name in the 700 and there was no category for banking. I switched over to my C3XX, chose the city, spelled the banks name, and retrieved the address. The 700 also has some problems with their web site. Many links sent me on a wild chase to activate registrations and look for features. The instructions, categories and support seems to be geared more to supporting European customers.

Now I have said many negative comments about the 700, there are also some good points. The Bluetooth phone is cool, if I did not already have this feature in my car it would be worth keeping for only this feature. The traffic feature was not working so I could not test it. The ability to search an address based on the Zip code is very helpful, this is something the Garmin C3XX do not have. The 700 allows you to search for an address based on the zip code. This is very helpful if the town you believe an address to be in is not the town listed in the GPS. The Garmin makes it impossible to locate the address.

The 700 is also a little more reliable on telling you when to turn although some of the prompts repeat more then they should. I purchased the John Cleese voice, when you arrive at your destination John Cleese tells you have arrived and he is not going to help you with your bags. This was funny the first time, but after listening to this prompt three times each time you reach destination it becomes very annoying, sorry John. In comparison the Garmin C3XX GPS can be a little dangerous, the visual leads you to believe a turn is coming up soon and then quickly changes. Garmin needs to correct this before they cause an accident. I also like the fact the 700 allows me to choose how to route, shortest distance, fastest time, this is a system option on the C3XX and can not be chosen for each destination. The Magellan works the same way the 700 does, yes I have also had the roadmate 300 and quickly got rid of it, I did not like the way the maps loaded and I prefer the GPS to have a built in battery. If I need the cigarette lighter for my phone I don’t want to have to choose.

In summary- until I find something better I am going to stay with the C330, I like the maps better but the real reason was because of the points of interest limitation. When I am out of town and looking for a restaurant or hotel, I want to at least know I am heading in the direction that makes the most sense. If TOMTOM correct this problem the 700 would be a better choice for now.