Hema HX-1 Navigator
Verified105 reviews
Bought the Hema x1 in 2018 from bcf, used it for twelve months in remote locations and was ok not great on maps. Seems Hema isn’t interested supporting this product if they now stopped the usage of my recorded data which is now deleted from their cloud. The black rubber case is also now sticky and deteriorated. It’s never left in the car. Now I… Read more
understand why the reps I’ve approached at the 4x4 shows for assistance don’t want to talk to me if you have had issues with it or with them. They just turn their backs and walk away if you don’t want to buy their new supposedly great new fantastic products.
I won’t recommend HEMA products or their costly upgrades. If they don’t want to help with a product you bought then forget them.
No I won’t be buying Hema ever again. Seems that they are too busy employing expensive marketers to make classy advertisements on social media platforms or by direct email to future or past customers trying to persuade and hype sales.
It’s an old trick called critical mass. Once you reach it the sales keep rolling in until everyone catches up and realises that you’re not really a customer just a small blip in their KPI’S. I’ll never buy Hema again.
The Hema HX-1. Multiple issues. Avoid – Bought the HX1 in 2018. Had a dramatic system failure in 2020, subsequently sent it back for repair. 4 months later I got it back. Now the internal battery has expanded popping the unit open. For the money, this is a disappointing outcome. I recommend checking out other brands. Show details
Chop off both hands & put on a blindfold and it seems to work well! – Chop off both hands & put on a blindfold & it seems to work quite well! Complete & utter rubbish. Just use an app on a good quality phone. I purchased the HX1 last august & it's a piece of junk. Nothing but excuses from hema who admit the bad publicity has damaged sales. I lost $500 on this rubbish as I am struggling to sell it second hand even… Read more
for $250 as everybody knows the HX1 is a dud. Hema maps were great but they need to be taken to task after happily stitching up thousands of people over this cheap android tablet in a fancy case. I'll never trust them again & neither should anyone else. Just keep right away from HEMA & avoid guaranteed disappointment.
Reviews with attachments
Do not buy a HEMA HX-1 – I bought the HEMA HX-1 in Sept. 2019 (3 years and 3 Months ago) at BCF in Balcatta. In Dec. 2022 the touch screen delaminated and the housing poped open and a silvery swollen up bag was visible inside the unit. This swollen up silvery bag is holding the battery as I found out and has failed and in this process has cracked the housing open and… Read more
delaminated the touch screen. The HEMA-HX-1 had been used very little and only for navigating around Town in my vehicle which is allways parked in the garage. I am very disapointed with the quality of this product. I contacted Customer service at HEMA by email and asked for the replacement of the failed battery at no cost to me but was informed that I can return the HX-1 for repair at a cost of $ 199.00 plus freight. They do not state any warranty for the repair and say that refurbished parts may be used to repair. I am not going to spend another $200.00 plus on this low quality HEMA product.
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Don't Buy a Hema HX1 - They're rubbish – I bought a HEMA as I was under the impression that they made a good quality product with up to date maps. When I received it I realised that the size of font on screen is too small for the size of the screen. After its first use I found that the 12V/24V 2A Car Charger that comes with the unit doesn't charge at a fast enough rate, so the battery… Read more
level drops while you use it unless you put it to sleep. I also found that you can't turn the unit off while it's plugged into or charging from a 12V power source. The unit is 2 years old but I kept it at home (out of the car) for about 18 months because of Covid 19 lock downs and the charging issue. I only started using it again about 2 months ago, just once a fortnight, and even though I took the unit off the dash and kept it in my console, a major fault has occurred. A silver pillow-like part inside the unit puffed up and pushed the screen away from the back and part of the screen now has a blackened area on it. I have a 15 year old Garmin that has sat on the dash, in the sun for about 12 years and it still works, has never had an issue with heat, although it needs a new battery and the maps are out of date, but it's still a superior product. The unit still works but as I was never happy with the quality of the maps, I won't use it anymore. I don't live in a city or town and the maps in the unit are not up to scratch, parts of roads aren't shown so the unit wants to direct you on the maps it has so it can take you hundreds of kms out of your way. I approached HEMA about the warranty and they want to charge me $200 + freight just to look at it, put a new battery in it and update the software, they haven't even mentioned the cost for the repairs of this rubbish. Whatever you do, DO NOT buy a HEMA product!!!!!!!
