:hurray: I got a Magellan Road Mate for Christmas! :mrgreen::mrgreen: Now. How do I get a good charge on the thing? The instruction manual says it takes about 4 hours to charge - IN the vehicle power source/lighter thing (no electrical outlet or computer). But the truck has to be running for it to work. Is there another way to charge it? Can I charge it a little here and a little there to amount to four hours? The most I may drive is 20-30 minutes. That gets me a charge to last maybe 20 seconds. Do I need to make a four hour road trip or can I get DH to charge it as he goes back and forth to work? (which is 45 minutes on a good day) If I can get it to work longer than 20 seconds I'm going to love it! :hurray: Another question! Where should I mount it? Can't be on the dash as there is no flat areas. So on the windshield it goes. So, is it easier to use mounted high, say near the rear view mirror? Or low, near the dash?... Where is yours? I searched the board for GPS info but the most I could find was mainly reviews on the different brands offered.
I typically mount it on the front windshield, however that is illegal in Minnesota and California. They make bean bag and mats that will lay on a dash with no flat surfaces. If you want the thing to stay on for more than 20 seconds you will probably need to charge it for at least an hour. Then a little here and a little there should be OK.
Thanks Hugh...where would I find one of these beanbag/mats? Do they stick to the dash and not slide about?
:ack:You HAVE TO CHARGE IT THE 4HRS TO START, please, thankyou, drip and drab the charging ruins the battery.
As redtangsoo said, "NO"!!! It has a Lithium Ion battery which needs a full 4 hour charge before you start using the unit. Your unit has a battery gauge at the bottom of the screen. This is a digital circuit that reads the battery. By charging it wrong you mess up the sync. The digital guage will then turn off the unit even if the battery has some charge left. The cigarette lighter is a direct power line in most cars & trucks?? It should have power when the car is off?? It only draws 3.7 Volts DC. So if you don't have the 110VAC home charger, turn your truck key to "accy", turn everything off in the truck, and let it charge. "Although lithium-ion is memory-free in terms of performance deterioration, batteries with fuel gauges exhibit what engineers refer to as "digital memory". Here is the reason: Short discharges with subsequent recharges do not provide the periodic calibration needed to synchronize the fuel gauge with the battery's state-of-charge. A deliberate full discharge and recharge every 30 charges corrects this problem. Letting the battery run down to the cut-off point in the equipment will do this. If ignored, the fuel gauge will become increasingly less accurate."
My regular cigarette lighter is only on when the ignition switch is on or in accessory position, but I have a second port that is on all the time. Do you not have one like that in any of your vehicles?
I drive a variety of cars and find its about a 50/50 break on those that do and those that don't stay on.
I was thinking the same thing, in the Jeep we have two cigarette lighters in the front dash, one has constant power the other is only on when the vehicle is running or the key is turned to accy. Maybe you have a friend or a neighbor with a constant power cig. lighter that can charge it for you. I'd be happy to do it for you one day and give it back to you the next if you want to meet somewhere.
I have a second port beside the cigarette lighter that we just found out doesn't work at all. DH is thinking it may be a fuse. That could also be the reason the cell phone charger never worked. I thought it was the charger. Never tried another port or checked the fuses. There is another port in the back seat the DS has used to charge his ds game. I'll go out and try that.
Well some of us live in the modern world. By the way the invitation is still open for you to come join us.
The port in the back seat works. I tested it on DS's ds game. Then I tried the Magellan. Works great!. So now I'll let it sit for a while. YAY! I can't wait to use it! ...Now to get DH to go out in this lovely weather to mess with the fuses.
I hope you're just joking, Wulf! What does having GPS have to do with being a real man? My husband gives estimates for tree jobs everyday all over Wake and Johnston County. It saves him time by punching in an address and going straight to the site.
