Confused - which ONE to buy?

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Sep 9, 2007
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TomTom Model(s)
ONE V2/4?
O.K. I've done a little lurking and searching and reading on this and a few other forums and still don't know which ONE should I buy - the V2 or new V3.

I live in the US, love to tinker and tweak with my devices like most people here do. I happily GeoCache with a Garmin eTrex Vista. I'm looking for a good valued GPS. I purchased the Garmin 660 a few weeks ago and promptly returned it after realizing it wasn't worth the $600. This unit is going to be used in our vehicles for local and long distance trips/routing unless we can also use it for GeoCaching. I don't think I will be using this unit outside of US/Canada.

I'd like to know a few things:

1. What are the exact hardware and software differences between the ONE v2 and ONE v3? I understand that a "new" V2 will probably have an older map/dataset than the new V3. Can I upgrade the V2 to the same map set (for free?)? Can I use MapShare on the V2 or is it a V3 only thing? GPS magazine's review implies I can pair the older ONE with my bluetooth phone to get data services sent right to my ONE (I have a blackberry pearl and have heard of some problems with some blackberry units). The V3 doesn't mention anything about bluetooth on the box. TomTom's website is of no help, either.

2. Why is the V2 better than the V3 in terms of tweakability? The obvious answer is the V2's SD card slot but is the V3 limited otherwise (is the V3 memory already full so that I can't add voices, applications to help geocaching, etc?)

3. Is there any reason to buy a V3 over the V2 if they were the same price?

I have a unopened V3 on my desk sitting next to me. I can get either V2 or V3 here for the same price.

Thanks! I hope this thread ends up being the last one for noob's need to read when wondering which ONE they should buy.
 
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The v2 vs. v3 debate has been done before...it basically boils down to this


1) Do you want traffic updates via the RDS-TMC antenna (v3 only), or do you want to get them through bluetooth connection to your cell phone (cell phone data service required, v2)

2) Will the extra space matter? With the default 1gig of storage you can get a map (for instance US and Can), some voices, some map colors, and some applications. But you cannot go overboard. I filled mine up in a heart beat, and ended up having to be more selective. I ultimated upgraded my SD card when I decided to add movies to my One...but I could have gotten by without the extra card without the need for movies.

3) You can use mapshare on both units, but you will have to make sure you can upgrade to the latest mapset for the v2 (v3 will already come with it). Some people say you can upgrade for free with a code in the box, but I am not 100% sure on that one. Either way I read that in Oct there is going to be a larger map update, so both version may have to pay to upgrade. You can however get navcore 7 and full mapshare with the v2 as of now (with map 6.75)

Hope that helps.
 
It seems to me the 3rd edition (which is different from V4, which is still considered 2nd edition, it also happens to be what I have...) is a little pared down. The lack of expandable memory would really bother me, you wouldn't be able to even upgrade to the 6.75 North American maps if I understand everything correctly. You'd have a little wiggle room with 1 GB internal, but not much.

Also, on the ONE that I have, there is an option for adding the traffic antenna... as far as I know the 3rd edition doesn't have this antenna built in but rather just the option of adding it as well, so you wouldn't be missing out if you ended up wanting to add that feature.

Again, it's just my opinion, but the 3rd edition seems to be a little more watered down version of the 2nd edition... but with the advantage of coming out of the box with new maps and firmware. The firmware upgrade is already available for 2nd editions, and the newest maps should also be available sometime soon (I've heard start of October?).

Again, a personal choice, but I think the 2nd edition V4 ONE is the more attractive option.
 
I got V4, why still argue for v1, v2!

I think v3 refers to the new TT One 3rd edition that is just now becoming available in the U.S. (some folks have reported buying it in the U.S., but my local CC, BB, OD, and Staples did not have any 2 days ago).

So, what the heck is a v4?
 
I think v3 refers to the new TT One 3rd edition that is just now becoming available in the U.S. (some folks have reported buying it in the U.S., but my local CC, BB, OD, and Staples did not have any 2 days ago).

So, what the heck is a v4?

It's a good question...it's confusing for me too.

I would have to say a v4 would be the ONE w/Global Locate chip (opposed to SiRFIII) and 1GB internal memory even if v4 indicates a newer version than v3 but actually its not.

Confused? Same here... :D
 
V4

I think v3 refers to the new TT One 3rd edition that is just now becoming available in the U.S. (some folks have reported buying it in the U.S., but my local CC, BB, OD, and Staples did not have any 2 days ago).

So, what the heck is a v4?

I have the V4. I just got it from staples. I believe it has the lower cost hammerhead chip, it has a SD slot but all maps are loaded on the built in 1GB memory. It has v665 maps. and mine has the 7.120 upgrade. It locks in to more sats. than my Holux GPS receiver did with a Sirf 3 chip. For the price it's not a bad unit.
What does't make sense to me is if the V3 is the newest unit why is there a V4 which is older.
 
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The confusion lies in the semantics.

The "V4" is still a SECOND EDITION. By my understanding, the newest ONE is now being called the THIRD EDITION.

I might be off, but that's my understanding.
 
When I registed my device (V4) to TomTom via TomTom Home, the web site says "TomTom ONE New Edition with Software update".
it is not V2 or TomTom ONE 3RD Edition, it is called "TomTom ONE New Edition".
it gets sat signal just seconds (almost instant).
 
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O.K. So I ended up buying a TomTom ONE. It has the connector for the external GPS antenna, SD card slot, 1 gig internal memory, the Serial # starts with a Z. There's no headphone out. The bluetooth won't connect with my blackberry pearl on Tmobile with unlimited data :( so I can't get weather and traffic updates unless I get a phone that will work.

The software seems to have been updated to the latest as soon as I installed it on my computer. The firmware is 7.120 and Maps are 6.75.

I'm guessing this is the V2 in the US. I returned the V3 that I got from walmart (no SD slot, audio output hole?, TMC antenna input, bulit in RAM, already updated to the latest firmware). I wanted to do a side-by-side comparison but I figured I'd rather not open the package of the V3 because I knew I probably didn't really want it and felt bad for the guy that had to buy a non-virgin V3 ONE since that's the only one they had :)

So far I'm impressed but wish I could do the Plus services (weather, traffic) while connected to the computer so I could update it before I left for work and then again before I left for home thru my computers but it seems the only way the V2 wants to do it is over the non-functional bluetooth.

I was hoping to use this for music and movies (just to do it, not that I don't have other devices for that) for the road and would have liked to plug it into my radio's input so the voice could interrupt while I was listening to my mp3's or watching podcasts but I guess I'll have to just crank up the volume on this and not listen to my radio on long trips :(
 
When I registed my device (V4) to TomTom via TomTom Home, the web site says "TomTom ONE New Edition with Software update".
it is not V2 or TomTom ONE 3RD Edition, it is called "TomTom ONE New Edition".
it gets sat signal just seconds (almost instant).

Right, the "New Edition" is the same as the "second edition"... a lot of people mistakenly refer to this as "V2" which it isn't necessarily. The ones that have just come out that lack an SD card slot are 3rd EDITION, not V3. I have a Second Edition V4 as well. Are you running the older firmware version or have you updated to the newest Navcore 7? I used to get an almost instantaneous GPS fix, then I updated my firmware and now it takes a little longer... hopefully they manage to work that bug out soon!.
 
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