I was becoming pretty dependant on my Tomtom One - but after 4 months of use, when I switched it on, I got a tom-tom sound and a symbol showing the SD card with a red cross through it. I was surprised to find that the advice line issed by Halfords wasn't an Asian call-centre, but a confident young lady who told me that the problem was that I needed the latest download and she would send me appropriate instructions via e-mail. I duly carried out the sequence of steps and - deep-joy - the satnav worked again.
However, I'm not sure what "the latest download" is supposed to contain. I drove on the new Great Barford by-pass (A421) which links the Bedford Southern By-pass to the A1 and the Tomtom seemed to think I was driving through fields! The road, by the way, is so smooth that even my old Mondie stopped shaking, rattling and rolling. I would have thought that Tomtom would have known about it, though - anyone any idea how long it takes for this information to get through to satnavs, and is this the sort of stuff that comes in a "download"?
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have a read of this
www.pocketgpsworld.com/modules.php?name=Forums&fil...0
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Mmmm ..... so what was it that I downloaded (for free) that seemed to get the Tomtom going again? I'd assumed it was something to help its digestive system together with some map updates.
I didn't realise that you paid for map updates. This is not very satisfactory if the latest (so-called) update is not "up to date", if you see what I mean. If I were buying a new road atlas I could, at least, thumb through it to see if it had included some new road modifications that I was aware of.
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To get new maps for any sat-nav device (including ones built into cars) will require you to purchase the new maps. Sounds like your update might have changed the software on the TomTom device. But they will not give away newer maps for free.
You should be able to check the map version on the device by going into "Change preferences" menu then go through until you see "Show Version".
The latest UK map is v6.75 and costs ?59.95 but that might not have the road you mention either.
The way updates to TomTom (and the other companies works is):
- Map data company (either TeleAtlas or Navteq) update their maps based on surveys/new version of OS maps/etc
- Every 3 months the data companies bundle up the new maps and make available to the likes of TomTom
- TomTom convert the map data (which is huge in size) into their proprietary format (which is heavily compressed)
- TomTom releases the maps
Now because it takes time for TomTom to produce their version of a map it can be a lot older than the most upto date version from TeleAtlas (which TomTom use) because it will have taken months to get from TeleAtlas maps into TomTom format.
Recently there have been many reduced prices on TomTom devices in store and on the web. My guess is these were using older versions of maps and were offloaded before new stock with the latest maps came along.
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When you buy one of these boxes, Tom Tom, Garmin, whoever, it's like buying a PC.
The PC will have a manufacturers name on, another companies OS, and several other companies software.
Similarly, your Tom Tom will probably have third party OS, another companies route calculation software and a further third parties mapping software, TeleAtlas has been mentioned.
What you are probably getting is some software mod either of the OS or the routing software as agreed between Tom Tom and the third party.
The maps are always extra to upgrade. Should wait two or three years before upgrading the maps.
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"Similarly, your Tom Tom will probably have third party OS, another companies route calculation software and a further third parties mapping software, TeleAtlas has been mentioned."
The TomTom sat nav hardware runs a version of Linux. The mapping software is written by TomTom and is essentially the same on all of their products for the main navigation/routing part. The map data (but no software) used to always be from TeleAtlas but v660 maps apparently were from Navteq.
When it comes to mistakes in maps, it's almost always going to me TeleAtlas or Navteq's fault. They prepare the map data and TomTom, Garmin, etc. just use this for their products.
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Thanks for the replies. According to the machine, it has map version United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland v660.1199. How does that square with v6.75? Was this the one that used to be supplied with chariot mountings? ;-)
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I have seen reports that things that were updated in v660 are wrong in v675 because the former is based on Navteq maps and the latter on TeleAtlas. Or so I am told. You could actually check this - in the same way you checked the version there's a "Copyright" option which will either say (C) 2007 Navteq or (C) 2007 TeleAtlas.
If it's Navteq that confirms the rumours and v660 is probably better than v675. For years Navteq have been seen to be better then TeleAtlas but TeleAtlas was cheaper.
