TomTom clears up iPhone car kit slip: £99.99 for the hardware alone, app sold separately
By Darren Murph 
posted Sep 24th 2009 12:27PM
posted Sep 24th 2009 12:27PM
TomTom unveils the price of the TomTom car kit for the iPhone
London, 24 September 2009 – TomTom announces today that the TomTom car kit for the iPhone will have a recommended retail price of £99.99
The TomTom car kit will be available this October and will be sold separately from the TomTom app. It will be compatible with the iPhone 2G, 3G and 3GS.
All further details on the car kit will be made available soon.
London, 24 September 2009 – TomTom announces today that the TomTom car kit for the iPhone will have a recommended retail price of £99.99
The TomTom car kit will be available this October and will be sold separately from the TomTom app. It will be compatible with the iPhone 2G, 3G and 3GS.
All further details on the car kit will be made available soon.
So if you get a phone call it does or doesn't quit the app...?
Hardware looks nice though..
It should detect whether your car is moving and if it is, tell the caller that you'll call them back later.
@Topmounter
Are you serious? What happened to hands free talking? It should alert you and then you have the option to answer it and you should be able to talk on the phone and watch the navigation at the same time...
@Galen
So where does the driving part figure into this?
I am starkly aware that when i am on the phone, hands-free, that my concentration for driving and awareness of other road users decreases and navigating with the GPS can have a similar effect. Drivers need to admit to themselves that the human brain cannot mutlitask and concentrate on driving safely for everyone.
Hey does anyone know if the dock is actually going to be doing any of the processing for the TomTom GPS app? I believe I remember there being that capability when the iPhone 3.0 OS was demoed at one of the Apple events. If it does it might be worth the money. I currently own the Navigon GPS app on my 3G and it is amazing.. but runs slow as crap-- I'm sure the TomTom app is the same. And as far as the person a few replies below me with Google Maps on his G1? Really man? You are satisfied with that? Really? You have low standards.
I doubt it'll actually deny incoming calls when the phone is moving, that'd suck if you are riding with someone with the nav app open.
@Cas
Good that you just say "your concentration decreases", don't try to apply your own experience to everybody.
@Tin
Im afraid its not just my opinion it is a fact.
A quick search of the internet will reveal the research that has been done showing that speaking on a phone while driving is on par with the impairment of consuming alcohol or sleep deprivation.
@galen
In Japan, phones have a "driving mode" that will leave a seperate voice message letting callers know that the user is driving and will call back. And yes, there have been several studies that show it's not the phone, it's the conversation that distracts the driver "teh googlez" is a beautiful thing. If a call is so important that it can't wait people can politely pull off to the side of the road and take the call. How hard is that, really?
In NJ, I used to get so aggravated because at least once a week, some soccer mom in a 3-ton SUV on her cell phone would try and share my lane. Even after they passed a state-wide hands free law people are still idiots. Even the cops talk on cell phones while driving there. When moving down the highway at 80mph it's bad enough, but it's even worse when you see people doing it in a parking lot where there are lots of moving targets to track.
Research is for general statistics.
It however, doesn't apply to specifics as they can talk on the phone chase a car and capture video all at once in a safety manner. These are specially trained people. They are trained to do that. Which means they can maintain low computing power to process on driving as driving is a 2nd nature just like you breath the air you don't need to think.
Price fail!
I'll stick with my G1 with free google maps, thank you. My car mount cost $5, and that's plenty for me.
I think Tomtom has realised that the average iphone user can't see passed the app store and won't realise that they are paying over the odds for the whole kit. Companies have learnt to take advantage of ignorance.
Umm...DEDICATED GPS systems now cost less than $100.
Still, user "Muddy" is right. iTards will rejoice at ONLY paying close to a $120-$150 for voice-by-voice navigation.
Correction:
turn-by-turn* voice navigation.
Damn chai-latte messed me up. Should've stuck to coffee.
first of all... this is a third party product by a respectable company that is known for great GPS units.
second, the kit is still going to be cheaper than a stand-alone unit by the same company.... only it's RIGHT THERE on your phone and doesn't require the car kit to work.
third, talking about peoples ignorance and spelling the word "learned" as "learnt" is just silly.
@Prokanda - How do you figure? 100 British Pounds Sterling is $164. Add on to that $100 for the application. That's getting a little pricey even for a TomTom.
