GPS: Airis T920 or Garmin Nuvi 310/360?

deadl0ck

Thanks guys !

shayg1971

I recently had a Garmin C320 unit stolen, and the Airis unit was looking like a better replacement, given the more recent Navteq data. But really, using a GPS unit 'responsibly' is difficult if the s/w or firmware is buggy, as looks the case here with the 'memory' problems. Personally I'd lay out a few quid more for reliability.

Looking at http://forums.gpsireland.ie/ Q2 Navteq data via City Bavigator v9 is imminent accross a range of Garmin units (one to suit any budget). Any already shipping with the top-of-the-line Nuvi 660 (available from Halfords gives that some credibility): http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_247255_langId_-1_CarSelectorCatalogId__CarSelectorGroupId__varient__categoryId_33962_crumb_31265_parentcategoryrn_33962

v8 to v9 will be the most significant update to Ireland data you'll ever see. You'll probably be able to live with v9 for some time.

As a long time GPS user, I'd say unless desperate, wait until early '07 and then pick up a reliable brand, with a history of support. You'll probably see some price drops after Christmas and top notch Irish data on a choice of units.

shayg1971

Actually, I spoke too soon. Looks like the wait for Garmin products with v9 is over. I received this message from GPS Ireland:

Subject New Personal Message: Garmin V9 Release
Sent Date 10-30-2006 7:39:32 AM

From
"GPS Ireland" <webmaster@gpsireland.ie>

To <<Edit>>

30 October 2006

further update....

Garmin Mapsource V9 with new Map Detail for Ireland is now shipping with newly released hardware products. It is not yet available for existing products, as a standalone product, or as an upgrade but it appears that full availability is not far away.

Enjoy the Rest Of Your Bank Holiday

The GPS Ireland Team

Just remember to grt your supplier to confirm (in writing if possible) that your Unit will ship with v9. I imagine there's some surplus stock lying around (although I think Garmin's policy in the past has been to allow one free update if you purchase a unit with an older version after the newer one starts shipping)

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

shayg1971

A 256Mb card will comfortably fit Ireland and UK maps onto it.

deadl0ck

OK - Just got mine and all pieces seem to be there but I'm having problems.

First time I started it, it wouldn't respond to the touch screen.

After a while I was able to get by the "Cambio Idioma" screen that you're shown on power up, and I managed to change the language to english in the Settings.

I then powered off and stuck in the SD Card, but it wouldn't power on at all.

I figured that it was low on Juice (straight out of the box), so I plugged it in to the USB to charge.

It's powered on now but gone back to Spanish and it's stuck on the "Cambio Idioma" screen you see on first initialisation and I can't change the lanugaue or click on the Correct mark or the X mark....

When I turn it off and on it synchs (although there is noting to sync) with ActiveSync on my Laptop, but stays at that initial screen.

I'll let it charge for a little while and see what happens.

Also, If I power it off while connected to the Laptop (via the right hand press powwer button) I get this:



Any ideas / suggestion anbody ?

MarkR

Ok, first thing to do is turn off your unit with the switch at the bottom. Take out your sd card and put it in your card reader / port on your pc. Format the card and reload the UK map onto it.

Reinsert the card and switch on the airis.
Should say cambio idioma (select language I think).
Press the right arrow button with your stylus.
Should say english-uk on screen.
Click on the check mark and this should bring you to date and time.
After that it's pretty self explanatory.

If the above doesn't work try resetting the unit using the button at the bottom and your stylus

deadl0ck

I'll try when I get how, as I have a card reader there....

The problem, is before any maps though as it doesn't respond to the touch screen at all, i.e. I can't select the language, and I can't select the Correct or the X Mark

deadl0ck

It's a conspiracy....

I got a memory card reader from one of the guys here in work.

I formatted the Card as FAT (as that's what it was already).

I ran then install software:



then



THEN



The I can't access the SD Card through windows, but it's fine if I plug it out and then back in. I can manually copy files to it and from it.....

I'll try again when I get home with another card reader.

This isn't going well....

Looks like I may have to return this

MarkR

Have you tried with no card inserted?

deadl0ck

OK....

It's kinda alive; I charged it up, and after much tunring off and on again, I got past the initial screen (the touch screen decided to work once)

Now I have set the date, time and language, but I still have the problem with the SD, so I'll try that at home.

If I turn it on and off now, it seems to be fine (I haven't done a hard reset though, and don't intend to !!!)
It's like the touch screen was frozen in the initial setup, but is fine after that....

I'll see how the SD install goes at home, and if all works OK I'll stick with it for a few days and see how it goes....

I'll keep yiz posted !!!

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

OK....

It's kinda alive; I charged it up, and after much tunring off and on again, I got past the initial screen (the touch screen decided to work once)

Now I have set the date, time and language, but I still have the problem with the SD, so I'll try that at home.

