Never been one to get lost though i don't venture far off public roads. Have always enjoyed maps though, particularly the U.S.G.S. ones. Are there other good reasons for having this on the bike?
With modern GPS units and GPS functions on smart phones you can pick the fastest route, or choose to stay off highways, locate gas stations and determine which is closest, find a particular kind of restaurant, or the closest Suzuki dealer. I actually just use my Google Maps function on my Iphone these days. I haven't seen an advantage for me of a dedicated GPS in a long time. As you upgrade smart phones you can relegate the older model to GPS and camera work.
Our over the dash GPS mounts and shelves combined with Ram X-grip works great.
Plenty of advantages, from what I can see. In addition to what Richland Rick says, my GPS and some free mapping software allows me to plan a cross country route using routes that aren't normally even visible on a road atlas, unless you plan on carrying a detailed individual state atlas for every state you're going to be passing through. Last year I found a lot of excellent dirt and gravel county and township roads to ride on during a cross country trip to Iowa that would never have been visible on my backup road atlas. More than once I've been grateful for the "nearest gas station" feature on my GPS (especially out in places like rural New Mexico), when the needle was hitting "E" and I had to choose between one direction or another in a last ditch effort to find gas.
Another advantage: No written directions, or cue sheets, or keeping track of the odometer. I program in a route, and just follow the big purple line on the screen. If I miss a turn, the GPS routes me back to where I need to be. No pulling to the side of the road to wrestle with a map or an atlas on a windy day, trying to figure out where you went wrong.
I still have all those map reading skills because I started riding long before GPS, but frankly, the GPS system is better. I still carry an atlas out of force of habit, but I haven't had to crack it open in years.
I like the idea of a pre programed route. Like as much gravel and small county roads as possible. You must have good maps loaded. The ones in my phone are just so-so.
Many of the routing features and maps (offline as well as online) are available on smart phones so that part of things isn't a huge advantage. My phone and (if I have it with me) my iPads have maps and routing software as a backup but I don't think they are all that practical to use while riding.
What I like with my two Garmin Zumo GPS units is:
-they are design to be used while riding.
-They work with gloves on
-they work with soaking wet gloves
-They work in far below-freezing weather
-they work in 126° f weather (Death Valley)
-They work in the pouring rain
-The batteries never go dead since they are on a mount
-it takes less than a second to take off the mount so I can put in my topcase or safety
-I never have to worry about USB connections getting damaged by vibration
-I never am forced to stop to look ahead for gas, food, etc along my route
-it is an absolute piece of cake to create routes and send them to the GPs units
- can search points of interest, Stored favourites, etc while riding
-I can build or modify routes at any time without needing any outside programs or devices. I can do this standing at the side of the road or while riding.
-backup music... if my iPod runs out of power I have music on the GPS so I always have music when I want it.
-can route phone calls though the GPS unit if inclined to talk on the phone while riding. Have full access to the phone's contacts, and call lists.
My newest one, a Garmin Zumo 590 (given to me as a gift by my wife) has a Weather App that has proved invaluable. It also shows temperature along my route and at my destination. Helps me make sure I will be dressed accordingly. I can see bad weather coming and can adjust my riding accordingly. it gives warnings (slippery roads, ice, snow,rain, storms, wind, etc)
On top of that it has Tire Pressure Monitoring (TPMS) so I can dynamically see my tire pressures as I am riding
Bike dedicated GPS units are crazy expensive but they do the job they are supposed to do with no real fuss or bother.
-they are design to be used while riding.
-They work with gloves on
-they work with soaking wet gloves
-They work in far below-freezing weather
-they work in 126° f weather (Death Valley)
-They work in the pouring rain
-The batteries never go dead since they are on a mount
-it takes less than a second to take off the mount so I can put in my topcase or safety -I never have to worry about USB connections getting damaged by vibration -I never am forced to stop to look ahead for gas, food, etc along my route
-it is an absolute piece of cake to create routes and send them to the GPs units
- can search points of interest, Stored favourites, etc while riding
-I can build or modify routes at any time without needing any outside programs or devices. I can do this standing at the side of the road or while riding.
-backup music... if my iPod runs out of power I have music on the GPS so I always have music when I want it.
-can route phone calls though the GPS unit if inclined to talk on the phone while riding. Have full access to the phone's contacts, and call lists.
