TomTom GO 5000 feedback thread NOW CLOSED

[AngelieMumsnet]

This thread is for the MNers who've been trying out the TomTom GO 5000.

Below are some questions to get you started but please feel free to add other comments too.

In terms of your first impressions...

• What was your initial impression of the TomTom GO 500?
• How easy did you find it to set up your TomTom?
• What journeys have you made so far with your TomTom?

Please also note that TomTom may use your anonymous feedback comments on their website and social media channels, as well as elsewhere.

Thanks,
MNHQ

• How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

It's been pretty good on the whole except when taking DC's to swimming! The kids' swimming class is a fair distance away and TomTom insists on taking me via the busiest route every time!!

• What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

Good but not as user friendly as previous models. I want to be able to re-order the icons on the swipe screen or choose to display them in a grid. The screen size and clarity are excellent though.

• Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Oops posted too early! I would probably recommend it although it's a bit on the pricey side if you have a decent smart phone that can do the same job.

• How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

I've actually really enjoyed it, I love playing about with a new toy. It's even found some faster regular routes for me, so that was impressive as I thought I had that sorted years ago!

• What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

Not bad, but then I can only compare it to my ancient TomTom and my frankly useless Maps app on my mobile. It's a shame it hasn't caught up fast enough on a couple of occasions when I've come across traffic but it has diverted me nicely too so I guess that balances out. The voice recognition hates me and so I very quickly ditched any attempts to use it.

• Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

If someone was specifically wanting a new sat nav I would, however, I have little to compare it against. It does require some fine tuning (see issue with voice recognition above) but otherwise it does the job.

How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?
No problems using it. Voice recognition was a bit hit and miss to get going but once there was a response to "Hello TomTom" it worked fine after that. Only issue was updating it. Device wasn't recognised on my pc. Tried to sort myself but couldn't. Emailed TomTom on the email address given to others on here and eventually got it sorted. Quick and easy to update after the initial difficulty.
What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?
I really liked it. It was easy to use. The traffic information was up to date and worked each time. Only issue is the battery life. However, I assume it's much like the old mobile v smart phone debate. This new one does so much more and is constantly updating that it will drain/use more battery. I like a large warning to keep it plugged in whilst in use, in bold and featured in the set up bit of the device, would be helpful.
Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?
Yes I would recommend it. It's a good size. The holder is better than any other I've used previously. It was easy to use out of the box. Also, the lifetime mass is great.

Maps not mass, sorry.

How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

got used to it easily. A couple of times it seems to have taken me round in a circle but I may have missed a junction (though fairly sure I didn't) Not sure why it doesn't ask what house number to put in after you've inputted the address like my old one did. Have found it tends to fall off fairly regularly and noted that this was worse when I was in Cumbria recently and it was about -1 in the morning. Battery life is also an issue as really doesn't like not being plugged in

What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

I really liked it and found it easy to use although have nearly given up on voice command as only seems to work if I hit voice control and doesn't seem to like anything more complex than "go home..." it got very lost when I programmed in to go to Erskine Hospital and took me to a hotel instead.

Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?
I would recommend it although personally I would probably not fork out for this model unless I regularly drove in heavy traffic.

• How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

I've really enjoyed it. So far all the journeys we've done it hasn't gotten us lost (which happened frequently with our old decrepit sat nav).

• What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

I liked it. Much more than our old one. Although I do have a sat nav app on my phone and I would say that that is just as good as the TomTom GO 5000 which surprised me. Especially at the price of the TomTom and the app on my phone is free.

• Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Yes I would recommend it, it's a very good sat nav. Although I'm not sure if they would buy it because of the price.

How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

Pretty easy to use, updates seemed longer than normal but saved us valuable travel time.

What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

Nice big clear screen, a bit heavier than other satnav (I move between company cars) and no case is annoying.

We recently travelled from Surrey to Liverpool, It notified us of three major incidents. This enable us to come off at services and have lunch instead of sitting in traffic for hrs, priceless if you have a five yr old in the car.

The VR is not great with my accent.

I have used this for work driving and leisure, and now wouldn't be without it.

Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Yes I would as it's reliable and accurate. The traffic alert is the main feature I would recommend it for along with the night screen.

Thanks MN / TomTom for the trial!

-How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

I've really liked it. I find it fairly intuitive to use, and the screen display is clear. Haven't had any major issues getting lost etc, although I do find it weird that it will only recognise postcodes not addresses or place names. It is much better than the Google Maps I used to use on my phone! I am pretty sure that there is more I could be getting out of it though, but it's my lack of interest in flicking through a PDF manual that holds me back - I do think a paper manual supplied would be useful…

- What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

It's great. I haven't had another satnav & never really "believed" in them but TomTom has converted me!

- Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

I would because it is easy to use, reliable and seems pretty idiot proof.

