Rating: 
Summary: The finest printed world atlas available today.
Review: Almost every new major atlas claims to set a new standard in world atlases, but this new atlas is one of the very few that actually do just that. It contains almost 30% more place names than its nearest competitor, the Rand McNally International Atlas. In this respect, it is the largest printed atlas ever published. This tenth edition (dubbed the "millennium" edition) is the first complete redesign since its original publication in 1967, and it shows. The color coding has improved, the number of maps has increased, and, very important, the consistency factor has improved; e.g. the same fonts and same accuracy for all pages. The previous edition has sometimes been accused of being a mere "collection of reference maps". In this new tenth, no less than 72 pages of thematic content have been added, thus making it a really all-round reference atlas. It also contains more large-scale reference maps of more densely populated regions than before, and this noticeably increases the chance of finding just the spot you were looking for. The 217-page gazetteer contains just over 200,000 names. The price is somewhat spend lightly. But to anyone committed to following the world news, planning holiday or business trips, or travellers-in-dreams, you really can't afford NOT to have this atlas - it's certainly worth its price.
Rating:
Summary: Best World Atlas But Rather Pricey
Review: As an atlas craze, I recently bought 3 World Atlases to join my small library. They are 1) Hammond World Atlas : Mapmakers for the 21st Century 3rd Edition 2) Oxford Atlas of the World 9th Edition and 3) The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World 10th Edition. I already own Rand McNally's Today World (1992), which I think it is a terrible world atlas. First, I received the Hammond and the Oxford Atlases. They were both oversized book and quite heavy. The Oxford weighs more than 3Kg. I was quite impressed by both atlases' fine introductory section and map details. When I received the Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World, I was quite shocked with its size and weight. The Times weighs more than 5.5 Kg and bigger than both Hammond and Oxford. In fact, the Times makes both Oxford and Hammond like a regular book. Upon browsing through all three atlases, I found that all three have their own characteristics. I like the Hammond uses of signs, fonts, and colors. In my opinion, Hammond atlas is very easy to read and very simple to recognize places. The vivid color is the best among three atlases. But the international borders are more difficult to read (in my opinion). The Oxford has probably the best introductory section on World Geography, statistics, satellite images, solar systems, etc. The details are similar to that of Hammond's. Oxford is printed on different type of paper than Hammond's and the Time's (a bit more glossy). I just happen to like Hammond's and Time's paper (matte) paper more. The size of the cities and the signs of places are not as easily recognizable as the Hammond's but still very good. The Times Atlas doesn't have an extensive introductory section like the Oxford's or Hammond's nor does it have large city maps found in Oxford's and Hammond's. It just have the most balanced, most detailed atlas of the world. It has 123 dual-page of mapping, more than the former twos. The Times give more details and attention to small islands and countries outside N.A. and Europe than the former twos. It has more maps of small islands than the former twos. Although I think the colors are not as vivid as the Hammond, the signs and fonts are easy to read and understand and the detail of each map is just incredible. Arguedly, probably the best atlas today. (I haven't seen National Geographic Atlas of the World though) The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World is not cheap. It is the most expensive among the three but if you want the best world atlas irregardless of price, the Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World is definitely the one to get.
Rating: 
Summary: A wealth of information but not perfect yet.
Review: Being in the market for a one definitive atlas for my home I've been doing some shopping and was able to carefully study the Times Atlas. The strongest point it has is its index which is very comprehensive and easy to use. If you want to find a something in the world, the fastest way is with this atlas. Booting a computer and inserting a CDRom takes way more time. The smaller fonts on the maps are good as they still allow you to read the place names without cluttering up the maps unnecessarily. I was comparing this work to the 'Book of the World' and I must say that both of them have very strong points and the ideal atlas would be a combination of both. The 'Book of the World' (96 edition) has much nicer looking maps which include some information not found in the 'Times Atlas' such as highway numbers, and locations such as parks, reservations, military and governmental installations, airports, etc. Also, more roads were found in the 'Book of the World'. The perfect atlas would be the map design of the 'Book of the World' with its glossy and high-quality pages combined with the shear number of locations in the 'Times Atlas'.