My newest one, a Garmin Zumo 590 (given to me as a gift by my wife) has a Weather App that has proved invaluable. It also shows temperature along my route and at my destination. Helps me make sure I will be dressed accordingly. I can see bad weather coming and can adjust my riding accordingly. it gives warnings (slippery roads, ice, snow,rain, storms, wind, etc)
..Tom
I have destroyed several auto units from vibration - the main reason I finally bit the bullet and got that exact model. In addition the screen is much more visible in sunlight than the auto units.
Lot of good reasons for me to run a dedicated GPS unit over a phone. One that might surprise others is my standard procedure for getting a motel room! Not uncommon for me to be on the road a few days at a time and need motels. Not one to make reservations, I ride till I think I need to find a room. GPS searches that for me, then I hit the call button and it calls for me. I often call 3 or 4 motels checking prices. Now I know a phone can probably do that now, but don't tell me you can do that on a phone with gloved hands. GPS units can hold a lot more detail than Google Maps typically. Especially off pavement stuff.
Phones and tablets have gotten a lot better at mapping. I have a clear faced tablet holder for my tank bag, I was thinking one of the small tablets might be a good thing for having a larger map open while still having more details on the gps.
I still carry maps! Hard to beat when planning a route.
I liked checking how far along on the map I had traveled as well as ETA. I also liked seeing when a state line was coming up to see what the area around the border was like. Some state lines just had a sign. Others had a city on each side of a bridge over a river. One crossing was in a small town that straddled a border. I wish I could remember where that was as it was fascinating to think of walking across a street to a restaurant as Interstate travel.
I hear you on that one (about being frugal). It's why I stick with the older Nuvi series of GPS units; you can pick up a used one (like the 2455) for anywhere between $30 and $75 on Amazon. Cheap enough that I carry two of them on trips, both programmed with the same route. When one of them finally rolls snake eyes, I'll buy another of whatever older model has the Trip Planner feature.
Others have covered the benefits fairly well, but all I'll say is that a good multi-function GPS/smart phone has made my riding and trips vastly better than they would have been without. It's probably the best farkle on my bike, and every time I ride I end up using it for a useful purpose or to find things I wouldn't have found otherwise (from a point of interest to a good road running near where I was).
From route building to having tunes along for the ride, invaluable.
GPS are great toys, used by some as directional devices to get misplaced at awkward times.
I like my ancient Street III Plus because it is a volt meter and tells me when sunset is.
It's amazing that a device that can only download a minor part of LA county also has a country worth of back roads in it's meager memory.
I still like paper maps because it give me the big picture more readily.
I'm too Luddite to use a GPS to get someplace I've never been before. My 2455 could not fine Cedars Sinai hospital to get my wife there for a heart surgery but it found Macy's across the street. Another source told me what was in the neighbor hood.
Use GPS empirically at your own peril!
I've only had two boneheaded incidents from two different GPS's.
One put me at a dead end road looking at a fenced pasture in a rural neighborhood in Georgia swearing it was a connection road to the highway. The other was it had me make a circular route trying to pass through a small town in Texas. Just like a hamster wheel. All I can figure is there used to be a bypass or road segment spur and somehow it got connected weird in the GPS.
Other than that it's been a real lifesaver. Face it - unless you get specific region maps they usually don't have enough detail to show small back roads. So even if you have a good idea where you're at you still can't see enough detail to navigate.
I will be getting a 390 soon, it's been a long time coming. I have been relying on old 2700 series GPS for years now, it's past due for me to get with the times.
Big B, I thought you were in the "cell phone navigation systems only" camp...didn't realize you used a dedicated GPS system.
I gave the cell phone/OsmAnd system a try on my last trip and, in spite of some pretty vigorous proselytizing in favor of cell phones on another thread, I still prefer a dedicated GPS. I use the cell phone as a backup, but still prefer my old Garmin/Tyre system for primary use.
The Zumos are terrific, but still out of my price range unless I find a good deal on a used one.
I gave the dedicated GPS phone thing a good try, but between not being able to make changes with my gloves on, and the number of times my GPS signal keeps dropping out........I am done with it. Heck I am only out about $50 for everything, was worth a try and I can see how it is a viable solution for many. Prices on the 390 and 590 are really good, I have just been patiently waiting for that to happen. :grin2: The phone I have is also not waterproof, yet another pain in the ass........