Today I was on a route and I was told to turn right and just as I was turning I realised it had decided to change the route because of traffic but I hadn't noticed as I was concentrating on negotiating parked cars and didn't notice this happened a couple of times so some way of it getting your attention or telling you it's recalculating the route would be useful as you can't spend the whole drive watching TomTom

I don't like that it says "keep left" (for example) if it actually means for you to take the road that branches off the road you are on as you go around a bend. Yes, to keep left you'd have to do that, but as you are actually taking a new road it is not keeping on the left of the road you're currently travelling on, it's turning left!

similarly, it told me to 'turn left, second exit' on a roundabout, but it told me so late that I had to follow the 'turn left' instruction before the 'second exit' had been said because the first exit (turn left) is immediately after you join the roundabout. So I was on the wrong road with a huge queue of traffic meaning I couldn't turn around. Of course, it rerouted me, but it's not the point.

Lougle i know exactly what you mean.

I went into a left hand lane when it said this. But, it's recently changed to a feeder lane. So, I was going the wrong way for a short time. Could get back on the right road after a roundabout so no harm done this time.

It's taken me on more shortcuts that I never knew existed, avoided traffic jams and roadworks and also got me to work in plenty of time. It's all been very good for me.
Still going on new routes on a daily basis and getting to them all quickly without having to stop and look at a map once...It's a Godsend!

How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

I've found it pretty good, all in all. Although I've managed to stop it speaking and now can't work out how to get the voice back! Until I did that, it was great :o

What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

I liked it on the whole. There are a few things I think it doesn't do as well as Waze (generally related to zooming - it's really closely zoomed in and I keep having to adjust it so I get an idea of the general route far enough in advance of having to make turns etc) but there's plenty that is equally as good or better. I think it's expensive when compared to a free iphone app, but appreciate that it doesn't eat my data allowance!

Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Yes I'd recommend it - it was very simple to get set up and start using, although the initial computer link took ages and several of my relatives (looking at you, dad...) wouldn't have the patience for it. I'd have preferred it to have come with a case to protect it when it's not in the car because I suspect over time the screen will get scratched knocking around in my handbag/changing bag.

How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

Overall really good, I've had one or two bad experiences with sending me in the wrong lane of a ringroad .
It's been invaluable in teaching me different routes for places I drive to regularly

What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

It was my first experiece of using a sat nav, but I like the big screen and clear instructions. I liked the speed camera notifications.
It doesn't come with a case which is disappointing, its already getting a little bit scratched

Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

I've already recommended this to my mum, who like me is a nervous driver. It would be great if it gave her the confidence it has me to try and go to new places and attempt ring roads and motorways

Today I found a reason to love Tomtom an awful lot! When setting the route pop north this morning I noted a few of those average speed camera spots. I normally plod along very slowly because I am worried I'll get a fine. Tom not only pointed out where the cameras started but also worked out my average speed through the section.

I don't know how I lived my life without a sat nav before!
I have found the TomTom 5000 great. I'm used to it now so it's easy to get it to do what I want it to do.

A few weeks ago I wanted to go somewhere and programmed it. I knew how to get to a certain road but I was looking for directions from there. It wanted to take me a longer way to get to the road I knew so I took the shortcut, however on another occasion I did the same thing and it directed me through the shorter route. I'm not sure if it 'remembered' the shorter route from our previous journey, or if it would have given me the shorter route anyway.

The voice controls are quite handy, you don't think it's something you need or want until you have it. Much easier to just tell the TomTom what you want to do or happen then try and touch the screen when driving.

I'm still a bit disappointed that I don't see the full 3D effect, only if I drive into the city or at a major junction as it is one of the special features of the 5000. It's not really necessary I suppose but it would have been nice.

It hasn't yet given me a faster route option for some reason, I'm not sure if it's because there is no faster route for me or if it doesn't work.

Overall I really like it. It looks good, it has a good big screen and it has some good features like the petrol station finder and voice control.
It's easy to use once it's set up and you know what you're doing.
The holder is very good, it's easy to get the device in and out of it although it's quite fiddly to get the charger into the back of it and if the sat nav is not in use you either have to leave the cable hanging over the steering wheel or take it out, which is then a pain to get it back into the holder.

I would recommend it to others, however, if asked, I couldn't really say that it justifies spending over £250 on it, as another, cheaper sat nav would do the same job.

I also have to say that it has a speed camera notification system but there aren't any speed cameras in Northern Ireland (I've never seen one anyway), but it would come in very useful in other areas where there speed cameras.

• How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

Pretty good but on occasion it's not picking up alternative routes to avoid traffic jams or it sends me on convoluted alternatives, it thinks there is a traffic jam when there clearly isn't one (the satnav shows queuing traffic but there isn't any) and it doesn't pick up queuing traffic when there is a traffic jam (this is very frustrating when you are sat in slow or stationery traffic and the satnav doesn't show a delay - it only seems to pick up slow traffic on main roads).

Also sending me on routes where there is clearly queuing traffic or roadworks and not finding an alternative, when I know there is one!

But it doesn't do this all the time and it seems to be more problematic on my 29 mile journey to work compared to longer journeys.

• What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

Again pretty good apart from the reasons set out above. It charges well and the updates are quick. However the updates don't actually seem to update removal of roadworks and some changes to speed limits, the A52 between Derby and Nottingham is still showing as having roadworks even though there aren't any in place any more.

