Tomtom Bluetooth GPS and Nav USA comments

PW

Just back from a 3 week trip to the USA where I used Navigator USA with my 2210 and the Tomtom Bluetooth GPS.
In general, it was a huge help in getting around, especially in Los Angeles. Found a few map errors but nothing major. One of the main interstates must have been changed as at one point, tomtom was convinced I was going through fields for about 5 miles!
However, I did have a few problems with the receiver switching off Bluetooth but I can't quite put my finger on the exact problem. If I established a bluetooth connection, the GPS would on a regular basis, switch bluetooth off. I would then need to turn the receiver back on and turn BT off and then on, on the ipaq. This tended to occur pretty quick after startup often many times in a row. I suspect it is something to do with it being powered from the cigarette lighter as I have not seen this occur when it was running from its battery. The power connection to the GPS seems a little slack. When I tested it in the UK with Nav 3, the GPS was always fully charged and I did not see this problem either. If it is a power problem, perhaps it has jst gotten worse over time.
Anyone seen this or know what the actual problem is?
Also, is there somewhere that describes what the different colours on the leds mean? That would hopefully help me diagnose the problem. All I currently know is flashing blue is good :-)

lbendlin · Posted: Mon May 10, 2004 7:02 am Post subject:

We had multiple reports of 2210 users where the TomTom BT receiver is locking up. But so far there was no concise explanation. Maybe your observation (that it seems only to happen when connected to power) is something to investigate more. Anyone else can confirm that?
_________________
Lutz

Report Map Errors here:
TomTom/TeleAtlas NAVTEQ

PW · Posted: Tue May 11, 2004 9:42 am Post subject:

I take it noone else has experienced the bluetooth problem I see?
I guess most people here and not using Nav USA but GB/europe.
Does anyone know where I can get documentation for the receiver?
I had a thought that *if* the receiver has a feature where it automatically turns itself on/off when powered is applied/removed, then if my power cable is dodgy, then the problems I have would be exactly explained by the symptoms I see. Any idea if this can/does happen?

I have emailed Tomtom, but have only gotten an automated email reply about upgrades.

lbendlin · Posted: Tue May 11, 2004 2:41 pm Post subject:

As I said we had multiple reports of the receiver locking up. And I am pretty sure it has not much to do with the regional version of the software (they are all built in the same package). If there's a differenece then it is that the folks in Europe start to use TTN3 which is said to be less stable than TTN2.

If you really want to get into the receiver hardware details have a look at the Leadtek site - the receiver is a 9531 I believe.
_________________
Lutz

Report Map Errors here:
TomTom/TeleAtlas NAVTEQ

PW · Posted: Tue May 11, 2004 3:58 pm Post subject:

Thanks for taking the time to reply.
I don't really want to get into any details just want to get it reliable.
Knowing what the unit is supposed to do would be helpful!
When you say locks up... what happens? Does the GPS just stop bluetoothing (for want of a better description). Can it be restarted just by pressing the button to turn it on again? Is the PDA still happy but just think it has lost BT connectivity?
Tomtom have replied and suggested discharging it and re-charging it. If that fails they'll RMA it. They didn't answer whether the GPS has the on/off feature that I described earlier. That would have at least helped diagnose the problem and not just ignore it.

Darren · Posted: Tue May 11, 2004 5:13 pm Post subject:

Until recently I had the TomTom BT GPS on my dash connected via the cradle to permanent power and it always worked fine.

Last weekend in an effort to get some of the kit of my dash (review units, Gatso GPS receivers etc are all hogging dash space) I moved the TomTom GPS to the rear parcel shelf and plugged it into a spare cigarette power socket and dispensed with the cradle.

Since doing that I got frequent disconnects, using it unconnected to power was fine but meant I had to remember to charge it each night. So your observations about the power ring true. I have since reloacted it in the front permanently wired into 12v via the cradle and it is working normally again. Sadly because TomTom no longer supply the cradle this is not an option for everyone and it appears that the unit has a firmware problem which means it does not like being permanently connected to power via it's cigarette lighter socket Confused

_________________
Darren Griffin

DavidW · Posted: Wed May 12, 2004 4:16 pm Post subject:

Moving the GPS to the rear parcel shelf lengthened the distance between the Pocket PC and the GPS, potentially making the Bluetooth link more marginal.

The problems people seem to be having with lockups appear to be Bluetooth stack related - and I wonder whether the handling of link quality issues comes somewhere into this (I'm not familiar with the internals of Bluetooth, but being a radio based protocol in a non-dedicated band, there has to be an element of protocol robustness). Obviously the distance between the two devices will play some considerable part in the ease or difficulty of maintaining a link.

