Customer Reviews

TomTom Start 25 M Sat Nav with UK Maps & Lifetime Map Updates

This is my second TomTom, my first was a GO700 which is still going well after 8 years. I changed because I fancied a large screen and the new features. I deleted my old TomTom Home2 site on my computer completely and installed the new one for the Start called 'MyTomTom' which is a free download on the TomTom main site page 'Getting Started'. I would advise you to do the same to avoid any problems if you have a previous TomTom.

My Sat Nav was up to date straight out of the box but I connected it up and it updated the traffic cameras and some shared map info with no problems. You can check if yours is up to date by going to 'settings',then 'me and my device', then 'about my device'. At the time of writing an up Sat Nav will read on the second line (App 12.045.1067676.84 (0) 2041, 19/9/2012 [the date I did it, yours will have a different date of course] OS 1017068. Be warned this is not a fast process even with a Broadband connection!

I really like the 5" screen it's bright and clear and the voice is clear and very loud. The new holder remains with the Sat Nav when you remove it from the windscreen and folds flat - which is a very good idea. If you did have any problems with it, it can be easily removed and cheaply replaced. Putting it on a windscreen and removing it is simplicity itself. Having spoken road names is great and you are sometimes surprised by the fact that you never really knew the name of a road you travelled on for years! Not all the voices work with spoken road names you must choose one that says it speaks street names of which there is only one English one on my Sat Nav (Serena). I found it picks up the satellites very quickly and the speed at which it processes routes is very very good. All the new features are really good and worth having and the Points of Interest are amazing - they even give you the telephone numbers so that you can call to book a table or to check if an item is in stock etc. I was originally frustrated by the fact that it didn't have a battery indicator, so I couldn't tell if it needed to be charged or if it was fully charged, but one suddenly appeared! I don't know whether it came with a download/update or whether it needed a good charge first before it appeared but it's there now - hoorah! I found that the home charger for my Blackberry phone which has a micro connection charges it up perfectly or it can be charged by your computer with the lead supplied in the box.

All in all this is a really excellent Sat Nav and I am absolutely delighted with it. I have no hesitation in recommending it to all those who don't need to use it as a phone; don't want the Live Link traffic updates and get frustrated by voice recognition systems that don't recognise what you say.

Bought for my wife who is technophobic! This Tom Tom is intuitive and very easy to use and my wife has operated it without difficulty over 1500 miles in France this summer without having to look at an instruction manual. She does not use motorways or the major national routes and the Tom Tom has navigated her perfectly through the minor scenic routes that she prefers. It has several features that are excellent, the screen rotates so that the image and instructions are always the right way up, voice prompts are unambiguaous and detailed and the screem itself is very clear. The power cable is good with a usb charger built in and the same cable can be used to connect to your PC for updating maps and speed camera locations. A good product that works well.

Happy with the Start 25, spec and price.

However, 3 or 4 days after receiving delivery, I get a message from TomTom stating that my subscription to Speed Cameras ends today, and I need to pay another �19.99 to get the updates!

Also, you cannot back up this device. TomTom have disable the 'Tomtom home' software on it. You can only use 'My TomTom' website.

Not loud enough I contacted tomtom support team and was told that they were aware of low volume on their start series sat nav.They are trying to find a solution to this.

I needed a new Satnav as my old one was very ancient, a bit battered and I hadn't updated the maps for seven years! It was a basic Tom Tom One but I liked it very much, especially the ability to re-route if you encounter a hold up. I asked for a new one for my birthday and got this, and was somewhat worried about it on reading the Amazon reviews - would it get a GPS signal, would it charge, would it still have the software that allowed re-routing? Well, so far I'm very satisfied as it does all of those things, plus I now have up-to-date maps and a nice non-chunky wide-screen satnav.

Other positives after a two-week trial: the lane advice is nice; I like the spoken directions telling you the name/no of the road you are joining and the direction of travel; it fits nicely onto the windscreen without leaving much of a mark, and it beeps at you when a "safety" camera is near. Not 5 stars because there is a bit of meanness evident by Tom Tom not including a case, but I bought a nice pencil-case from W H Smith that fits it for about three quid!

