Customer Reviews:
 Time Saver October 24, 2008
Most of the time, it's great. But, other times, takes you to a totally different "state". It's said that it tells you the name of the streets, but, instead, it shows you the names on the screen, just like the older
one. Which, I could have bought, and saved myself some money.
 not that good October 21, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Pros: It will eventually get you where you want to go (especially if you already know how to get there.) The 130S version will read the street names out loud, which turns out to be a necessity. The 130 version will only say "Turn here" which is usually confusing.
Cons:
Streets built within the last 3 years are not on the map or map updates. (my own home street, for example, plus several MAJOR roads in my city).
Many streets that have not existed for up to 15 years ARE on the map. Several times I have been instructed to pull off into the ditch to an imaginary road.
Regional map updates cost $60. However, they are not true updates (see above comments) Customer service rep states there is NOT a way to preview a "new" map to see if it contains the updates you need. You have to spend $60 and hope for the best. Nationwide map updates cost $120.
MapShare feature is misleading. You CAN share map corrections regarding street names. You can NOT share corrections regarding the streets that are missing from the map or streets that do not exist in real life. Nor can you correct these on your own map.
For almost every trip, after the unit finds the "fastest" route, you then have to force the unit to re-route through a specific city or road that you know is faster. Then the unit will indicate that the estimated time of your route is actually FASTER than the "fastest" route. And it doesn't learn from it's mistakes.
The windshield suction cup will stop working in about 3 months. It will fall off your windshield over and over again.
very nice unit when it is working October 16, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
We bought this GPS unit for our Canadian trip. It only worked 3 of the 6 days there. Luckly, the three days that it was working were the days that we needed it the most. The other three days it either couldn't locat a single satellite or the location indicator was at least 1/4 mile off. Basically, buyers be aware. I wouldn't buy another TomTom unit. We also have an old Magellan unit and never had any problem with it. The only reason we bought the TomTom was because the Magellan did not have Canadian maps. Should have spent a little more for a Garmin or Magellan.
 Great Product for the Price October 15, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
It's everything I expected and more. The only negative I've found is that it's a little slow acquiring satellites when I turn it on in a new location (such as after a flight to a vacation) but for the incredibly low price, that is something I can easily live with. The voice prompts are great, the directions accurate, and the windshield mount is fast and strong. This is a great entry level GPS with many of the features of more expensive units.
 Handy, but a bit too user-unfriendly October 14, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I acquired my TomTom 130 after giving up on my Garmin Nuvi. The Nuvi had numerous problems ranging from sending me to the wrong locations and even preventing me from even entering certain addresses!
With the TomTom I haven't had any problems entering an address. Like the Nuvi, it will provide suggestions as you enter in a word but unlike the Nuvi it won't make it mandantory for you to select one of those suggestions. This rule often made it impossible to enter an address into the Nuvi.
Overall, the TomTom 130 is small, comes with good customer service (though with limited hours), plenty loud, accurate (most of the time) and user friendly (most of the time).
First the accuracy: The TomTom will always get you there, but it will often pick a inefficent route. I first noticed this due to its picking the an efficient route out of my development for certain destinations. A minor problem, but one trip I planned from central to southern florida actually had it taking me north east for 30 miles before sending me south! The TomTom seems to prefer interstate highways even when more direct (and quicker) routes exist. This problem rarely an issue because on most trips where I need GPS either know my current location or destination very well.
The user-friendliness of the device is one of its biggest assets and flaws:
1) If you instruct it to navigate to a new destination it will often inform you of the trip involving unpaved roads. I think this happens when the GPS determines you are in a parking lot or house and are therefore technically off road. This is an EXTREMELY confusing message and the TomTom ought to be smart enough to know not give that message if you are within, say, 50'-100' of a road.
2) Updating the TomTom's map will erase your favorites and home address. Updating the map won't even display a warning to report that this will happen.
3) Managing favorites is a major hassle and my biggest complaint. The TomTom allows you to enter an address and label it but you can never view or edit that favorite's info ever again. Yes, you will never be allowed to see the actual address of the favorite ever again! Also, you can't assign a phone number to a favorite but even if you could it would be useless since you can't view a favorite's info.
To enter an favorite with this additional info you must enter it as a POI (Point of Interest) and good luck doing that. It involves using Google Maps and connecting the TomTom to the PC. Calling this a cumbersome process is an understatement, and what if I was away from home and didn't have access to a PC? The Nuvi spanks the TomTom on this issue.
The TomTom's poor handling of a GPS devices most important bookkeeping function is the biggest favor in my low score for this device.
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