Forget about the back-seat driver - Michael McAleer, Motoring Editor, let two sat-nav units battle to guide him home
It's worth admitting at this stage that I have a rather chequered history when it comes to satellite navigation devices.
Cursed with a hideously bad sense of direction I've been known to stray not only into the wrong city, but on one occasion the wrong country. The advent of sat-nav devices in test cars therefore has kept us on the straight and narrow.
However, we've also found that trusting the softly-spoken instructions from these devices can also prove costly. Using sat-nav requires a degree of street savvy, particularly in cities. The downside is, of course, that it's something of a catch-22, for you only really depend on these devices when you haven't got a clue where you are.
Take, for example, a recent drive in New York. Given its strong American drawl and expert advice in the previous 45 minutes, we had placed our blind faith in the sat-nav. When ordered to turn left at a busy junction we did just that. Facing us then were five lanes of oncoming New York traffic.
It's at times like that when you become aware of the limitations of technology. Later it managed to direct us towards the Jersey docks rather than midtown before going completely mute when darkness fell and we cruised among the empty warehouses and dodgy pubs . Perhaps it was as scared as we were.
At the end of the day, a sat-nav device is only as good as its map and given Ireland's road-building it's hard to keep up with the Minister for Transport's weekly sod-turning endeavours, never mind the new routes.
In that regard we pitted the Garmin and Tomtom against Dublin streets and west of Ireland byroads. Lined up on the dashboard, the Tomtom is clearer to follow than Garmin and the graphics seem sharper. It's also slightly easier to input a destination, although both touchscreen systems can prove difficult to type on if you use pudgy fingers rather than the tip of your nail.
The Tomtom works as is, while the Garmin requires the addition of an attachment to use the satellite rather than simply operating as a digital map.
Both need a sighting of the sky to get their bearings but it happens within seconds and neither suffered under heavy cloud cover (an early foible with GPS devices).
The first test was office to home. Both succeeded and failed at this task. While they could locate my street, both asked for house numbers but neither could locate my house, which has been standing in the same place since 1935.
The tougher test was a drive to Claremorris, Co Mayo. In this case there was no disagreement between the two on the best route, though Garmin reckoned I could do it a whole 26 minutes quicker than the Tomtom did. Thanks Garmin. However, the latter's confidence in my ability started to wane as the journey went on.
I have to admit that despite my best attempts at pitting them against bog roads and glorified dirt tracks, neither device lost its way in the west. The chorus of orders were always in agreement. The only time we dissented from their opinions was when both wanted to send us up Steven's Lane, across from Heuston.
Clearly Tomtom and Garmin have not heard the news of Luas, for which this road is reserved. A local would know that, but would a tourist have looked up to spot the signs? Would you if you were being guided by either device through London or Paris?
These minor mishaps aside, the day of the paper map is well and truly over. These directional guides are a godsend to the cartographically challenged and what's more they make a mockery of car-fitted systems.
The average in-car system can cost in the region of €3,000 when chosen from the options list. It's also stuck in the car and must be sold on at the time of parting.
Entry-level versions of these devices cost between €300 and €400, fit snugly in a pocket and offer services such as identifying nearby restaurants, parking, hospitals and, in Garmin's case, even audio books. They leave the in-car systems looking like black and white TVs next to plasma flatscreens.
Choosing between the two devices may well come down to price. Both are still slightly British orientated. For example, Garmin suggested the nearest police station to O'Connell St was the PSNI station across the border. Clearly they have little confidence in the Garda.
However, it was much better when it came to suggesting parking places, airports, restaurants and filling stations. Updating the maps, however, is easy, and prices for other maps - such as the US or Australia - range from €80 to €200.
The new Garmin Nuvi range offers more accompanying features like an MP3 player and travel and language guide options. It's a big improvement in portability compared to earlier bulky Streetpilot units. That said, it's also more expensive, with the Nuvi 360 we tested retailing at nearly €600.
The Tomtom may lack many of the bells and whistles of the Garmin, but at the end of the day what you're looking for is some directional help rather than a musical interlude as you find your way. If you like the extras and are prepared to pay the price, then go for Garmin's 360. If you want a sat-nav device with good graphics but none of the extra gadgets then go for Tomtom One Europe at €399. Given that our cars have all the audio features we need, then in our case Tomtom makes sense.
Finally, one word of warning we received from a taxi driver who swore by his Garmin. As handy as the "Home" button is on these devices, don't put your home address in the sat-nav. Lose your pocket sat-nav and you may just be guiding the thief to the rest of your valuables.