June/July 2007

Every satellite navigation user will be familiar with the experience of finding features of the real world that don't quite match up with those in their satnav's mapping. There's usually little that can be done; the user will sigh with frustration and move on.

Not any more. TomTom, which claims to be the world's leading satnav company, is now also claiming a first with what it calls 'map improvement technology' - basically the facility for users to update their own maps, and share their knowledge with other TomTom users as well.

The feature is branded TomTom Map Share, and is included free with the company's new TomTom GO 520 and TomTom GO 720 units. As soon as users spot changes in the roads, they can update their own maps 'on the fly'. TomTom says this takes just a few touches on the screen of their device.

Via TomTom HOME, the company's free software application, TomTom Map Share users can also receive map improvements made by others. They can choose between downloading all reported map improvements or only accepting map improvements verified by a TomTom team of experts to guarantee timeliness and validity.

 

TomTom HOME enables users to manage, download, store content using a personal computer (PC or Apple), and transfer it to their TomTom device.