@Prokanda Wow wrong on every level.
First. I know Tomtom is respectable company. I will be getting one when I get a company car and will be buying one for someone as a birthday present.
Second. You do realise you are also buying a car kit with this and that it is altogether more expensive than a stand alone unit?
Third. From AskOxford.com and the country where English comes from.
"These are alternative forms of the past tense and past participle of the verb learn. Learnt is more common in British English, and learned in American English. There are a number of verbs of this type (burn, dream, kneel, lean, leap, spell, spill, spoil etc.). They are all irregular verbs, and this is a part of their irregularity."
$264 is not too much for a premium GPS unit (I understand the price conversion, thanks, douche).... and you're also paying for the convenience of having it in your phone. also, the docking kit is not required for the application to work.
going to tomtom.com shows that their units start at 119 and go up to 400... so 264 with the convenience of being able to have ONE device to do it all (music, video, phone, GPS.. whatever) is what you're paying for... the people that will be getting this (in the US at least) have already shelled out between 200-300 for a phone that costs a MINIMUM of 90 dollars a month for service... I don't think another 164 to make it an EXCELLENT GPS unit with tried-and-true navi software is too far fetched.
maybe YOU should check some details and not assume that I'm completely daft on the price conversion next time, mate.
That went from a great deal and one up on Navigon to an also-ran....just like that.
Haha, £160 for the software and mount. Right then, so what are the benefits of this over say... an XL classic?
Well, there are various benefits (easy to take with you, has your music on it, has your contacts, etc) but price isn't one of them. I very much want a solution like this rather than a dedicated GPS system but I am not prepared to pay the sort of money that TomTom wants, Alternative hardware solutions will likely arrive and it's just going to be a matter of time before prices drop to something approaching sensible.
£99.99 + the app + iPhone = FAIL
£99.99 for a car charger that has a sucker to stick on the windscreen, Tom Tom must think peple where born yesterday you can get a full retail unit with windscreen mount for that.
Time to check your local auction site for a much cheaper import me thinks.
also enhanced gps receiver. rather large addition, that, but not worth the price for me.
They were as they cater to Apple crowd... :)
Yeah, and that "sucker" (not the consumer, har har, the window mount) WILL EVENUTALLY FAIL and fall off while you're driving. Especially if you run the AC in a high humidity part of the world.
I eventually had to superglue the mount, base, and suction cup all together to my dashboard to keep my tomtom from falling off while I was driving around at 70 MPH.
Ridiculous!
And to think people were complaining that the Zune HD needs a $90 dock to play HD video on an external monitor.
How much is the Sirius dock so you can listen to satellite radio on your iPhone?
What is this Zune you speak of?
I thought the "what's a Zune" meme was officially dead?
I can't wait for an iPhone/Monster Cable hook-up!!
Or he's not from North America, in which case 'what's a Zune?' is a perfectly valid question.
It's probably such a rip off just to push you to buy an actually tom tom GPS unit since they cost about the same. The Iphone sucks for GPS, atleast the sprint phones include a real gps program for free. I have trouble using Maps in the city on my Iphone since my location seems to jump all around when close to any tall buildings. ATT is such a greedy money hungry company. Especially in these hard times. Grrr..
Or is that Apple? Whatever, it sucks either way.
That's why there is a seprerate GPS chip in the TomTom holder,.. still too expensive, but it's not just a simple cradle...
LOL, so it's basically £99 for a suction cup and charging cable, which is useless unless you pay another £60 for the software? Or am I missing something here?
Meanwhile TomTom offers standalone, 3.5" devices with the accessories, starting at, what, $99?
This product would ONLY be interesting if it was less than $100 for BOTH the software and mount, AND the iPhone supported background applications.
As is now, you pay a premium, AND you lose functionality of your phone! (Not to say that there won't be miseducated consumers who still take the ass raping.)
F A I L
It also includes a built in GPS chip that is better than the iPhone's. Price still sucks though
I believe the dock also has a built in FM transmitter that works for phone calls as well.
Not an FM Transmitter but a bluetooth speaker/microphone unit for handsfree calling.
So it is a GPS unit (without display), a charger, a cradle and a bluetooth hands-free unit. Not so bad?
