TomTom ONE IQ Routes Edition Sat Nav (Europe Mapping)

I upgraded to this unit from an older TomTom, remaining loyal to the brand because my old unit gave me no problems and TomTom continues to be one of the best brands out there.
Or so I thought.

On the hardware side, I would say TomTom have succeeded, although the internal memory could be larger.

And even TomTom Home (the software you install on the PC to subsequently manage your device) installed without a hitch.

However, once up and running, it told me my map was out of date, so I proceeded to download the latest one free of charge under the "Latest Map Guarantee" (all normal so far).
But the download&install was tediously slow and after 2 hours aborted with a timeout error (the display message is no more specific than that).
Another attempt and it told me there was no more room left on my device (it's not clever enough to realise that the old map will be deleted and re-added).
Unfortunately I am not alone here. A google search of this problem… more »

I upgraded to this unit from an older TomTom, remaining loyal to the brand because my old unit gave me no problems and TomTom continues to be one of the best brands out there.
Or so I thought.

On the hardware side, I would say TomTom have succeeded, although the internal memory could be larger.

And even TomTom Home (the software you install on the PC to subsequently manage your device) installed without a hitch.

However, once up and running, it told me my map was out of date, so I proceeded to download the latest one free of charge under the "Latest Map Guarantee" (all normal so far).
But the download&install was tediously slow and after 2 hours aborted with a timeout error (the display message is no more specific than that).
Another attempt and it told me there was no more room left on my device (it's not clever enough to realise that the old map will be deleted and re-added).
Unfortunately I am not alone here. A google search of this problem reveals lots of dissatisfied customers with same problem, and even TomTom's online support troubleshooting acknowledges it.
Their online solution does work but
a) by now any new TomTom customer would surely be put off the brand altogether.
b) it involves making manual backups and deletions through Windows Explorer, which requires a certain level of PC knowhow of its user. Isn't that why the TomTom Home software is provided in the first place?

TomTom suggest that a reason for the error is the user's internet connection, which should support at least 2MB bandwidth.
FYI I have a broadband line with an actual speed of 15MB, and PC is connected by Ethernet not wireless. The timeout cannot be attributed to my internet connection.
More likely, is the fact that these TomTom models are still operating with USB 1! Incredible but true. And it's why any backup or installations can take hours.

I have persisted with this waste of time simply because I know the product will be good in the end, but next time I upgrade, TomTom won't be the brand I default to.