Tomtom XL Live IQ Routes Europe

This £219 satellite navigator sits at the top of Tomtom’s lower-end XL range, and it’s the only XL model to use the company's Live technology. This links the device to the internet, allowing it to download traffic warnings and other information.

The unit itself looks unremarkable: it has a 4.3in screen, with a power button on the top. The Easyport mount on the back worked well, making it easy to quickly attach to and detach from the windscreen. It has full postcode search, and presented both routes and turn information clearly.

We took it for a drive across Central London and back, and found that as long as we stayed on the planned route it worked well. When forced off track by a road closure or wrong turn, however, it was disappointingly slow to recalculate a new route. At one point we thought we might have to stop to allow it to catch up. We’ve seen other devices plot new routes far quicker, almost instantly in some cases.

The main attraction here, however, is Tomtom’s Live services. These are free for three months, and cost £8 per month thereafter. This fee pays for an updated database of safety cameras, petrol prices, access to Google searches for local places and, of course, traffic information.

The safety camera database warned us whenever we came close to a camera with a clear audio alert, and Google search worked well. We asked it to find a restaurant by supplying half the name and it found the restaurant, showed us details and offered to plot a route there.

The most impressive part of Live is the traffic-warning system, however. Tomtom sends regular traffic updates to the device, so it can warn you of any delays coming up, and will plot routes so as to avoid any serious traffic blackspots. We were impressed by the system, which managed to avoid any major traffic on our busy route from south to north London, then gave us advance warning us of an upcoming jam on the way back.

Overall, the XL Live is a mixed bag. The clear instructions are good, but it’s a shame it’s so slow at planning new routes, and while £8 per month could be good value for regular drivers, others should look for something cheaper and simpler.