TomTom GO 910 GPS Navigator

TOMTOM GO 910 GPS NAVIGATOR REVIEW: Maps, Music and More

June 2006 By –Stephen Krasowski

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I was overjoyed by the fact that the TomTom GO 910 included various voice and language command options to choose from, or I would not have been able to keep my three nephews quiet during the ride to the video store. It wasn’t the maps or even the music that amused them, but instead it was the variety of voices in different languages that thrilled and occupied them.

The TomTom GO had many interesting features that I was fortunate enough to review. When I received the unit and took it out of the box, the first thing that I noticed was that there were no buttons on the face of the unit. In order to navigate through the menu options, you have to constantly keep touching the screen to get to where you need to go. This was a bit of a hassle, especially if I needed to adjust the volume accordingly, or my nephews wanted me to change the voice command giving the directions. If you don't wish to use the touchscreen option, you can use the remote control. However, it was a little difficult having one hand on the remote control and clicking on the icons and the other hand on the steering wheel. After securing the unit to my car window, it was stable enough to the point where it wasn't going anywhere, which was really satisfying considering that this was a problem I had always encountered. However, I was really impressed by the multitude of voices (both male and female) and languages from all over the world that you could choose from so that the directions (accurately loud and clear) that were given to you were as understandable as possible. Not only did the voice command tell you what street to make your next turn, but at the same time, it also told you the second turn you needed to make.

Another feature of the TomTom GO that I thought would be extremely beneficial was its ability to allow you to make hands-free phone calls and send and receive messages to others while you are driving. This can be done by establishing a Bluetooth connection between your phone and your TomTom unit. The TomTom GO also enables the user to receive traffic information via the TomTom PLUS service. This feature also requires the need for your cell phone to be Bluetooth capable. Although both of these services sound impressive, if your cell phone is not Bluetooth compatible, you’re really out of luck.

What TomTom lacks in some regards it makes up for in the music and photo department. I thoroughly enjoyed downloading photos of the family onto an SD card that was included with the unit. Simply download your photos or music on the card and insert the card into the memory card slot in the TomTom unit. In addition to viewing photos on the TomTom GO, I was also able to listen to some of my favorite music. What I really thought was beneficial when using this service was the fact that you could sort your music by playlist, song, artist, genre or album. I particularly enjoyed the display on the screen while listening to my favorite tune. When you click on a particular tune you’d like to hear, the screen not only shows the name of the song, but it also shows the artist, which is a feature I always liked to see while listening to satellite radio as well. In addition, whenever the voice command needed to provide me with a particular direction I was to go, the music would mute so that the voice could be clearly heard. Once the the direction was given, the music would come back on. I really thought this was a neat feature.

Overall, I thought there were some really cool features of the TomTom GO, especially the photos and music. However, I was not fond of the need for my cell phone to be Bluetooth capable in order to receive traffic info. yy

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