Rating:
Summary: The Times Atlas Comprehensive Edition - A Concise Review
Review: First, it should be mentioned that I have always immensely enjoyed looking at, or rather, studying maps. Even as a young boy, I recall studying an old atlas from the 1940's, fascinated by the perspective of the world. In the 1970's, thanks to a Book of the Month Club offer, I moved into big time by acquiring the The Times Atlas - Comprehensive Edition. Owning this truly magnificent reference work, along with the Oxford English Dictionary ( Concise Edition), and the Encyclopedia Britannica, caused me to feel prepared for any intellectual inquiry. Over time, the thrills of looking up words in the Oxford English Dictionary with a reading glass have faded, and, although I still occasionally use the Encyclopedia, for the most part, that hard cover reference has been relegated to occupying bookshelf space only. However, the Times Atlas has continued to be well used. The beautiful maps have a seductive quality about them. In viewing the varied global terrain, I seem to dissolve into the landscape, experiencing the terrain before my eyes.Yes, and I love even touching the maps, running my fingers over the beautiful artwork. I really can't tell you how many many times I have studied the Himalayas, have actually counted mountains over 6000 meters in the Andies, and, for the past few years as I have been on an Antarctic reading splurge, studied the Antarctic continent to find just where Elephant Island is, or the Beardmore Glacier, or pinpointing Mawson's camp. These maps have been a tremendous aid in attaining perspective on events, both global and personal.
So.... when I became aware that another edition was available I unhesitatingly hurried to order it. What could be better than a new edition of the Times Atlas to update me on the world with even better maps ( guided by satelites), full of all the technological advances of the last twenty five or so years. While much, much can be said for the beauty of these new maps and the information, presented with visual skill in many useful areas, the fact is that these maps are presented slightly smaller than the 1970's edition. Compared side by side, the older edition is easier to view. While the scale seems to be the same, the coloring and areas selected combine to render the new edition a step smaller in viewing pleasure. This imperfection in an otherwise graphically beautiful edition disappoints. It creates an edge, a flaw that I cannot put aside. I feel compelled to pick up the new edition for those occasions where clarity is truly required. Time will tell; I haven't thorougly perused the volume, there is still much introductory information to run through that I am certain will be enjoyable. To many hard core perspective lovers, this volume will more than suffice, particularly if they are not aware of comparisons. However, I wish the editors realized that visual access has been limited in the new edition and made their selections with some nod to clarity of detail.
Rating:
Summary: Overall--excellent but needs a magnifying glass
Review: Having owned the 1975, 1980 and 1990 editions of this atlas, I have waited for much anticipation for this new edition. It is totally redone with digital cartography. The front section is completely new and is vastly improved. Many interesting and important thematic maps on climate, population, economics, land cover and the physical earth are up=to=date and very topical. Subjects include global warming and income inequality. One of the best features is the satellite images of each continent. The maps themselves are an overall improvement from previous editions. One set of fonts is used throughout and the contour coloring is standardized. Previous editions had there own schemes depending on which part of the world being shown. While coverage of some areas has decreased (esp. Russia) overall the coverage is balanced, with an emphasis on Europe (nearly 1/3 of the map plates). New, larger scale coverage of Poland, parts of China stand out. Most of the atlas plates are highly detailed, crammed with place names. That's why most will need a magnifying glass since the type is so small on many maps. The atlas is well-organized with a political map of each continent followed by the detalied map plates. There are no maps of cities or metro areas, unlike in previous editions (which wasted two whole plates on London and Paris). A 200,000+-entry index follows. In the front of the index is an extensive glossary of foreign terms. I would recommend this atlas as the cartography is superb. If you can live with the tiny print, this is a great atlas.