Lemon – Battery buldged and split the case1 week out of 12 month warranty. The company repaired it free but the wait time was 5 weeks. The software has issues that are frustrating. Turns on day mode (bright) when still dark. Loses signal often, takes the long way so I use my phone around the city. Disappointed, the hn7 was a better unit. Show details
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Absolute junk – I purched a hx1 in Jan 2019. was replaced twice in 2 months due to not charging and now the battery has exploded causing the screen to delaminate. the place we got it from stated the warranty was 12 months from original purchase....absolutely crap piece of equipment. will now need to look for alternative Show details
In-depth reviews
Great unit let down by few a issues – I purchased the hema X1 on sale at anaconda to replace the old VMS unit I had, first it is great at what it does for both on road and off-road it has a large bright display, and I've had no issues reading it either during the day or night, geo locations are great - along with it's speech however I did notice it doesn't say all the street names.… Read more
The camera is serviceable at best but that's not why I purchased the unit. I have a phone for that or my dlsr. The explore mode was be a bit hit and miss first few times I loaded it but after that seems to be fine now. The Android operating system is getting old in the tooth and I'm amazed it's not been updated. My biggest gripe was I had to purchase a $40 dollar 32 watt charger to charge it via 240 v for some reason I tried three different charging blocks and although it indicates it was charging the battery indicator would drop while it was charging! I did take it back to anaconda and explained the issue they plugged it into 32 watt charger and all was fine so their remedy was for me to purchase that charger! And to be honest it doesn't cost that much to put a correct charger for 240 v in the box this is the reason I gave 4 stars all round it's definitely above the VMS unit I had. And even with few issues I experienced I would recommend it.
Hema HX1 - feedback following previous review including comment on Hema after sales service – I posted a frustrated review about the screen delaminating on my Hema HX1 about 6 weeks ago on 17th October 2021. See https://www.productreview.com.au/reviews/b177bba5-665d-4183-8753-4e39a194fc6b Following that review Hema Support reached out to me & invited me to return the unit to them. Cost of postage sending it to them was mine, but I was… Read more · 1
assured that after the unit was examined I would receive a report offering repairs & the cost, or have the unit returned to me at Hema's cost. I really didn't expect anything other than an offer of an expensive repair, but decided that risking the postage cost (under $10) was worth it, so accepted the invitation to send the unit to Hema. I'll be honest, I expected the invitation, posted on this site to be little more than a PR exercise - to be seen to be responding without any commitment. Corporate behaviour 101. Well I could not have been more wrong! Communication has been excellent, as has the service. After examination of the unit (remember this was my second unit, a free replacement after the first unit suffered a failure 6 months outside of warranty in May 2019) I was offered either a discounted price (30%) on a new HX2, OR to have the current unit repaired for $99. The repair was itemised for my consideration.
-Battery replaced & tested -mini USB port tested OK -Screen assembly replaced & tested OK -Main circuit board replaced & account synced - Rear case replaced -'Drive' updated to 2021 Q2 (I was offered a later update at a small cost but declined as we use 'Drive very little. -Explorer (Off road maps) updated to latest -Camps 10 installed on 'Drive' (Previously had camps 9).
Hard to imagine what else could be fixed/changed - & what I received in the mail today looks like a brand new unit. The service & the cost has renewed my faith in Hema & I would like to say thank you to them publicly through this site.
Yes things shouldn't fail, yes the warranty should be more than 12 months, but when a company provides after sales service as has occurred here it renews one's faith!
Ian Cape York.
A fair tool, but lacking intelligent programming support – Review of Hema HX1 navigator – TJT 20210721. This device tracks our movement on a background map OK - except when the background disappears and one has to zoom out then in again to restore visibility of the map. Support suggested this was due to having too many maps/layers active - that turns out to be untrue. It happens frequently!! A few other… Read more
major issues: 1 - you cannot plug this thing into a charger without it being "On", or turning itself back on having been told to shut down. This wastes the charger current, wears out the screen , and it takes longer to charge after handheld use than it should. 2 - If importing waypoints from a GPX file on the microSD card, there is no way to stop them showing on screen as a blue flag, nor is there any way to "batch" edit them to use a different symbol, they must be done one at a time. I have confirmed this is "normal" with "Support". 3. The choice of small, non-obtrusive waypoint symbols is very limited (and totally inadequate in my view). 4. The background map has not been updated in over 3 years of ownership and contains many errors. For anyone who wishes to do their research before travelling and plot waypoints systematically using different symbols for different types - Look for another device (like the Garmin Overlander I recently bought - Batch editing is possible, and it syncs with a web-based PC setup that means if the device is lost or disabled, I could restore the information - including the customized waypoint symbols - from my PC).
