kafklatsch
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Posts posted by kafklatsch
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I just ordered my update. I just think of it as a free firmware update and $60 for the new maps......If you want the perfect Nav unit, go ahead and pay thousands of dollars for one. My F700 was close enough BEFORE the update to make spending more on a different Nav seem silly, and with these updates--if the videos and Pioneer hype are to be believed--it's pretty much as nice as those $1000+ units, and I still only paid $500 for it.
+1
I have 2 cars with OEM NAVIs, and two with AVICs... The F500BT has been surpisingly as nice as any of them. One of my OEM's is four year old technology; the other is relatively current. neither is as nice as the AVIC's overall features. The F500BT value has also been a nice surprise - Lots of bang for the buck. With the coming heads up and traffic on route, it will be as good as my Z3 since the F500 is combined with my existing head unit for XM and the like. The bluetooth and the ability to talk at a normal level and be heard has also been a nice surprise - I whispered to myself the other day and my friend heard it......I was shocked. I started out with 2.0 and have not had buggy issues at all. I am at about $400 for evrything including some harness isuues concerning my existing indash and dvd/xm playback. The $60 dollar upgrade......heads up display.... traffic flow.......done....
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if you can revert back you have your bases covered. just make a bakeup of your current configuration and reinstall when you get it back....
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WOW...... this thread is definitely a lesson in differing opinions....
I purchased the $60 update, cant wait to get it....my concerns are as follows
will we still be able access WinCE
will the bypass (software/hardware combination in particular) still work
I hope that everyone can be made whole on this thread because there appears to be some serious issues with the upgrade cost. By the way, does anyone KNOW that the new firmware will work with the old maps....It may not and thus the combined upgrade (and cost). it seems we want to assume the the new firmware WILL work with the OLD maps as a justification for free firmware. It may be a corporate decision to move forward with the technical research.... i.e. the "new" maps and firmware. it would suck but may be true
My F500BT system works just fine with no bugs that limit functionality or use, though Some functionality improvements are welcomed. I am miffed at the issues I read here concerning the units, In fact, I wish my Z3 had some of the F features... oh crap..... sounds like a firmware upgrade....
I have many many times in my high tech existence had to pay for upgrades or even upgrade an entire gadget to get the best functionality. I admit frustration at times, but I get over it. Microsofts free firmware upgrades has made our wares soft
...... and god bless'm for it along with the many companies that function the same. I was a little pissed that I didnt get a firmware upgrade from windows 2000 to windows XP as I had only purchased a copy 2 months previous to the XP rollout - I got over that too.....Hows this for an upgrade...mercedes wants me to buy a new car to get the best functionality out of its Navigation system.... they will no longer "upgrade the firmware" on a 4 yr old car (no issues, just not the newest functiionality)....... guess what, i wont pay a hundred thousand dollars for a firmware upgrade.... I got pissed and then got over it...
I am with you guys on the firmware frustration, but "whatayagunnado????"...... I am in for $60 + shipping
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my own experience with those m-f'n screws pasted from this thread (my full post on page 10 midway down)
http://avic411.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=9446&start=135
"6) I did everything as described. All went well with the following exception.
> I could not get the screws loose on my Z1HD Caddy. truly funny... I do major auto repair, and have rarely encountered this kind of difficulty. I used my dremel to cut them out. and replace them with new screws. The down side is that the cut-off screws remain in the original HD. hope I never need to reinstall that one."
I am not sure what the profanity guidelines are for this forum, but I am sure I would exceed them by properly addressing this topic. The two Torx #8s came out without a hitch.Those 4 that hold the drive to the sled are a freaking nightmare. Who thought that was a good idea? I went with the dremmel a slot and remove that way. My GOOD #0 phillips couldn't get those obstinate little bastards out. I think they might be made of Loc-tite.
Anyway...just had to rant somewhere that people would understand. Now I get to reload all my CDs again, and the very first one wasn't in the latest database. What joy. The newer maps better be worth it.