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I was becoming pretty dependant on my Tomtom One - but after 4 months of....
If it showed a symbol of an SD card with a red cross through it, it wasn't a software or map issue, rather the Tomtom couldn't read the SD card. Just take the SD card out, re-insert it and (maybe a soft reset) it would have worked fine.
Map updates are completely different to this. They bring out updates quite frequently and it's up to you if you find you 'current' maps out of date or not.
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I checked the version again and it's definitely v660.119 BUT it goes on to say (c) 2006 Tele Atlas N.V. [I bought it at Christmas '06]. So, I'm not sure where this leaves us on the issue of what versions of maps were supplied by whom - and when!
If it showed a symbol of an SD card with a red cross through it, it wasn't a software or map issue rather the Tomtom couldn't read the SD card. Just take the SD card out re-insert it and (maybe a soft reset) it would
have worked fine.>>
Yes - first time it didn't work, I performed a 'soft' re-set - and it seemed to do the trick. A month or so later, the re-set trick didn't work. In the end, I took the card out, fiddled with the write-protect switch, put it back and, hey presto - it worked again. This last time it packed up, none of these things would work - that's when I described the problem to the help desk and the young lady was absolutely certain (and, seemingly correct) that a download was needed.
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Tom Tom maps are always years out of date. Even their latest versions are not showing new roads completed, in some cases, several years ago. Buy a Tom Tom and very soon they'll be working hard to squeeze more money from you as you try to avoid driving through fields lol tbh their units are great but imo the customer service is going down hill rapidly which is quite sad.
Interesting that some seek to 'blame' the mapping companies who in fact have reasonably up to date info when it is Tom Tom who seem happy to sell out of date maps to the customer ;)
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Well, R40, this is disappointing news indeed :-( I had been fully converted to satnav from my love of OS Landranger maps but then, yesterday, I had John Cleese imploring me to go the wrong way down a clearly marked one-way street in Leighton Buzzard and later trying to coax me to turn right across the crash barrier and up the bank on the Gt Barford bypass. It's no wonder the dimmer of the species end up on railway lines!
There's no doubt that the technology behind satnav, and Tomtom in particular, is fantastic - but this issue of keeping maps up to date is a real downer. Having been converted to the technology, can any Backroomer suggest to me a brand of satnav with good customer service, the most up to date, reliable mapping and a tendency not to rip people off?
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There's no doubt that the technology behind satnav and Tomtom in particular is fantastic - but this issue of keeping maps up to date is a real downer. Having been converted to the technology can any Backroomer suggest to me a brand of satnav with good customer service the most up to date reliable mapping and a tendency not to rip people off?
In a word I would say er...No. They're all as bad as each other.
I had the integrated system in a Peugeot 206. System was OK (for a first generation) but the Navteq maps were shockingly out of date. I bought the map of Germany and it didn't even recognise the A4 between Aachen and Cologne, a motorway that has been there since the 1930's. Navteq tried blaming the car unit, even though it worked fine with the out of date UK maps.
I now have a Sony unit which can take 30 minutes to work out where it is on a 20 mile journey. When I took this back to Sony they gave me the, what do you expect us to do runaround. This unit was bought in Dec. 2006. Some of the (again Navteq) maps are over ten years old. When I quized Sony about this I was told update maps would be made available early 2007 (it's almost June Sony, please define early 2007) but I would have to pay for the updates as it would obviously be unreasonable for them to provide one free update on a unit costing almost three-hundred pounds.
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Hi
I've purchased a TomTom 1 about one month ago and I've been using it in the work van as I do on site on call outs during the week and it isn't perfect.
I guess I wasn't expecting perfect but just that little things that I know how to work my way around on local roads, don't inspire huge confidence if you trust it to guide you a distance on unfamilar roads.
Things like a central reservation that's been in place for more than 10-yrs, I'm being told to drive straight over it and then when I drive passed the central reservation, TomTom recalculates and tells me to turn left and left again to try and drive over it again.
