Mio & TMC

klystron_generator · Regular Visitor Joined: Nov 25, 2006 Posts: 114

some useful and interesting feedback there

being a competent map reader i always try to have a quick check of a paper map to get a rough idea of the 'best' route and possible detours

if i'm planning a journey of reasonable length i always try to check the traffic info first too...but you can't use Teletext or web sites etc on the move

this way you can often get a rough instinctive idea if the unit is taking you miles out of your way (* see below)

but at the weekend or outside 'rush hour' we don't have the benefit of regular and frequent traffic bulletins on the radio as our journey progresses

* my journey to work on the Mio:
fastest route - 60 miles
shortest route - 60 miles
preferred route - 49.7 miles...10 miles shorter than the 'shortest' route

i guess the best suggestion to everybody is to take on board what various people on this forum have said about using the sat nav as a guide only...i have no first hand experience of TMC but i'm sure the same applies cos we still comply with no entry signs etc regardless of what the sat nav says

TMC seems to be as much a thorn in the side as a help and finding useful information is nigh on impossible :x

Retty · Frequent Visitor Joined: Sep 07, 2006 Posts: 336

I would tend to agree that finding useful TMC information is very difficult - after all how do you know that the information is accurate if you've avoided the route? Also how do you know that the information was helpful if you're routed from one jam (on a M road) to another undocumented jam (on an A road)?

I think TMC is a good idea in principle but in practice there are probably too many rough edges at present for it to be trusted on the C710.

Still, the unusually detailed information I received for parts of the journey proved to be of practical use. For parts of the journey it was certainly on a par with a dedicated traffic device I saw working some weeks ago.

I think there's a cultural issue too. When I was driving in France a few years back I came across an overturned lorry on a main road (a 2 lane road). French Police were directing traffic around the lorry and so the flow of traffic wasn't stopped only slowed. It probably wouldn't happen in the UK. In the UK even a minor accident involving a lane blockage is capable of causing chaos and closing a 2 or 3 lane road for at least a period of time. How does a human being with commonsense let alone a computer wihout commonsense predict the flow of traffic in such an event and make routing decisions accordingly?

dpmguy · Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 10:16 am Post subject:

[quote="Retty"]
No, absolutely, it doesn't explain the key question of why the C710 seems to work but the C510 and C210 don't.
The C710 picks up both Classic FM and 2Ten FM in the same geographical border area at different times (depending on nothing in particular it seems).

I think the issues are probably more complicated than people realise - Mitac has been clear that th C710 doesn't support TMC in the UK and I have no reason to doubt that they at least believe in the logic of that position. After all the C510 and C210 don't seem to be able to receive TMC.

quote]

Just for information my C510 picks up traffic infomation fine. Initally it could received TMC in NORWICH via Radio Broadland a member of the GCap Media group, since i have updraded to version 3.2 it now picks up Classic FM even next to the Radio Broardland transmitter.

I travel from Hampshire to Norfolk every weekend and it now seems that classic FM is the station which provides the information for most of the journey.
_________________
Regards,

DPM
-------------------------------
Mio C510E - 1st purchase very impressed.
Now running V3.2

repsaj · Occasional Visitor Joined: Dec 16, 2006 Posts: 11

klystron_generator · Regular Visitor Joined: Nov 25, 2006 Posts: 114

that's possibly also the explanation as to why some C510 users can get TMC signals but others have been left frustrated

trouble is that Mio seem to be about as helpful and consistent as the TMC info online Sad

but we're not alone...a friend of mine bought a TomTom and they ignored his support email and his phone call was cut off Confused

Sallyann · Lifetime Member Joined: Jun 23, 2006 Posts: 768

Same here. I have never got TMC from Classic FM. Watching the display scan through the FM band, it goes right through the Classic FM frequency as if it wasn't there. However I'm quite happy with the service it does gives from the other stations.

Sal

the_pts · Occasional Visitor Joined: Sep 24, 2006 Posts: 25

Hi

I posted a couple of weeks ago an email I had from Mio saying that the TMC service now works in the UK, I tested and replied to them saying that it still does not work, here is there latest reponse

"Following your email I would like to enquire as to what error you are encountering. TMC does now work in the UK for users who have version 3.2 mio map and have purchased a TMC antenna. Please could you inform us what model unit you have and what problem or error message you are encountering.

We will be more than happy to answer your question.

Kind regards,

Mio Technology support team
"

I'll let you know more when I hear back

Peter

MioC210user · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 8:29 pm Post subject:

Do you have a UK-specific TMC receiver Question

I posted ages ago that this vital piece of the equation is being worked on and as far as I know it is STILL being tested.

If you read earlier in this thread, I was told by Mio back in October that TMC works in the UK with 3.2 Exclamation

Same old left hand, right hand; **** up and brewery syndrome Exclamation

Everybody appears to be too busy satisfying their own egos to take note of what anybody else says on here Exclamation

klystron_generator · Regular Visitor Joined: Nov 25, 2006 Posts: 114

this thread is proving how difficult it is to find useful and consistent information about TMC Exclamation

what an emotive subject this has turned out to be Exclamation

...and technology should just work straight out of the box Exclamation

oh hum

when we get TMC sorted what next Question

the_pts · Occasional Visitor Joined: Sep 24, 2006 Posts: 25

GPSBear · Regular Visitor Joined: Jul 15, 2006 Posts: 137

Sitting in a Tesco car park in SE London this afternoon waiting for SWMBO and playing with my C710. It seemed to like Capital FM and very quickly had 32 pages of traffic from round the corner to Aberdeen. Maybe those who say a particular station gives bad results should add it to the exclude list?
_________________
Mio C710 on MioMap 3.3

ticklepin · Posted: Thu Jan 11, 2007 7:55 pm Post subject:

Just to report that yesterday morning,10/01/07,in Oxfordshire, I was unable to receive any traffic events on my Mio C710 .
The 'orange bar' was fully present and transiently tuned into Classic FM, among others.
In view of possible subscription difficulties, I rather feared the worst and that someone, somewhere, had pulled a plug.
Happily, today all was well; the list was populated within seconds of switching on, even before the GPS had achieved a lock!
It would seem that sometimes disappointing results may be due to transmission failures.

DeeJay01 · Posted: Thu Jan 11, 2007 9:56 pm Post subject:

ticklepin · Posted: Thu Jan 11, 2007 11:00 pm Post subject:

Dave,
I got 'Fox FM ' and 'The Bear'(Touch FM) and others, transiently also, as the receiver scanned across the frequencies.
Sometimes the legend read 'TMC present' though the 'bar' was perhaps only 1/5th orange and also sometimes the dispiriting 'Testing'.
At no time was the 'two little cars' TMC indicator visible.
I don't understand it, or its relevance, but I just hope the observation will help.

Retty · Frequent Visitor Joined: Sep 07, 2006 Posts: 336

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