Live Traffic for Smartphone Link now Free?

 

I don't think this has been discussed on POI Factory before.

While checking out the new 2017 Garmin Drive models, it appeared to me that they had eliminated the FM and HD traffic receivers and were just advertising Live Traffic through Smartphone Link. In discussing this in another forum I learned that Live Traffic is now free. I updated my copy of Smartphone Link on my Tracfone to the latest version and I now have Live Traffic on my 3597 without paying for it.

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Alan - Android Auto, DriveLuxe 51LMT-S, DriveLuxe 50LMTHD, Nuvi 3597LMTHD, Oregon 550T, Nuvi 855, Nuvi 755T, Lowrance Endura Sierra, Bosch Nyon
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installed

I've installed Live Traffic a few weeks ago, but haven't been anywhere with traffic to try it out. Believe this coming Saturday I'll be giving it a test run.

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___________________ Garmin 2455, 855, Oregon 550t

Love live traffic...

Althought I can use my phone for live traffic update, it's nice just looking at the mirror with bumper to bumper traffic.

Looks like...

maddog67 wrote:
dobs108 wrote:
alandb wrote:

...I am suspicious that with the Smartphone Link traffic service now beimg free and with Garmin not including a FM receiver with their new devices, that FM traffic service is in decline, but AFAIK there have been no announcements from Garmin or anyone else that the FM service is going away...

FM traffic works only as a receiver of traffic information. Live Traffic using Smartphone Link also works as a receiver, but it goes beyond that. In my opinion, all of us running the app are providing crowdsourced traffic information just by driving down the road. Our position and speed is reported to a server keeping track of traffic conditions. This is how Waze works. I don't know why Waze is a data hog and Smartphone Link isn't.

dobs108 smile

...in a few weeks. I will give SmartLink a try and see what kind of data usage it uses on the trip.

...I used 10.3 MB of data driving back from Cape Canaveral,Florida. Not to bad at all. Looks like SmartLink is pretty efficient in the data department. Total of about 15 hours of drive time.

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With God, all things are possible. ——State motto of the Great State of Ohio

Good info

Good info. Thanks.

So my 2597

came with lifetime traffic, is this different from what the app offers? I have the app on my phone (LG G4) and it works great just wondering if it is redundant and maybe the free traffic app is for those that didn't have it with their GPS? I don't really see any difference other than the GPS will list problem areas.

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Garmin Nuvi 2597lmt

different from lifetime traffic

Live Traffic on Smartphone Link is different from Lifetime Traffic (which is FM Traffic).

In our opinion in this thread Live Traffic is better.

dobs108 smile

Live traffic

I find it loads very slow on my phone and lags a lot getting info.Latest version not to impressed.

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The Home of BLUMARU HOUNDS

dobs108, Thanks

for the clarification. I'll continue to use the Live Traffic version

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Garmin Nuvi 2597lmt

I have a nuvi 2597 and i am

I have a nuvi 2597 and i am having problems with the Garmin link traffic too.
The nuvi and my Android phone are paired.
I can see weather data on the nuvi.
Garmin link android can see my saved places on the nuvi.
But it's not showing as subscribed in the traffic settings.
In the Garmin link app of the nuvi live traffic is listed as a free service..

I also disabled free hands as suggested before but make no difference.

I have contacted support and I'm waiting for their reply.

Anyone has any other ideas?
I already did a hard reset on the nuvi as well.

no traffic

Perhaps there is no traffic data available for your area. I don't think this possibility has been discussed yet. Can any members located in low-traffic areas comment?

Try doing a "set location" with the nuvi. New York City would be a good one. The nuvi will think it is there.

Make sure the nuvi and phone are paired. If the phone is Android, touch the black triangle "Last Connection" icon at the lower left corner of the Smartphone Link screen. Touch the Live Traffic icon.

On the GPS, zoom in on the map. In a high-traffic area, the roads will be marked in yellow or red to indicate traffic.

