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i bought an 'oem' cable from ebay for my f500bt. it works fine with iOS5 / iPhone 4s (if anyone was wondering).

pardon the noob question , but what is "DEM"? I downloaded the maps from here but i never got around to updating them. I notice the size is different between the two (not to mention i cant find "DEM"); are the ones that dragon24 posted different (and intended for F series specifically)? Thank you.

YES!! After a software AND a hardware mod it works! Thanks for the very detailed instructions hieppo! And to whoever seeded, and of course OP.

 

Thought I might add, to go to the blue screen on the F500BT v 1.00, you hold reset and power WHILE THE AVIC IS OFF.

 

Just went for a celebratory drivce at 11PM. Love it!

OK after some digging around in all these threads with weird headings, I was able to find the service combination for F500BT unit.

 

I found it in this thread. http://avic411.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=27581&start=60#p206891.

 

MAP, MAP, MENU, ENTER (Press down on the joystick), MENU then ENTER.

 

Here is the other helpful item from that thread. You can only use the RESET button in this service menu.

 

So to move from option to option, you press RESET quickly one by one. To select, you hold down RESET for 1/2 second or so.

 

When it ask for you to reset, hold both RESET and POWER for a few seconds until it reset.

 

I was able to flash the new WinCE and copy over the My Flash Disk from OP. Everything seems to be working so far.

 

Good luck.

 

Update!!

 

Now that I had a chance to fully tested, there is no guidance voice on the F500BT like the two previous F500BT users posted on this thread. I noticed something was weird when the sound volume is really low.

 

I guess the hacked EZRIDER in this rar file is not fully compatible with F500BT. Guess back to the drawing board.

 

SUCCESS!! WOWEEEE!! Everything is a success! I found the issue and fix the audio issue.

 

Please following this instruction for the F500BT model. I was very successful.

 

You need only a single SD card, at least 2GB in size. Copy the entire contents of the RAR file except for the WINCEIMG.BIN and WINCEIMG.CKS to the root of SD card. For the two WINCE*.* files, I had to use the one I download from this link. http://www.rapidshare.ru/1206567

The one that came with the FX3.1 would not allow me to boot after I flash WinCE>

 

You will need to go to the folder APL2iGo and delete the current sys.txt and rename sys_749UC.txt to sys.txt.

You can delete the other sys_*****.txt files and any maps that you may not use. You may need to do this because the F500BT may not the capacity for all the new maps.

 

1. Insert SD card (minimum 2GB) with testmode into AVIC and turn it on.

2. Backup My Flash Disk by copying

3. When the pioneer logo comes up, press and hold the power and reset buttons at the same time until the blue service screen comes up then release power and reset buttons. (you should see Press reset again to reset but don't press reset yet)

4. Press in this order MAP, MAP, MENU, ENTER (down on joystick), MENU then ENTER. (each button press will show an asterisk at the bottom center of the screen). If the correct combination is pressed, then a menu with options pops up.

5. Select Wince Upgrade with Format (SD)

6. At the bottom center will first display the status of reading in the file. It then will clear the message and will show the status of writing the file. Then it will do a quick test. Wait until it says restart in the bottom center. Reset the unit and leave the SD card in (remember to reset you have to press and hold both power and reset buttons.)

7. You should be greeted with testmode (It will look very similar to normal windows). Open Explorer and copy the contents of the "My Flash Drive" Folder from the SD card to the "My Flash Drive" that is located on the unit. Overwrite everything. (It will the copying will take 140min but will only take about 20)

8. On the desktop should be an icon to RESTART the unit. Double click on that to restart, make sure you take out the SD card so normal boot process happens.

8. Select your language and voice options.

9. Enjoy FX3.1

 

A special bonus, I was able to download the latest 2010 maps from here http://gpsunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?2688-iGo-8.0-and-8.3-Navteq-And-Teleatlas-Map-Download-Index.-All-here./page25 into the F500BT without any issue. You will need to delete the older maps and just copy the MAPS, POI and BUILDINGS to the respected folder under /APL2/iGO/CONTENT

 

Really GOOD Luck now and enjoy to those able to succeed.

thank you retell and an even bigger thank you to hieppo

I got this working on my F500 (thanks OP!) with a a WinCE image specific to my model, the only quirks so far are:

 

- no voice guidance like others have experienced - anybody find a solution?

- in 3D map mode, the street names only appear when smart zoom kicks on (while moving slowly).

 

Other than that it appears to work very well overall. BTW, apparently GOOG411 will be disco on Nov 12th

 

http://www.google.com/goog411/

 

Anybody get GoogleMaps running on their unit?

i dont have issues with voice guidance but i do have problems with TTS. Also i have the same problem in 3D, did you by chance happen to find a solution?

Thanks and ordered

Can anyone recommend a screen protector for the F500bt? Thanks in advance!

Is it possible to use this unit as a portable nav and entertainment unit for little kids on trips instead of a fixed configuration? Do I have to hook up all the cables such as ground and parking to get features to work? I do not care about bluetooth connectivity. can I connect the DC power with the dc adaptor directly to the unit instead of hte messy octopus wire? Also, what comes with the unit...DC adaptor, mounting hardware, handy storage carrier?

Yes you can use the dc adapter in the car, even nothing at all but then the battery wouldnt last too long, and still have access to all functions. It comes with a house charger as well, windshield/dashboard bracket but no storage carrier .

Thanks for the reply.

I have had some time to test the GPS portion and its pretty solid (TTS, accuracy, recalculations, etc). The only reason i ask about the build date/map version is because there are quite a few new roads and malls/real estate development going up in my area. The F500BT had no problem navigating to the general vicinity of the area (from which point onwards i am more than capable of reaching my destination ) but it would be nice to have access to them in the POI menu.

As for the amp i havent had a chance yet to figure out what to do with it ...

Hi, i just picked up a F500BT and cant say enough about the amount features packed into this little monster (divx for one!). I just have a few questions, hopefully this is the right thread, if not i apologize (hopefully someone can move this post).

1. Im not sure if i may have damaged the mounting bracket since the up and down (not telescoping) portion "grinds" when switching positions unlike the the tilt (side to side) which is quite smooth.

2. My unit was manufactured in Jul/08 (same with amp), should i be aware of any new hardware upgrades or fixes on the newer units (for example after performing the firmware upgrade to 2.0 my map is still at 1.0060.. is this ok?), since im still within the exchange period at my local retailer.

3. Lastly, i dont really need the amp (since the gps is for my dads truck...he plans to use it as an on dash unit from time to time), but i dont think we have a choice up here to buy the f500bt alone. I was thinking instead of just installing the amp in my beater (96 corolla with stock tape deck/speakers...) in the hopes that the sound quality might improve from the stock deck/speakers lol (is this even possible or just pointless)...or load up an sd card for the F500bt and use it as an mp3 player in my corolla with the sound coming out the car speakers instead of the F500BT (this would be the ideal scenario if possible).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions or help (*puts flame suit on just in case ).