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another dead tread that left a little confusion.
the GPS actual speed is very accurate. But the GPS cannot tell the future, i.e. your estimated time of arrival.
ETA is a logical calculation based on average speeds over certain roads. Many variables change that estimate..... something as simple as a meal stop... to something more complex like "why everyone and their mother left the exact same time you did"... the navigation systems has some way of assigning these speeds based on the road traveled.
The average speed setting you select with the avic is based on your own driving habits.... you may drive slowly and average 55 on a 70mph posted hwy when traffic is factored in..... or you may average 80 on an overnite jaunt..... thankfully you can adjust it.
the navigation system only uses an average speed based on road type (interstate, secondary, rural residential, etc..)and figures in a certain amount of "congestion and other conditions" to come to an average speed over those roads and thus gives an "ETA". The initial estimate is not even a factor of actual GPS speed data.
it will give you the exact same time for driving a 200 mile trip if you leave in rush hour or if you leave at midnight. your estimated arrival time will only change as you put miles behind you. it will then keep recalculating using the same factors AND the amount of trip remaining. If you are hauling A** the estimated time drops. If you get stuck in a 4 car pile-up your estimated time will increase..... the GPS actual speed only plays a part in trip time estimates, and thats after you have put some miles behind you..
A simple example. If you are driving 100mph and you have 400 miles left on a rural hwy with a 55 mph Posted limit. the navigation system WILL NOT give you a 4 hr ETA (100MPH X 4 hours = 400 miles). It WILL give you something like 8 hrs because it ASSUMES you will be traveling just under the 55 MPH posted speed (due to many factors) over the balance of your trip , this despite the fact you are looking at 100 on the speedo....
hopefully this clear this topic up
I thought a GPS system was able to calculate speed ? Why should you have to enter an avg speed ?When you display the Vehicle Dynamics Screen and use the speedo, where does that signal come from ? Is there a way to get the speed based on a GPS calculation to be displayed ?
I found this article, which I thought I would share :
GPS Speed:
How accurate is it? How fast can I go? How HIGH can I go?
GPS receivers display speed and calculate the speed using algorithms in the Kalman filter. Most receivers compute speed by a combination of movement per unit time and computing the doppler shift in the pseudo range signals from the satellites. The speed is smoothed and not instantaneous speed.
HOW ACCURATE IS THE SPEED READING?
From the NAVSTAR GPS User Equipment Introduction document Section 3.7:
GPS receivers typically calculate velocity by measuring the frequency shift (Doppler shift) of the GPS D-band carrier(s). Velocity accuracy can be scenario dependent, (multipath, obstructed sky view from the dash of a car, mountains, city canyons, bad DOP) but 0.2 m/sec per axis (95%) is achievable for PPS and SPS velocity accuracy is the same as PPS when SA is off.
Velocity measured by a GPS is inherently 3 dimension, but consumer GPS receivers only report 2D (horizontal) speed on their readout. Garmin's specifications quote 0.1mph accuracy but due to signal degredation problems noted above, perhaps 0.5mph accuracy in typical automobile applications would be what you can count on.
HOW FAST CAN I GO AND HAVE MY GPS READOUT MY SPEED?
All Currently manufactured CONSUMER GPS receivers we know about will measure speed to 999 miles per hour.
Garmin (uniquely as far as we know) manufactured the G-38, G-40, G-45, and the G-II (not PLUS) units which had a 90 mph speed readout limit. These units are manufacturing discontinued and we know of no other manufacturer who made a unit which would not go to 999mph.
HOW HIGH CAN I GO AND HAVE MY GPS READOUT ALTITUDE?
Defense department regulations prohibit standard consumer GPS receivers from functioning above 60,000 feet and 999mph (simultaneously). Most GPS receivers seem to set hard limits at EITHER 999mph or 60,000 feet.
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Okay, I know this thread is a little stiff at present, but does anyone know if its possible to remove the entire front as a whole and then do some wiring extensions..... does the unit lend itself to such a mod? I would like to put the screen and controls (the front) in one place and the rest of the unit in another......