Also it doesn't recognise all places/addresses - it didn't recognise a village name in Devon but found the address via the postcode. Also when putting an address in it finds the nearest one and it was tricky to find out how to show all other similar addresses in different places. Also when putting in addresses it needs to be almost exact, I put an address in Nottingham in and it couldn't find it unless I put the suburb in as well.

Easily fixable to the windscreen which I like as our last satnav (also a TomTom) was really tricky to fix and I nearly broke the fixture!

• Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Yes probably although the price is quite high, it does offer a lot of functions and free updates so worth the extra money.

Thank you for all your feedback

Here are the final set of feedback questions:

- How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?
I have an old Tom Tom so I am used to the good points like warning you about speed cameras but I am a bit stuck in my ways so found the change to the new navigation system hard when I know how to find a feature so easily on the old one. Some of my niggles are the same as with the old sat nav ie it often takes you a back route down a single track lane when you could have stayed on a main road (even when fastest route selected). I think the advanced lane guidance is good that's why I really wanted a new sat nav.

I can't find how to do route overview where (in the old one) you could read a text summary of the route so you can see which way it's taking you. Pinch and zoom not good enough for that.

Road speeds often wrong driving to Eastbourne 45 min journey there were 3 roads that were wrong.

- What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

I liked the screen size, I really like how it auto changes to night mode. the voice control has the potential to be good when driving along for turning the volume up BUT it is so annoying if I said something it didn't recognise x 2 it would say 'ok turning the volume down' and then you couldn't hear the damn thing and it only turns it up at 10 % intervals using vr so you had to ask it to turn the volume up 6 times to get it back to an audible level - v irritating!

I really didn't get on with the traffic feature we trusted it one Friday night (against husbands better judgement) it said the Dartford crossing was the quickest option on a Friday eve rush hour. It was awful, kept changing routes suggesting a quicker one that was 1 minute faster! You can't see what route it suggesting and then the vr wouldn't recognise you saying no and would say ok taking route. I think it tried to divert us thru London at one point. It was a v fraught journey. We then got hopelessly lost in Stafford going down seemingly endless dark back roads, husband refuses to now use it.

I just wouldn't change a route I know well in order to save 2 minutes. It would have to be a lengthy delay to make it worth while.

However, it did help on a regular route I was pretty sure that there is a back route back from another town but wouldn't have been confident just to try it in the dark but it did identify that as the faster route.

Poi on the motorway worked well when we wanted to find a services with a KFC.

- Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

I would recommend it but not necessarily the traffic feature. Sat navs are great when you have no idea where you were going, it will always get you to a destination albeit sometimes via a route you wouldn't have chosen.

The survey link in my email doesn't work - it just takes me to the Mumsnet Online Surveys and Products page. Has anyone else managed to fill it in?

Hi, I've replied to the last questions already but it doesn't seem to have posted. For some reason my phone hates this thread and won't work properly at all. However if it is there already and I've missed it reading back I'm sorry if I'm repeating myself!

How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

Great! It's been great the whole test. Saved us lots of time and been really reliable.

What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

It's a fabulous bit of technology. The only drawback is the long update time. It seems to need updating quite often and the last one took 10 hours! I've learnt the hard way not to put it on to update if im going to need it later that day.

• Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Yes, I would and I have. I like the voice control and the help to avoid traffic. Yes it's not the cheapest model out there but the ability to get you where you need to be when you need to be there is worth a lot.

I just have to add that anyone who has this really needs to go to London to get the full benefit of the 3d , we went on Tuesday and the mini Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey were brilliant , we are going to take my DH up on a weekend just so he can get the full 3d experience as where we live it only does trees .

I loved this product. My husband bought an earlier version of the Tom Tom last October and this far surpasses it. I love the big screen and it is so easy to use. I am going to buy the vent kit though as I don't like having it stuck to my windscreen as I worry about someone breaking into my car. I would definitely recommend this device as it is so easy to use and very effective. The voice which it comes with is perfect, no need to change. Love the amber traffic build up warning too.

I love using the device even when I don't need to as sometimes it shows me some new ways to destination.

• How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

Great, I love that you can just have it on and it highlights all of the traffic hot spots, so even if you are not using it for point to point navigation because you know the route, you can still see the traffic problems

• What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

This was a massive upgrade from an original tom tom 1 with a clicky screen, so it felt great, but i struggle with entering exact details such as a house number for point to point directions, dont know why.

• Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Absolutley would recommend - especially if someone is using an older unit. The live traffic and camera update is great, it seems intelligent and remembers your own alternate routes, is big and easy to use.

• How have you found using the TomTom GO 5000 over the past few weeks?

Really good, especially the traffic info. I've even got used to it's odd routes as Somerset of the time it's right. I use it on all longer journeys, which is most week days. It got me out of a mess on the M1 many times over the last few weeks.

• What did you think of the TomTom GO 5000 overall?

Easy to use, like the holder and it switches on quickly.

• Would you recommend the TomTom GO 5000 to other Mumsnetters and/or your friends and family? Why?

Absolutley would recommend to everyone who drives on A roads and motorways regularly.