CAR GUIDING outfit Tomtom has announced the availability of its new x30 series in the UK.

These new sat navs tip up in the form of the GO 930 traffic, 730 and 530 models – with the last two having traffic options available. These are set to replace the GO 520, 720 and 920 devices, along with their RDS-TMC receivers.

TomTom x30 – 930T

The trio was unveiled to the world at Cebit this year, with new features being that of the IQ Routes technology and Advanced Lane Guidance.

Tomtom IQ Routes claims take into account situations that may delay the journey, such as traffic on roundabouts, speed bumps or traffic lights.

All models come in the new black casing in a 4.3-inch 16:9 format LCD screen, powered by a 400MHz CPU with up to five hours of battery life. With key differences between them running along the lines of 4 GB of memory for the 930 and 1-2 with the 530 and 730 varieties – mainly to accommodate Western & Eastern Europe, Russian and Northern American maps down to just localised counties.

Prices for the x30:
* TomTom GO 930 Traffic: SRP £399.99 inc VAT
* TomTom GO 730 Traffic: SRP £329.99 inc VAT
* TomTom GO 730: SRP £299.99 inc VAT
* TomTom GO 530 Traffic: SRP £279.99 inc VAT
* TomTom GO 530: SRP £249.99 inc VAT

Tomtom is working on HD (High Definition) traffic models where the units arrive with Vodafone SIM cards built-in. This service anonymously polls surrounding Vodafone mobiles and reports back, enabling better route intelligence than RDS can offer – all very big brother though . µ