With the Hema, by contrast, I have hand-edited the symbols of several hundred waypoints (mainly railway stations), but I now realize that if the device dies these symbol edits will die with it, and cannot be restored from my PC. They would all re-load as blue flags!
These issues about symbol types and map updates were first raised by me in July 2020 and followed up by me with "Support" in early 2021, and their response was that they had referred it to the development team. Which was a reasonable response, but after 6 months with no followup in the form of questions or information, I have to assume it has been ignored. (My comment to them at that time included the view that "The device is basically an Android tablet that must be able to be programmed in a way that allows more user interaction with the imported files.")
On other points - signal connectivity was fine, the mounting was easily modified with a craft knife so as to make it sit lower on my dashboard mount, and the device rarely becomes "lost" in poor-signal areas.
BUT it is not a suitable tool for those who want to pre-plan a far-ranging trip covering multiple types of points of interest, and to have the map reliably stay on the screen and remind them which of those points they might be approaching, with some clue as to what the “blue flag” actually means. In summary – this is a good mechanical device but one whose usefulness is limited by a lack of imaginative programming support.
Positive reviews
A great unit – Hi My Hema HX 1 will not turn on, it doesn’t appear to be charging ( battery??) Can i get my unit repaired? Where do i send it? Can someone make contact with me please Regards John Show reply
Great unit just some small issues – The unit comes up with a black and white graph when first turned on in off road mode. I have to move it off of screen and back on again in order to display the map. Also the night brightness is far too bright as it destroys night vision when used in the bush it is just OK for city driving, is there a software update to fix these issues? If so I would rate it 5 star. Show details
Find out how Hema HX-1 Navigator compares to other GPS Navigation Systems
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Screen cracking – I’ve had my HX-1 since Christmas and been on two trips with. It was in the windscreen holder at all times. I’ve noticed that there are some cracks starting to appear in the screen. Has anyone else has this issue? Show details
Negative reviews
Terrible product. Wasted $500+ – Waste of hard earned money, glitchy from day one, not user friendly, takes ages to boot up and get a signal, won't turn off and just runs flat regularly at random times. Hema has great marketing but a lousy useless product, never again! So glad there's alternatives. Show details
Right idea, terrible performance and useability – I have had the HAME HX-1 for two and a half years. It has pretty good maps and general functions BUT: - I can't delete old tracks, either on the unit or the cloud. - charging and power circuit generally sucks. It finally stopped charging altogether, even when the lightning bolt symbol is on, it wasn't charging. Also, it seems that that there was… Read more
something wrong with the connections, because sometimes when "charging" it would lose battery % at the rate of about 1% per minute, like it was short circuited or something. - Can't turn the unit off if it is plugged in. Sucks at night when you want the screen off. - no internal "intelligence". That is, it will not suggest words you have previously used to auto fill waypoint names, etc. - Explore mode basics work well, but drive mode navigator and search for locations is terrible. Some addresses it can't find and it won't search by place/business names.
Waste of money – Bought 2 years ago ,worked ok with updates out of the box ,easy to use in city ,country maps are poor ,then it seems to navigate on goat tracks and has really stuffed up a couple of driving holidays, maps aren't being updated by hema and now the gps has stopped picking up a signal altogether, its just e rubbish now as repairing is out of the question Show details
Recent reviews
The most dissapointing purchase I have ever made! – Initially it would always turn itself with warning that it was overheating - this was fixed via a software update. Constantly lose satellite signal - this appeared to get better after a software update Navigation routes were bizarre - I was never sure of the algorithims that were being used with some of the routes it was provided. Battery life was… Read more
terrible. After 3 years you are forced to purchase updates for navigation! You can download apps such as WAZE that do not require updates. I can not trust the directions it gives me so we are back to using map books again It recently stopped turning on or would turn on and off continuously - I have tried to factory reset but without success. It has now gone in the bin and I have written it off. DO NOT purchase this item
Constantly freezes and loses signal – Unit is extremely slow to load and constantly freezes for no reason.Also constantly loses satellites in hilly areas when other devices don’t lose signal. Unit also has trouble navigating and constantly takes the wrong route. Extremely disappointed and so is the person that bought this for me as a present. I want my money back. Show details
Very expensive and failed after 18 months – While the mapping features are good, the price is not. Particularly given the HX-1 had completely failed now after 18 months - so out of warranty. While the user database is useful, the online interface is a bit clunky.
