Zipkicker

Hey all,

I'm new to the forums and have registered to ask for some advice on what to do...

To cut a long srory short, I have a MIO C520 which I bought here in Melbourne and will be travelling to Europe in June. I was under the impression that I would be able to purchase a map here from Mio or some of the retailers who sell the European maps and wouldn't have to worry about the hassle of renting one overseas...

During my research, I discovered that the Australian C520 is 'region coded' - ie you can't buy international maps from overseas suppliers that are compatible with the Australian version of the receiver. Not a problem, I thought, I'll just buy one locally that has the license.

Mio used to sell these on their website, but after calling their consumer support line, I was told that they don't do this any more because of the locally produced & sold international maps not working in the receivers.
To make matters worse, they are now totally discontinuing the sale & manufacture of international maps in Australia.

As an 'option', the official Mio line is to offer me an alternative GPS unit for $369.00 (it's a NavMan) while they iron out the details of their 'trade in' (!!!!) offer in July which will allow Mio owners in Australia to trade in their receivers for a receiver which can actually handle international maps.


I have to say that this truly sucks.
All I wanted was to not get lost while trying to drive around Germany.

I'm open to suggestions as what to do next. As far as I can see it, my options are;

1) Buy a cheap unit off eBay.
2) Figure out how to unlock the C520 so that I can buy an SD card with European maps on it. This is a problem because I don't have a PC with an SD card input.
3) Ask you guys for advice.


I'm going with the third option!

Sorry for the long rant and I hope to hear from you soon.

Cheers,

Bruce

dav

That is bad news.

However, it is my understanding that MIO uses WinCE, and that it can therefore be "unlocked".

See this thread: Please add MIO or windowsCE

I do not have a Win-based GPS so have no additional details, sorry.

Good luck, and welcome to the site!

Max

Welcome to the site, sorry for the less than desirable circumstances of your joining

As far as unlocking goes, if you think you can- there is probably a way to do it . I haven't messed around with the WinCE units enough to be too dangerous though, so I can't offer any specific advice in this case. There are others on here that you might consider pinging though - as they do have more experience (see the thread dav linked to).

I would choose the lazier route in this case....sure it's more expensive, but quality you only pay for once..and I'd buck up for a new Garmin

Zipkicker

Thanks so much for your responses guys.
Unfortunately I'm about as PC literate as a blind, deaf chimpanzee with a speech disorder, so after reviewing some of the horror stories about people's Mio units being corrupted after 'unlocking', I'd be hesitant to give it a try without precise instructions.
If anyone here in Australia has unlocked their 520 and wants to give it a shot I'd happily pay you for your time.
Alternatively, as Max suggested, I'll have to consider the purchase of a new unit.

Cheers,

Bruce

Max

Very welcome Bruce...I was just thinking (I was a bit slow before I guess) you might be able to put the Mio on ebay or local for sale sites, and at least extract it's value to someone who isn't looking to travel maybe?

Then take the proceeds and maybe get yourself into a Garmin Nuvi 200w or something...for short (well <$200) money.

Not sure if it's feasible, and Im sure you've thought of this already, but I figured I would too

oneeyed

Hi Bruce,

I'm also new and was kicking around on sites looking for answers to downloading maps, etc and came across a forum thread that explains exactly how to use the Mio c520 in windows ce mode (apparently that sits behind Mio)

I'm not game to try as I will surely royally screw it up, but if you're game to try (after backing everything up) then check out:
GPS Australia - Mio C520 + gpsVP + shonkymaps?

One thing that annoys me is a) Mio site is next to useless in trying to find out stuff - including registering, which doesn't seem to unlock any extra goodies at all, and b) the overseas c520 (US) seems to have more functions (similar to the c720) I notice that on the back of mine it refers to the c720 on the FCC ID and IC

Oh yes, the Mio site also has a 'new' POI loader tool that you can download and use excel to load you own POI. Unfortunately, Mio have decided not to actually provide any instructions on how to use it...