I understand that a Canadian family lives in a house on one of the Thousand Islands, and also owns a smaller island a few meters to the south, in the United States. A bridge links the islands, and I think there is a shed or cottage on the American island.
The members of the family soften arguments by offering to leave the country until the offended party is willing to let the other return.
I spent a few minutes looking, but did not find specifics.
(Apologies to the OP; this has wandered from the topic.)
Keith
I planned heaps of rides on tyre, I up load them and save to my Zumo's.
I have a 350 that I'm happy with but adding the 390 with the curvy roads feature has taken my rides to the next level.
I have discovered roads I never knew existed and the fun factor has gone through the roof.
I often now just punch in a destination and use the curvy roads feature, I just check that is not going to take me too long to get there time or fuel wise, this has produced some great roads and memorable rides.
Without a doubt any system I now own will have the curvy roads feature, it's a blast.
I'm not going to comment on MC-specific GPS vs car GPS vs phone GPS. They all have their advantages.
I will say that my old Nuvi 255W lasted for quite a few years of use on my bike before finally dying (the backlight went out). We'll see if my new 6" auto Garmin will last as long. At least it was pretty cheap.
I like having a GPS because it gives me more confidence to explore roads that I don't know, knowing that they aren't going to dead end 10 km in, or turn into 30 km of gravel. And generally in helping me to spot some twisty roads that I might not otherwise. Maps could do that, too, but ones that are small enough scale to show any detail need to be flipped too often to be very useful.
I use an old phone with no cell service or data plan. I use offline maps and plan a route.
The GPS features work without cellular data, and it navigates really well. I can stream music via Bluetooth at the same time.
My offline maps provides tons of POIs, shows highway signs related to navigation.
If i use my phone with data service, i can use satellite view which is way cool.
I bought a cheapo mount which has a wired usb port so i can keep my devices charged. In offline mouse it can run all day while plugged in. When my phone is using cellular data to pull maps, it cannot keep a charge for half a day.
I always put in my hotel as a destination point. I usually go to a destination, check in and make day trips in the area. If you get lost doing the scenic routes you can always find your way back to the hotel.
Without commenting on the phone vs. dedicated GPS discussion, I'll tell you the best reason to use GPS: if you pay taxes in the U.S., you've already paid for the expensive part. That's the constellation of satellites. It would be nuts not to use them.
Another thing I've learned from this thread: watch out for other bikers who are fiddling with / staring at GPS units while tooling down the road.
And also those looking at Speedometers, Tachometers, Fuel level displays, trip odometers, fuel mileage readouts, range to empty displays, thermometers, voltage displays, freeze indicators, ABS and Traction Control warning indicators and gear indicators.
How about those guys that run around with GPS instructions being played in their ears?
That's a fair point. I have mine on a RAM mount in a cradle that's set off about 4" from the handlebar, so it's not too far below my field of view, but it's definitely inferior to one mounted higher.
I have it configured to show 'distance until next' so I can ignore it as much as possible.
The voice instructions seems to be very much a personal preference. Myself? I really appreciate them. I find it allows me to keep my eyes on the road and traffic and look for the road that it is saying to turn. In Europe especially, the roads may be quite obscure and not what we here in NA are used to looking for. I remember one time in Barcelona being told to turn NOW and thinking no way but lo and behold there was a street that the bike barely fit down. Would have rode right on by otherwise.
The other thing I found (and this was with a friends Zumo 550) was that the screen lagged just enough to cause him to miss several turns when not using the sound. Once he hooked up the sound to his ear buds, he had no issues. This was when there were several options within a short distance (eg. 5-6 exits on a traffic circle).
I have used my phone on occasion (with OsMand) and just left it in my pocket and bluetoothed to my headset and it worked for point to point. Solved the mounting/waterproof issue with phones by just leaving it in my pocket. I am still on the hunt for a GPS phone app that will do it all, relatively easily.
ie. spoken instructions, capable of accepting predetermined routing, resident maps, reasonable price.
This winter's project will be to try some out.
I think that, within a relatively short period of time, standalone GPS units will be a thing of the past so I am not replacing my old TT920. BTW - it has survived over 100k miles on the bike. Just put a ziploc over it when it rains.
Rod
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