Hi Dave, Please contact the Hema Tech Support for… Read more
Rubbish and over rated software. OK as purely map and GPS - OK only – Maps are reasonable Installation is comparable Strength of GPS is marginal and slow My complaint is how bad and unusable the map app is. To create a route and edit it is the worst experience I have had with software. It is junk. I would never buy this device if had known how bad this would be. Hema are JUST a map company. They are a rubbish software company. Never again. Pay a little bit more. Show details
Hema HX-1 the Joke of all GPS Batterie failed – Good maps / Easy to use Battery life poor batterie expanded and split unit contacted Hema hotline and was told send it in we will fit a new batterie for $190 plus freight no one could answer how long this will last the Hema representative said you should get two years out of it. Show details
Hi Wayne, As with all batteries, there is no way… Read more
Find out how Hema HX-1 Navigator compares to other GPS Navigation Systems
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Shattered I wasted my hard earned cash – System won’t run for more than 6hrs without screen freezing Useless through the mountains, loses gps and In turn route planned Constantly leading me circles with no destination even though it’s registered a particle route/ track I should be taking to get to destination. Refuses to allow me to delete tracks System overheats on cold days if run for… Read more
extend amount of time Don’t waste your money, would invest in hx2 to see if they’ve rectified issues, but excessive amount of cash to satisfy my curiosity only to be disappointed again, time to try a reliable system
Sorry to hear you are having issues with your… Read more
Good product - let down by build – I found the maps good, and fairly up to date. The suction cup mount sat well on my ute windscreen and my motorbike windscreen. The unit never lost signal, save for in covered garages etc, and then quickly recovered it. So, what's my gripe? This unit is pricey, but the socket for the power/ data cable is flimsy, and on bumpy roads, didn't take… Read more
long to open up and no longer retain the lead in place. No charging, power drop outs and so forth. Hence, what ought to have been a 4.5/5 star rating falls to a 2 star. I won't buy another Hema again.
Failed screen separation and overheats and reboots. Should have stuck to Garmin – Was ok since purchase in cold weather months, but summer :( in hot car won’t boot. Does not hold charge or charge up fully touch screen has separated. Would not recommend this unit for use in any sort of off-road my old Garmin unit lasted 8 years without fail!!!!! Show details
Don't buy this rubbish – Total rubbish keeps needing to reboot, asking to connect to wifi? The unit gets so hot that it can't be held. When seting new route mostly changes street name to e.g. Stirling to Simion and sends me to a wrong address. Keeps losing GPS. I had a HN7 and the biggest problem I had was a worn out battery . Don't buy this rubbish Show details
Inaccurate travelling time result – setting a destination, the unit calculates average speed at 40km/h even though roads are sealed and speed limits 110 km/h. Compared with our travelling friends with another HX1, they had the same result so issue is no the hema software. Show details
OMG the worst product I have ever purchased – Battery dies fast, forever searching for GPS never stays up with you. Have to set up your trip every time you stop and restart your vehicle. Biggest waste off money. Show details
HI Jason, I noticed you have had your unit for… Read more
This is a lemon – Worked great, maps were great, track logs and all to do with GPS was great, also took great pictures and video. Then battery swelled and popped screen. Lost everything. Thats all bye Show details
HI Des, All is not lost ! We can service your unit… Read more
Always searching for signal. Can never get a signal even on a sunny day – GPS signal strength is non existent. Cant pick up GPS signal. inaccurate GPS position when i have a signal. Im always travelling on a different street to what Im actually travelling on. Called the tech team who were good at helping me resolve the issue Show details · 3
Thanks for your deception Hema HX1 – No factually correct updates. Customer service is a joke; they blame mapping company for the mistakes & after all it’s really just a 4WD gps not really for street navigation. 80 zones as 50, same for 70 & 60km/hr zones! Take the money and run! Show details
HI Mark, The HX1 Navigation unit is and has always… Read more (+1 reply)
HX-1. Sorry we purchased this unit – Our HX-1 is less than 18 Months old. The battery will not charge past 26%. Even when plugged into the USB port in the truck, it will not hold its charge. USB port appears faulty. When using in Explorer mode on outback dirt roads and relying on the unit for directions it is actually dangerous as it constantly turns itself off leaving you with no… Read more
idea where the road goes or which turn to take. It is difficult to use and is quite complicated after our previous Hema 6 which was far more user friendly. It is suited to a very select group of end users. We have resorted to downloading free speedo & trip apps on our iPhones/iPads as these offer continuity and accurate distances and maps.
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Hi Tristan, I believe you have been in contact… Read more