Rand McNally TND 700

[Turtle]

Rand McNally claims their IntelliRoute software is used by 94% of the nation's top motor carriers for their fleet routing needs. That should tell you something, a real headsup, because that's an awfully impressive figure considering that the software has only been available for about 2 years. It's so impressive as to deserve a <snort>.

They also claim that fully 91% of Fortune 500 shippers use MileMaker as their mileage standard. Again, another <snort>.

The reason these claims seem maybe a tad bit exaggerated is, according to Fortune 500 Magazine, ALK Technologies, the makers of PC Miler, control fully 80% of the world market for commercial transportation routing software, with PC Miler being used by not only more than 24,000 motor carriers, shippers and logistics companies, but also by the US government's Defense Department, General Services Administration, and the FMCSA.

As our large-picture posting friend notes, TomTom and Garmin hold the lion's share of the world GPS routing market for a reason. They are the most accurate with respect to locations and routing. Not perfect, but when all is said and done, more accurate than all the others. Most manufacturers of GPS units all us the same mapping data (NAVEQ), including Garmin, Magellan, Lowrance, as well as Web-based applications like Yahoo Maps, Bing and MapQuest. They are the mapping source for Chrysler, Mercedes Benz and most other automotive manufacturers, as well. Street and Trips uses NAVTEQ. (This is why when your Garmin can't find an address, neither will Streets & Trips or MapQuest).

TomTom primarily uses TeleAtlas, a Dutch company, with some NAVTEQ data included, while Garmin primarily uses NAVTEQ, a Chicago company, but also uses some TeleAtlas data. Garmin owns the North American market, while TomTom owns the European market, and it is generally recognized that in North America a Garmin is more accurate than a TomTom, and in Europe a TomTom is more accurate than a Garmin, though the differences are so small as to be inconsequential at this point. They are forever locked in court over each other stealing the other's routing and display algorithms. The biggest difference between the Garmin and the TomTom is the user interface, and which ever one you used first is likely to be the one you'll prefer.

NAVTEQ and TeleAtlas base their maps on government data, but the underlying map database is based on first hand observation and land mapping surveys rather than on the government supplied data (usually from county offices or their equivalent). Rand McNally uses their own maps, but is based almost entirely on government data. ALK Technologies (PC Miler) uses their own maps, as well, compiled from a variety of sources.

Because Google Maps update their maps daily, on a continual basis, their maps are probably the most accurate. But their routing leaves a lot to be desired in many cases. Basically, Google map routing is the generally most popular routing for a car. In some cases that's fine, not so much in other cases, as another route may be more efficient (especially for a truck).

But regardless of where the mapping data comes from, all of them are going to be very similar, with none of them being perfect. The differences come in routing accuracy and efficiency, and in the bells and whistles of the features. While the PC Miler standalone GPS unit features PC Miler maps and location data, the routing is performed by TravRoute CoPilot, which is vastly inferior to the routing algorithms used in the software-only PC Miler product.

I can run the same route on my Garmin, PC Miler, Streets & Trips, MapQuest and Google, and get a different routing for each. Depending on the settings, faster, shorter, car, truck, practical, HAZMAT, I can get multiple routings for each. Somewhere in that mess is the best route, so it's a good idea to have several mapping and routing tools at your disposal. I also have a Droid with Google Maps, Google Navigator, and Google Earth loaded on it, which certainly comes in handy at times.

Many standalone GPS units now factor real-time traffic information into the routing, and again while not perfect, it's good to have. Some, like the new Garmin Nuvi units, actually keep track of and learn traffic and travel time trends for regular destinations based on time of day and other factors. Many new units have lane assist and will accept voice commands.

But the bottom line is still mapping and location accuracy, and accurate and efficient routing. Once you go beyond the standards of a Garmin or a TomTom, it's a crap shoot. People will say they've got this or that GPS and it's not a Garmin or a TomTom, and they just luv it. These are people who, generally speaking, have never used a Garmin or a TomTom. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, there are exceptions to everything, but again, there's a reason these two companies dominate the GPS market, and it's not because of marketing.