On the other hand, this might not work because the phone knows where it is.

dobs108 smile

There is probably no traffic

There is probably no traffic in my area but shouldnt it at least list it in the traffic settings as a provider?
It just shows AUTO-searching for providers.

Yes

Yes. If it is searching, then Live Traffic is not the provider. However, it could be searching because Live Traffic has no traffic info for your area. I can't duplicate that here because I am in a high-traffic area.

What about the "set location?"

On the other hand, perhaps the devices are not really paired or there is a software problem.

dobs108 smile

Iphone and 3597

dobs108 wrote:

Perhaps there is no traffic data available for your area. I don't think this possibility has been discussed yet. Can any members located in low-traffic areas comment?

Try doing a "set location" with the nuvi. New York City would be a good one. The nuvi will think it is there.

Make sure the nuvi and phone are paired. If the phone is Android, touch the black triangle "Last Connection" icon at the lower left corner of the Smartphone Link screen. Touch the Live Traffic icon.

On the GPS, zoom in on the map. In a high-traffic area, the roads will be marked in yellow or red to indicate traffic.

On the other hand, this might not work because the phone knows where it is.

dobs108 smile

I can't speak for Android or the 2597 but the following occurs on my iPhone 7+ in a low traffic area. When pared with a 3597, the traffic map is displayed when the "Traffic" icon is selected from the Apps menu. The map can then be moved to a different area and the zoom level can be adjusted to view the yellow and red traffic areas in detail.

Even though the iPhone and 3597 remain paired, occasionally, the traffic function is somehow disabled. It becomes necessary to boot the Smart Link app on the iPhone and press the small orange "tree" icon in the upper left to jump start the connection. This is both annoying and frustrating since I never know when or if the disconnect has occurred. I'm hoping future software updates for smartlink and / or the iPhone will address the issue.

Garmin support are

Garmin support are useless.
Either they are really dumb or just act like that to wear people so they drop their issue.
I have now exchange a few emails with apparently different people telling them that my nuvi does not subscribe to the garmin link live traffic and thus get no traffic info despite the nuvi being paired with phone and getting weather information hich means they are connected and communicating.

Their reply is always the same to make sure the nuvi is connected to the phone and they you live in a coverage area.

Last email has the same response with the added offer to exchange my unit with a refurbished one for 120 cad bucks.

Useless.

P.S. Goodie just got a survey email from garmin... Lol

Call

zemartelo wrote:

Garmin support are useless.
Either they are really dumb or just act like that to wear people so they drop their issue.
I have now exchange a few emails with apparently different people telling them that my nuvi does not subscribe to the garmin link live traffic and thus get no traffic info despite the nuvi being paired with phone and getting weather information hich means they are connected and communicating.

Their reply is always the same to make sure the nuvi is connected to the phone and they you live in a coverage area.

Last email has the same response with the added offer to exchange my unit with a refurbished one for 120 cad bucks.

Useless.

I don't have a lot of experience with Garmin Customer Support but several members here state that the phone support is better than the email support.

Garmin Smartphone Link

dobs108 wrote:

Just updated the Android phone at the Play Store. Smartphone Link was one of the updates.

dobs108 smile

OK...I DL to my android...Garmin Smartphone Link, how does it work?

Say I find a route from point A to Point B on my phone, can I send it to my Garmin 2598??

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PJG

No.

Smartphone link is mostly for traffic, weather, and FourSquare POI's.

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Alan - Android Auto, DriveLuxe 51LMT-S, DriveLuxe 50LMTHD, Nuvi 3597LMTHD, Oregon 550T, Nuvi 855, Nuvi 755T, Lowrance Endura Sierra, Bosch Nyon

You can use it to find a

You can use it to find a destination and send it to the unit. It has a live search engine.

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Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

Garmin Smartphone Link

AlanB...thanks... makes sense..

phranc.. Hi... I did have a connection to the Internet and had my DATA plan ON... Yet was not able to send the Map directions to the GPS??

