TomTom Unit Has No Maps, Will Not Reformat, and Will Not Load New Maps

Is your TomTom unit compatible with the OS version you are using?

As in older mapping unit, newer computers? I run into this fairly often with computer managed access control systems; somebody buys a new laptop and the old access control system (that has run fine for four years) will not operate on the new computer OS.

Oh, I'm with you on that.

To cite a case: Recently had a customer with computer managed access control system, no trouble for four or five years. He feels the need for a new laptop (okay, I can see that) and moves the affected access files to the new machine. CATASTROPHIC FAIL. By the time it was functioning again, he had purchased a software update/upgrade, a new data transfer device, a new token enrollment device, and upgraded the access control tokens (the little access key-fob type things)... about two thousand bucks... all of this because of an incompatibility issue with the latest M$ version.

This does not surprise me in the least. It's so frustrating! I just want it to work when I plug it in and turn it on. I'm surprised after today, that I still have any hair left. I think I pulled it all out. It's maddening.

I hear you! It's so frustrating!

Thank you for your reply! I used the same computer I originally used when setting up the GPS. No major software or OS upgrades. :-)

I commend you on your perseverance. Not everyone can endure 3 hours of customer service torture.

Try some of these forums:

TomTom Forums

yourTomTom Forum

Pocket GPS World - SatNavs | GPS | Speed Cameras Forums-TomTom

ANN: US TomTom user group forum

I've retired my Garmin in favor of a smart phone. Now, if someone culd just make me smart enough to use it.

Thank you so much for these links! I will certainly check them out and see if any of them help me. It's a great place to start :-)

This one intrigued me! I have an iPhone 4. I just downloaded Google Maps as well as a MapQuest app. If these free apps work for my phone, then maybe I can tell TomTom where to shove their non-functioning GPS unit....

On my I-Phone Verizon is my provider, I have Verizon Navigator, it is a couple a bucks/month? I think 3.00 or 4.00, but it also gives up to the minute traffic reports.

But I hear some bad things about verizon, rarely experience them.

I have Sprint service. I wonder if they have a similar program like Verizon. Worth checking into! Thanks!

Talk about bad PR! The 100,000 or so people who subscribe to CR4 now know:

1. If you have a problem with updating a Tom-Tom's maps, their only response is to sell you a new one.

2. If you have a SmartPhone, you can get all the functions of a Tom-Tom for free--Google Maps, MapQuest, etc.

Hmmmm...what effect will this have on Tom-Tom sales? I know I'll never try to upgrade my Tom-Tom's maps and will never buy another one when it fails.

Maybe it's time to fire the director of customer service at Tom-Tom and re-evaluate their policy on this. At the very least, they should say, "Send it in and we'll fix it."

cannot write to the internal file - has your unit got an SD card? If so, is it seated properly, and has it been removed recently? There is a small switch on most SD cards to prevent overwriting data, this may have been moved.

I have a Garmin stand-alone nav system, and I ran into a problem the very first time I tried to update the maps; the very first map update available for my unit would no longer fit on the devices built-in flash-RAM! How's that for forced obsolescence! Luckily, the unit does have an SD card slot, and the larger map database can be saved and accessed from the SD card. It makes updating the maps a little more complicated, but at least I can still make use of the lifetime map updates I purchased from Garmin. Now I see that Garmin is including lifetime updates when you buy a new unit, figures they'd do that after I shelled out the money for a lifetime subscription!

My point is; are you sure the latest map update will fit in your unit? The map databases seem to grow larger with each version.

Tom D.

Ohhhh...that's a good point. I honestly don't know! I don't see a spot for an SD card slot, but that isn't to say there isn't one. I will try that route. I am so darn frustrated with this whole thing!! Thanks for your help! :-)