GPS units specifically designed for trucking are intriguing, but they are still not there yet, not where they should be. Most, like the Rand McNally units, have great trucker information, but fall short on proper truck routes. The Garmin truck unit went too far with its truck routing and gives too much weight to the STAA truck routes, when they'd have been better off using the same routing algorithms found in their other units. They're working on it. The Rand McNally units are great, except they are the truck map experts, not routing experts, so they have a long way to go, too. The PC Miler unit, well, they took what could have been an awesome product and ruined with a second rate routing program, so try and forget about that one completely. It's pretty bad.

 

[Dakota]

Rand McNally claims their IntelliRoute software is used by 94% of the nation's top motor carriers for their fleet routing needs. That should tell you something, a real headsup, because that's an awfully impressive figure considering that the software has only been available for about 2 years. It's so impressive as to deserve a <snort>.

They also claim that fully 91% of Fortune 500 shippers use MileMaker as their mileage standard. Again, another <snort>.

The reason these claims seem maybe a tad bit exaggerated is, according to Fortune 500 Magazine, ALK Technologies, the makers of PC Miler, control fully 80% of the world market for commercial transportation routing software, with PC Miler being used by not only more than 24,000 motor carriers, shippers and logistics companies, but also by the US government's Defense Department, General Services Administration, and the FMCSA.

As our large-picture posting friend notes, TomTom and Garmin hold the lion's share of the world GPS routing market for a reason. They are the most accurate with respect to locations and routing. Not perfect, but when all is said and done, more accurate than all the others. Most manufacturers of GPS units all us the same mapping data (NAVEQ), including Garmin, Magellan, Lowrance, as well as Web-based applications like Yahoo Maps, Bing and MapQuest. They are the mapping source for Chrysler, Mercedes Benz and most other automotive manufacturers, as well. Street and Trips uses NAVTEQ. (This is why when your Garmin can't find an address, neither will Streets & Trips or MapQuest).

TomTom primarily uses TeleAtlas, a Dutch company, with some NAVTEQ data included, while Garmin primarily uses NAVTEQ, a Chicago company, but also uses some TeleAtlas data. Garmin owns the North American market, while TomTom owns the European market, and it is generally recognized that in North America a Garmin is more accurate than a TomTom, and in Europe a TomTom is more accurate than a Garmin, though the differences are so small as to be inconsequential at this point. They are forever locked in court over each other stealing the other's routing and display algorithms. The biggest difference between the Garmin and the TomTom is the user interface, and which ever one you used first is likely to be the one you'll prefer.

NAVTEQ and TeleAtlas base their maps on government data, but the underlying map database is based on first hand observation and land mapping surveys rather than on the government supplied data (usually from county offices or their equivalent). Rand McNally uses their own maps, but is based almost entirely on government data. ALK Technologies (PC Miler) uses their own maps, as well, compiled from a variety of sources.

Because Google Maps update their maps daily, on a continual basis, their maps are probably the most accurate. But their routing leaves a lot to be desired in many cases. Basically, Google map routing is the generally most popular routing for a car. In some cases that's fine, not so much in other cases, as another route may be more efficient (especially for a truck).

But regardless of where the mapping data comes from, all of them are going to be very similar, with none of them being perfect. The differences come in routing accuracy and efficiency, and in the bells and whistles of the features. While the PC Miler standalone GPS unit features PC Miler maps and location data, the routing is performed by TravRoute CoPilot, which is vastly inferior to the routing algorithms used in the software-only PC Miler product.

I can run the same route on my Garmin, PC Miler, Streets & Trips, MapQuest and Google, and get a different routing for each. Depending on the settings, faster, shorter, car, truck, practical, HAZMAT, I can get multiple routings for each. Somewhere in that mess is the best route, so it's a good idea to have several mapping and routing tools at your disposal. I also have a Droid with Google Maps, Google Navigator, and Google Earth loaded on it, which certainly comes in handy at times.

