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Wanting a new TomTom - some questions

Jiranz 0 Points
in TomTom Car Forum
I live and work in the far south of NZ. I have a couple of old TomToms (TT) My travels are long distance rural and on unsealed roads typically with multiple destinations per day routing. Tom Tom urbin/city maps are not accurate in the country which is often a problem. One solution might be a new GPS that will import GPX files so I can save Trails for my regular routes. From what I read, "Trails" are what I need because they will retain the exact coordinates I need to get to.
Will this GPX approach do what I want?
Which current TT models import GPX files?
What sizes of GPX files and how many can I store in any TT?
Can I save like an index of imported GPX files so I can select the one for that day?
Can I load them off my GE desktop by USB cable?
Is there a better approach?

I assume that TT maps are taken from a standard commercial maps database somewhere and the the various brand devices like TT are map readers. The map set as used by TT are mainly for city/urban use. I see the AA use a different maps database and theirs is really accurate for rural travel but I cannot find which car nav equipments use them. In addition the different models of TT give different results. My XL can get me home from any direction but the later XXL can only come to my house from the south. If I coming from the north it tells me to turn around. Also it fails to link two roads indicating a hundred Km of diversion when the roads actually join together. We found a lot of things like this which must be bugs in that particular iteration of the TT program. With the new TT is there a system for reporting bugs? If it is too serious for my use do TT take it back for a refund? What is a reasonable period to discover how buggy a new version might be?

Do the newest TT keep accurate time by GPS timeserver sync? (My XXL is within a sec at all times)
Can thery do automatic daylight savings changes?
Can real time be displayed onscreen at all times? (one advertising pic does not show the time)

Comments

  • dhn 336 Points
    Your best bet is to have a discussion with support:

    New Zealand
    +6499055597
    Monday-Friday: 11:00-19:30 NZST
  • Boyd 2035 Points
    It has been many years since I've owned a TomTom device, but AFAIK your are locked into whatever mapping they provide. You might look at Garmin devices. There are many third-party maps available for Garmin, and most of them are free. There are also tools to make your own maps.

    However Garmin automotive devices cannot import tracks from GPX files - they can import routes and waypoints, but not tracks. You would need one of their outdoor devices if you want want to import and manage tracks. There are many different models, but if you want a large screen, they are expensive

    https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/523640
    https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/539722
    https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/685257
  • Jiranz 0 Points
    Only automotive. The device gets fixed to the windscreen and stays there for several years so that any driver can follow the intended delivery route. We can use smart phones running Googlemaps but the simplicity of a TT/Garmin permanently in place where you just get in and go makes it attractive as an option.

    I understand "Waypoints" to be fixed points on a route. That might work for me. My XXL allows a single waypoint per journey and if this limited feature could be expanded to cover multiple weaypoints per route say 30 to 50 imported from a GPX file then it should do what I want.

    If I import these from a GPX file created from an extaernal source how many waypoints could be imported per route?

    Would they be retained exactly as entered including in the correct sequence? I saw a discussion where a device re-ordered waypoints sequencing to conform to routing efficiency decided by the program but not as intended by the user.
  • Jiranz 0 Points
    to dhn: I tried calling the support number several times but after answering and giving the dial menu message it stalls at pressing all extensions. For example if I press "zero" for an operator I get "wait for an operator" followed immediately by a repeat of the dial menu and after a short time by "thanks for calling, goodbye".
    Is there anybody who works for Tomtom the company who knows the product sufficiently to answer my questions?
  • sussamb 954 Points
    Jiranz said:

    My XXL allows a single waypoint per journey and if this limited feature could be expanded to cover multiple weaypoints per route say 30 to 50 imported from a GPX file then it should do what I want.

    Garmin devices these days can have up to 30 points in a route, unsure about TT.
  • Boyd 2035 Points
    Jiranz said:

    Is there anybody who works for Tomtom the company who knows the product sufficiently to answer my questions?

    Sorry, but I think you're in the wrong place to get answers about TomTom devices. The TomTom forum on this site has basically been dead for many years, aside from dhn posting links to another site when there is a map update. Most of the discussion on this site involves Garmin devices, and frankly there isn't much of that anymore either.
  • Jiranz 0 Points
    sussamb said:

    Jiranz said:

    My XXL allows a single waypoint per journey and if this limited feature could be expanded to cover multiple weaypoints per route say 30 to 50 imported from a GPX file then it should do what I want.

    Garmin devices these days can have up to 30 points in a route, unsure about TT.
    OK. Garmin is OK. Looks like Tomtom are not well supported. So can I ask which Garmin model will meet my criteria at the top of this thread? Then I will look to see what we can buy here.

  • sussamb 954 Points
    edited March 2020
    Modern Garmins all I believe accept routes but note as posted above they must be routes and not tracks. Garmins free program BaseCamp will convert tracks to routes. GPX routes can either be directly copied into the GPX folder on your device or loaded/created in BaseCamp then sent to your device. I believe the limit on most recent Garmins is 200 routes and, as above, there is a limit of 30 points per route.

    Your main issue is that it seems from your post you'll be travelling roads that may not be on the Garmin map. You may find a free OSM map that will cover the areas you want, but without a suitable map you may struggle. There are ways to plan routes using BaseCamp but it's a steep learning curve.
  • Jiranz 0 Points
    sussamb said:

    Modern Garmins all I believe accept routes but note as posted above they must be routes and not tracks...

    Can you advise me if the Garmin OS/import process will alter an imported route? I have read in a Garmin forum that imported routes can be radically changed through the import process e.g. in one case creating a totally new route from start point to destination based on its own algorithm and ignoring the desired imported waypoints inbetween.

    Also do you know if the Garmin gets its time display from the satellite GPS system so it is always accurate?
  • Boyd 2035 Points
    edited March 2020
    AFAIK, all GPS devices get their time from the satellites.

    Regarding route order, I think this goes back to my older post. Garmin's automotive devices are very "dumbed down". But their outdoor devices have many additional menus and capabilities. Honestly, I don't use routes very often anymore myself. But route calculation is affected by the activity type that you choose on an outdoor device, and you can also choose whether a route should be re-calculated if you deviate from it.

    I don't know what consumer laws are like in your country, but here in the US there are some companies with very liberal policies that will let you return/exchange products within a few weeks. This might be the only way to find out if a device does what you want - get one and test it yourself.
  • sussamb 954 Points
    edited March 2020
    Routes may change when imported to a Garmin but it wouldn't ignore any included viapoints. What I do after importing routes and viewing them on my device is reconnect the device to BaseCamp and compare the routes on the device with the route in BaseCamp, if there are any differences I then add shaping points so they match.

    You might like to read through the tutorials here to get a feel for what can be done

    https://www.newenglandriders.org/GPS/Learn_BaseCamp.htm
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