It's about time: TomTom submits updated nav app to Apple

Very welcome news for owners of the TomTom iPhone nav app [iTunes link for U.S. version]; the company has announced a free update that includes many of the features that people were craving.

• Advanced lane guidance giving drivers extra clarity when navigating difficult junctions. For the first time this is in both landscape and portrait mode.

• Text-to-speech helping motorists to keep their eyes on the road by enabling street names and places to be read aloud as part of the spoken instructions.

• "Help Me" providing direct access to emergency numbers and directions to the nearest emergency providers.

• Updated map and safety camera database (Europe only)

• Customizable audio warnings when approaching safety cameras or driving over the speed limit, increasing driver safety and saving money.

• iPod player control ensuring drivers can conveniently control their music from within the application.

TomTom submitted the new version to Apple yesterday, and as usual, it's anybody's guess when it will emerge. It won't be fast enough for TomTom owners, who have seen their app fall behind the feature rich Navigon app and other GPS offerings.

The joker in this particular deck is still the free Google Navigation app, which is trying to get onto the iPhone and will have a gaggle of features no one else is offering.

[via Engadget]