Many standalone GPS units now factor real-time traffic information into the routing, and again while not perfect, it's good to have. Some, like the new Garmin Nuvi units, actually keep track of and learn traffic and travel time trends for regular destinations based on time of day and other factors. Many new units have lane assist and will accept voice commands.

But the bottom line is still mapping and location accuracy, and accurate and efficient routing. Once you go beyond the standards of a Garmin or a TomTom, it's a crap shoot. People will say they've got this or that GPS and it's not a Garmin or a TomTom, and they just luv it. These are people who, generally speaking, have never used a Garmin or a TomTom. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, there are exceptions to everything, but again, there's a reason these two companies dominate the GPS market, and it's not because of marketing.

GPS units specifically designed for trucking are intriguing, but they are still not there yet, not where they should be. Most, like the Rand McNally units, have great trucker information, but fall short on proper truck routes. The Garmin truck unit went too far with its truck routing and gives too much weight to the STAA truck routes, when they'd have been better off using the same routing algorithms found in their other units. They're working on it. The Rand McNally units are great, except they are the truck map experts, not routing experts, so they have a long way to go, too. The PC Miler unit, well, they took what could have been an awesome product and ruined with a second rate routing program, so try and forget about that one completely. It's pretty bad.

Turtle, I nominate you the Cliff Clavin of Expeditors Online, you sir are an encyclopedia of knowledge

 

[14Wheeler]

Turtle, I nominate you the Cliff Clavin of Expeditors Online,

I think you forgot, one of Cliff's most amazing feats was pulling BS answers to everything right out his behind. He was a know it all "extreme". Turtle actually knows what he's talking about.
The Cliff Clavin award is clearly owned by another member.

 

[greg334]

I think you forgot, one of Cliff's most amazing feats was pulling BS answers to everything right out his behind. He was a know it all "extreme". Turtle actually knows what he's talking about.
The Cliff Clavin award is clearly owned by another member.

But who is that other member?

 

[Dakota]

Equiring minds want to know
Hopefully Turtle didn't take the Cliff Clavin thing as an insult, because it wasn't meant that way.

 

[14Wheeler]

Hopefully Turtle didn't take the Cliff Clavin thing as an insult, because it wasn't meant that way.

I'm sure he knows you didn't mean no disrespect. Gotta admit tho, the Guy really knows his stuff

 

[Turtle]

No, no insult at all. When I do something or learn about something, I'm just one of those who goes "all in" and does it as fully as I can, almost obsessively (some would call it anal, but I've learned that I'm an amateur when it comes to analyzing pedantic minutiae). Learning is fun, generally. There are many subjects that I know absolutely nothing about (and will keep quiet about, unlike Claven - contrary to popular belief, whose who are silently laughing know who you are ). But the things I do take the time to learn about, I try to learn as much about it as I can. Sometimes that can be bad, like with some jobs I've had, where I was all-in, all work and no play, and when I learned all I could and mastered it (at least to my satisfaction or to my interest limit), I get bored or burned out, then move on to something else. But for the most part, a little knowledge about something can be good, but it can also be bad, even dangerous. I figure too much knowledge is better than too little, and explains the reasoning behind some of my more ridiculously long posts.

Sure, some of it's just crazy. Like, who cares where GPS map data comes from? Not many. But it's information that is part of the GPS world and how it all works, so I gotta know it.

There are things I find utterly captivating and fascinating, while others look at me like I'm nuts. I can sit there and watch a column of ants moving along a sidewalk edge for hours. What are they doing? Where are they going? What made them go there? For most people, that's just silly, as I've been told that very thing while watching a column of ants.

 

[Dakota]

So the big question is, and I respect your answer Turtle because you do know your stuff. I have a Garmin 200W that is about three years old and in dire need of an upgrade. Should I buy another Garmin possibly with a little more bells and whistles ie lane assist or maybe the 465t or go for the Rand McNally?
I am used to the garmin and how the maps look and the tricks to getting streets to come up county roads, state highways etc and that is one thing I am not so sure of on the Rand Mcnally.