Rating:
Summary: A truly beautiful atlas
Review: I hate to write such a brief review of an excellent book, but having little experience with past editions of the Times Atlas I have no basis for comparison there. Compared to any other atlas I own, the Times simply blows them all away, and I have a fair number. I, like another reviewer, am an atlas collector and map freak and the lush two page spreads are simply awesome. I can agree with other remarks about the text being almost too small for easy reading. Also, there are regions that seemingly get covered multiple times at various scales (Iran in particular) and others that seem to be almost left as afterthoughts. Alaska was particularly disappointing, meriting only a portion of one page and nowhere nearly as detailed as even Northern Africa which is jammed with place names. These are small issues for me, though. It's so easy to lose one's self following obscure rivers and exotic placenames that I feel completely satisfied with the product in a way no other atlas has made me feel. The satellite photos are stunning, the quality of the printing is top-notch, I couldn't find a single bit of color bleeding or fuzzy text. And any atlas that manages to squeeze in my own little hamlet in Utah is a winner in my book ;-). In short, if you love atlases and maps and want to see the latest in computer assisted (dominated, perhaps?) cartography, this is your atlas.
Rating:
Summary: I love this atlas
Review: I have seen an aweful lot of different Atlasses in my life and this one is the best Atlas of the World! If you want a world atlas, this is the one to get!
Rating:
Summary: This Atlas is Phat!
Review: I was chillin with my homies, when one of 'em brought me a Times Comprehensiv' Atlas of the World. I'm like, "What you doin' Chiller, bringin' me some old folks huge map thingy?" And he was like, "Yo yo yo, calm down, it's a happening atlas dude, so crack it open!" So like I did and I'm like TIDAL WAVE of information, overload, overload! There was info on every country I know and then some. So I just want to say, don't be all, "Oh look, another dopey atlas gramps got me instead of a dirt bike," This atlas kicks!
Rating:
Summary: Good Atlas....still room for improvement. (3.5 stars)
Review: I would give this atlas, 3.5 stars. I couldn't indicate this above. This is a good atlas, and from the few large atlases I have perused, this one seems to be the best. Other readers have already noted the strengths of this atlas, and I concur for the most part. In particular, I love the details of some of the maps. However, major improvements can still be made for this Atlas. Improvements suggested are as follows: 1. Euro-American centric. While this is probably the least Euro-American centric atlas I have seen coming from the Anglo- world, this atlas remains embedded in an Euro-American centric view of the world. For instance, the scales of the maps of Africa and Asia are not as good as the scales of the maps of Europe. As someone having grown up in Africa, I was anticipating nore detailed maps of Africa, but alas, was disappointed. 2. City maps. This is the first edition of the Times Atlas I have bought. It seems that previous editions had city maps included. I think these should be brought back. And furthermore, not only major cities of the world should be included, but major cities of all continents should be included. For instance, while Accra and Lagos are not necessarily considered world cities (speaking from say an Anglo- centric point of the world) these two cities are certainly major hubs of activities for much of sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, city maps of major cities of the world and continents should be included. 3. Maps of each country. I wouldn't consider #3 as a weakness in the Times Atlas, but it would make (for me) the best atlas possible. I think it would be most ideal if each country of the world had at least a large page devoted to it. For instance, right now Ghana only shares a small portion of one page of the map, whereas it would be ideal if Ghana would get its own page. Can you imagine the amount of details one would get if, say for instance, one whole page was dedicated to the Seychelles? This idea isn't too far fetched, because, if I recall correctly (I don't have access to my atlas right now) Iceland is spread out over 2 of those large Times Altas pages, giving the map of Iceland a wonderfully detailed construction. Of course, the fact that tiny Iceland island is dedicated to two pages, while similarly historically important countries like Ghana (it was the first black African country to gain independence!) only shares less than 1/10th of one page shows the Euro-centric nature of this atlas. This inequity is also bizarre: two whole pages are devoted to Antartica while no African countries are given a single page. Why Antartica first before any other inhabited African country? Despite these shortcomings, the Times Atlas is still a good Atlas. If it could replicate the scale and details of its Europe maps for other parts of the world, Times would become almost "perfect".