Slight confusion around Tom Tom Home v My Tom Tom (its the latter you have to use). Make sure you do the mandatory software update before you use it. My car is a Seat Leon - don't know if that's important.

So far, so pleased. Will update if things change...

This is my first TomTom and I was impressed. It was easy to use and navigate. I used it mainly on a trip around South West of England and in general it navigated me well. I did find that it tried to go down some very narrow country lanes but I ignored the TomTom and stuck to the main roads until it found a new route. I've also used it abroad. One irritation is that less than a year later, it is suggesting the maps are out of date and it costs to download more up to date maps.

This is my 3rd TomTom - my 1st was OK apart from occasional misdirections - my 2nd was worse in that regard and caused me more problems when trying to update the maps - I decided to buy a newer model rather than carry on with the updating problems but this newer one is TERRIBLE for a number of reasons;
1) It still suffers from misdirections
2) Despite being a new model the maps are still out of date (even after updating on line), as long standing road layouts are still dealt with incorrectly.
3) It announces instructions far earlier than appropriate, so unless you're looking at the screen as well as listening to it, it causes you to take a wrong turn.
4) The screen is bigger and the numbers are removed from the main screen, so the bigger buttons are easier to operate BUT its a real pain switching between the letters and numbers screens to enter postcodes, when compared to the earlier model, which has a single combined alpha/numerical screen.
5) Unless I'm doing something wrong with the charging, the battery in this one lasts no time at all, compared to the earlier versions.

You'd think after all these years of manufacturing these devices, that TomTom would have got it right by now - VERY DISAPPOINTING!!!!

I'm so unhappy with the new one that I've gone back to using the older version and will either be returning this or selling it off and purchasing another brand.

This is my first Sat Nav, and I've only used it for one day's fairly local driving, but I am already impressed with its features and performance.

BUT ... downloading the latest maps was a nightmare. They give you one Free download of the latest maps. Luckily I had read other reviews which told me to use the MyTomTom and NOT TomTomHome website. Even then, I wished that I had stuck with the maps already installed. However, the software updates seemed to improve some of the features. I spent a whole afternoon and evening fighting the system, and overran my 10 GB monthly broadband limit. I wish that TomTom allowed you to select individual countries, and not the whole of Europe every time. UK + France is all I need just now. At one stage, it almost finished loading the maps and said ERROR. I now had NO maps installed, and it took some persuading to let me do it again without paying for an update. The instructions for resetting the Start25 were wrong, and obviouslly apply to another model which allows you to remove its casing. On the Start25, just hold the on/off button down for about 15-20 seconds. This was the documented procedure for a different model!

In use, it gave clear instructions, and I was very impressed with its speed of re-routing when I chose to go a different way. Usually within about 25 yards, with no nagging voice telling me I had gone wrong! The touch screen is easy to use, and the safety (speed!) camera warnings excellent. However, I must select some less intrusive warning alarms!

I have had this satnav for 9 months, it is possably the worst sat nav that I have used (tried to use) , It can spend the whole of the journey searching for a satillite signal this could be hours. When trying to contact tom tom, This in its self is an ordeal, As customer support is so difficult to navigate on tom toms web site, It is impossable to contact someone. I have downloaded all the relavent downloads reset the device several times all to no avail.It now turns itself off all the time and I cannot get any help with it. I will now try a Garmin.My recomendation for this device is walk away from it I wish I did.

Countering the negative reviews, I have a Mac running OS.X Lion - which having just been released I expected not to be supported, but I went to the website, downloaded the software and it works great. Not too keen on the webpage interface rather than a separate piece of software like the old TomTomHOME, but updated the device and downloaded the new maps, all installed without a hitch and with minimum of fuss.

Easy to use, seems to work well on route, pretty much like every other TomTom!

Downsides to this device
The USB lead is quite short for in car use depending on the placement of your vehicles cigarette lighter socket and where you want to put it in the screen - though I imagine this isn't limited to the Start 25.
There is no Quick Fix on this system, so it can take several minutes to lock onto the satellites - it does ask you when planning a route if you want to start from the last known point, but that isn't much use if you want to set off immediately. You just have to remember to boot it up as soon as you get in the car before you do anything, otherwise you can be in for quite a wait before you can set off.