Tomtom Places released for Android

mvl

Moderator
Joined
Dec 19, 2008
Messages
5,475
Location
Boston, MA, USA
Country
<img src="/styles/default/custom/flags/us.png" alt="United States" /> United States
TomTom Model(s)
Tomtom GO for Android
Tomtom has released the Tomtom Places app for Android.

This app is not the full-fledged PND navigation, rather it is a POI search engine that represents Tomtom's entry into the local search market space.

The app is initially available in 8 European countries at launch, with expansion planned for the future. Press release here.
 
I'll play devil's advocate for a minute ...

Why do you think TomTom is trying to replace its existing Google Local Search feature with TomTom Places, and is there any chance that they will produce as good a result with their own database, wherever they're getting the source information?
 
Suspect it's all about $$$$$$$ and no, I don't think they will come close to Google. Nothing else they've taken on works properly, all things considered.
 
So far, they've been partnering with a local yellow pages type of company, when creating the Tomtom Places service in each country. So I think the quality should be pretty good out of the gate.

In the USA, they announced that they would launch Tomtom Places with listings from Localeze. I'm not familiar with that company, so I'm not sure how well that compares with Google.

Tomtom Places's revenue model is to sell prominent placement on their search engine. For a monthly fee, you can highlight your company in the results list, and for a bigger monthly fee you can feature your company at the top of the list.
 
Guess I don't understand why they can't take Google's info and stuff in their paying customers' information post-API.

I guess the good news is that by using Localeze, we may see less spurious (inaccurate or outdated) listings showing up in the results due to the source of their input. I know on Google, you can search for Panera Bread and if the local district manager has a phone at his house with that listing, you'll be directed to his house on a search for that business! Localeze depends upon businesses to help in a feedback loop to keep their data current and accurate.
 
We found out (the hard way) on the weekend that Google Local Search ain't so reliable at times.

We were in Kitchener Ontario (about an hour west of Toronto) and used Google Local Search to find a specific restaurant. Turns out the information for it was three years old! Since then, it had moved to a new location.
 
TomTom Places.... is it REALLYgoing to outperform Google?

Like TomTom Speed Cameras outperforms PocketGPSWorld or SCDB?
Like TomTom Fuel Prices outperforms PetrolPrices.com?
Like TomTom's Weather outperforms the BBC or the Weather Channel?
Or....dare I say it.....like TomTom's HDTraffic outperforms RDS-TMC now?

At the moment Google Local Search is being quietly replaced by TT Places as the default search engine, but you can still switch back to Google in the preferences. But how long before a software update "accidentally" loses that option?

Cynical? Moi?
 
We found out (the hard way) on the weekend that Google Local Search ain't so reliable at times.

We were in Kitchener Ontario (about an hour west of Toronto) and used Google Local Search to find a specific restaurant. Turns out the information for it was three years old! Since then, it had moved to a new location.
Yup - that's the problem with Google's output, and is why the Localeze solution may pan out better. User issues with Localeze data is fed back to the businesses themselves for review and correction. If they want to be found, they'll help in the update process. I don't have any personal knowledge of how this works out in actual practice, but in principle, it certainly does hold hope for a much cleaner and current result for business searches.
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Members online

Latest resources

Forum statistics

Threads
28,820
Messages
194,341
Members
67,754
Latest member
CSXLocomotive

Latest Threads

Back
Top