Go720 wont charge from in car?

[mark 3]

Hi all, first post on here so hello to you all.

I got a problem with my Go720, its been fine then today for some reason it wouldn't charge in car on the tomtom charger thats been there for ages, the charger in that car does work when plugged into other devices.

Also it wont charge from an indoor 240 volt charger (and it used too) also i have three other cars all with there own chargers all of which work but none of them will charge it either BUT it will charge when in the PC docking station on my desktop and if connected to usb on my laptop?????

its almost like there is a setting in the tomtom for non PC chargers that needs to be enabled but i cant any such setting, and if there was why would it suddenly come into operation? its all very odd!

anyone got any ideas?

 

[dhn]

Strange........

From your description, the 720 WILL accept a charge from a reduced source (such as a computer) which puts out about .5A but refuses a charge from a car charger (1.0 A to 1.2A) or a mains charger (over 1.A as well).

I doubt a pin reset on the unit will help but try it ............

One of the techie guys should see this post and give better advice so check back.

 

[mark 3]

Thanks for your reply, i tried the basic reset by pressing something small into the hole in the units base, i have also tried reset factory settings and also restored it to an earlier time as well but its the same, not sure what a pin reset is?

 

[dhn]

That is using the reset hole on the bottom, which you apparently did....

Are you **sure** the device charges when connected to a computer? Just because you see the green light, that doesn't necessarily mean it is charging, just receiving power.

If you keep the 720 connected to the computer for a few hours, does the battery power increase on the unit?

 

[mark 3]

Hi, if i have the display up on the tomtom that shows battery charge it shows it is charging, the green bar getting bigger and bigger.

 

[dhn]

On the unit or on the Emulator (Operate my Unit) in Home? If the latter, forget it. That is just a simulation.

What you need to do is turn on the device without its being attached and make a note of how far along the battery shows.

Then connect to the computer for a couple of hours. DISCONNECT and turn on device again. Does the battery show more fully charged after the couple of hours?

 

[mark 3]

On the unit it self. i dont have to even switch it on for it to show the green charge light, if i do switch it on and show battery condition its charging.

if i then plug it into another charger, car or indoor, it does nothing.

 

[dhn]

Humour me .........

1. Take the unit out of the dock with the unit turned OFF. Is the green light lit?
2. Turn on the device. Note how strong the battery is charged. Turn device OFF.
3. Connect to the Dock. Turn computer on (if it is off). Is the green light lit.
4. Leave the device in the dock with the device OFF for 2 hours and the computer ON.
5. Remove device from dock. Turn it on. Is the battery level greater than, equal to or less than the level you noted in step 2 above?

 

[mark 3]

I have actually left it doing this and yes its has more charge in it now than this morning, this morning it was so flat it was shutting it self down.

Incidentally the battery isn't brilliant and don't last much longer than 40 to 45 mins but im sure that isn't the problem.

As i said it does everything its supposed to do apart from accept charge from anything other than a charger plugged into a computer!

 

[dhn]

You said none of your other car chargers will charge the 720, correct? Does the car charger that came with the 720 charge other devices?

 

[mark 3]

Yes, that works fine, as do the other 4 chargers i have in other cars, they all work fine with other devices.

 

[dhn]

I'm afraid I've 'hit the wall' with any further hardware-oriented suggestions. Your symptoms do seem to point to some chip/transitor on the motherboard of the device not working properly but I don't know what direction to steer you in.

Some of my colleagues are very much tech oriented and know the proper questions to ask and, further, whether it is worth your while trying to get the problem fixed.

Check back at a later time (before bedtime, your time ) or tomorrow to see if anybody else has responded.

Sorry I couldn't help further.................

