TomTom XL Live IQ Routes Europe satnav review

Premium satnav made more affordable

TomTom XL Live IQ Routes Europe satnav. Car And GPS, GPS, TomTom 0

Reviewer: Chris Hall
Review Date: 18 June 2009
Manufacturer: TomTom
Price as reviewed: £249.99 (European maps)/£229.99 (UK only)
Latest price: £176.74

Our score

9/10

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Quick review

The good: Build quality, excellent navigation, HD Traffic
The bad: A little on the expensive side
Verdict: You do pay a little more for TomTom, but we'd rather spend the money and reap the benefits, than save a little and spend our holidays sitting in traffic
Key specs: Li-ion battery, Touchscreen

Comments

A couple of important points about the review (and I am a Go 940 Live user, and still like it, so NOT biased against TomTom here).

1) You CANNOT dip in and out of the HD Services in the way you mention. Theoretically, yes, but the actual terms and conditions are such, that you will always find yourself paying for at least TWO months more services, and many scare stories (and indeed cases with a certain London Trading Standards Team) abound of people being charged THREE months in effect, after a cancellation request. Be advised - a three, or even just a two month cancellation and charge period, makes dipping in and out of HD Traffic as you need it, all but impossible.

2) As always, prices stated in reviews are RRP ones, I concede that. But in real terms (I wont say where), you can pick up the flagship of the fleet, Go 940 Live, with full Europe and USA Maps, BT Handsfree, MP3 Player, FM Transmission (of music), and Accelerometer for Tunnel or urban canyon navigation, for a mere £310 online, currently with a £20 cashback offer, so making it just £290, and thus a mere £40 more than this far more basic version reviewed here. As this device is newly launched, the scope for online savings just now is far less. So my advice would be find the extra few quid, and get the top of the range 940 Live, that offers everything this model does, and far far more besides. At least for half a year until prices drop on this new unit too.

Hope this info helps. Posted by Patrick Rice, United Kingdom
Patrick, thanks for your comments. As you say there is an ongoing £7.99 fee, with 1 month notice period in the terms and conditions. Last time I spoke to TomTom they told me that buying a single month would not be a problem, but I'll take your comments on board and put that back to them.
Posted by chrishall, United Kingdom
The XL Live IQ (with European mapping) is currently available online (collect in store) from Halfords at a penny under £210. Looks a very good deal at this price, I have to say. Posted by Patrick F, UK