Rand McNally 7720 Update

[jimlaurielucy]

I spoke with Rand Tech Support yesterday. A sizeable update wil be out in the next few weeks,The truckers get the update first and Us RVers get it. The update is mostly locations and points of interest. Later in the Fall a map update will be available. For those that use the 7720 do you under preferences use map auto zoom on or off? Do you use rv poi and address on or off. For my own use I have found that I prefer all to be off,I can set the size of the map to my likeing and don't have all the clutter. Be curious as to what others think.

[Fred1609]

Too late I pre-ordered the Garmin RV 760 LMT.

[irv2fan]

Looks nice

Garmin Unveils 1st Navigation Device for RVers | RV Business

[SouthRider]

I leave the autozoom off as it is too busy, and I don't like the size that it chooses when you are NOT approaching a turn.

I would prefer to have the autozoom feature with some user adjustability.

I tried having the user POI's on, and downloaded several databases, but find the screen too cluttered.

I will probably uninstall them & turn that feature off too. Basically the pre-loaded POI's seem to be comprehensive enough.

Would have liked to have used the red light cam POI's, but they are in a file format that my 7720 would not accept.

[Cbones]

Just an update for those who are still fans of the RM7720, the big update has quietly been released. Allow yourself plenty of time to do it. It could take hours on a slow connection.

Release notes for Version 3.55.2834
(To see current release number on your RVND,
Select Preferences, About)


Note: We continue to thank all of you who have submitted feedback
using the “Tell Rand” feature in our products. Thanks too, to all our driver beta testers for all their work.

Product usage tips:

· To enable WiFi access to hotspots, select Preferences from the Main Menu, and hit WiFi at the bottom right of the General tab.

· If you would like to use your phone, tablet or laptop to access the internet for the 7720, you will need 2 things.
o A phone, tablet or laptop with WiFi that has the ability to set up its own hotspot. (Some devices have WiFi to access hot spots, but not the ability to create one.)
o A data plan, with the hotspot option. (Some devices come with a data plan, but the hotspot option has to be turned on, sometimes at extra cost.)

· You can download POI lists from places like POI Factory.com, and load them to your unit. You can then select how you want to see them and be told about them. There are 2 types - “Alerts”, and “General POI’s”. Alerts are for things like Red Light Cameras - something you want to be alerted about directly along your route. General POI’s are for items you want to be told about that could be 10 miles away from you in any direction, and you would like to see them on the map or be notified about them when you are in the vicinity. These are loaded using the Dock.

· There are a number of ways you can tune routing to your liking in Preferences, Route.
o Select Freeways, for several options regarding your preference for freeways vs. smaller roads.
o Fastest Route vs. Shortest Route can be combined with options from Select Freeways for flexible options. For example, you can select Shortest, and Avoid Small Roads
o States to Avoid allows you to route around states or provinces.
o Avoid List shows the list of road segments you have selected on the map to permanently avoid. If you browse to any place on the map, zoom and place the center crosshairs over a road segment, you are given several options, such as Route To, Set Origin, or Avoid. (Note that if you select a road segment on an active route, the option will be Detour, which means it will be avoided while this route is active, rather than permanently.)
o Fast Recalc, when turned on, allows the unit to recalculate the route more quickly if you go off route, by routing to a midpoint on your active route, rather than routing all the way to your destination. It will do this twice, then do a full recalc all the way to your destination the 3rd time. This is most useful in cases where you have a long route (hundreds of miles), and you are currently driving in a local area with many streets close together. If you miss a turn, you will have a recalculated route in half the time so that you won’t miss the next turn.


Updates in this release:

· The Tips and FAQ have been replaced with a “?” icon on the top of many screens.

· Route Preferences have been enhanced with 3 new settings:
o Turn Announcements
§ This controls the three voice prompts for upcoming turns. Note that not all three are used in all cases depending on the distance to the turn.
o Turn View Distance
§ Set the distance at which the map will automatically zoom into a close up view of your upcoming turn. Note that if you are in 3D map view, with Auto Zoom on, this is not needed, so it is turned off.
o Junction View Distance
§ This allows you to set the distance that the junction view screen appears from a freeway split, or exit.
· Fuel Log has been enhanced to allow entry of odometer information to calculate fuel economy. The nearest fuel station is also prefilled, but can be overridden.

