Connection Lost Using GO Discover?

[Charles Holder]

I purchased a GO Discover some time ago and it has worked quite well.
Unfortunately for about a week now it is getting lost!
It either reports directions half a mile behind where I am or shows me traveling off-road somewhere near where I am.
On a couple of occasions, I have had a big black banner at the bottom of the screen saying something about connection but as I am driving I can't spend too much time trying to read it.

I have switched it off and on.
I have updated the maps.
I have checked the connection to my phone.

What have I missed?
Any ideas, please?

 

[canderson]

It sounds as though your device is losing GPS lock ("traveling off-road") and ("half a mile behind").
Phone connections and maps won't have anything to do with this, so you needn't try anything else related to those.

Is the chevron (your location indicator) gray or blue when your device reports directions that are behind you, and where IS the indicator (where you are or behind you) when this happens? A gray chevron indicates a loss of GPS lock.

Is this problem happening in a specific geographic area, or does it happen in randomly different places where you are traveling?

Let's start with the least inconvenient step. Try a soft reset and report back to let us know if this helps at all:

Hold the power button about 20 seconds till you hear the drum sounds and then immediately let go of the button. The device will reboot.

 

[Charles Holder]

Hi.
Thank you for your reply.
I have done the drum twice, but I will have another go and report back later tomorrow when I have tested it again

 

[Charles Holder]

Hi. The GPS has failed a couple of times today in places it has never failed before. It can last for a couple of seconds or 3 or 4 minutes. There does not seem to be any pattern as I have just driven a route without a problem that two days ago was a total loss for about a mile. So, it seems to be random. The Blue arrow seems to be constant but when I am driving in heavy traffic, I am not constantly looking at the screen, I just know it is not working.

 

[canderson]

Whether the 'arrow' is blue or not is very important.

If a GPS lock is lost, the arrow turns gray very quickly. If it's gray, all bets are off regarding where you are vs. where the device thinks you might be. If it is blue, then it might not be 100% accurate if the lock is poor, or if there is an issue with the map accuracy which usually only happens when a road alignment was changed and the map doesn't know about it.

If blue, and it's a road that hasn't changed, then even with a poor lock, the difference shouldn't be more than a hundred feet or so. If the arrow is blue and is a mile away from your position, there is something really wrong with the way that device is behaving, but it's important to watch the arrow color to be sure. In rare cases, and why I asked if the problem was in particular places, fixed location interference in the GPS band can cause some weird results. You would see a loss of lock or really bad position but only when you passed by certain places. OTOH ... over the last years, GPS jammers used by truckers to avoid their company's location logging have been known to cause this in random locations. But that isn't something you would see frequently, and it sounds like your situation is frequent.

Is it still within the 1 year warranty?

 

[Charles Holder]

Hi. Yes, it is only 6 months old. What I don't understand is, it has been faultless all this time and now it is Ok a lot of the time but then screws me about but not in the same place as the last time. i.e. I live in Maidstone Kent (but don't hold that against me) two days ago on a dual carriageway through the middle of town it went Gaga and did not have a clue where it was. Today I have been on the same road traveling in the same direction twice and it has been OK. However, at a different location Gaga. When it did go awry today, the arrow was blue but on another road to the one I was on, and it had a row of blue dots leading to the road I was on. however, it seemed confused by turning a corner, and could not decide what was happening for several long seconds. Yes, only seconds but when you are not sure where you are going, you can't stop in the middle of the road while it finds itself. I use or try to use it all the time and can't afford to lose it in the Christmas post. So inconvenient. Technology is a curse.

 

[canderson]

Interesting symptoms.

"Blue dots" indicates a non-navigable (by vehicle, anyway) or non-existant road/path/whatever is being shown to indicate where you need to be. It would be interesting to see exactly where that was, if you can come up with the coordinates. If need be, use Google maps and see if you can provide me with the road you were on and the road where you were going, and an idea where the blue dots were. I want to try to force that route on the TomTom mapping system to see why it was doing that to you. That one sounds like a map error issue.

When you turned that corner you mentioned, was it at an expected turn that the device had plotted for you on a route, and did you deviate from the route? With a weaker lock, and lower firmware confidence in the GPS data, if you make a turn other than what is plotted, it can take longer than usual couple of seconds to believe the GPS data rather than what was anticipated. If you turned in an expected (on route) direction at that corner, and it failed to catch up to you, that again would point to a poor GPS lock that might be worth dealing with under warranty at your retailer.

 

[Charles Holder]

Hi. Thank you for your reply. The blue dot syndrome was on a planned route. I took the planned turning but at the time was not sure it was the correct turn. The device started to become confused, and only after I had made the turn and traveled a couple of hundred yards did it catch up. It has also happened this week while driving through the town where I have driven hundreds of times previously without a problem. On the last occasion, it had me driving through a block of flats on my left and then switching to being in the river on my right. Last night I went on that route without a problem.

I purchased directly from TomTom (Switzerland I think) in June. So not an easy fix.