@scw Yeah, except I already have a bluetooth hookup in my Car, so either I don't need this, or it will actively mess things up. Now is it worth the price to me?
Because poor people are suckers.
...everyone who doesn't have GPS built in is automatically poor? Really?
wow.
Yes. Or at least they soon will be once they buy the iPhone, mount, and TomTom software!
Given that the App is probably the same or similiar to what is found on the lower end of TomTom models 130/140/ONE XL, this price is definitely a FAIL!. Sure, you can have everything on a single device, but look at the tradeoffs---killing the battery on the iPhone, interupting Nav if your taking or making a call and you can't run other apps when in Nav mode.
Bugger that...
What a successful launch! Shot down in a couple of hours.....I see Tom Tom have placed an advert for a new marketing manager! Priced to fail.
Surely just buy a stand-alone sat nav unit for £80 and don't spend £90 for an overpriced ipod dock + £70 for a bloated iphone app?
I don't understand why anyone would buy this sh*t.
Bloated? Sorry, you'll have to run that by me again. I thought people were complaining that the TomTom iPhone application didn't do enough and not that it did too much. That something bad is "bloated" is a phrase that is thrown around too much and too inaccurately. That everything is "fail" is also getting on my nerves...
Oh tom tom... why why? =(
Why is the iPod touch relevant if it's not capable of Edge/3G network away from a land wi-fi line. Isn't that the whole infrastructure that the navigation relies on to function?
The TomTom app downloads all the required maps to the device so a data connection is not needed
Really? So people who have iPhones and iTouches are poor? I don't think that your reasoning holds up.
I agree
Wait, so what I'll be paying 250-300 australian dollars for (which is the price of a mid-to-high range Tom Tom anyway) is a holder that doesn't do anythin until I pay an ADDITIONAL 150 dollars for the phonr app?
Tell me why I shouldn't just buy a navigator? One that won't go schizo and cut out everytime I get a phone call, I might add...
I'd love to see how you plan on "bolting" a suction cup to a windshield...
So, basically the car mount is a ridiculously overpriced white elephant which will be completely overlooked in favour of existing mounts. Savvy move, TomTom!
Some of you people are daft. Is there a reason why it's so expensive? Yes. For those with little reading comprehension the article mentions iPhone 2G compatibility. The only way that is possible is if the cradle has a GPS built into it. Seeing as 3" resistive touchscreens and 1 gig of flash memory are dog cheap the majority of your cheap GPS is the chip and supporting electronics itself.
I still think it's overpriced but it's not that far fetched given that tidbit of knowledge.
Now what they SHOULD do is offer a cradle that does not include the GPS chipset so the 3G/3GS owners can save some $$.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but are TomTom not just saying the Dock/Cradle is compatible with the 2G - the app itself still requires a 3G/3GS.
Also, can anyone confirm if this cradle actually has a GPS chipset in it, or if it merely acts as some sort of aerial enhancer?
Why would you need the GPS in the 3G/3GS? If the GPS chip is built into the charger then all you need is a processor to calculate coordinates and route information. The GPS chip in the cradle will provide the current location to the iPhone and the TomTom software on the phone itself will do the rest.
@Puck: Completely agree. But the wording from Tom Tom themselves is very odd. The CRADLE is compatible with the iPhone 2G. And the APP requires a 3G or 3GS. Meaning you can't run the APP on an iPhone or Touch that doesn't have a GSM chip in it. Which makes it less important that the "enhanced GPS" chip is in the cradle.
Like you, I originally thought the idea was that this would work with the Touch and the older iPhones, which partially explained the inclusion of the "enhanced GPS" chip.
But it doesn't appear to work like that. Very odd.
So what ur saying is that I have to spend $200 to buy the car kit and software. Screw that...I'll go buy a Garmin Nuvi for $110 at Walmart. That's just stupid!
Hrmmm..I was about to get this for the wife who is in love with her iPhone (I'm an android/wm user) and needs a good turn by turn GPS setup for her work travels but this is outrageously priced. (Although I'm sure the US price will be lower?) I do like the hardware though, it's nothing special but it does have a separate GPS chip in there which is nice. If the software was included I'd have bought it for sure, sad. Hard to justify when I just saw an old clearance Tom Tom unit at Staples the other day for 58$ which had no better/worse software and came with all the hardware she needed plus she gets to keep the option of using her phone as ..a phone... We'll hope Tom Tom come to their senses about the pricing of this hardware/software.
