Anyone into Satnavs ? What is a good one to buy ? can you get one that will be suitable for a car and a bike but won't lead you up the nearest railway line ? Thanks
ive got a tom tom one had it quite some time but i update it regularly and i use it on the bike and in the car and its brilliant.i have never got lost or been sent wrong way and i paid only £115 brand new for it.these days you can pick em up for a lot less than that
I've got Garmin Zumo 660 - top of the range, weatherproof, Bluetooth, Autocom connection, bike powered, comes with both bike and car mounts. The cheaper zumos are bike/car useable too.
Best feature of Garmins is you get the mapping software on a CD so you can plan routes very flexibly and in minute detail on the PC's big screen, then squirt into the unit when done. Similarly, on return you can download a track log which gives full details, incl speeds and elevations, for the ride just taken. Map and data updates can be downloaded every 3 months for a one-off subscription of £60.
Geeky maybe, but all adds to the experience of touring.
I have a bar mounted waterproof case for my cheapo car satnav, battery last about 4 hours. Very rarely use it though as getting lost is part of the fun. It's useful if I'm trying to find the hotel (etc) in a built up area or am utterly lost and need to find out where I am. Actually I always know where I am, I'm just unsure where everything else is
Iv got one of the older tom tom riders and its brilliant. But the bracket doesn’t fit my sports bike. BUT last summer when in Spain i used a car Tomtom in a tank bag and it worked fine.... apart from it has auto level so the map kept flipping and you really had to look down to see it which is not ideal.
Moral of the story, TomTom rider good... but a well placed (mine wasn’t) car sat-nav works just as well...
I have a Zumo 550. I've been literally all over the world with it. Swear by it. Car or bike it's amazing. Had it for years. Put some music onto it and you can easily control the music you're listening to as you're travelling around (handy when making long motorway trips like through france where you regularly need to pause the music to talk at toll booths etc).
Worth every penny, and waterproof even in extreme conditions!
The charging circuit board is in the mount and "burns out", I've gone through 2 and know Vlad has gone through a few even though they were wired to come on only when the ignition is on. If you do get one then you need to put a switch into the circuit so that the mount can be isolated when not in use.
TomTom obviously identified it as a problem because they switched the charging circuit from the mount to inside the unit itself.
bluesbiker In: Birmingham in th
Posts: 2510
Karma:
I have a zumo 660. i've also had a 500 in the past. Its the ability to make up routes on my pc days in advance of where i'm going that makes the difference for me. tomtom or other car sat navs can't do that. easier than wasting time at the side of the road with maps. handy to a have a hard copy with you tho.
Thanks for all advice, to be fair I would really only use it on the bike if I was going to a definite place. as said, getting lost can be fun so long as you are not restricted to about 20mph, as I was in Scotland, praying for a petrol garage. .
having used one in Oz for the first time ever I just thought I would invest.
Currently using a zumo 550 on the bike and a tom tom in my van?
Tbh the garmin is a much better product. Its quicker and is more useable when you learn how to use it.
The tom tom is nice and simple but not so accurate and often struggles to keep up in towns or re-routing when you have to change the route on the fly. Its also obsessed with the M25 for some reason.
You pay for what you get basically.each has its pros and cons. But for the extra few quid the garmin is going to be my purchase from now on.
I have the Tom Tom Rider as well and I am on my second mount bloody thing is intermitent again as well. I would opt for the Garmins that BMW use, life time mapping updates etc and you can get em second hand in good condition with a lot of born again bikers giving up after realising it isn't as dry and comfortable as they remember it in their younger years...lol http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-Motorrad-Navigator-IV-made-Garmin-Motorrad-Sat-Nav-GPS-Accessories-/321409437353?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts&hash=item4ad57ecea9
Mi nokia N8 in a £10.00 waterproof bike mount off ebay . Plugged into the 12v socket on the bike . Internet access , tunes . Live traffic rerouting.
Having said that , it's not a good idea to daydream and expect the satnav to keep up at complex junctions and roundabouts. You still need to READ THE ROADSIGNS.
No satnav will ever replace a map or some brains but they are handy.
I have co-pilot on my samsung s3 mini. Can plan routes on the pc. Upload to phone and let the satnav take me the way i want to go. I also have a nokia n8 which i also use as a satnav and a camera to keep my phone free. Good satnav and 13mp camera.
I use the Garmin app on my phone it works perfect and i can Bluetooth using Bluetooth earphones in my helmet and not get tangled up in wires. An added plus is that you can play MP3 and the app will interrupt the music to give you an instruction and then return you to the music.
![Satnavs - Forums [Biker Match]](/images/backgrounds/strips/8mobileLQ.jpg)
![Satnavs - Forums [Biker Match]](/images/backgrounds/strips/8desktopLQ.jpg)
