Refurbished Tomtom Go 730

[Pocketgps]

[Guivre46]

When I changed the battery in my One XL, it would not charge initially with a 500ma, a 1000ma input, or the car charger connected to a transformer that supposedly mimics the car power socket ie 2 amps. It took in-car connection and usage to get it charging. I question what amperage the car connector actually provides as it seems to be more than than 2 amps. Having now got it going it holds charge with a 1000ma input.
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Mike R [aka Wyvern46]
Go 530T - unsupported
Go550 Live [not renewed]
Kia In-dash Tomtom

[dickins]

Sorry for going off topic,but I am thinking of buying a tomtom refurb 730.
Can you tell me if this model has an audio output socket and does it have an itinerary planning function?
Ta

[Andy_P]

"Yes" to both questions, Dickins

[dickins]

Cheers Andy
It seems ilke the 730 is out of stock,is the 530 exactly the same apart from the map is uk only?

[Andy_P]

Yes, exactly the same, apart from the map.

[mikealder]

A quick word of warning about the audio socket (line out) on these units, it used to be controlled by the volume slider on the device but the later (and current Navcore software) have this fixed at a high level, fine if you are feeding it in to a car deck but its a bit loud for use with headphones on a motorbike unless you have earphones with a volume control in the lead.

The combination of line out socket and Itinerary planning makes me think motorbike usage hence the warning but I am probably wrong - Mike

[dickins]

[bernieeccles]

Using a tomtom on a motorbike is a subject that I researched quite a bit before I purchased the Go 730.

The problem for me was that I did not want to buy a motorcycle specific unit as I think that the price is too high and in the case of the Rider it seems to me to be basically a waterproof One. The other thing against it is that to use it in a car, you need the add on car kit to get the sound output. Also it des not output sound over Bluetooth in stereo A2DP protocol.

The Go 730 is able to output stereo over Bluetooth and FM so performing wireless. I have tried using a cable from my helmet phones to the output on the Tomtom but with the wind whipping the cable about, it soon becomes obvious that this is a poor solution.

Helmet bluetooth solutions are quite expensive and on enquiring to a couple of manufacturers about volume levels whilst wearing earplugs, I came away with the impression that they are not good enough with earplugs in which I wear 100% of the time.

So first thing I needed was some slimline stereo earphones that would fit in the ear pockets in the helmet without causing discomfort.The solution was found in a pair of Panasonic over ear phones bought from Argos, which are about 10mm thick and with the ear support arm removed they were stuck under the helmet liner with velcro.

Next was a mini clip on A2DP stereo receiver, bought from ebay which is small enough to velcro inside my chinbar and connected to the earphones with the wire tucked into the lining of my Arai, the job was done. Remove the clip though as it makes a small unit even smaller.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mini-Clip-On-A2DP-Stereo-Bluetooth-Headset-Headphones-/320618820040?pt=UK_Mobile_Home_Phones_Bluetooth_Acc_ET&hash=item4aa65ef1c8

Pairing took place and the Tomtom instructions came over the headphones and I could listen to the music from the Jukebox facilty on the Go 730. Great.

Not so great when I went out for a ride. I could not hear much, because of the earplugs and the general wind noise.

So looking around for an amplifier, I found the Fiio 5, again bought cheaply from ebay.
http://www.trustedreviews.com/mp3/review/2009/03/15/FiiO-E5-Headphone-Amplifier/p1

Now with the clip taken off from this and again stuck on the other side of the chinbar with velcro, I could hear everything at speeds above our national spped limit.

The battery life of the Fiio is good and lasted all day, but the bluetooth reciever would last half a day, so I bought another. When one went flat, I would pair the second in a matter of a minute or so.

On a week long trip to the South of France, the setup worked perfectly. I sometimes found that I could even listen to the music being played by the jukebox while paying for petrol inside the station shop.

I have the Go 730 mounted with a Ram mount arm and a Ram cradle and car charger plugged in to a fag socket under the seat.

It did rain a couple of times quite hard, but the unit placed behing the screen never got wet.

I also discovered that the bluetooth reciever is also capable of pairing with my phone and is capable of handsfree speech and it can control the music player on the phone, but it will only pair with one device at a time though.

Oh yes another little tip.

I wanted a sunshade so I ran some black thick card through a laminator and made a sort of U shape the slid in nicely between the top of the Go and the ram cradle. I could even press the on/off button through the card and being laminated, gave a measure of protection from the rain.

All this works for me, it might for you.

[AliOnHols]

@bernieecclles - Great write up and info with links, many thanks. I have been struggling to find a good combo for when I take my bike and GO's out for a ride.
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Garmin Nuvi 2599
Android with CamerAlert, OsmAnd+, Waze & TT Europe.
TomTom GO 730, GO 930, GO 940 & Rider2.
SatMap Active 10 & 20.

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