 

[mark 3]

Well thank you for your time, its much appreciated indeed :thumb:

I have come to the conclusion that its buggered and also in the last hour seen another on the bay of E for not much money so il buy that and see if i can get this one working just so i can find out what the problem is as it really don't seem to be a logical fault at all, i would assume the device gets an additional signal when connected to a PC which is don't get when connected to a charger only and this signal is having some affect on its ability to accept a charge voltage.. i would assume? lol

Im not happy to take it apart and the last one i did that to to fit a new battery too ended up with the screen ribbon wire connector breaking, it seemed there was no way it could be removed without breaking the connector but that wasn't seen until it had been taken of the mother board, or so it seemed, lol

 

[dhn]

As I said, there WILL be other replies in this thread, it just may take a day or so.........

 

[mark 3]

Ok il look out for them, thanks again...

 

[canderson]

What concerns me is that, if I am reading all the details correctly, the unit will charge from the PC but no other source. As dhn points out, the difference is that the USB port on a PC is almost always limited to 500mA, while external chargers are typically capable of much higher current.

If you leave the unit on the PC charge for 4 hours or more, it should fully charge up, but if I'm reading this correctly, even that isn't the case (it's much slower). Will the device eventually fully charge from the PC or no? If so, can you still get that 40~45 minutes on the battery after it is fully charged?

It makes me wonder if the internal charging circuit on the 720 can no longer handle a high current charge rate.

 

[Andy_P]

I've got one more background question,just to try to get my head round what might be going on...

You say the TomTom won't CHARGE from the car charger, but does it GET POWERED from the car charger?

In other words, if the battery is flat and you connect it to the car charger, can you use it as normal (but it won't get any more charge in the battery), or will it not power up at all?

 

[mark 3]

What concerns me is that, if I am reading all the details correctly, the unit will charge from the PC but no other source. As dhn points out, the difference is that the USB port on a PC is almost always limited to 500mA, while external chargers are typically capable of much higher current.

If you leave the unit on the PC charge for 4 hours or more, it should fully charge up, but if I'm reading this correctly, even that isn't the case (it's much slower). Will the device eventually fully charge from the PC or no? If so, can you still get that 40~45 minutes on the battery after it is fully charged?

It makes me wonder if the internal charging circuit on the 720 can no longer handle a high current charge rate.

If i leave it on pc charger it charges the battery to full in about an hour, maybe less, this will then power the unit for 1hr 35 mins just standing there switched on BUT if i actually use it it only lasts 15 mins, i guess cos its actually doing something, battery isnt much good but i don't think this is a battery related problem

I've got one more background question,just to try to get my head round what might be going on...

You say the TomTom won't CHARGE from the car charger, but does it GET POWERED from the car charger?

In other words, if the battery is flat and you connect it to the car charger, can you use it as normal (but it won't get any more charge in the battery), or will it not power up at all?

If i plug it into a car charger (or anything other than a pc) it wont charge and nor will it be powered up either. basically if its not plugged into a pc its like i haven't plugged it in at all.

I got another last night from some guy on Ebay, a Go530 (£60) and that works just fine on all the other car chargers i have so there all good, but i knew that, lol.

If i can get this one fixed i would be pleased even though i have a replacement

The way its gone is like i need to go into settings and enable the "accept charge from non PC sources" setting, lol

P.S. thanks for all your help so far :thumb:

 

[Tomnik]

I have a GO520 with exactly the same problem as mark3. My unit charges on the desktop but not in the car - ALTHOUGH - if the unit is in the car, connected to the charger, and switched off, it seems to charge.
When I switch it back on (after about an hour's drive), and check the battery level, there has been some charge going in. But then it starts running down.

Another anomaly is when its on the desktop PC charger, below the battery icon, it states 'charging'. However, when in the car (& I have sat there with the engine turning over!) the word 'charging' apears only intermittently (if at all).

All Mark3's symptoms apply - have used other cars/chargers etc

Please help - or is a visit to ebay needed??

Best regards
John

 

[dhn]

Either the ciggy lighter output is faulty or the car charger.

Can you try in another car? Have you other devices (Smart phone, etc.) that have a car charger? You want to isolate which is the problem