W211 Sat Nav disc updates....

[Johnny-P]

Hi all
I am looking to update my maps for my command system.

As you probably already know these discs are a little bit pricey

Looking for a cheaper alternative i have come across a site www.satnav-updates.com selling the latest disc for £39.99.

I was wondering if anyone has bought one of these and had any issues,also do i need any other updates for the command system even if i take the plunge and have to pay full price for the legit copy.??

Cheers in advance

 

[richard]

Ignoring legal/moral reasons, I strongly recommend you do not use copied disks because the nav drives seem to run hotter and cooked navigation drives are expensive to replace. Also, of course, if its going to let you down it will let you down when you are lost.

If you don't want to spend >£200 on a new disk, buy a genuine disk of the previous version or before (V10 or V11) ! (see ebay, or use www.search4carparts.com to help you)

Richard

 

[A210AMG]

^ would they not use the same DVD's as the originals?

surely they would actualy work the same? if its been copied from an original.

I'm not suggesting its right just I find it hard to belive it would actually work any different?

I've copied music I have already own onto CD's and the kids DVD's onto other DVD's which we then take on holiday rather than originals. Never had any issues? what would a sat nav disc be different...

 

[Troon]

Burned DVDs are physically different to pressed DVDs. Whilst I have no data to either argue or agree with Richard, it's not implausible that a drive would have to work harder to read one type versus the other.

 

[A210AMG]

^ interesting...

We 'copy' software Legaly I may add as we buy site licences and use a DVD copier / lite scribe printer copier gizmo to do this.

We Never have issues?

These command discs what sort of Discs are they?

 

[richard]

Writable/re-writable DVDs (and CDs) reflect light less well than an original disk, so are harder to read if anything is a bit dirty, and of course a car vibrates and tends to be relatively dirty.

Also, copies are not always perfect, especially when read at high speed and written at high speed. This is fine with music/video as you won't hear/see small errors - but not good with data such as maps and routing information.

If you use 'high end' CD ripping software (for making digital copies of CDs) then different drives will have different errors on the data read - its quite shocking really and there are now databases of 'CRC's (i.e a checksum of the whole track) for automated ripping software to check that the read was correct. I store all my music on hard disk and it really is quite scary how often the ripping software will re-rip a track because the twice that it did it didn't end up with the correct / same checksum.

So, if I was copying an important DVD full of data I'd copy it on 1-2x speed and write it at the same slow speed, and then CRC checksum both. I highly doubt this is being done by most people copying a Navigation disk.

Alfie and I have quite regularly popped out COMAND units (particularly in CLK where theres not a lot of ventilation behind the dashboard, and there is a very strong correlation between very hot units and those with copied disks in them!!)

Cheers

Richard

 

[richard]

It ought be added that this is why much commercial ripping software will do a 'verify' run afterwards to check the data wrote properly.

I think the main cause of issues is that the car is a lot harsher place to be reading data from a disk than a nice PC on a concrete floor. And repeated re-reads will make the drive hotter as it is running more. (Of course, most car electronics is designed to use as little power as possible)


I dont know enough about how data is stored on CDs compared to Audio tracks etc though !

Richard

 

[A210AMG]

^ you know best

Maybe like music cd's though if they came down in price more originals would be sold and less 'copies' used.

Either way good for people who sell originals or fix damaged units

In this day and age surely solid state is the way forward? CD's DVD's...becoming rare now

Less to go wrong and quicker, far better in a car?

 

[richard]

I know what you mean.

Mercedes are moving to a system of licencing now, so that you install the data on the hard disk from DVDs as before, but you have to put in a licence key which is dependant on the map version and your chassis number and they charge for the licence key (and the DVDs themselves are very cheap but the licence key is the same >£200).

This is so in NTG3.5 (MY10 onwards S/CL) and NTG4.5 (MY11 W204, W212, W218, R172 etc)

Richard

 

[Alps]

copy protection will always be an issue, as you say its getting addressed in the later models

 

[rlowy]

W211 E Comand NTG 2.5 Navigation HDD DVD

A question for Richard at Comand on line.

If you have a factory fitted Comand system in a 2004 W211 e-class can you upgrade that as a straight plug and play with the newer W211 E Comand NTG 2.5 Navigation HDD DVD?

What are the advantages what are the pit falls of the newer system?

Thank you for your advice.

Richard

 

[richard]

If you have a factory fitted Comand system in a 2004 W211 e-class can you upgrade that as a straight plug and play with the newer W211 E Comand NTG 2.5 Navigation HDD DVD?

Sadly, it it involves a large wiring loom running from back to front of the car. This is because the amplifier for NTG1 COMAND, Audio-50-APS and Audio-20-Cassette is in the boot of the car, and in NTG2.5 it is in the COMAND itself.
(NTG1 Audio-20-CD has the amp in the Audio-20-CD so is much simpler).

If you have Harmon Kardon there is a lot more work to do including changing the amplifier and adding another for the subwoofer etc.

What are the advantages what are the pit falls of the newer system?

Birds eye view mapping, 7 digit postcode, inbuilt bluetooth telephony, SD card, ability to support media interface, voice recognition that really works well, much faster response - just significantly better. Basically NTG1 was designed around 2000, and NTG2.5 around 2007 - a lot changed and a lot was learned in that time.

Richard

 

[GordonTarling]

I happen to have a set of genuine discs for sale in the classifieds section.

 

[brianollie]

Hi All
I am new to the site, having just got myself a 2002 E220 CDI Elegance. The radio and sat nav are started to have problems. Radio keeps losing a station signal and the sat nav now tells me it can't find the software. I have searched for the sat nav disc in the car, but have failed to find it, Can anyone shed any light on this problem please.

 

[Diesel Benz]

Hi All
I am new to the site, having just got myself a 2002 E220 CDI Elegance. The radio and sat nav are started to have problems. Radio keeps losing a station signal and the sat nav now tells me it can't find the software. I have searched for the sat nav disc in the car, but have failed to find it, Can anyone shed any light on this problem please.

Is that a W210 or a W211? Which navi device (head unit)?

If it is a W211 with COMAND, the navi processor is at the trunk.

 

[foxy52]

Hi all
I am looking to update my maps for my command system.

As you probably already know these discs are a little bit pricey

Looking for a cheaper alternative i have come across a site www.satnav-updates.com selling the latest disc for £39.99.

I was wondering if anyone has bought one of these and had any issues,also do i need any other updates for the command system even if i take the plunge and have to pay full price for the legit copy.??

Cheers in advance

....i had my nav system updated re mapping etc last service...it was an additional 50 odd quid to servicing.. so the Merc guys jus plug it in to their equip and zap !! its done .. no matter how good a sat nav system is none are 100%.. I took a short cut down a country lane en route to Herodsfoot in South east Cornwall to a mates house..sat nav insisted !!!!!.......lol... said lane was 1 way!!!..had been dead ended within the last year or so ??!!.. so had to reverse bout a mile !! doh !!!!....not the first time that's happened especially in rural East Anglia foxy52

 

[Major774]

Previous owner ran a copied disk in the car... unreliable, as sat nav was unavailable at times.

Got a genuine disk from Comand... problem solved.