streetpilot i3

carlos81 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 6

HELP!!!!!!!

I cantt get my streetpilot to work, it always shows me as being in London, when Im in Barnsley, and says it is locating satellites and flashes a question mark over the arrow.

I have tried taking outside to see if the car windscreen/walls are hindering its recepetion but no, and I have registered the product with Garmin and installed the cd-rom it came with, but nothing makes any difference, I have read a few reviews for this product and everyone says its great, but I cant get the thing to work.

PS the second one I have had that is doing this, I sent the first one back as I thought it was faulty, but this is the same!

Can anyone please help!

mikealder · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 7:51 pm Post subject:

Welcome to the forums, How long are you waiting for the device to acquire a signal? the first time could take up to 20 Mins make sure it is outside with a clear view of the sky, once this initial fix is done the unit should be fine after that - Mike

carlos81 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 6

20 minutes? crikey!!! I havent waited that long, but I will try that now!
The instructions suggest it should work staright away so havent been waiting that long, I'll give it a try.

Thanks

carlos81 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 6

Nope, nothing!!!

Still doing the same any ore ideas?

saudidave · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 10:37 pm Post subject:

The fact that this is the second unit to behave this way would suggest that Mike's diagnosis was correct. I would suggest that the 20 minute wait could well be inadquate. I recall my i3 taking longer than that for its first fix. Leave it outside, with a clear view of the sky and away from trees and buildings for at least 45 mins and see if it gets a lock.

MaFt · Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 9:03 am Post subject:

carlos81 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 6

I have been in touh with Garmin, and they have recommended that I reset the unit and try again, I'll leave it a little longer this time and see what happens!

Thanks for youer help all, I'll let you know the results, good or bad!

I do think they should mention in the instructions that it could take upto 20 miuntes to lock on to a satellite, if you're a novice like me, then you just assume its not working! Embarassed

Thanks again!

wherethehellarewe · Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:44 am Post subject:

Carlos,

Page 25 of my manual says it could take up to 40 mins !! to acquire the satellites. Be patient dude :D
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Ignorance is no excuse !

badsworth · Occasional Visitor Joined: Apr 04, 2006 Posts: 19

Carlos - tell us - did it work?

B

carlos81 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 6

After 1 hour and 15 minutes of siiting on a chair in the middle of my garden , away from walls and trees and with a clear view of the sky, my streetpilot decided I was in...................

Sweden!?!?!?! Evil or Very Mad

I really don't know whats wrong with it.
Heres what I did:

Reset unit as instructed, selected language and voice language (English obviously) then selected time zone (Western Europe) from there it goes th the main screen (Go to...., View map, Settings) so I select view map.

this is where it says I'm in Sweden, but also says it is locating satellites and flashes the question mark, So I left it for an hour and a quarter, and came back to it, only to find nothing had changed!

Am i doing something wrong or I am I destined to use my 1999 AA road atlas forever!?

Please advise before Saturday, by which time my streetpilot will be flying back to Comet for a full refund (I hope!! Wink

).

Thanks again for all your interest and support!

Carl

zogman · Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 4:55 pm Post subject:

put fresh fully charged batterys in it..select appropriate setting in menu for alkaline or rechargables....if this dont work sell it to a man who doesnt go anywhere...
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Rodonn · Occasional Visitor Joined: Mar 21, 2006 Posts: 25

The satellites are in the Clarke belt, so pointing the back of unit toward the south will ensure that it can see the requisite three satellites to download the full table set, and then just work.

If you point it North, or a variant on north, you're trying to train the unit on microwave scatter, which can and does cause geological times for finding the satellites and dling the tables AND can produce false readings initially, since the tables may well contain garbage. One fully trained the unit just works. In the first case a southern exposure with a clear (free of trees and tall buildings) sky is needed. If you point it in the same direction oa the LNB points on a Sky Dish, you should be ok. AND DON'T BE TEMPTED TO FIDDLE! Twisted Evil

_________________
Garmin StreetPilot i3
maps - v8
f/w - 2.7 with Audio 2.00
GPS Mode - WAAS/EGNOS

Snooper OEM repeater ant. routed to rear parcel.
Snooper Neo S3R user.

Tried - 2.9 (not a good time)

carlos81 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 27, 2006 Posts: 6

North? South? I really am failing to see the point of this, and I know this is probably the wrong place to say it, but the sales info and instructions clearly do not state that such an exact pin pointing routine needs to be undertaken, "switch on and go" it boasts!!

And this is supposed to be the easiest one to set up, I dread to think what you guys with more expensive ones had to endure.

Did you actually have to use a shuttle to visit the satellites to know where there were in order to'point it in the right direction'?

OK, rant over, I will try new batteries, I will select the correct battery type, I will point its rear at the south, I will make sure I dont fiddle and maybe, just maybe it will work, though I have to say, I very much doubt it will!!

Yours ever thankful (again)

Laughing

Carl!!!

Rodonn · Occasional Visitor Joined: Mar 21, 2006 Posts: 25

I'm certain I read that the first training you have to point it generally south (but that could have been the Snooper, since that uses GPS too)

Only other thing I can think of that can cock up sat lock (on both the i3 and the Snooper) is microwave 'mush' from mobile phone masts. I know the satellites operate on a different band but harmonics may well be the key to that (look at the 'black spots' on the M25, which is probably visible from space in the microwave band)
_________________
Garmin StreetPilot i3
maps - v8
f/w - 2.7 with Audio 2.00
GPS Mode - WAAS/EGNOS

Snooper OEM repeater ant. routed to rear parcel.
Snooper Neo S3R user.

Tried - 2.9 (not a good time)

Rodonn · Occasional Visitor Joined: Mar 21, 2006 Posts: 25

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarke_belt

for the interested. :P

Spot who set up[ his own satellite TV system with little more than the dish, the box and a broom handle to knock the dish into alignment.... ;)
_________________
Garmin StreetPilot i3
maps - v8
f/w - 2.7 with Audio 2.00
GPS Mode - WAAS/EGNOS

Snooper OEM repeater ant. routed to rear parcel.
Snooper Neo S3R user.

Tried - 2.9 (not a good time)

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