If I turn it on and off now, it seems to be fine (I haven't done a hard reset though, and don't intend to !!!)
It's like the touch screen was frozen in the initial setup, but is fine after that....

I'll see how the SD install goes at home, and if all works OK I'll stick with it for a few days and see how it goes....

I'll keep yiz posted !!!

...charge up the airis using the supplied 12 volt car charger. This will eliminate the MS active sync error messages you are getting.

While this is charging, format the SD card using windows ( not the Route 66 format function ) then launch the route 66 disc and burn software onto your newly formatted SD card. ( this burns the maps AND THE route 66 program as well ! )

Make sure airis is powered off ( check on off switch underneath ). Then insert SD card and power on ( using on off switch underneath )

BEFORE going any further....do a "soft reset " by inserting stylus point into reset hole underneath. then follow on screen instructions.....

deadl0ck

While this is charging, format the SD card using windows ( not the Route 66 format function ) then launch the route 66 disc and burn software onto your newly formatted SD card.

Should I format the Card as FAT ?? I did this already, and the Route 66 automatically formatted it again itself (without giving me an option) when I tried to install the software to the card - that's when I got the software install failure

deadl0ck

1 other thing eirlink - on a previous post you said:

Battery time not great, i got 3 hours from mine. The SiRF GPS inbuilt receiver is heavy enough on the batt and its not a lithium-ion type either.I mostly run in off the car lighter and its always connected,therefore fully charged.

One thing to note,these are esssentially PDA units which are set up to run sat nav software.They therefore run windows CE and as a result programs are left running in the background even though you hit the off button in the top RHS. This is really only a standby button for the screen...the units OS is still running in the background. Hence poor batt life.

Use the on / off button on the undernreath to turn off completely ( this is also known as a Hard Reset ) and is something i reccommend every so often to stop the OS getting bloated

Is that 3 hours with constant use? Or do you mean 3 hours on standby ? Otherwise you'd be out of power on it every morning..... Just wondering !

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

1 other thing eirlink - on a previous post you said:



Is that 3 hours with constant use? Or do you mean 3 hours on standby ? Otherwise you'd be out of power on it every morning..... Just wondering !

constant use...i only tried it once when the 12 lead was left at home. Ive never actually tried it on standby without 12 volts
I have mine always connected anyway.

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

Should I format the Card as FAT ?? I did this already, and the Route 66 automatically formatted it again itself (without giving me an option) when I tried to install the software to the card - that's when I got the software install failure

yes as fat...i checked my card properties and it fat formatted. The card i have came with the unit already preloaded.

Try this....
copy all the files into a folder on your desktop then open the folder and select all. copy and paste or drag and drop these onto the sd card..

BTW check the card visually, the lock may be on which prevents data being written to it! ( its a little white slider on the side )

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

Should I format the Card as FAT ?? I did this already, and the Route 66 automatically formatted it again itself (without giving me an option) when I tried to install the software to the card - that's when I got the software install failure

Deadlock, what size SD are you using? and what maps are you trying to put onto the SD. reason i ask is that only UK and Eire will fit on 256,if you are trying to load Europe you need a bigger one. I cant remember how big but it posted here somewhere. 1 gig is a catch all anyway.

One other thing , i think 2 gig is max these units can handle. came across this somewhere before.

deadl0ck

Charged it on the way home with the car charger.

Got in and turned it on, and the touch screen was not responding again.

I am returning it to Pixmania tomorrow for a replacement.

Bugger!!:mad:

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

Charged it on the way home with the car charger.

Got in and turned it on, and the touch screen was not responding again.

I am returning it to Pixmania tomorrow for a replacement.

Bugger!!:mad:

before you do tell me this , put in the SD card and do a hard reset ( turn off unit and WAIT 2 mins before turning back on ) ...whats comes up on screen?
does the screen react to the stylus.?

do this again with card in and card out..any difference?

I think the prob is with the card not the airis. The airis needs to see the card properly otherwise it will not boot up properly.

deadl0ck

OK, first things first - When I got home I formatted the card, and successfully installed the maps for UK and Ireland to the SD Card, so I'm pretty sure the SD Card is correct now.

I have done a hard reset (more than 5 mins with switch to "off"), and put the SD card in.
I get the Language Select screen in spanish, and the touch screen does not respond.

I turned off, took out the SD Card, and I waited 5 minutes, and turned on again. Exact same result - no repsonse from screen.

Something to note. I have found, while holding the device, if I apply a little pressure to the bottom left of the black surrounding for the screen (not the screen itslef) that the device makes the clicking noise as if I were touching the screen.

Either the screen is wildly misaligned where I can't get at it, or there's a bad connection there somewhere.

Twice when I powered on, a spanish version of the Screen calibration came up, and the screen wouldn't respond.

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

OK, first things first - When I got home I formatted the card, and successfully installed the maps for UK and Ireland to the SD Card, so I'm pretty sure the SD Card is correct now.