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Okay, Okay !!!!........ can someone compress this 24+ pages of very useful information into a step-by-step "how-To". I usually read every comment on a thread, but this one is all over the place......all useful, but, all over..... HIFISI.....you out there?
ohh...... and it seems like multiple topics here also...... do we want to split them up? If not, at least split up the step-by-step instructions... even if there is some redundancy.....
sign,
friggin frustrated
1. Got AVIC to show house numbers while travelling down the road. Surprisingly, iGO's xxx.HouseRight variable shows house to the left and vice versa, and TeleAtlas' house numbering seems to be somewhat off (depends on the area, of course). Code is simple, will post when happy with cosmetics.2. Got SpeedCamera settings to show up and stick. European scripts would've been an easier starting point, but it was a good exercise. WIll post when it matches the rest in style.
3. Got Building visibility settings to show, but does not seem to work yet. Needs more work.
4. Found lots of interesting settings on MSN screens, but could not get them to show yet.
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I wondering if the Z series is built in such a way that the screen could be relocated from the unit, also, the same for the keypad or keys. Has anyone looked at the unit to see if it is possible? I will buy and old unit and attempt it with guidance from the super intuitive members gathered here.
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I have 900 contacts and was wondering the same thing,.
9
.................... HOLY BOLOGNE ! ! ! ...... I havent met 900 people in my entire life that I intend to keep in "contact" with...... HOLLLL - E............u gotta be hose'n us..
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Does anyone out there in (or passing thru) New Orleans recieve anything traffic related on their Z series? I get nothing, but I do recieve all traffic data in Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Miami etc... and other cities I've visited as advertised by XM.
........ But New Orleans is "zilch" although added to the list on the Navtraffic website for over 6 months ago........ my patience has dissipated
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Not sure of your sequence of events, but having done upgrades several times between Z1 and Z3, I have had a couple errant upgrades. Have you tried to format FAT32, and start over? It has worked for me.
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Acronis disk director allows the "convert" command to be used to change partitions as logical or primary...... even after creation of the partition.
Just select the partition and the "convert" option will show up. Follow the guidance to convert to primary.
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I am confused as to why Pioneer would not give us the MOST data available. This actually is a little irritating. Its not like they have to send a bunch of guys out to survey the data - though a small amount of this is required of the map data companies. Every State, city and town has survey maps of ALL roads as part of state and municipal obligations - and its public information. The map data we all use comes from the State and municipal maps for the most part and it is converted by tha map data companies i.e. Teleatlas.
I am not saying that they dont have a few surveys that may be slow in developing, but 99% is there.
Garmin and the others dont give us all that is available, but at $1500 I expect more from pioneer.
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I am posting this in hopes that someone has a shorter method of resolution when "disk director" will NOT expand the size of the music partition nor allow changes to the unallocated space.
THE FOLLOWING IS NOT AS DIFFICULT AS THE DESCRIPTION, BUT I AM ADDING ALL STEPS I CAN RECALL - THE SOFTWARE GUIDES YOU THRU FOR THE MOST PART.
.......... I used Acronis Disk Director Suite. The only issue was that it would not use the UNALLOCATED space of my HDD to expand the MSV partition. I tried to create a new partition from the unallocated space first, but it would not do that either. Apparently, The software only allows 4 "primary" partitions per HDD (thanx google). All four AVIC partitions are primary and MUST remain so when installed. This sort of handcuffed Disk Director. so......
I made the fourth (USER) partition "logical" temporarily using the CONVERT option, thus leaving 3 "primary" partitions.
I then temporarily created a 5th partition from the unallocated ( became the 4th primary) then expanded the size of the music (MSV) partition using the "increase free space" option. I used some of the space from the temporary 5th partition (part of the software proccess) to add to the music (MSV) partition and increased the size to 30 GB.
Finally I returned what remained of the 5th partition to "unallocated space" AND changed the 4th (USER) partition back to "primary".
that left me with the following 4 FAT32 primary partitions.
