TomTom RIDER 550 New Owner With Wiring Question

Hamr_Mark72

Hey Gang,

Just bought a new/used 550 Rider for bike trips this year.

Question is: I don't plan on hardwiring this to the battery. But the cradle comes with a wire tail. Can I remove the hanging wire by taking off the back, or do I just let it be?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

YamFazMan

Hi
@Hamr_Mark72
Welcome to the site....
Personally I would leave the lead/connector attached.... if you removed the lead, then change your mind or the battery life in reality is not as long as advertised, a replacement mount is £50....
The battery life for the Car devices is advertised as UP TO 2 hours (I think that means with the device just turned on and idling until the the device shuts down) obviously this would be less when actually in use navigating....
I would NOT use my Car SatNavs without them being connected to a power supply (Note the Recommended recharging time for a Car Device is at least 2 Hours)

The Previous NAV4 and Latest (NAV5 WiFi) devices are quite power hungry
See... https://discussions.tomtom.com/en/discussion/comment/1703579/#Comment_1703579
___________________________

The Battery life on the Rider 4xx & 5xx are advertised as UP TO 6 Hours, but on my Rider 550 I have always used a powered Mount... The recharging time on the Rider devices will be in proportion to the increased battery capacity....
I have NOT stripped a Rider 4xx & 5xx Mount, but as the Mount rotates and clicks into position I suspect there are a spring/s in there under compression waiting to make a bid for freedom

Stay Safe... ATB YFM

JoelS.

i would consider wiring it to a switched power source, especially since using the cradle. never know when the battery might go flat on the 550.
if i may ask, why the reluctance to wire it ??
thanks

i have a wired cradle on each bike, makes it super easy to swap from 1 to the other... both are switched power with the key.

as far as the cradle wire off the back, you could always secure it to the ram arm or something, for cosmetic reasons if desired.

Longshanks0511

This may seem like an odd question but how do you know your 550 is charging on the mount? The battery icon includes a lightning symbol when connected to the mains but does this also appear when on the bike mount?

Just to explain, I utilised the wiring from my previous Rider (changing the old plug-in connector for the new one) but I'm not convinced the swap has worked. Now is not the time to be doing a long enough ride to see if the device drains completely!

YamFazMan

Hi
@Longshanks0511
Tap the 4Dot (.... Menu) button... On the Menu Screen top right is a battery status Icon
Charging... Displays when Connected to a Power supply

Full Charge... Displays when Connected or Not Connected Power supply

Half Charge... Displays when NOT Connected Power supply

Low Battery... Displays when NOT Connected Power supply

One of the worst things you can do to a Lithium battery is to run it flat so at a certain percentage of discharge (Unspecified)... The device will go into 'Power Saving Mode' the screen will dull, and the device will eventually turn itself off (Not Sleep)

There is a Battery Status display available on the devices Status Screen
Press and hold the on/off button until you hear a drum-roll sound Continue to hold the on/off button until the Black & White Status screen is shown.....

If you are worrying about the device charging, you might consider one of these gadgets
Or


Simply plug the device into the USB socket and plug your lead into the USB Doctor, the device will display the Voltage and Power being used by your various USB devices
I have one of each type they're only peanuts to buy, search Amazon/eBay for USB Doctor

Stay Safe... ATB YFM

Longshanks0511

Thank you very much @YamFazMan

I am happy that my device charges via USB; it is the integrity of the wiring on my bike which concerns me.

That said, it could simply be that my pre-lockdown test was too short to take the battery level below so-called Full Charge. Hence I don't think I got the charging indication.

Probably worth a longer trial before I consider dismantling the bike or seeking expert assistance - but I note your well made point about Lithium Batteries and not running them completely flat.