I have done a hard reset (more than 5 mins with switch to "off"), and put the SD card in.
I get the Language Select screen in spanish, and the touch screen does not respond.

I turned off, took out the SD Card, and I waited 5 minutes, and turned on again. Exact same result - no repsonse from screen.

Something to note. I have found, while holding the device, if I apply a little pressure to the bottom left of the black surrounding for the screen (not the screen itslef) that the device makes the clicking noise as if I were touching the screen.

Either the screen is wildly misaligned where I can't get at it, or there's a bad connection there somewhere.

Twice when I powered on, a spanish version of the Screen calibration came up, and the screen wouldn't respond.

....yep sounds like shes faulty alright. Its under warranty so send it back straight away. If you prefer a full refund they do a 7 day no quibble. Btw, what condition was the package in when you got it, it might have been bumped about in transit. I got a package from pix delivered via DHL and it was a disgrace. funny enough the contents were fine TG..

Sorry to hear your off to a bad start and now have to endure the returns process.

deadl0ck

Box was perfect actually !

Funnily enough though, the Airis box had a white nylon strap around it, but it wasn't shrink wrapped or anyting like that.....

I'll return it tomorrow for an exchange - I'm not in any mad rush for this, but it is disappointing

deadl0ck

Ah ha !!!

I think I have it !!

Every time I switched on the unit it made a click before it got to the initial setup screen (same noise made as when the screen was being touched)

I had seen touch screen devices act funny before if you were touching the screen at startup, so I figured, that the click at startup could mean the device was reading a tap before start (and this would case a bad calibration also)

I applied a little pressure either side of the device, which would cause the casing of the screen to raise a little, in case it was too tight.

I turned on and didn't get the click noise, and then the touch screen was fully functional !!

Watch this space, and I'll keep y'all posted, in case someone else has a problem like this....or if this is just a fluke !

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

Ah ha !!!

I think I have it !!

Every time I switched on the unit it made a click before it got to the initial setup screen (same noise made as when the screen was being touched)

I had seen touch screen devices act funny before if you were touching the screen at startup, so I figured, that the click at startup could mean the device was reading a tap before start (and this would case a bad calibration also)

I applied a little pressure either side of the device, which would cause the casing of the screen to raise a little, in case it was too tight.

I turned on and didn't get the click noise, and then the touch screen was fully functional !!

Watch this space, and I'll keep y'all posted, in case someone else has a problem like this....or if this is just a fluke !

dont be tempted to loosen the 4 screws retaining the back! they are painted black for a reason. and youre still in warranty

My advice,send it back.that screen is far from right and will give bother especially on a hot day!

deadl0ck

Don't worry !

I won't go near the screws !!!

I'll give it a day or 2 and see how it goes, and I can still return it...

It's set-up now, but in the house I get "No GPS" - if I go outside with it, do I need to do anything to make it search for satellites ? Or does it scan all the time ?

eirlink

deadl0ck wrote:

Don't worry !

I won't go near the screws !!!

I'll give it a day or 2 and see how it goes, and I can still return it...

It's set-up now, but in the house I get "No GPS" - if I go outside with it, do I need to do anything to make it search for satellites ? Or does it scan all the time ?

nope,no need to do anything , except bring a jacket and a good excuse if someone sees you !

arseagon

Has anyone any experience with the Evesham Nav-Cam 7500? I have a customer road testing one of them for me in the UK. He says it's pretty good but he has some reservations about it.

1. He's driving an articulated lorry so he'd like it to be able to tell him of weight/height restrictions on roads and be able to divert him around them. Does anyone know of any of the GPS navigators that have this option?

2. It only covers the UK and ireland and he'd like europe also. Which navigator has the best map coverage/functionality?

mik_da_man

Well the Airis has 100% coverage and you can buy a file of POI's (point of intrest) with all the bridges ect.

mik

branners69

Have the Airis for a week now and was wondering when I select a location and it asks me to "Start new navigation" and I select yes..

Can I view the route it has selected from start to finish?? Say if I was going from Dublin to Wexford and I want to see the entire route so as to decide where to stop off for a bite to eat!!

By the way am very happy with this product, Pixmania was a bit rocky and I doubt I will use them again!!

Branners

eirlink

branners69 wrote:

Have the Airis for a week now and was wondering when I select a location and it asks me to "Start new navigation" and I select yes..

Can I view the route it has selected from start to finish?? Say if I was going from Dublin to Wexford and I want to see the entire route so as to decide where to stop off for a bite to eat!!

By the way am very happy with this product, Pixmania was a bit rocky and I doubt I will use them again!!

Branners

..you cannot view the route but as youre driving but you can go into the menu and select POI nearby.as you drive these will appear on screen.
you can turn on and off different types of POI's individually.any thats ticked will populate on screen as you drive.

from main menu go to map options>POI