Replacing or Updating GO730

[shiflerg]

I have had my Go730 for several years now; we will be traveling out west in the next couple of months. We want to either update our map or replace the Go730 with a newer version. I've had some screen sensitivity issues but not for the past year.

1. If I update my maps do I go for USA or North America??

2. What is the replacement for the Go730??

 

[mikealder]

Do you use the built in mp3 player, FM Transmitter etc on your 730 as non of these features are available on any of the newer devices that have been released in the USA - Mike

 

[canderson]

1. If I update my maps do I go for USA or North America??

The map for that unit always includes all of North America (it's called North_America_2GB on your unit). If you update, you'll be getting a more recent version of that map. What map version do you have now?

2. What is the replacement for the Go730??

Honestly? Nothing. Per the note above, nothing has been released since that has all of the features of the 730. So it will depend a lot on which features you really need as to whether you'll miss any of those that are being left out today. For example, good luck finding a current TomTom that has an audio-out jack.

If you can tell us in some detail about which features you use now and how you use your unit, we can advise. If you depend on the 'wrong' features like I do, you'll want to consider a fresh battery for your 730 and some updated maps. Otherwise, units like the XXL540 are solid performers.

 

[shiflerg]

My map version is 810.1907 (1703mb) and it is called North_America_2GB as you thought. Has TomTom gone backwards in their offerings?? I took a quick look at the Via offerings but they appear to have "immature" software. It will be hard for me to lose features if I have to update with TomTom. I'll probably take your advice; how do I find out about a replacement battery for the Go730??

 

[canderson]

I'll probably take your advice; how do I find out about a replacement battery for the Go730??

Your 810 map could certainly use a refresh. That one dates back to 13 quarters (3 years+) ago.

I'm only assuming that your battery needs to be replaced. If you don't use it much off vehicle power, you might not have noticed that it's fading a bit. Just for grins, give it a full charge, pull it off the charger, and see how long it runs. Truthfully, if you can still get 10 or 15 minutes out of it, and never use it off the dock, it's still OK. Out of the box, and with reasonable backlight settings, they would get a couple of hours.

If you eventually need to swap the battery, it is a DIY operation - no TomTom service for that here in the U.S. We have a whole thread on that topic here to help:

https://www.tomtomforums.com/tomtom...730-920-930-battery-replacement-tutorial.html

 

[shiflerg]

I'll give the battery a try to see how much life it has in it. I DO usually use it with a power source.

 

[canderson]

One consideration in all of this is, again, what features you use vs. the price of maps.

Because the XXL540TM (lifetime traffic and maps) can be had for $120 at Amazon, that needs to be balanced against your needs. You can use our comparison guide here to see if there's anything missing on that model that you might need:

https://www.tomtomforums.com/genera...el-feature-reference-updated-8-20-2011-a.html