Your comment that leaving the GPS unpowered solved the problems (until the battery went flat!) indicates that the distance between the devices is not significant in your case - but maybe there is something to my theory, especially as not every Bluetooth implementation is certified and, in the absence of certification tests, it's possibly more likely that protocol faux pas will be missed.

David

PW · Posted: Wed May 12, 2004 4:20 pm Post subject:

Darren, what is the difference between connetcing the BT GPS to the
cigarette lighter socket and directly wiring it to 12V? Is it a voltage issue?

I took Tomtoms advice and discharged the GPS whilst installing Nav3 GB.
I note that Nav3 works more seamlessly than Nav USA regarding BT connections. With my one limited test on the way to work, no BT problems.
This is obviously not conclusive as the problem was intermittent with NavUSA. However, Nav3 did hang (requiring a exit from app and app retstart). Sigh...
Could someone with a 2210, a TomTom BT GPS suggest a stable set of
software? My Nav3 is (I think) 3.0, GPS status reports v2.09. Not sure of versions of ROM etc on Ipaq. Is it a good idea to go to Nav3.02?
What about Bluetooth? Should I put on 2.07 or should I try removing the ~GPS app? I presume it is not possible to tell how old/new the firmware on the GPS is? Tomtom have agreed to replace the GPS for one with the latest firmware.

Any help appreciated.

Darren · Posted: Wed May 12, 2004 4:25 pm Post subject:

There is definitely a firmware issue with this unit, when it is on battery and runs low on power it disconnects which I can understand but with most units if you apply 12v power at that point all is well, with the TomTom BT GPS, once the Red battery low LED iluminates it will not re-connect until it has been charged for a few minutes.

When the unit is connected to 12v via the permanent wired option it appears to use a different logic and the above does not apply, it will happily run when the Red LED is illuminated in this situation Confused

_________________
Darren Griffin

PW · Posted: Thu May 13, 2004 9:21 am Post subject:

I am thinking of returning the BT GPS. Its just too unstable at the moment. I don't know whether the problem lies with the Ipaq, the GPS or BT itself. Diagnosing the possible is v.hard and without a forum such as this where people share their experiences, it would be virtually impossible. I work in the tech industry and have previously diagnosed others technical problems for a living.... so I can't be completely hopeless at it!
Last night I decided to try and pair my ipaq with my PC so I could surf from my Ipaq via broadband. Paired ok, couldn't get it to access the net. Didn't have enough time to work out where the problem was. Anyway, doing this has changed the operation of TT. It no longer will automatically connect to the TT BT GPS when the TT app is started. I suspect it now tries to connect to a different BT device. I now need to add a shortcut to connect to the BT GPS, and manually connect. I may be able to go back a few stages but failing that I guess a quick re-install will be the quickest solution.
Considering getting a wired mouse or maybe a compact flash GPS.

PW · Posted: Tue May 18, 2004 4:55 pm Post subject:

As I started this thread, I thought I would maybe try and bring it to a clean close with hopefully some advice for Ipaq 2210 users with the Tomtom BT GPS.
After noticing on the HP website that both my 2210 ROM and the BT were both old (and both had BT changes), I thought I'd take the plunge and upgrade them. I installed ROM v1.10 (30 Apr 2004) and BT driver v1.4.1.58 (4 Nov 2003) from
http://www.hp.com/support/files/HandheldiPAQ/us/locate/105_5721.html

I reinstalled TT3 which went without a hitch, declining to install the BT driver (which appeared to be older than the HP one).
It now appears to be much more stable. I have had no lock-ups or hitches since :-) I haven't tried the latest TT3.02 and unless there is a very good reason to do so, I won't be!
I still suspect there is an issue with the GPS and power, but at the moment, fingers crossed, it hasn't reared its ugly head.

DavidW · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 11:16 am Post subject:

Unless I'm very much mistaken, the HP Bluetooth driver update you mentioned (or a further update) is built into the new ROM you installed. Unless the instructions say otherwise, I recommend that you don't install driver updates if you've installed a ROM upgrade with a later date than the driver update.

David

PW · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 8:55 pm Post subject:

It would seem logical that the BT driver is included in the ROM. I don't know if that is the case or not.
HP support suggested upgrading the BT driver and if my problems did not disappear, then try upgrading the ROM. Obviously my impatience led me to upgrade both before HP replied a couple of days later!

	PocketGPS
	Web