 

[Turtle]

A lot of things should be considered. For me, it would be a Garmin, hands down, because I know it, know its strengths and weaknesses, and like you said all the tricks and quirks, and I see no reason to learn new tricks and quirks for a unit that will not be better than a Garmin for accuracy in locations and efficiency in routing.

I'm in a van, too, so truck-specific issues aren't all that much of an issue. But in a truck, it would be very tempting to want a truck-specific GPS unit. The problem is, all of them are severely lacking in (IMHO) critical areas.

The PC Miler GPS unit has a ton of useful truck-specific information, like scales and truck stops, truck restrictions, trip cost and HoS calculations, but it's routing program isn't the same as to be found in the much more expensive software-only version of PC Miler. So it's feature rich with bells and whistles, but with less-than ideal routing. I'd rather have good routing.

The Garmin truck GPS unit falls short, too, as they put too much software algorithm emphasis on truck-specific routes, like the STAA routing, which actually favors those two-lane US roads over a parallel or faster Interstate route in many cases.

The Rand McNally, like the PC Miler, has lots of truck-specific bells and whistles, but again the routing is less than stellar.

All three of these you can deal with, once you learn the tendencies and quirks, but I already know the tendencies and quirks of a regular Garmin, and I wouldn't want to have to go thru another learning curve just to get a few truck-specific bells and whistles. Then again, if those bells and whistles are important to you, then you might. I'd still want the better routing and accuracy. I know two guys in straight trucks, one with the Garmin truck GPS, the other with the Rand McNally, and both say they would have been better off keeping their older Garmin because of the routing issues.

Th Garmin Nuvi 200W is old, but not that old, and map updates are available for it. I have a Garmin c-550, which is 5 years old, and it still works fine with the map and software updates, so you may want to consider keeping that one and just doing software and map updates, and then when it finally dies you'd get a new one. Then again, that one is pretty cheap, so it's not like you're throwing a ton of money away in exchange for a new higher end unit. Some of the new bells and whistles are very good to have, and may be worth the upgrade.

But my honest recommendation would be, because all of the truck-specific GPS units aren't really ready for prime time, and they're all too expensive in that light, and there'd be a learning curve on top of that, I'd stick with what you know and get another Garmin Nuvi with the bells and whistles you want, and then deal with the truck-specific issues in the same manner you always have. Or, just update your current one and wait until the truck GPS units finally get there.

 

[highway star]

I've had my 465 for a year now and your take on it is spot on Shelled One. It's quirky, to say the least. I was running south out of K.C. to I44, 71 I think?, and when I got a few miles from 44 it wanted me to get off and take some convoluted route instead of just continuing to 44. I cut 10 minutes off my ETA by not following it. It does this sort of thing quite a bit and I'm sure my 330 would have given me the logical route.

While some will claim otherwise, there's no guarantee it won't put you on a restricted road. I had a pickup in Jersey a couple of weeks ago and it kept wanting me to go on no truck roads. I got myself in and when I left it was easy to find the best route out, which the Garmin, once again, couldn't figure out.

Sometimes it does hit a home run. It has given me good routes that even beat the paid miles by quite a bit. Despite the frustrations, Garmin is a company with a good rep. I bought the map updates for life and my hope is that they'll work out the problems. I'd really like to see them change the clock to running on one time zone!

 

[Dakota]

I'd consider a map upgrade except for one problem, I bought this unit off of Amazon new, and the price was pretty inexpensive. It is almost cheaper to buy a new one with new map software then to upgrade the one I have, also I am not sure how long the screens last on these units as my Nuvi is my first GPS.
I don't need spoken street names or most of the bells and whistles, lane assist would be nice though.
I think I will get another Nuvi and wait till the price comes down on the truck specific GPS. I am in a straight truck and do alot of white glove residential work so I am not really restricted to certain roads. Also I know the areas I work in fairly well, so truck clearance issue are not an issue as I know most of the low clearance areas.
The most important feature on a GPS is updated maps with all the new streets added in so I can find my residential deliveries

 

[layoutshooter]

My impressions of nav systems are as follows and are somewhat out of date. I am no longer selling them nor have access to as much information as I used too.

