TTN5 upgrade O2 XDAIIs User Review (Keyboard problem)

[Britcay]

I was a bit nervous when I received my upgrade as I'd read some fairly damning comments on here about TTN5. All I can say is that from my perspective, the upgrade is fantastic (and all at just £46, well worth it)


Background
========

Ok so I took the option to upgrade from TTN3 (on an Axim X5 wired GPS) to Bluetooth TTN5 and have to say what a difference. Admittedly I also changed my PDA to a GPRS-equipped O2 XDAIIs (with the slidey keyboard - more about that later) but TTN5 is simply SO much better.

Maybe the new product working on the same PDA as TTN3 (ie a more usual upgrade) causes a performance slowdown as there are a lot more features in TTN5 - then isn't this like expecting a PIII 700mhz to cope with Office 2003 the same way it did with Office 98 - TT should have stated that it would be a bit slower, if this is indeed the case. From my own experience the mapping is very smooth and the voices delivered more crisply and with greater accuracy.

Startup & Operation
=============

On startup there is sometimes a bit of a delay whilst the BT connection sorts itself out. Can get a bit frustrating when you're sat waiting in the car - Having said that we're talking a minute or two and once it's up and running I can leave the GPS unit on the back seat or on the centre console and STILL get 4 bars + !!

New routing options (eg "bicyle route" or "avoid motorways" if you fancy a bit of a sunday drive) are good, although the option to set individual road average speeds seems to be missing ("Sylvia's" voice is excellent btw - well worth the extra €5 ! ;-) and the improved visuals are neat with lots of different colour schemes available or downloadable.

Weather is another nice touch - allowing you to check the weather at your destination (or any address) and whilst it doesn't add that much value, it's free and demonstrates what can be achieved with a GPRS connection.

Maps have *finally* been updated to show the M6 Toll and other newer roads. This was my major gripe with TTN3 as it's inexcusable not to have such a major road missing for this amount of time

Where be moi POI?
============

POI detection/warning is good, but could do with some custom-sounds - but at least it's there and you don't need to pay for TT Plus SafetyCams as POIEdit will still work to download 3rd party POI files (Note that CheckPOInt will also download/sync, but will no longer work for warnings)

Gridlock
=====

The traffic updates work very well - though I've yet to use them in 'anger' and be re-routed because of 'em - am using the trial service right now, but considering the full product too (although I have to say am disappointed with the huge discrepancy in pricing here vs say Benelux or even Germany!)

Bluetooth TT receiver + Phone Headset
=========================

I have a bluetooth TomTom receiver and also a 02 bluetooth headset for the XDA's phone - incoming calls work with no problem (there's a slight noise) but TTN5 auto-mutes for the duration of the call. Nice touch!

The Keyboard Bug
============

The only downside is the bug/lack of feature which means that my O2 XDAIIs (the one with the slide-out keyboard) can't use the TTN5 on-screen keyboard because of the fact that it detects a built-in keyboard and assumes you don't need the on-screen version. A simple override to "always use on-screen keyboard" would sort this. This is particularly annoying on the XDA as opening the keyboard when driving is all but impossible - therefore at the moment my XDAIIs sits in its mount with kb opened - which makes it rather large and ungainly.

My Verdict
=======

Really pleased with the upgrade - 8.5 out of 10 - will be an easy 9.5 or even a 10 if they drop the UK 'plus' pricing to at least German levels and can get a keyboard override to work (which TomTom support tells me they are "investigating" - so hopefully just a matter of time).

Andy, Taunton UK

[Tricky2005]

Nice review. It's good to see some people are getting along with it ok and since I paln to run TT5 on an O2 XDAIIi I am becoming more inspired to spend some money. My only confusion is since I will be buying the full retail and not an upgrade how do I use it for my holiday in France?

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