· Warnings have been enhanced
o Warning display size can be set to either full display or status bar only. Note that serious warnings such as height and weight will always appear full display.
o Engine Brake warnings have been added
o Narrow road warnings have been added
o Speed warning has been enhanced to allow the entry of a fixed speed if desired.

· The Quick Planner now allows entry of any 2 cities or towns in the North America, instead of just major cities.

· Connected Services have been enhanced (requires internet access via WiFi hotspot from your smartphone or other access point):
o Live Fuel Prices are now available as a standard no-cost feature
o Local Search is now available as a standard no-cost feature. Keyword searches must be entered in English.
o Traffic Everywhere is available for $19.99/year. No extra hardware is required, since it uses the WiFi hotspot on from your Smartphone or other access point. This shows traffic wherever you are, even on major roads in rural areas.

· Compare Routes has been added. This allows you to see a primary and alternate route and compare them.

· Good Sam campgrounds and ratings have been added. This combines the previous Woodall’s and Trailer Life information. Over 500 campgrounds added.

· Destination Address Entry has been enhanced to allow entry of the house number first, which can reduce the number of keystrokes needed to find your destination. You can switch between House Number first and Street first by just tapping the button. Whichever method you last used will be presented the next time.

· Address Book and Multi-stop Trip lists have been changed to a single column, to allow longer names.

· A full road map update has been provided for the US and Canada, including updated RV restrictions, speed limits, and propane restrictions.

· Thousands of TellRand customer corrections have been researched and applied to the database. This includes such things as vertical clearances, weight restrictions, and RV prohibited roads.

· Warning messages based on the direction of travel has been significantly improved.

· Updated Roadway Emergency phone numbers and RV trailer length guidelines per state/province.

· Updated Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club store data, including overnight parking. 195 Wal-Mart & Sam’s Club locations and 14 Distribution Centers have been added.

· Added new Best Of The Road (BOTR 2012) finalists and winners.

· Rest Areas and RV Parking information has been updated and approximately 160 additional rest areas have been added.

· Added new Roadside Attraction data under Rand McNally Editor’s Picks to allow users to find thousands of interesting and curious things to see along their route or destination. This includes movie locations, scenic views, historically significant locations and other curiosities that may be of interest when on the road.

· Added Camping World locations to RV Dealers and Repairs.

· Added approximately 2,000 RV Dump locations and improved positional accuracy.

· Updated RV friendly travel centers.

· Long term construction projects continue to be updated monthly.

· WiFi connection to smartphones has been improved. Some issues with iPhones have been corrected.

[Cbones]

It feels like a whole new GPS. The Internet based traffic is fantastic. I am so glad to get rid of the old traffic receiver. It is 19.99/yr but is totally worth it. There are no ads, and fuel prices can be placed right on the map. I think the unit is greatly improved.

[MartinC]

I look forward to applying the update. Regarding the campground database, I'm still very upset RM removed the KOA only filter from the search function a few years back. I have told them this on the feedback form - is it too much to expect this filter to have been returned in this update?

[Larry and Suzette]

I have applied the update and so far I really like it. I need to play with it some more.

[lappir]

· To enable WiFi access to hotspots, select Preferences from the Main Menu, and hit WiFi at the bottom right of the General tab.


Copied the above comment from a previous post. I have one of the early 7720 units, I don't recall having WiFi. Do I have to upgrade the unit?

Will the WiFi connect with the free wifi at the various rest areas the have WiFi? Has anyone tried to measure the distance away from the building for the strength of signal? I have to park in the big lot.

Thanks for the info on the update.

Rod

[Bill Davey]

Installed the update yesterday. Now the POI search won't find Wineries! DW does not see this as an improvement!

[Willie300s]

I installed the update and really like the changes they have made. I did lose all my Motorhome data, size, weight, etc and had to re enter it but all my trip and POI data remained.
My only complaint is the $20 charge per year for real time traffic. Since you have to teather to your iphone and the RTT is available on the internet for free, why are they charging for it? This is a very negative point for me. I will probably just check my iphone if I need traffic data which will by necessity be sitting on the dash anyway.