Garmin: the long time leader in the industry. Solid software, few problems. When I did sell them their handhelds and auto/motorcycle units outsold all others, in our store, by 5 to 1.

Their marine units were lacking and lagged behind in sales. The available charts, for the area in which I lived, were bad, lacking even basic nautical features. Garmin tended to focus on Ocean charts and only gave lip service to the Great Lakes.

Their customer service sucked. They seldom, if ever, responded to sales personal questions and provided no training to sales people. When you could get through to them they basically said " that is how it is" get over it.

Eagle/Lowrance: Not real big in the auto or handheld world. Their marine units outsold all others, in our area, by 10 to 1. Their charts were the most accurate for our area. Very accurate Detroit River and Great Lakes charts.

Their customer service was good and they provided great support to sales staff. They often sent software people to the stores to get ideas from sales staff, train and provide much in the way of sales tools. They often implimented software changes that were passed on from sales staff and customers and even built entire new systems based on that input.

Microsoft Streets and Trips: Finds addresses better than Delorme and about the same or not quite as well as the Rand. They do not have an "ETA" function and their "travel times" are not accurate. This is all based on 2009 version. This version does not have a "mileage countdown" although I do believe that the 2010 version does.

They have never responded to my customer service requests.

Delorme Street Atlas 2009. No longer works on my machine. Their customer service has been a waste of time. No help. I am getting far better assistance from a forum member on this problem.

I did like the ability to insert "via points" when routing and they do have an ETA that is pretty good as well as mileage countdowns.

Rand:

I find it to be as accurate as Streets and Trips. Finds addresses about as well. The lane assist is far more accurate than Streets and Trips. I have only had one instance having it route me into a low bridge. That was in Edmonton, Alberta, on a city street where it told me in advance that trucks were not allowed. (not for height reasons) I was following routing from the shipper.

The ETA and mileage countdowns work well, as well as Delorme, and far better than Streets and Trips.

I do know that they are very active in working on improving this system. They have a network of truck driver system testers and work with them on problems, testing new software and hardware, on a daily basis. I have not attempted to use their customer service but if it is anything like their work with the betatesters it should be good.

 

[Turtle]

The Lifetime Map update is $119.95, and would be worth it for a unit less than 2 years old. The Lifetime Maps are only good for the lifetime of your particular GPS unit, so when it dies so does your Lifetime Maps subscription. The map updates used to be like $70 a year, so if you thunk you'll do updates for 2 or more years, then it's still a good deal. Mine is 5 years old and I hesitate to lay out $120 for a lifetime map that won't last another year or two. The unit may very well last several more years, but it might die next week, or I may finally succumb to some of the neater bells and whistles of the newer units. Most likely, though, I'll run this one until it dies and then the next day I'll be at Best Buy looking for a new one. Until then, there's always P2P and "Garmin City Navigator North America 2011.1 unlocked" torrent files for the map updates.

Layout's points that he touched on are still valid. Garmin Customer Service just sucks. Their tech support isn't bad, but it's still like a lot of them where unless you're problem is on the scripted list, they are clueless.

Garmin owns the land, sea and air, but Lowrance owns the fresh water by a wide margin. On the houseboat, which we no longer have, a Garmin and Lowrance side-by-side was like night and day on Kentucky Lake. It was like the Garmin was on a different lake and river system. It was pretty bad. Like LOS said, even the most basic nautical features were missing.

One thing to note, my old c-550 lets me set a Time Zone, and it sticks. On the 465, go to Tools, Settings, Time, and change the Current Time from Automatic to a manually entered time. Once that's done, it will keep accurate time, but it won't change Time Zones on you. Another way, I think, is to set the World Clock to an Eastern Time Zone city, and then the Garmin will stay on that Time Zone (that one's undocumented, but I think it'll work).