Rating:
Summary: The most detailed physical world atlas available
Review: I've been collecting atlases for over 30 years, including three different editions of this one. I still have the 8th edition, and now I've lived with the 10 edition for a couple months and am ready to state my opinion, and compare it to previous editions. First, I'd like to make a general observation about these Times Atlases. They have all carried about 20% of their maps in a vertical orientation. This is all right in atlases that are of a more manageable size, but for a book that weighs 11 pounds, it is burdensome to be flipping it around every few pages. I just had to get that out of the way, because it has always bothered me. The strength of the Times Atlas of the World has always been the details and accuracy of its physical maps, showing the topographic layout of the land. The colors chosen to do so were more garish in previous editions than in this 10th, and on a first impression, the maps in the 10th edition look strikingly more beautiful. They are works of art. However, I am not convinced that the new colors are more useful. As was pointed out in a review below, what is missing is the sharp contrast from one elevation interval to the next, so it is actually more difficult to figure out the details of the typography, without using a magnifying glass. I think utility was sacrificed to sheer beauty in this case. But let there be no misunderstanding. These maps are probably the most beautiful physical representations of the land that have ever been published at this scale, and due to the digital database upon which the printing was based, without doubt, the most accurate. Continuing with the theme of this book's utility, I find that I can't see the forest for the trees with this edition. For example, I found it much easier to trace out the sources of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in the old editions, with their use of more contrasting colors. There is almost too much detail at all scales to figure out what's actually going on with the layout of the land. Even plate 37, which is a 1:15,000,000 map of north Asia, there is an almost bewildering amount of data shown in the European regions of this map. Only in the Siberian wastelands can you see what's really going on, and who cares about that except the intrepid geographer (that's me, actually)? I suspect that what is going on here is that the computers that generated these maps have been allowed to run amuck, without enough editorial control and selection over the results. Since 90% of this atlas consists of physical maps of stunning detail and beauty, I would think that this atlas would appeal most strongly to individuals who were interested in the physical features of the surface of our planet. Yet, what do we get in the opening 60 pages of thematics? Well, it starts out with 14 pages of satellite maps covering the whole Earth. That would seem like a fine start, except very little commentary is provided interpreting what we're looking at. These are beautiful plates, but I don't see that they're very useful. Then we have several obligatory pages showing the Earth's place in the universe, which to my mind is just fluff in an atlas (admittedly, most atlases waste space doing this). Of the remaining 34 thematic pages, less than half are devoted to describing physical features of the world. The rest are more concerned with political and economic issues. There isn't even a map showing world precipitation (which was presented in Plate 2 of the 8th edition), only a tiny map showing the CHANGES in precipitation we might expect by the year 2050, which is highly speculative! I shouldn't be too critical here, because thematic maps have never been the strong suit of the Times Atlas of the World, and were even more impoverished in the 8th edition. But I do wish there were more, of the same caliber as the main body of the work. On the whole, the selection of the maps is good, although the selection seems to be politically, rather than physically, based. So there are some favorites of mine missing. The 8th edition had superb, separate maps of Alaska and the Canadian Northwest Territories at 1:5,000,000 that are missing in this edition. Also missing are superb 1:500,000 maps of Switzerland and Israel that appeared in the 8th edition. On the other hand, there are great, two page spreads of Poland and Turkey that didn't appear in previous editions. In spite of my criticisms, I wouldn't be caught dead without this latest, gorgeous 10th edition of the Times Atlas of the World. But I am a map fanatic, and I'll buy maps just because of their aesthetic appeal. This 10th edition has beauty like no other atlas that I have ever seen before. But I do think that, when it comes to usefulness, this atlas is a specialty item, especially at its price. If you're looking for some obscure place, the 220,000 entries in its index will probably let you find it. But unless you do this for a living, there are probably better options out there, unless you just love maps for the sake of maps, like me. Heck, in spite of everything I've said in this review, I have to give it five stars, because there's simply nothing else comparable, for what it is.
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