You said:
“above, there was the possibility that you were driving away from a WiFi system that was providing traffic as you were departing, and that you had no alternative connection after leaving that location”
I replied “This is not the issue”
And I'm perfectly fine with that. It eliminates one of the possible reasons for your symptoms, and we know we can be looking elsewhere.
So the sim is 2g only?
So didn’t TT consider this moving forward as being an issue if it is the issue?
Strange to sell something that is not future proof.
Is it possible to replace the Vodafone sim with a g4 or g5 one to ensure this signal?
I bet it isn’t.
It obviously picks up at start so why not continuously through the journey? Yes I understand signals can be weaker in some areas but this has never been an issue until 2 months ago.
If the Vodafone sim is 2g then shame on Tom Tom for selling a unit they know would become obsolete in time knowing the sim is only 2g.
They should send out new sims if this is the case or at best offer to replace free of charge.
Yes, the cellular capabiliity of all TomTom devices (except their 'Bridge' commercial units, which are 2G/3G) is 2G only.
Let's deal with this SIM issue first. It isn't "2g only". It's not anything-g. No SIM card is. There seems to be a great deal of confusion in the non-tech world about SIM cards. They have been imbued by the public with the most amazing and magical capabilities.
SIM cards pretty simple storage devices. They store an IMSI ID to identify themselves to networks, address book info, etc. They are NOT radio frequency devices. They do not determine what frequency bands or protocols the phone is capable of using to communicate with cell towers. They do not receive. They do not transmit. They do not, therefore, decide whether the phone is capable of communication on 2G, 3G, 4G or 5G, or whether GSM or CDMA is used.
Those features are the function of the 'radio' (modem/transceiver) hardware in the phone.
Sending out new SIM cards cannot solve the problem. Instead, you'd have to replace some serious internal hardware to do that.
So you're correct with your "I bet it isn't" assessment. Swapping SIM cards can't turn a 2G device into a 3G, 4G or 5G GSM device. That said, "Strange to sell something that is not future proof" isn't fair, as it applies to the manufacturers of every single device built in the 2G era, and there are many out there
other than cell phones - think GPRS. An entire industry was rocked by the shutting down of 2G as has already happened in other parts of the world. You're lucky you've still got 2G in the UK and most of Europe.
The ongoing shift in cell industry standards is probably why TomTom gave up chasing them and left the user to make the connection, assuming they would be au courant with regard to whatever the cell companies were doing with the user's cell phones.
Finding an inexpensive cell solution that was still capable of worldwide use back in the day was tough, but 2G fit, and wouldn't cost TomTom a fortune in data usage. Remember,
you bought the device, but
they paid the monthly bill. The 6200 was released back in 2017. They've already paid over 84 months of cell data bills for the early owners of the 5200 and 6200 owners, and as many as 132 months for 5000 and 6000 (released in 2013) owners. And I would point out that these devices allowed for roaming as well. Done on your own, even a 2G cell bill would have been substantially MORE than what you paid for the device.
Now that we've got the SIM fact/fiction sorted, let's get to work on your specific problem.
Again, if you're getting data over the cellular network at ANY time, we're not looking at a lapsed or cancelled cellular subscription problem. Once that would happen, you'd get nothing at all until the account was reinstated.
Here's something that has worked in the past:
To access the SIM card, gently peel back the left label at the bottom of the device. There you'll find the slot with the SIM card in it. If you push the SIM card a bit, it will pop out of the device. Gently buff the contacts with some soft cloth. Reinstall the SIM card. Make sure you insert it back in the with the correct orientation. See if that changes the behavior at all.
If not ...
Hi
No I start journeys at differing locations across the UK. The same thing happens each time.
Scenario:
I leave home location with full live services and then roughly 10 minutes into journey the black bar appears with car symbol with line through it indicating no live services. When I check status both traffic and live services indicate no internet. This holds all through my journey up to 6 hours duration, even when I stop for break and the unit is switched off then back on again. When I create new journey like to a hotel it still does not work, although maps and journey is still fine picking up route etc. just no live services.
The next day when plotting route the live services are back again… but only for 10 minutes or so into journey again then lost again. This only resets on the following day.
I have tried everything from reset to factory reset and even logging out and back in again. Still happening.
If the SIM card buffing was of no help, let's use a bit of divide-and-conquer here. The next time you are home with your device for a couple of days, hook it up to
mains power in your house. Don't instead power it with any computer that's ever had MyDrive Connect installed on it. We don't want to accidentally get traffic data via the computer. Best to just use an USB charing adapter and cord on a mains connection.
Make SURE you have NO connection to any WiFi data source by using Settings / WiFi / select any prior connections that show 'Connected' / Modify / Forget. Unpair Bluetooth connections as well if you've ever connected with that. We don't want to be fooled into thinking the cellular is working when it's actually getting data from some other source.
Now, plan a route to any arbitrary destination. Make sure that traffic data appears on the device. Wait a few hours (essentially,
much longer than the usual 10 minutes of service you seem to obtain) and look again. Operating in a stationary location for an extended period, does your device lose or retain its ability to see traffic data? Perform this on a couple of different days and see if anything changes.
I'm trying to remove all of the location, vehicle environmental, temperature change and vibration issues entirely with this approach.
