TomTom GO 920T GPS Review - Features
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The TomTom GO 920T adds to the already impressive feature-set in the GO 720. The 920T offers up text-to-speech functionality, music and photo support, an FM transmitter, and Bluetooth support. These features alone are great to have in a GPS device, but the 920T includes some other great features as well: spoken address input, TMC traffic reporting, TomTom's MapShare community, and Enhanced Positioning Technology (EPT).
Spoken Address Input
This is the most interesting new feature in the 920T. This feature allows you to speak an address, instead of typing it in. The 920T recognizes what you say and calculates a route for you. This feature allows you to easily find an address while driving and allows you to keep your hands and eyes on the road. This feature works really well in this device - see the "performance" section for more details.
The only downfall of a feature such as this is that most people get directions to where they are going before they start driving, so there wouldn't be a need for spoken address input in these situations. This feature is most useful while driving and not necessarily more efficient than typing in an address while not driving.
If you are constantly having to find addresses on-the-fly, then this is the feature that you've been waiting for. If you plan to use your GPS to calculate routes to a destination before you leave your driveway, then you may not want to pay the premium price for the 920T, which is in large part due to the spoken address input feature.
TMC Traffic Reporting
The TomTom 920T comes equipped with a TMC traffic reporting receiver in the box. This receiver basically consists of an antenna that plugs into the bottom of the GPS unit. This feature will warn you of traffic congestion up ahead so that you can find an alternate route. TomTom was nice enough to throw in a free 12 month subscription to this service. After the trial period, the TMC traffic reporting feature will cost about $30 per month.
TomTom MapShare
TomTom's exclusive MapShare online community is the first of its kind. This community consists of other TomTom GPS users who have the ability to update or edit roads or POIs. This allows you to get the latest information about roads that are closed or ones that have just opened. It also allows you to edit POIs or add to them.
Overall, the MapShare feature is a very useful tool that allows you to have the most updated maps and POIs possible. The only thing that you need to watch out for is people putting false information into the MapShare database. To avoid this potential problem, you can choose to only accept updates that have been approved by TomTom.
Enhanced Positioning Technology (EPT)
EPT is a feature that I think will become more and more popular in portable GPS devices in the near future. This feature works by sensing your car's acceleration and deceleration to give an accurate "prediction" of where you are on the map when there is no GPS signal. This feature comes in handy when driving through tunnels, through the mountains, or in cities with tall buildings. EPT effectively eliminates problems caused by dropped GPS satellite signals.
Next: Performance >>
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