I notice that DriveSmart 86 devices (and others in the series) are shipped with a USB cable that has an extra plastic device spliced-in at the USB-A end of the cable. I.e. it is the end of the cable that goes into the power adapter and into the 12V socket.
I contacted Garmin support about that plastic device, and they told me that this is the traffic receiver and that I should not conceal it. This sounds kinda strange to me. Note that this is the end that goes into a 12V socket. And 12V sockets are usually located in fairly concealed spots in most modern cars. In my case that receiver will normally end up somewhere under the dashboard.
This is also strange since in their older devices (e.g. DriveLuxe series) the traffic receiver (with a built-in antenna) was spliced into the cable at the other end - close to the actual GPS device itself, not to the power socket end. The receiver would normally end up on the dashboard, in the open. That made sense. But this time they suddenly moved it to the other end of the cable... Why? (In even older Gramin devices they used a dedicated antenna that ran through the entire cable. In those devices it did not matter much where the actual receiver was located.)
So, I'm wondering, perhaps someone here has already researched this matter... If this plastic box is a traffic receiver, what kind of antenna does it use? Is it located entirely inside that plastic box? Or did Garmin switch back to an in-cable antenna?
Or maybe I'm completely misinterpreting the situation, and this box is simply a BT dongle responsible for communication with the phone? (Unlikely, since the device itself is perfectly capable of communication with the phone even without the cable attached.)
I contacted Garmin support about that plastic device, and they told me that this is the traffic receiver and that I should not conceal it. This sounds kinda strange to me. Note that this is the end that goes into a 12V socket. And 12V sockets are usually located in fairly concealed spots in most modern cars. In my case that receiver will normally end up somewhere under the dashboard.
This is also strange since in their older devices (e.g. DriveLuxe series) the traffic receiver (with a built-in antenna) was spliced into the cable at the other end - close to the actual GPS device itself, not to the power socket end. The receiver would normally end up on the dashboard, in the open. That made sense. But this time they suddenly moved it to the other end of the cable... Why? (In even older Gramin devices they used a dedicated antenna that ran through the entire cable. In those devices it did not matter much where the actual receiver was located.)
So, I'm wondering, perhaps someone here has already researched this matter... If this plastic box is a traffic receiver, what kind of antenna does it use? Is it located entirely inside that plastic box? Or did Garmin switch back to an in-cable antenna?
Or maybe I'm completely misinterpreting the situation, and this box is simply a BT dongle responsible for communication with the phone? (Unlikely, since the device itself is perfectly capable of communication with the phone even without the cable attached.)