 

[canderson]

On the last occasion, it had me driving through a block of flats on my left and then switching to being in the river on my right. Last night I went on that route without a problem.

I purchased directly from TomTom (Switzerland I think) in June. So not an easy fix.

That unit is definitely struggling for a decent GPS fix, sometimes weak, occasionally lost.
I take it that you have not recently changed vehicles or had your windscreen replaced?

 

[Charles Holder]

Hi. No, nothing has changed except the way the satnav works. I think I will have to struggle through Christmas and see how things are.
Thank you for your help.

 

[Charles Holder]

I have completed a Factory reset and have been out today.
Hopeless. The satnav was giving directions from a different road to the one I was on and swinging every way round.
I have been trying to contact Tomtom but the un-Help Bot connected me to technical in the US who wanted a US phone number to call me back.
I can't get any help.
As this is only just 5 months old, I am peed off and want to talk to someone. If anyone can give me a working phone number, I would appreciate it.

 

[Willy875]

Hi

It is no longer possible to reach customer service by phone.
To speak to a Tomtom agent, you must do so during office hours via chat.

How to contact TomTom customer support by chat or email

How to contact TomTom support

Visit our Support Site or browse through our Support Videos and User Manuals for quick answers from specific troubleshooting steps to general information on TomTom devices and services. To ge...

help.tomtom.com

*
How to contact TomTom customer support by email

Submit a request – TomTom Support

help.tomtom.com

 

[dhn]

Willy, in future, please communicate here in English as that is the format for this forum.

Thanks.

 

[Charles Holder]

So much for that:-
Are you sure you want to send this refund request? It looks short. You are creating a refund request ticket with support stating 'Not working properly
Yes; send my message
No, I want to type a longer message
I say
GPS keeps failing and the unit is useless. It has failed within 4 months and is unfit for purpose. I either want a refund or a replacement. It is not reasonable for me to send it for repair as I will be without it for too long. An exchange for new would be acceptable
Skill says

What is the reason or requesting a refund?
I say
Unit not working properly after only 4 months
Skill says

Do you want to send an attachment with your message?
Yes
No
I say
No
Skill says

Please try again later.
I say
Try what?
Skill says

No matches were found. Here are some things you can do:
Quick Assistance
What do you need help with?

 

[canderson]

Hi. No, nothing has changed except the way the satnav works. I think I will have to struggle through Christmas and see how things are.
Thank you for your help.

You said "I purchased directly from TomTom (Switzerland I think) in June. So not an easy fix."

Am hoping there's a way to get it back directly to your retail source under warranty - but in this case, that would be TomTom in ?Switzerland? I didn't realize they even had an office in Switzerland. Maybe just a distribution center of some kind?

There's a big office there in the U.K. where you are. Did you buy from the TomTom website while you were in the U.K.? Do you still have a paper or electronic receipt for the purchase?

 

[Charles Holder]

Hi. My mistake. Purchased from TomTom International Amsterdam.
I think the way they are treating people is disgusting.
I have all the paperwork and will be making further complaints.
I have found an email for the CEO Harold Goddijn in Amsterdam and told him what I think. It will either go straight in the bin or someone will at least make contact.
I will have to see.
How they treat customers is the worst I have ever had to endure.
I have owned at least one TomTom since 2005 and only last year had Three. However, I must now start looking at other makes like Garmin to see what they can offer.

 

[elton]

Hello Charles. I too have had a 'wayward' Go Discover but it has been quite infrequent. There has been no advice I can offer to rectifying it. With me it has always corrected itself after a short, but annoying, journey.

After exploring many frustrating methods to complain about the windscreen mount to TomTom, I finally had success using the email: (e-mail address removed)
I have shared this email with a few people [recently in the UK] and all have had success with it.

Perhaps you may could try that ... I wish you success.

 

[Charles Holder]

Hi. Thank you. I will give my email to the CEO a day and see what happens, then try your suggestion. For me, this problem has been a random but daily event over the last two weeks or more. Just not acceptable. I even set up my phone to track GPS and the signal is there, so the problem must be with the tomtom itself. Unfortunately, as the Go Discover goes "AWAL" while I am driving, it is impossible to take photographs of what is happening. [It's a Schrödinger's cat. It happens but I can't prove it.] Yet. If I have to throw it in the bin, I won't be at all pleased.

 

[Charles Holder]

OK.
We have lift-off.
Apparently, the CEO of TomTom knows some important people.

I will post what happens later.

 

[canderson]

OK.
We have lift-off.
Apparently, the CEO of TomTom knows some important people.

I will post what happens later.

At present, we (here) really don't have a good idea of how TomTom is handling warranty issues in Europe when purchases are made directly from TomTom, so I hope that you get a clear version of the normally recommended approach from the boss, whatever the heck it is, and not something unusual. If so, others can also benefit from whatever you discover. It's something we would probably publish prominently here. No need for everyone to go through your poor experience unnecessarily.

Looking forward to you updates!