The TiBo’s Belfast outing

After TomTom Nav 5 failing the Northern Ireland trial, I took the multimedia GPS system TiBo with Destinator maps and put them to the test – and they both passed and get big gold stars! The TiBo gained a first fix within two minutes and after that always found satellites in around 30 seconds – even when I switched it on in a multi-storey.

I was really impressed with the routes that Destinator suggested. We tried it out between places that we know well and everytime it came up with the fastest route. It even showed new roundabouts that have only been around for a few months, and managed to navigate me around little back-of-nowhere towns. It had every back street we threw at it, and re-routed us quickly when we tried to trick it.

The Destinator interface isn’t the most friendly on the eyes, but the ‘night’ colours were really handy, and the whole programme was easy to use. I’ve taken the TiBo out before round Glasgow, and I still think it’s a great wee system. I know that some people are put off by the indicators, but I like the idea of them – even if I don’t like the look of them. It’s handy if you’re on your mobile (hands-free of course) and have the audio instructions turned off. The appropriate one flashes blue when a turn’s coming up, and red when you’re at it. It means you can see where to go without having to concentrate on a map.

Being able to listen to MP3’s as I drive ain’t too shabby either, and although I didn’t test the movie software out this time, I’ve seen first hand that it’s pretty good quality. So that’s a gold star for the TiBo and another for Destinator. Anyone agree or disagree?

Click here for more information on the Tibo with Destinator maps.