Though it appears I'm connected from my phone to the Garmin.. I do see this msg.. "NO PAIRED DEVICES" Which I believe means its connected to the APP?? I'm really confused

msg..
cannot establish a two-way connection with your Garmin Navigator. You cannot send routing instructions to the Garmin navigator or purchase live services

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PJG

Bluetooth is not paired

PJGMIG wrote:

Though it appears I'm connected from my phone to the Garmin.. I do see this msg.. "NO PAIRED DEVICES"

The devices are not paired.

To pair the phone with the GPS, bluetooth has to be set up on both devices. View the bluetooth screens on both so you can see that they have discovered each other. Go to the GPS Settings/Bluetooth to activate it.

On the Android phone, go to Settings/Bluetooth to turn it on. Then watch for a popup on the phone that asks if you want to pair the phone with the GPS.

On the phone, if the bluetooth screen is displayed, the phone is discoverable. If the bluetooth screen is not displayed, the phone is not disoverable even though bluetooth is turned on.

Then on the phone go to the Smartphone Link page. At the lower left corner on an Android phone is a black triangle icon called "Last Connection." Click the icon. As the bluetooth is paired the icon turns into a black square and displays that the phone and GPS are linked.

It is easy to pair the devices. However, if the car and phone are paired for voice phone operation through the car audio system there may be a problem. The GPS has default bluetooth settings to pair with the phone for voice phone operation, so the two bluetooth pairs interfere with each other. I have disabled phone audio in the GPS but the settings always go back to the default. I am hoping that a future update to the GPS software will solve the problem.

dobs108 smile

Bluetooth Is Not Paired-LG G4 & Toyota Camry

Dobs108.. Thank you... I do have this situation.."However, if the car and phone are paired for voice phone operation through the car audio system there may be a problem."

Will be more patient and give it a try..

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PJG

No Lie!

PJGMIG wrote:

Dobs108.. Thank you... I do have this situation.."However, if the car and phone are paired for voice phone operation through the car audio system there may be a problem."

Will be more patient and give it a try..

I've had my phone paired with both my GPS & the car radio.

When the phone goes off it becomes a fist fight between them as to which device thinks is in control.

I solved it so the Garmin hands free does not art the phone for phone calls.

I also removed the pairing between the car radio & the phone.

Now there's no fighting between the devices and I'm happy to use the Bluetooth headset.

YMMV

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Never argue with a pig. It makes you look foolish and it anoys the hell out of the pig!

Locations, not directions.

PJGMIG wrote:

AlanB...thanks... makes sense..

phranc.. Hi... I did have a connection to the Internet and had my DATA plan ON... Yet was not able to send the Map directions to the GPS??

Though it appears I'm connected from my phone to the Garmin.. I do see this msg.. "NO PAIRED DEVICES" Which I believe means its connected to the APP?? I'm really confused

msg..
cannot establish a two-way connection with your Garmin Navigator. You cannot send routing instructions to the Garmin navigator or purchase live services

You cannot send map directions. All you can send is an address or location. At the top of the front page is a bock to search for a location. This In on Mac, but I don't think the Android version supports directions either. Only locations.

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Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

Appreciate You Folks!

Hi.. just a quick note to say how much I appreciate this forum/community. Ya'll always step up with good info on my questions..

Thank You.. smile

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PJG

Nuvi 2797 power cable

Is the Traffic Cable on Nuvi 2787 with lifetime traffic able to be used on Drive Smart 61 or is it even needed using the Garmin Link on my smart phone.

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Garmin DriveSmart 61

No need for a traffic cable

cjames wrote:

Is the Traffic Cable on Nuvi 2787 with lifetime traffic able to be used on Drive Smart 61 or is it even needed using the Garmin Link on my smart phone.

The Garmin Smartphone Link app only requires a GPS device compatible with the smartphone app. No special traffic cable is needed since the app links to the GPS via Bluetooth from the smartphone. The only purpose of a power cable with or without traffic is to power the GPS. The Smartphone Link app will override whatever traffic (FM or HD, etc.) the traffic cable provides.

PS: If not using the Garmin Smartphone Link App and a smartphone, the DriveSmart 61 looks to be able to use either:

GTM™ 60 HD Digital Traffic Receiver 010-01031-00

or

GTM™ 36, North America 010-01009-02

Awesome..

