| Garmin vs TomTom GPS? Who wins this debate? | | | | There's not much the 3790 can't do. |
| Honestly, it has a lot to do with what segment of | | | | Right here, as far as our debate about Garmin vs |
| the car GPS marketplace you're looking at. In this | | | | TomTom GPS is where TomTom falls short. It's |
| article, we're going to talk about Garmin vs | | | | in the innovative, higher end of the market place. |
| TomTom, in general, what each company has to | | | | I'm talking from a US point of view by the way. |
| offer in terms of models and prices. So, if you | | | | TomTom is an European company, and as far as |
| want to learn my opinion about who wins the | | | | European GPS's TomTom has Garmin beat...at |
| Garmin vs TomTom GPS debate, read on! | | | | least for now. |
| To answer this question, let's get an overview of | | | | TomTom does provide some heavy competition |
| the product lines of each of these companies. | | | | for Garmin in the lower half of the price range. |
| Garmin first. | | | | Let's say under $200. Their XL and XXL series |
| I'm just talking car GPS, here. Not motorcycle, not | | | | are excellent, widescreen GPS systems, which |
| trekking, etc. just car. Used to be that Garmin has | | | | have a lot of features that you've come to |
| two lines of after market car GPS's, the | | | | expect on a GPS. It could be that feature for |
| StreetPilot and the newer nuvis. Garmin has | | | | feature TomTom might be slightly less expensive |
| essentially discontinued the StreetPilots, although | | | | that Garmin. I'm not sure. Frankly, that varies all |
| you can still find them in some online retailers. The | | | | over the place. So, that's not part of the Garmin |
| nuvi line is what you need to be looking at, and | | | | vs TomTom GPS argument. |
| what we'll be discussing. | | | | I do know that for entry level GPS systems, |
| As far as understanding the Garmin vs TomTom | | | | TomTom has some really great new devices. |
| GPS discussion, you need to know that nuvis are | | | | Take the TomTom EASE, for instance. That's a |
| priced from less than $100 to almost $400. You | | | | scaled down GPS at a low price. But what the |
| can get a basic Garmin nuvi, the 205, for less | | | | EASE has that the nuvi 205 doesn't have is...well, |
| than $90 from many online retailers. You can get | | | | it's easier to use. TomTom has successfully |
| Garmin's top of the line model, the 3790t for | | | | simplified the user interface so that anyone can |
| $450, or thereabouts. The 205 gives you a basic | | | | use the EASE right out of the box. It's very |
| GPS system, but not much else. With the 3790t, | | | | intuitive. |
| you get an artificially intelligent state of the art | | | | So, who wins the Garmin vs TomTom debate. |
| GPS system in a sleek, newly designed case, | | | | This is just my opinion, mind, but in the lower end |
| which can remember the routes you take most | | | | of the market, I think they're neck and neck. |
| often and even offer day to day alternatives. | | | | Above $200, it's Garmin all the way! |