The app costs $100 and allows the iPhone to function as a real-time navigation device that provides turn-by-turn directions.
The main benefit here is obvious: One less hardware gizmo to keep track of. Before you shell out $100 for the TomTom iPhone app and put your standalone GPS unit up for sale on Craigslist, consider these factors:
The software is only part of the cost. For the best GPS experience with your iPhone you'll need to buy the optional Car Kit, which includes a car mount, charger, additional GPS antenna, microphone, speaker, and audio-out jack. TomTom says it will offer a bundle, but the cost has not yet been officially announced. Unofficially the cost is predicted to be $90.
TomTom iPhone app is a lot closer to that of the company's standalone GPS units. For $120 at Best Buy you purchase a TomTom One XL Portable GPS unit that includes a windshield mount, power adapter, and turn-by-turn voice prompts. That GPS unit affixed to my window and plugged into my lighter is looking better and better.
Another negative regarding the TomTom iPhone app is it doesn't include text-to-speech capability, which means it can't announce street names. While I suspect this feature will find its way into future versions, it doesn't exist in the initial release. Personally, I'd rather hear "Turn left at Green Street," not "Turn left in 200 feet," particularly while driving in congested cities.
The iPhone is still a phone. And that means there's a good chance you'll need to answer a call while the TomTom app is voicing directions. Take the call and mute the app? Or let TomTom talk and send the call to voicemail? Could a dash-mounted iPhone running the TomTom app be considered "texting" and illegal to use in some states?
CoPilot Live, which costs $35, offers many of the same features.
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