TomTom One 130 S

If all you want from a GPS is help getting from point A to point B, the TomTom One 130 S might be for you. This basic unit lacks most of the bells and whistles found on more expensive systems, but it also lacks the hefty price. The One 130 S has an average street price of $220.

The 130 S includes text-to-speech technology, which means that it pronounces street names for you. For example, instead of simply telling you to turn left in 500 feet, it will tell you to turn left in 500 feet onto Elm Street. Text-to-speech used to be hard to find on low-priced GPS units, but now it’s become more common. (A lower-end sibling, the $150 TomTom One 130, lacks text-to-speech, though.)

The 130 S’s 3.5-inch screen tends to look slightly cluttered, but I found TomTom’s menu system well laid-out and easy to navigate. In my driving tests, it delivered routes that were decent to very good, but not as quick or as convenient as those suggested by the TomTom GO 930, which uses TomTom’s IQ Routes technology to find the fastest trips. I do like how the One 130 S (like the GO 930) shows you a preview of your entire route before it begins navigating, so you can easily make changes to it.

The 130 S gives you access to TomTom’s Map Share feature. Connect the device to your Windows or Mac computer, and personalize your maps (for example, mark a road that is blocked off due to construction) or share them with other users. You can also download other users’ maps via this feature.

The points-of-interest database is easy to use, but it’s not as comprehensive as the databases offered by either the GO 930 or Garmin’s Nuvi 265T. Both of those devices were able to find locations in Boston–one a local park, the other a chain of retail stores–that the One 130 S missed.

Unlike the Nuvi 265T and the similarly low-priced Navigon 2200T, the 130 S lacks traffic service. If you want to factor traffic incidents into your route planning, you’ll need to purchase a $100 traffic receiver, as well as a subscription to TomTom’s traffic service.

The 130 S is a slim GPS package that fits easily into your pocket. It also includes TomTom’s EasyPort mount, which folds up to fit in a pocket, too, and is much smaller and more streamlined than any other windshield mount I’ve seen.

Overall, the TomTom One 130 S is a very capable GPS unit at a very affordable price. You don’t get a lot of extras, but then again, you won’t end up paying for them, either.

–Liane Cassavoy