Another point, many of the higher end Nuvis (and other GPS standalones) allow multiple waypoints, or stopping off points, much like Street & Trips. Mine allows for one, and I thought that was going to be a serious problem, seeing how I was used to Streets & Trips, but it turns out that for the most part one works well enough for me in a van. There are workarounds and kludges, but it would still be nice to be able to plop in multiple fuel stops along the way, if nothing else. Those who have multiple stops for delivery on their route, while not necessary, I would imagine that to be a desired feature. Most or all of the units who have that feature will also recalculate all of the stops and rearrange them in the most efficient order, just like S&T does. Not much use for expediting, but for home delivery I can imagine that would be kewl.

 

[layoutshooter]

I never had the chance to run Lowrance salt water charts side by side with Garmin. I would have liked to. I would not be surprised that they have either caught up or surpassed Garmin by now. Just a feeling. The Garmin Detroit River charts are SO bad that the will run you straight into the "Cross Dike" on the east side of Sugar Island. It is only several hundred feet long and about 10 feet above lake level. Nothing major, easy to miss when building charts to be sure.

Garmin fishfinders (sonar) are not all that good either. Eagle/Lowrance outperforms them hands down.

 

[highway star]

I went in and unchecked "automatic" for the time, thanks for the tip.

 

[Turtle]

I never had the chance to run Lowrance salt water charts side by side with Garmin. I would have liked to. I would not be surprised that they have either caught up or surpassed Garmin by now. Just a feeling.

Well, Garmin "owning" the sea, is more the open ocean, largely the result of them owning flight navigation. I would imagine that any place a sport fishing or pleasure craft might go, within several miles of the shoreline, Lowrance is gonna rule.

Garmin fishfinders (sonar) are not all that good either. Eagle/Lowrance outperforms them hands down.

I saw a thing on TV just the other day about tuna fisherman, mainly the ones who use poles and hooks instead of long lines or purse nets. They had all kinds of nifty electronic equipment, radar, sonar and GPS. This one ship had three GPS units, one a Garmin and two a Lowrance. Their sonar units (five different ones, different sensitivities and different directions) were all Lowrance.

 

[layoutshooter]

Well, Garmin "owning" the sea, is more the open ocean, largely the result of them owning flight navigation. I would imagine that any place a sport fishing or pleasure craft might go, within several miles of the shoreline, Lowrance is gonna rule.

I saw a thing on TV just the other day about tuna fisherman, mainly the ones who use poles and hooks instead of long lines or purse nets. They had all kinds of nifty electronic equipment, radar, sonar and GPS. This one ship had three GPS units, one a Garmin and two a Lowrance. Their sonar units (five different ones, different sensitivities and different directions) were all Lowrance.

I agree, Lowrance most likely will have MUCH better inshore charts (out to about 100 miles off shore) than Garmin does. As to sonar units, I ONLY use Lowrance/Eagle. Radar is a different story. I have always liked the Furuno systems. They sort of set the standard. Every boat I ever worked on or fished off of that had radar, even in the UK, had a Furuno radar. 9 out of 10 at "Shanty Town", Ocean City, MD, when I used to work on charters had them as well.

When my son was on subs that got "lashed" pretty good by a fish finder. It was a salt water (50khz vs. 200khz for fresh or shallow water. ) Lowrance system. They surfaced to find out who lashed them and with what kind of unit. They were running at 600' when they got lashed.

 

[cc194217]

Well at this point I cannot recommend anyone buy the TND 700 still unable to install the device driver on the computer so it can connect to the TND dock and customer service has not been much help especially when they are only open 8 to 5 Mon to Friday, they said the TND needs to be fully charged and then if it still doent install the device driver to leave the usb connection connected for 30 minutes or longer and see what happens well did that, then they say it is my laptop power manger is not letting enough power go to the usb (bull) then they ask am i using the usb cable that came with the TND700 Duh yes , now they say I should go home and put it on my desk top, what the (blank)! if I can not use it with my laptop then its no good to me since I dont have a darn desktop and I am on the road months at a time. Really thinking of taking it back to the J and getting my money back

Let me clear up a few items. I am the lead Beta tester for Rand.