How long before TomTom realizes their stupidity and drop the price on this mounting option? I give them 3 months...
The sweet spot for this product is around the £50-$60 mark. If it includes a gps chip then great thats what your paying the lions share of £50 for as the rest is articulating plastic. This product does not include a colour screen so there is no way a mount should cost the same as a dedicated Sat nav say a Tom Tom ONE classic
On another note, Tom Toms map graphics always looked 3 inches short of straight ass, but if the above image is to be believed, it looks as if they have cleaned things up a bit.
Prices like these force the users to pirate the software and buy the hardware. Makes no sense, TomTom thought they hit a home run, but in reality they just fouled a ball! Good luck TomTom!
You can authorize 5 computers to be used with your iTunes account....which means you can split the cost of the app between 5 people. SO, $20 for the app, and then spend the rest on the individual car kit.
Well ipod touch wouldn't be compatible because it doesn't have a GPS unit inside it only has an approximate location based on known wifi locations. No wifi, no location.
re-read the comments above
Try reading, there is a GPS check in the mount.
@orangespoon
So what is it has all the maps? It has to locate you on the map somehow, the I don't believe the accelerometer could provide enough information to do all the calculations(distance traveled, next turn in...). Example: You turn your "gps" unit on in the woods where there's NO INTERNETS how would it locate your position to tell you where to go... It can't
That's why there is a built-in GPS chip. If it works on an iPod Touch, it could be interesting (though expensive) option.
Wow. Just wow. I cannot actually believe that they're demanding £160 ($260) for this solution.
That app was my first TomTom product. It is looking as though it will be my last.
Honestly, as a US iPhone owner with AT&T, I think that overpricing and screwing the customer has been the idea from the very start with the iPhone. AT&T set the trend with making users pay an average of $100 per month on the service alone....and now others have become privy to that concept and are willing to charge ridiculous sums for anything related to the iPhone.....what iPhone users NEED to do, is stop buying them....there are enough of us around to let those companies know that they can go bankrupt and we will buy their stuff for cheap when they're good and dead.
Everyone should return their TomTom apps via the iTunes store. That will screw TomTom out of 30% of the overall cost.
Seems karmically justified at any rate...
Well, I was ready to put a pre-order in with the £99 for mount + app pricepoint but I don't think I can warrant £160 - £180 for the complete kit. I think TomTom have really missed out on a great chance for an awesome product here.
Such garbage. 100 bucks for a piece of plastic that swivels. It's not just price fail, it's also design fail, seeing that most people are using an aftermarket case for their iPhones. You'll have to take it out of your case each time you want to use it.
I hate to disillusion you, but £99.99 is actually ~$162.
I'm so happy with this [/implicit sarcasm]
That was a typo. What I was trying to say was that 100 pounds is way too much for piece of plastic with inherent design flaws (does not take into consideration aftermarket cases).
But I'm glad that you decided not to nitpick at the wording and saw the main point of my statement. [/implicit dickery]
Unfortunately for you, your inability to comprehend makes your comment irrelevant.
Again, you are paying for a hands-free bluetooth speaker/microphone, DC charger, swivel dock and GPS receiver.
See, at $150 for the app and cradle, I was seriously considering buying it... Now, at probably closer to $250 for both, there is no question that I'm going to pass and buy your ordinary GPS that probably works better, and it may be a Garmin.
Seems like to me tomtom has a less than stellar marketing strategy... Not sure how much the cradle costs them to make, but to package some seemingly simple hardware (the cradle) with software MUST be cheaper than buying that same hardware+touchscreen and the software (in a standalone GPS).
Come on, tomtom. You are now charging a premium for iPhone owners to use their GPS through their iPhone, rather than making it a cheaper alternative. I guarantee you that not many people would rather have GPS on their iPhone rather than a standalone unit, at a premium of $100. It's not like you're going to carry the cradle, nor standalone GPS unit in your pocket everywhere you go...
Personally I'll stick with Garmin for my GPS needs. I've found their maps and their equipment to be more precise - and if you bebop over to wired and look into the Danger Room, you'll find an article about the US Military using Garmin units to help track the routes their taking to avoid ambush...
