TFT+Nav 6+ iPhone+ Sena SRL

spm0912

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I know there are several threads on this out there but as I've actually got it all to work I thought I'd start a new one:D

I picked up my new GSA last Saturday so I'm assuming any new software updates have been done.

Firstly I haven't extensively road tested this and I'm guessing things might get a bit flakey judging by what others have reported but crucially the nav will play with the TFT BUT with some caveats.

Here's how I did it;

Firstly you need a BT 4 headset so at the moment this won't work with the BMW BT, I've got the Sena SRL which is the new integrated Neotech system.

Now if at any time you've paired your helmet to your phone unpair it first or it will cause conflicts later.

Then using the connectivity section on the TFT pair the phone and the helmet and Rider to the helmet on phone 1. If you want to use the TFT navigation you will need to download the BMW app, remember to set your phone to always use the app or it won't work. You can now control music on your iPhone via the TFT, sound quality is quite good, certainly better than the Nav. The only thing you can't do is adjust the volume. Do all this without the Nav fitted, take the bike for a spin and see how you get on, just be aware for best results have the helmet switched on before turning the bike on and note there is a slight delay whilst the system finds your helmet, hopefully you should see the helmet and phone icon.

Now before fitting the Nav, in settings ensure BT is switched off and then fit it to the cradle. Switch on the power and it should detect the Nav and the TFT should connect to your phone and helmet. Now in the Nav settings enable BT and pair to your helmet, this time using the 2nd phone BT protocol on your headset, once you've done that go back into settings on the Nav and make sure you have nav instructions ticked but un tick media.

You should now receive voice prompts from the Nav and have control of your phone and media via the TFT. I've switched the bike on and off several times and done a few laps of the lanes and everything works as it should and reconnects without problems (for now!!!)

It does mean you loose many of the features of the Nav 6, particularly the smart link feature. My thinking at the moment is to keep the setup I have for day to day riding but when on longer trips I may un pair the TFT and set the Nav up as the primary device to control media, phone etc.

Hope this helps, certainly works for me:thumby:
 
An update to my post.

A couple of times this morning after start up the TFT didn't see my headset. I think the problem is with the Nav in the cradle, it boots up faster than the TFT and 'hogs' the BT profiles in the headset. The (pain in the arse) work around is to remove the Nav, start up, then once the TFT has fully connected replace the Nav in the cradle and normal play is resumed. Whether this is a software issue with the headset or the Nav and TFT I've no idea.

I won't use the Nav on a daily basis so I'm hoping the TFT will be fine for me. Planned trips, as I said at the moment I think the solution is to unpair the TFT and just use the Nav.

I'm sure it'll all get sorted in the end:blast
 
Is there a specific app for the Nav 6? Other than the Garmin Smart link that is?

Not that I'm aware of. There is a BMW connect app that interacts with the TFT. It has some basic info on your bike but it's main function is to provide the maps for use in the TFT navigation. These can be downloaded onto your phone so you don't need a data signal to use them
 
Interesting and appreciated post. I have iPhone X and Sena SRL ( built in to Shoei Neotc2) and have had plenty use connected listening to music, radio etc but now my new GS has TFT so I had success as you described above BUT found when I wanted to listen to music from my phone that it became unbearably jittery/broken and had to unpair it all and revert back to my pre-TFT arrangement.
As this worked, I suspected the problem was because it was bluetoothing from phone to TFT then again from TFT to Sena headset thus causing the jittery music.
From your experience/knowledge , what do you think on this and do you maybe have any solutions?
Regards.
PS- I have Nav V but didn't left that out the BT connections.
 
The skipping music is a new glitch in updated TFT firmware and is a known issue. I’ve gone back to pairing headset directly to phone until they sort it out
 
I find the connect up really useful, even though not very stable, as it logs your trips and embeds any photos you take with the iPhone. Once you finish you can export the route in .gpx format to my route-app (or basecamp if you are a sadomasochist ) for future use or you can email to your friends or send to nav6. You can even import it to your bmw car nav as a journey for future use.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 


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