Thanks a bunch!

Here we are 4 years later.

Here we are 4 years later. How are folks finding traffic accuracy with the smartphone link app (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.garmin.and...) and their garmin device.

For the most part I only use the driveluxe 50 for its tripplaner function. Occasionally its used to route to poi's directly. Majority of driving events are outside of heavy traffic hours anyway so the traffic info is mostly irrelevant unless there's a crash or construction.

The car's internal gps does receive HD traffic so it'll be interesting to compare how well the two work. I suppose I could forgo the garmin solution entirely and just use android auto, but for now it's a wired (AA) setup so trying to keep it wireless given the car supports QI charging.

They don't work together.

They don't work together. Either one or the other. Quite phrancly, (smile, Smartlink beats HD traffic, hands down. After thousand of miles driving around the county, Gamin's internal Traffic sucks. Only available around large cities, and only has city traffic. Not worth using.

Smartlink is spot on, accurate, and available any where you have a Cell signal.

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Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

My Zumo XT and Drivesmart 55

My Zumo XT and Drivesmart 55 both use the Garmin Drive app. Traffic is spot on, as mentioned. My older Zumo used the smartlink app and traffic was great on that too.

I guess the only reason

I guess the only reason Garmin keeps traffic on their units is because there are still a lot of flip phones out there.

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Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

Free

I just checked my 2797 and its there.

clarity

phranc wrote:

They don't work together. Either one or the other. Quite phrancly, (smile, Smartlink beats HD traffic, hands down. After thousand of miles driving around the county, Gamin's internal Traffic sucks. Only available around large cities, and only has city traffic. Not worth using.

Smartlink is spot on, accurate, and available any where you have a Cell signal.

HD traffic is what the onboard gps uses in the car. So technically they both can be run at the same time. GPS linked via smartphone link app is separate/isolated from the car's onboard gps.

Not So

zx1100e1 wrote:
phranc wrote:

They don't work together. Either one or the other. Quite phrancly, (smile, Smartlink beats HD traffic, hands down. After thousand of miles driving around the county, Gamin's internal Traffic sucks. Only available around large cities, and only has city traffic. Not worth using.

Smartlink is spot on, accurate, and available any where you have a Cell signal.

HD traffic is what the onboard gps uses in the car. So technically they both can be run at the same time. GPS linked via smartphone link app is separate/isolated from the car's onboard gps.

If your phone is connected to the Smatlink app, via the Bluetooth connection, the unit will select one or the other, and the presence of Smartlink ( or Drive, if applicable), will override the onboard Traffic receiver. The unit cannot use both at the same time.

You can go to the Bluetooth connections in your Settings on the phone and see if there are two Blutooth connections to the Garmin unit.

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Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

Funny

Quite phrancly, (smile, Smartlink beats HD traffic, hands down.
[/quote]
Quite the pun. (I guess it's a pun. Maybe it's not.) Anyway, it's funny.

--
With God, all things are possible. ——State motto of the Great State of Ohio

traffic2

phranc wrote:

If your phone is connected to the Smatlink app, via the Bluetooth connection, the unit will select one or the other, and the presence of Smartlink ( or Drive, if applicable), will override the onboard Traffic receiver. The unit cannot use both at the same time.

You can go to the Bluetooth connections in your Settings on the phone and see if there are two Blutooth connections to the Garmin unit.

I should probably add, I don't use the charger/traffic receiver. Location to the gps is powered by a 10' long usb A - micro cable. It plugs into a 12V tampon looking thing which is in the rear 12V volt port. It's a bit of a universal use. If I need to charge my phone there's a micro female to type C male adapter used. In case of the garmin, a right angle micro female to mini male adapter.

Sadly I didn't encounter much traffic this morning for the gps or the car to reroute.

Battery use over 5 hours was minimal, ~8%. Same for the data, maybe 10 or 20 MB. Although google play services used 100MB. Not sure if the garmin software relies on the google play services too.

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