Picked up a TomTom XL340S the other day. Routing is way better than the Garmin I received for Christmas. Anyways I've been playing with custom content for it today and I thought you guys might appreciate the vehicle icon I made for Oliver:



Just stuff it in the \art\cars folder of your device. Credit for the original image goes to Garmin (from the MINI Garmin unit) and to hunter99, who took the effort to extract the .srf and created images for each colour. I cleaned it up (because TomTom doesn't do alpha transparency) and changed the perspective a bit to suit the TomTom better. And added taillamps.

Enjoy!

I might give making other common colours (BRG, CR, etc.) a shot a bit later.

Anyone have other MINI content for TomTom? Boot screens, shutdown screens, icons, etc.?

EDIT: In retrospect the 2nd Gen. Nav./Audio forum might be a better fit... if a moderator feels it's warranted, please go ahead and move this thread.

 

Thanks for sharing! We just got rid of our Garmin and got a new TomTom. Didn't even realize it could this!

 

I've always liked Magellan's interface better than Garmin. Any comparison between Magelland and TomTom?

 

Comparing the 265 WT with the XL340S:

Magellan's rendering is much prettier, with pseudo-3D vehicle icons, anti-aliased roads, and prettier graphics. It also has free ad-supported lifetime FM traffic, which is nice (though only applicable to major roads). It's also slimmer, which is good because the Garmin can be pocketed in a pair of (male, loose-fit) jeans. The learning curve is less with the Garmin's menus, so when my mom takes the GPS I'll probably get her to take this one.

TomTom's performance in general is better, though, in my experience. While the TomTom's display is more crude, it doesn't impede viewing, and in its latest iteration the TomTom's routing is better--IQ Routes uses historical traffic data based on time of day and day of the week to calculate the quickest route. It also recalculates and fixes faster, and en route, it updates the map faster. Mapshare means that the maps are corrected by users (useful if you live in a fairly populous area). It doesn't have FM traffic though--that's a fairly expensive upgrade. Also, no SD slot. So you probably can't fit both a Europe and a North America map on the device at once.

Both are far better than the built-in navigation in my dad's Audi. The POI database, lane assistance, and other features place them above the built-in navigation.

Don't own the Magellan, but tried out a friend's--this was an older (last December) model, so keep that in mind:

Nice rendering--a good balance between TomTom's functionality and Garmin's look. 3D building feature was more of an annoyance (blocked route) than a pro. Overall, routing quick, and GPS lock was never a problem. However, it was reluctant to recalculate. Once it decided to recalculate, it took an average amount of time, but once you've deviated from the route it takes a little while for the Magellan to realize you've deviated. One thing I really liked about the Magellan is that it shows you the range of house numbers on a street (e.g., 650-850) so you can pick one "somewhere along the road" if you don't know the exact address. TomTom allows you to pick a crossroad or the centre of the road, and I never did find any similar feature on the Garmin but it must be somewhere in there... Also, the Magellan was slimmest of the three (especially with the new series). Doesn't have the customizeability of the Garmin or TomTom though. TomTom IMO is by far in front with user created content.

 

I have an old Magellan RoadMate 760. Big, clunky thing, but still works. The cord broke, so I borrowed and used a Garmin 265WT on a trip from D.C. to Alabama. It was OK, but had a couple of things I didn't like. First, the locate feature on the Garmin showed only your current route and a nearby cross-street; nearby being defined as up to a mile or so distant! Magellan tells you your current road and the distance to the last cross street and the next cross street. You can tell the tow truck you're on route XYZ 4.2miles past Main St and .8miles short of Next St.

Second, I like to be able to change my route preference for the current trip on the fly. I've found that while a GPS will always get you to your destination, Shortest Time isn't always shortest. With M, I can sample other choices, or simply change when the mood for Fewest Highways moves me. Magellan allows you to choose every time you set a destination and gives you the on-the-fly change option in one touch. Garmin hides the selection and makes you cancel/re-select your destination if you want to change.

I will say, the Garmin seems to be sturdier than the new Magellans. The M's on/off switch seems like a weak point, especially if you're going to carry its slimness around in your pocket.

 

Just an FYI, I did not convert the files I merely host them. A forum member I know by Blair (cannot remember his screen name since I use his real name all of the time when i correspond with him) is the actual person to create all of the icons. Anyone ever wants to create Tom Tom icons I would be happy to host them with the Garmin ones.

 

Oh, yeah... I used to work at London Drugs, and the on/off switch on the Magellan demo models would always break (it'd get pushed in too far). Granted, they were demos and saw fairly rough treatment, but the TomToms never had that problem... just sayin'.

Hunter99--next weekend I think I'll take a shot at creating this icon for the other colours. Would you be able to grab the username for 'Blair'? I'd rather ask for permission before modifying his icons on a bigger scale.

 

So my next GPS is either a TomTom or Garmin--at least unless M fixes their switches.

 

Could anyone please tell me how this works? We have only used our TomTom once, so I really know nothing about it? Any help work be greatly appreciated!

 

Plug your TomTom (powered on) into the computer, and when it prompts you (on the TomTom) select "YES" to connect to the computer. On your computer the TomTom should show up as a removable drive. Go to the folder \art\cars on your TomTom and save the icon file there. Disconnect the TomTom, and in settings go to "Change Car Icon" (or something to that effect. Your new icon should show up there... select it, and voila! Custom MINI-ized TomTom.

 

Thanks so much! Will have to work on that tonight!!!

 

carsncars - I contacted Blair and he said it would be fine. You can go ahead and contact him at his username BBCooper to get the approval yourself. We both have really just wanted to be able to provide these to the MINI community to enjoy.

If you do decide to create Tom Tom icons let me know. I would be happy to put them on the site. Even if you want to put them up yourself I would like to be able to have a copy to make available if you wouldn't mind.

I am looking at re-doing the site a little to make it a better place to host files. If you can create a jpg of the ones you create that would be awesome since I would like to get it where people can see the individual icons before they download them.

Thanks,

Hunter99

 

This is the image I'm using at the moment:


I can't find the little tomtom version of it though.