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Custom Firmware

For TomTom PNAs¹ there are several inofficial firmwares. These allow you to run newer firmware versions on older devices. You can make the firmware believe it is on a different device to enable additional features. This is set by the file config/model.txt. The following values are possible:

ori – doesn’t emulate any other device, i.e. runs the normal firmware for your device
x20
x30 – gray/orange look
x40
x40light
x40light2
x40light3 – One XL Live features
x50 – Standard, all features (e.g. animations when opening and closing dialogs, “Eco”-planning mode)
xls – fresh white/blue look, old icons
ttssdk

For my One XL, x50 (blueish with animations) and x30 (gray/orange look) looked beautiful but didn’t get me any TTS voice output. I especially like the display of the lanes besides the next direction. I don’t know why TomTom doesn’t enable these features for all their devices. Very strange. x40light seems to be the native mode for the One XL. xls also works with TTS voices. This posting possibly explains why the LoquendoTTS voices don’t work in all emulations other than x40light. But there is a VocalizerTTS system with a very limited set of languages available. It should work with these emulations.

Additional applications

TomTom allows third party applications to be installed on their PNAs. If a developer has prepared a TomTom HOME2 package, just unpack the files to your TomTom HOME2‘s Downloads directory, usually located in:

C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents\TomTom\HOME\Downloads\complete

Just create a new subdirectory and put the files in it. You can then install the application by going to Add Traffic, Voices, Safety Cameras, etc. → Items on my computer and clicking the Add button for the new items under the Applications category.

Joghurts GPS-Site

He has programmed FuelControl, a Calculator and a Height display. Download everything at http://gps.dg4sfw.de/.

Delete Traffic Camera database

pasternak.net has an application which can delete all traffic camera POIs with one touch – useful if you get caught by the police.

Bugs

Avoiding the Werner-Voß-Damm

Trying to navigate from Hoeppnerstraße, Berlin (Germany) to the General-Pape-Straße 1, the device calculates a 3km detour instead of sending you right through the Werner-Voß-Damm (some 100 meters). This happened to me on NavCore 9.014, 9.022, 9.024 and with maps Western_and_Central_Europe_2GB v830 and v840.

Crashing showing a specific crossing

Preconditions: Navigate from N 52° 42.766', E 12° 35.623' to Humboldtallee, 14612 Falkensee and have the “Hide map above speed” setting activated

Approaching the round-about at N 52° 42.134', E 12° 36.068', everything is fine. If you go above the “hide map”-speed, you’ll see the roundabout, if you go below the speed, you’ll see the map.

After passing the roundabout, the map displays fine but as soon as you reach the speed where the device should show the next crossing, the device hangs and reboots. After it started up again and you’re above the “hide map”-speed, it crashes and reboots again. The crossing which should show up is the one at N 52° 31.744', E 13° 06.607'.

Tested with NavCore 9.014 and 9.024, maps 830 and 840. All combinations show the same behavior.

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Personal Navigation Assistants

TomTom PNAs