Oh well, good luck.

Adrian

Zipkicker

Hey Adrian,

Thanks for the pointer mate.
I have been and come back from Europe & the UK already. I downloaded the European & UK maps from a PTP site, backed up the MIO, loaded them in and they worked fine which was a relief because, as you say, MIO are pathetic.
Thanks again for the tips, mate. Please ;et me know if you need help with downloading anything - I've become a bit of a pro at it!

Cheers,

Bruce

therock

I have a US MIO c520 and unlocked it and have written custom GUI skins and enabled hidden routing modes as well.

The c520 is not a top notch unit. Routing sucks but it will get you there.

Unlocking the c520 has not been perfected and is of little use or more trouble than it's worth. It is nice to be able to unlock it and modify the skins.

After much experimentation I find Garmin to be my Rock in the GPS world.

Some of my c520 mods listed below.

Skin updated 8/23/07

Credit goes out to all who participate in this forum.
A c520 factory original looking scheme with every option I know of added.
Listed below is a full description of the skin.

• Bluetooth button relocated under tilt buttons and replaced with a button (AUDIO) going to sound settings.
• Mute button added under audio button.
• Record/Play (when visible) is to the left of the mute button.
• Updated Battery, Bluetooth, POI, and GPS button icon colors.
• Pushpins can now be added to Map to Cursor or current GPS Location.
• Tilt buttons reversed, Up Arrow tilts map up to 2D. Down Arrows lays map down to 3D.
• The GPS, Battery, and Bluetooth buttons can be re-mapped to operate several different user commands using the My Miomap menu found in the general and advanced menus.
GPS = Satellites, Settings, Advanced Settings, Pin To GPS, Pin To Cursor,
Favorites, Remove Pins, POI Search, Smart Zoom, Day/Night, Route Info, My Miomap.
Battery = Settings, Route Parameters, Advanced, Pin To GPS, Pin To Cursor, Remove Pins, Sound Menu, POI Search, Smart Zoom, Day/Night.
Bluetooth = Bluetooth, Settings, Advanced Settings, Pin To GPS, Remove Pins, POI Search, Smart Zoom, Day/Night, Route Parameters, My Miomap.
Top Stripe = 2D/3D, Route Parameters, History, Route Info, Next Voice, Fit To Screen, Day/Night, Pin To GPS, Bypass Options,
Bottom Stripe = 2D/3D, Route Parameters, History, Route Info, Next Voice, Fit To Screen, Day/Night, Pin To GPS, Bypass Options,
(When POI Search is selected as a button function it defaults to the last search preference used)
• Route parameters menu now has Carpool, Truck, and Easy route options.
• Route Options has:
1. Off route sensitivity. (Pull in and get gas without it recalculating?)
2. Recalculate delay. (Go around an obstacle without recalculating)
3. U-turn penalty. (How far you are willing to go to avoid a U-turn?)
4. U-turn at via point.
5. Start in opposite direction.
6. Cross boarder.
7. Keep Position On Road.
8. Quick Planning (Non functional, I stumbled onto it and am not sure about it’s function, but just in case I have it in the list)
9. TMC buttons
• General Settings has My Miomap settings button Added.
• Smart zoom has auto-follow delay adjustment of 5 seconds to 5 minutes and some added zoom distance adjustments.
• User data management has a Remove Pins button.
• Fast or Slow flyover option choices when flyover is selected.
• Export button added to Track log management menu. (SD card \Tracks folder required to function) Not sure what we can do with exported tracks but until then we have the option.
• Back to map button in several screens.

To run the skin a “ctype.dat” file is required to be in the same folder as the DATA.ZIP file. Link in my signature. Or the Belgium map updater. Search the forum for details.

What's Next?

Button re-mapping for the Audio button?
Button icon position swapping? Want the Bluetooth where the satellite button is?
Battery button moved to Bluetooth position? I'm looking at it.

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Garmin GPSMAP 60csx