TomTom Go 730

When we reviewed the first in the new range of TomTom satnav devices - the TomTom Go 930 Traffic , we were impressed with its new features, but not by its wincingly high price.

This top-of-the-range navigator included a Bluetooth remote control and maps of almost the whole of the civilised world - at least the parts of it accessible via public, tarmacked roads. But it cost an eye-watering £311 (exc VAT), and as most people have no use for detailed street maps of Manicougan or Nizhniy Novgorod, we couldn't really recommend it.

The TomTom Go 730 sheds the expensive, unnecessary extras and comes in, consequently, at a much more reasonable price: the non-TMC version is £213 (exc VAT) and the version with TMC traffic information is available for just £11 more traffic. The good news is that, aside from these differences, and a slightly different colour scheme, the Go 730 is, to all intents and purposes, an identical device.

That means it boasts the all-important IQ Routes function, which uses information collated by TomTom from its users about the average speed of traffic, which it then uses to plan efficient, hopefully traffic-free routes. This results in more accurate ETA estimates than before and, in tests we've run on it, more sensible route selection than the majority of satnavs we've tested.

On a frequently travelled route across central London from South Woodford in the north east to Wimbledon Park in the south west, for example, it selected a route we'd regard as the optimum route. Instead of routing us via the A11, through Bethnal Green, it advised a route that took in the A13 and Rotherhithe tunnel, instead - a route that's usually much less prone to traffic-jam crawl.

Lane assistance is as good as it is with the TomTom Go 930, with minor dual-carriageways covered as well as major A-roads and motorways. Initial satellite lock is incredibly quick, as expected, and route calculation swift, too. TomTom's mapshare feature is present, allowing you to upload your map corrections to TomTom's servers and download those of other people.

And there's the usual plethora of features, from text-to-speech that reads road names out to you (instead of just telling you to simply 'turn left'), through excellent hands-free Bluetooth phone features to voice recognition that works, to an FM transmitter for piping tunes from the onboard music player through your car stereo.

All-in-all, it's another belter of a sat-nav from TomTom. It's still a little on the pricey side, but the cost is a lot easier to swallow than the £300-plus tag of the Go 930 Traffic. It's a worthy follow-up to the equally excellent Go 720.

Author: Jonathan Bray