Doesn't say anything about TomTom, and those are your standard over the counter Garmin units! Right choice for our fighting forces, right choice for me.
Something I'm unclear on with this mount (which since it has a GPS receiver, etc, doesn't seem *that* outrageous, and it supposedly works with other GPS apps, like Navigon) is whether or not there is a way to play music through your stereo when using this. It looks like it has a mini-USB port on it. Is there an audio-out port as well that we can't see in the photo?
There's an audio out miniplug there in the picture above.
I assume you can start your audio playback, then hit the home button and launch the Tom Tom application and the music will continue to play while you navigate. Of course to control your music you'll have to quite the GPS application and go back to your music, then relaunch the GPS application. Etc.
As kludgy as you think it is. Basically seems like a fine "once in a while" solution. If you want to use it a lot, then the fact that you can't control your music, and you can't take calls while its running would seem to be deal breakers.
Why wouldn't this work on the iPod Touch?
The Tom-Tom has a built-in GPS chip and the iPod Touch is almost like the iPhone minus the GPS chip. I think both download the maps through the app.
That's unfortunate. I was looking forward to getting one for my ipod touch. Just because Garmin doesn't have something I can use. The least apple could do is let me pair my ipod with my bluetooth external GPS. I prefer the Garmin interface so it would be nice to have a garmin app, maps and bluetooth pairing.
In my main car I use an FM transmitter for audio on my car stereo, which while far from ideal, does work, and it plugs into the dock connector. These type seem to work *much* better then ones that use a minijack input, so switching to one of those isn't terribly appealing. Or does this dock also act as an FM transmitter for music?
This should be $49.99 TOTAL. You have a $200+ device already, why the hell would you need a $150 car kit, plus a stand alone app.
This could potentially cost $400.
Mentioning that this device is not compatible with the iPod Touch is irrelvant. Unless you have a mobile wifi hotspot within your car I dont see how the GPS application would work at all! It doesn't use the mobile wireless network so why bother with compatiblility.
If you learned to read, you would realize that
1. The cradle includes a GPS chip
2. The TomTom navigation app includes all maps on the device.
The system will work in airplane mode or on the Touch.
Perhaps the problem is the Touch won't fit in the cradle? Maybe they couldn't design the cradle to work with an iPhone and the Touch well.
Of course, the hands-free bluetooth isn't very useful with the Touch either.
I wonder if they were bitten by Apple's dock compatibility crap. I have various iPhone mounts that work with the iPhone for example but DON'T work with the new Nano. Not sure what is going on, presumably the little chip detector wants something different in each case. Won't even charge the freaking thing.
Here is my problem. It looks to take your dock connector over and trade it for a Mini USB plug. What a bout my radios iphone integration!?
Why is that worth the money? $250 (basically, when you add it all up) for a GPS in car that takes away my ability to make calls? Hrm. Why does it make sense to do that when there are lots of TomTom products with hardware and software for that and less, but that won't tie up my phone whenever I'm being navigated? Doesn't make any sense.
Why would it mention the iPod touch, it has no GPS functionality. Find my location rarely ever works even when I'm able to connect to multiple wireless networks around me. I mean it couldn't find me (true story) outside the apple store in NYC!
Ah nevermind, I see that the cradle includes a GPS chip...this whole setup is just becoming more and more stupid to me...
Why pay roughly 180£ for the set in my country when I can get a very reasonable dedicated Tom Tom navigation device for less than 100£?
I really could care less about GPS, any real man knows where he is driving anyway.
Glad I bought a Palm Pre... I get GPS vuilt into the phone @ my (lower than iPhone) service plan (which also includes unlimited mobile to mobile minutes - on any network). I can also take incoming calls, or listen to Pandora while driving (while still using the nav).
Paid $15 for the mount and $10 for the car charger.... Putting "iPhone" on a product name almost gives companies a license to rob the sheeple blind.
So i already have an unlocked 1 gen iPhone.
Why would i want to get a second device to carry around and worry about ?
Sure the price is a bit ughm steep, but you know what, i'd rather stick with one gizmo than two.
If someone would offer a piece of paper with a code on it which would magically enable non-existent gps in 1st gen iphone, i would still get it.
3G, and 3GS owners... different story.
It makes the archos 5 (android) model a lot more attractive than iPod touch now. :)