The device driver is already on your computer. It is a common device driver for the USB ports.

The newer computers, for some reason have decreased the mA output of the USB ports. The TND 700 requires more mA than the port can support. This was not know before and just have come to light the past month or so. Rand cannot check their TND's on every brand of computer\laptop their is. In testing the USB Power Hubs we are finding they are limiting the mA output below what the TND 700 needs. We have tried the dual USB to mini cable also and it did not work.

The 30 minutes connected. I have a Toshiba and when I connected my TND 700 to it, it took about 30 minutes to properly load and talk to the TND 700.

As far as the USB cable, yes Rand recommends using the USB cable that came in the box. Other USB cables such as what you may use for you camera were found to drop data due to the higher cap\rest of the wiring. If you drop data during your updates then you can stand the chance of having corrupted files.

It is recommended to charge the TND for about 2 hours out of the box. If you power it up and try to use it right out of the box the battery may not have enough charge on it and it can corrupts files.

Customer service. I am sure you are aware of the times we are in. The tech support is located in the USA. If you ever need support outside of normal business hours then by means E-Mail me.

[email protected]

I hold a valid CDL class A. So, I know the hours you keep.

Rand has over 100 Beta testers whom are all drivers. So, do not feel like Rand is not listening to you.

Thanks,
Mark

 

[cc194217]

I bought one at the TA in Laredo May 4. Worked for bout a week until I shut it off and turned it back on again to soon. Screen came up saying "System File Missing" call customer support.
Customer support is 9-5 Mon- Fri. only. Apparently they are not aware their customers work 24-7-365 but thats another story. Customer support tells me to return the unit to TA which I did and TA gave me another one. This one lasted a week before the System File Missing. I now knew to return it which I did once more. The third unit went bad while trying to download the update feature to my Laptop.
Customer Support when contacted said to get another one and not to try and Update it. She also told me then that you have to wait after turning it off for a few minutes before turning it back on. The instructions failed to mention this.
As for its other features I had it side by side with my Garmin Nuvi 760 which I have had for over 2 years and the Nuvi gave better directions 90 % of the time and always the shortest miles.

I have tried the new Garmin 465T and now the TND 700 and imo neither can beat the Nuvi overall.

Do you turn your truck off and then right back on again? Probably not. You give it a few minutes. The same with electronics. Does your truck manual mention that? Sometimes common sense has to prevail. They cannot put down every little thing in the manual.

When you update, make sure you have a good high speed internet signal. A poor or low signal will cause data loss in file transfers. If you just updated and the TND is not acting correctly, but does not show system files missing, this is not a life threating issue. If you E-mail me then the issue can be resolved. A lot of times depending on the issue you can delete certain folders and the TND will rebuild. BUT, BUT, BUT, do not delete folders unless instructed to.

As far as the error System Files Missing. This is due to when the TND is shutting down and is still doing a read\write to the internal flash. Rand has checks in place to prevent this, but sometimes this still happens. Rand can either replace the TND, you can return it to the truck stop, or E-Mail me and I can send out a Flash SD card to rewrite the firmware.

thanks,
Mark

 

[cc194217]

For those who are having a problem, ask customer service to send you the drivers and if they refuse, ask to speak to someone like a supervisor and get their name. Then ask them if they can explain to you why this problem exists.

The two units I had here all crapped out on me after a week, one I could not get to work even with a fresh windows X install. I spent sometime on the phone with these idiots and told them simply that it is defective product and demanded that they send me the drivers, which I am still waiting for them. My client who I was reviewing them for, talked to T/A management to complain about the poor quality of the product and how this makes T/A look like idiots, one reason why it isn't on the shelves at some T/As.

The drivers are already on your computer. It is an issue with the newer computers putting out less mA to the USB port. The TND 700 requires a greater mA than the port can provide.

The TND 700 was out of stock and the new factory run hit the warehouses last week.

Thanks,
Mark