LDATA - 17.52 GB
SDATA - 572.8 MB
MSV - 30 GB
USER - 572.8 MB
unallocated - 9.8 GB? (dont recall - depends on HDD size - I was 60GB)
AGAIN THE SOFTWARE GUIDES YOU THRU MOST OF THIS. selecting a partition will give a list of options available to that partition such as resize, convert, copy, expand, etc...
Is there a shorter way to accomplish this ???
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With my unlocked drives, I have noticed that the songs (files) appear to be located in pieces throughout the drive. I have noticed at least 2 folders containing music. There has to be something to it. Has anyone done some basic research - i.e. check the drive, then record one song, then check for any changes to files and/or folders......................
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My wifes parents live in a small town (cairo Georgia). We only saw the major state roads intersecting the town on the Z1/Z2. It was useless whenever we visited it made showing the AVIC qualities a little tough.
After I updated to Z3 I panned over to Cairo just for grins and WHOA !! THE ENTIRE TOWN IS THERE..... AT LEAST ONE HUNDRED+ ROADS.
I would guess with confidence that there must be many dozens of such updates...
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funny..........
Thank you to everyone... hyperlite... septicdeath... FTP hosting person, everyone.
Sniff sniff...
The best part is I was mentioned twice
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ftp z3 upgrade success.
Tested it for several hours today. I used as many features as I could. Voice recognition seems improved. I increased my music partition from 9.8 GB to exactly 30 GB. My capacity went from 52+ % down to 16+%. Okay math majors.... how many gigs of music do I have ?
My drive is a 60GB toshiba MK6034GAX
Thanks to everyone. AVIC411.com rocks
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BIG FLOPPY.......... this looks like an opportunity, not a problem... lets fix it
...........Looks like I've got a BIG problem with my Z1Would love to have the Z3 image BUT can't use voice commands (and I use them a lot...) because every time I go for the voice command button, it reboots on me
Oh well, back to original standard for me
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See Big Floppies recent post. Everyone needs to offer feedback on their experience with the upgraded avic Z1/Z2. We may have a problem to solve.
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I have 3 cars - two with oem bluetooth, one the avic z2. They all work the same. They and the avic will search for both phones but seem to always pair with the last paired phone. If I simply turn off that phone (turn bluetooth off) the systems (avic included) will then connect to the second phone (in a minute or two). I then turn the first phone back on.
The avic does seem to get hung up (but not locked-up) when you manually try to switch between bluetooth pairings. It will do it; but, seems to act finicky before it all happens.... so if want to switch, I just turn the unwanted phone off and wait.
If I am in a hurry, I place the call (minus the bluetooth).
Ironically, I have never tried to manually switch pairings on the OEM systems.
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Hello All,
I have been using the GPS for travel to the tune of about 2,000 mi/wk. I have learned that I can use it as a guide with the following realizations.
1) I set my highway speed to 75 mph average(your avg speed setting may vary),
2) the secondary road average speed and the residential street average speed are not very accurate (how can they be - depending on time of day, traffic patterns and general population density which very greatly between Des Moine and say Manhattan - the estimates could be very close or very far off),
3) the accuracy goes up if you have a medium to long trip with lots of highway travel (and a good avg speed setting by the driver),
4) the accuracy goes down if you have a short to medium trip (1-3 hours) with secondary and residential routes.
Finally, the system keeps triangulating as you drive until it gets very close which is "not coincidentally" near the end of your trip. It is not possible for any system to be accurate with any consistency. I have found that adjusting my highway setting has given my best eta's. the other road type speed settings are so "hour to hour traffic dependent" that I dont even bother to adjust them. play with the settings for your driving conditions, it may help.
by the way, nothing within the Avic software will magically change this situation.
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My experience with Z1 to Z2 Upgrade;
11) I removed the pioneer disclaimer files (renamed the files .old but left them in place). So now only my Splash screen shows up.
which files are these?