Or there's a funny junction at the bottom of the road where I work and TomTom doesn't seem to understand the layout so will always direct me around it.
Don't know if it's related to map data but the 'Points Of Interest' on TomTom is full of errors (at least where I live) - hotels, cash points and petrol stations that haven't existed where they say they have for at least 5-yrs.
As a last note, when I've connected my TomTom to do updates, it downloads the locations of the GPS satellites for the next 7 days. Seems like a good idea......
Chris
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...but then yesterday I had John Cleese imploring me to go the wrong way down a clearly marked one-way street in Leighton Buzzard and later trying to coax me to turn right across the crash barrier and up the bank on the Gt Barford bypass.
Yep, sounds about right. On a recent trip which involved dropping Mrs B in Reading and picking her up the next day in Oxford, I invited my One to guide me variously to Reading station and Broad St in Oxford.
We found our way to the centre of Reading easily enough but then the wretched device kept telling me to make illegal manoeuvres:
"Turn right."
"But I can't turn right, it says 'no right turn' and the road has a 'no entry sign' on it!"
"Turn right."
"It's not allowed, dammit!"
[goes past the forbidden turning]
"Turn around when possible."
"Oh, shut up you stupid machine!"
[ignores further directions and uses plan B, aka road signs...]
In Oxford, perhaps in revenge for this, it directed me to turn into a part of St Giles which proved (when it was too late to turn around) to be for buses only. I was very lucky not to get fined for that although had I been, the city council would have received a letter noting that it would be better to put up warning signs somewhere a bit more helpful than 20 yards into the road to which the restriction applied.
My conclusion was that the software producers are either not informed of, or simply aren't interested in noting urban access restrictions, which means that the devices are of limited help for those trying to find their way in an unfamiliar city.
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I bought a Tom Tom One 6 months or so ago (to replace a much older unit) and was quite disappointed to find it didn't have the new A1M section near Leeds that had been built some time ago. It gets into a panic when I drive over it constantly telling me to turn left back on to the motorway and things like that, and is showing me going through fields on the screen. I phoned Tom Tom to ask about getting a map update - and was first told that it would take around 2 years for this road to find its way on to the new maps, then the new maps would cost quite a lot of money (can't remember how much).
There are lots of smaller issues I've found in towns but that is the only significant motorway data error that I can recall coming across.
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Navteq used to say 1/3rd of the data changes every year on their adverts.
My Teleatlas map CD is a year old, and the data on it probaby around 2.
Petrol stations are now apartments.
The dealerships are now different car makes.
New roads are built, old ones are changed, speed limits are lowering (which is probably used to calculate your ETA)
City centres are in an advancing state of anti-car repression with one-ways, no entries, no cars etc....
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I dont use satnav, but I do know that the maps can be found on the interweb and downloaded.
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I bought a TomTom 710, which was better than getting lost, but only marginally.
Somehow, I never seemed to get along with it. Always sent me down the next turning, or the previous turning, or something. (Maybe it was me?)
Now bought a Renault with a built in system, which doesn't do post codes, but seems much easier to obey, having useful picture in picture effects which show you what's coming up next, and how far away, etc.
Pain in the butt to programme, though.
I think it's a Carminat system, whatever that means?
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"I dont use satnav, but I do know that the maps can be found on the interweb and downloaded. "
Go on then , tell us - or do you mean after payment of rather a lot of pounds - in which case we know that already.
--
Phil
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Nope. I know a couple of forums that have sections dedicated to satnav maps. I didnt quote where because its probably of dubious legality. But if you know there out there maybe you can find them ? 'an exercise for the reader' if you like ;)
I havent checked but piratebay probably throws up a couple of links.
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I havent checked but piratebay probably throws up a couple of links.>>
Had a quick look on piratebay, but couldn't find anything obviously useful. There were a couple of photographs of well-stacked young ladies with the caption "Meet these girls from your area". I have to say, if they were in my area, I'm sure I would have noticed them already ;-)
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