TomTom Hits US With The High-End GO 920 Range and ONE 3rd Edition Portable Navigators

This seems to be a very busy week for the manufacturers of GPS-based personal navigation solutions, as each major name on the market has announced either a new product line-up or some kind of improvement to their current models. You've read yesterday about Magellan's 7 new models and now it's time to see what TomTom's been up to, as this company has made some very interesting announcements of its own.

Thus, the manufacturer announced the US release of three new models, namely two high-end PNDs, the TomTom GO 920 and TomTom GO 920T, meant to replace the current TomTom GO 910/510 models, as well as an entry-level model, the ONE 3rd Edition, all of them providing advanced navigation features, but also some advanced multimedia functions as well.

Thus, both the TomTom GO 920 and TomTom GO 920T come pre-installed with complete maps of the United States, Canada and Europe on the 4 GB of internal memory. The range includes the new Enhanced Positioning Technology for a more continuous navigation experience and comes complete with voice prompted address entry. Moreover, the GO 920 is compatible with an RDS-TMC Traffic Receiver to receive up-to-date traffic information, while the GO 920T includes the RDS-TMC Traffic Receiver in the box and a one year traffic subscription.

Apart from the aforementioned traffic receiver, the two models share pretty much the same features. Thus, they both include a 4.3-inch widescreen 16:9 format LCD with a WQVGA 480 x 272 pixels resolution and are powered by a 400 Mhz CPU and 64MB RAM. Moreover, they provide 4 GB of internal flash memory, which can be extended via the SD card expansion slot, as well as a high-sensitivity GPS receiver. Other interesting features include an FM transmitter, Bluetooth compatibility and the Li-Polymer battery capable of providing up to 5 hours of operation.

"The new flagship TomTom GO 920 range offers the best in satellite navigation," said Jocelyn Vigreux, President of TomTom Inc. "Pre-installed maps of multiple continents and innovative technologies such as voice prompted address entry, the new Enhanced Positioning Technology, TomTom Map Share and plug & play traffic information, offer outstanding quality and performance. The TomTom GO 920 range is the most advanced navigation solution on the market today."

We've seen what TomTom has to offer for the high-end segment, so it's time to move to the entry-level model mentioned earlier, the ONE 3rd Edition. Thus, this entry-level model, although it provides a lower number of features compared to the GO series, does offer users quality navigation at a very affordable price, as it includes the MapShare technology and the exclusive "HELP ME!" features.

MapShare is a proprietary map improvement technology unique to TomTom, which enables users to respond in real time to changes in the road network and correct the maps on their TomTom devices accordingly. Thanks to the smart user interface, it is easy to make improvements, such as to mark blocked or unblocked streets, reverse one-way traffic or insert new street names, which will instantly take effect.

As safety is an extremely important issue for any driver, the extensive 'Help Me!' menu includes information such as the way to the nearest hospital, car maintenance information and first aid instructions. The safety option screen is fully customizable allowing users to set warnings for speed, traffic, restricted zones, schools and more.

Even if it does offer some interesting features, the TomTom ONE 3rd Edition is clearly an entry-level item and it's got the specs to prove it. Thus, it has been fitted with a high sensitivity GPS chipset, but just a 3.5-inch full color TFT LCD touchscreen (320 x 240 pixels, 64K colors), only 1 GB of internal memory, an Li-Ion battery that can provide enough juice only for around 2 hours.

The difference between the three models is also quite visible when taking a look at their price tags. Thus, the new TomTom GO 920 range will be available in Q4 2007 for $599.95 (GO 920) and $699.95 (GO 920T), while the ONE 3rd Edition will hit the U.S. and Canada in September 2007 for a very affordable $249.

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