In the partition (LDATA) there are 2 files in DIRECTORY :BG\COPYRIGHT. They are named CPYCUSTOM.BMP and CPYDEFAULT.BMP They are the bitmap files that show on any splash screen - default or custom
. I renamed the files CPYCUSTOM.BMP.old and CPYDEFAULT.BMP.old, Leaving them in place incase the system accounts for them in some way. The disclaimers do not show up and my custom splash screen displays alone, and with no system side affects . -
My experience with Z1 to Z2 Upgrade;
1) My Z1 was professionally installed. I took it in to get the latest bypass done, right after I installed the latest bypass upgrade software. This install is so well done, you can't even get to the rear of the unit to access any wires. They did the 2-wire for free (actually a couple of pizza's). I wanted to verify that this functioned before moving on to the Z1-Z2 upgrade.
2) .RAR download was fine using XP Pro. I did interrupt my downloads several times with no problems when restarting the downloads – no corruptions.
3) I downloaded all the software. but for some reason I had to "purchase" Acronis Disk Director, which I find a great piece of software and worth it. I could not get it to work as i needed on the trial version.
4) I chose the upgrade route on the Hard drive and ordered from NewEgg the Toshiba MK6034GAX - 60GB, which means I did not unlock my old drive.
5) I purchased the IDE hard drive adapter from Fry's Chain for $6.99.
6) I did everything as described. All went well with the following exception.
> I could not get the screws loose on my Z1HD Caddy. truly funny... I do major auto repair, and have rarely encountered this kind of difficulty. I used my dremel to cut them out. and replace them with new screws. The down side is that the cut-off screws remain in the original HD. hope I never need to reinstall that one.
> I could not tell when I had defeated the password locking on the new HD. This has been mentioned on this thread. I tested it on another computer to verify.
7) I installed new HD. and everything was fine. BUT here is were I veer away from some of the guys here,
I was also surprised to see many of my settings intact - my av settings, xm stations in memory, map settings, even my Bluetooth connection, etc... I did not reset anything because all appeared to work. This reset is recommended by others here.9) to this day (2500 miles after upgrade) it is flawless. I must add that my system has been flawless from day one. My Avic is one of the very early models - I live for tech, so i got it early 2006.
10) I used Photo shop to create a simple splash screen using a Volvo logo, Volvo photo and text " Volvo Navigation Loading.....". I like the factory look and did not want a splash that said " look at my aftermarket system". It is important to look "factory" IMO
11) I removed the pioneer disclaimer files (renamed the files .old but left them in place). So now only my Splash screen shows up.
12) I have no restart issues, I have never performed a "hard reset" or any other reset.
13) The new Hard drive is noticeably quicker. Of note - the "beep" after the Z2 asks for verbal input is instantaneous - I used to have to wait one to two seconds to get the beep..... niceeee !!!
14) "DOWNSIDE"..... I need to reinstall all of my music and phone book entries because I did not unlock my original hard drive and retrieve it.
finally, 15) can someone do a step by step on resizing the hard drive partitions...... this was not clear to me. and I ended up with several extra partitions and had to do everything over to get back to square one. People have tendencies to say " just do A and end up with Z" when they have a clear understanding (I too am guilty), but others may not see it as clearly.
ALSO, please watch for a new thread (if one doesnt exist) in the general section regarding the AVIC obvious omissions and oversights - you know - the things this system should or shouldn’t do.... that are painfully obvious to us users. I am going to pull some of these together and post them. Pioneer are U listening.
3.0 Map/Firmware update released
in General
Posted
They dont need to ask you at the time of purchase. They could simply have the single purchaser go to a link and enter the AVIC serial number. This would generate the serial key...... if they do it on the pioneer site and there is nothing on the card for this key generation formula then it may be tough to crack. If they were smart they would have anticipated this and have the serial/key confirmation check on a separate chip on the AVIC MB which would not be accessible by us. Microsoft, for instance cant do it this way because they dont build the computers...