The Honda Owners Club

Managed with a map on recent visit to France but would like my first GPS but not sure what to get. Both these have good sales blurb - the 550 fits the car easily too. Are they hard to set up prior to a journey? On a trip out could one not prepare it but just switch it on if looking for a better way home? I don't have earphones in my Shoei (as I don't want the distraction of music or phone when riding). Is the power supply wiring easy?
All help and advice would be appreciated, please.
Many thanks. Robur in Colchester

Hi Robur

You say you don't want the distraction of music, with the Garmin it's main "extra" is an mp3 player, if you don't want it (like I didn't) the TT Rider V2 is cheaper

I can only give an opinion on the Rider so for what its worth.

The Rider only has Bluetooth, there is no headset socket so if using with an intercom system then that system needs a bluetooth adapter that will act as a headset.
There is a car adapter (around £30) that as well as being a mount point incorporates a speaker so you can hear the instructions, and a ciggy lighter socket power lead.

The unit comes in a big box containing the rider itself, a mounting cradle with Ram-Mount ball and a universal bike Ram-Mountkit. Also includes a power lead for permanent wiring onto the bike and a dc power supply for normal charging.
The box also contains a Scalar Bluetooth headset and DC charger unit (nothing included for bike charging though)
The headset attaches very easily to any helmet where you can move the padding away from the shell enough to slide a thinish mounting bracket up. This bracket contains a swan neck boom mic and a thin speaker on a flylead that attaches with velco inside the helmet. The bluetooth unit itself slides on & off this bracket so it can be easily removed for charging

In use I have found the rider easy to operate so far and the voice instructions are clear and precise, with the volume automaticaly increasing as your speed increases. The touch screen is responsive and again easy to use, even when wearing gloves.

There is no need to prepare a route, so long as you have set your home location just turn it on, select new route, destination as "home" as viola, it calculates the route from where you are (this is what all sat-nav should do btw) you can tell the rider to avoid motorways, toll roads, use fastest, use walking and use bicycle, though interestingly, for a motoerbike specific Sat-Nav there is no motorbike specific route !! (you know, scenic routes only and no right turns )

If you have a pillion you can always purchase a scaler team-set which would link to the Rider and give pillion comms at the same time

Another feature of the rider, although you say you don't require this, is it will also bluetooth link with a phone and act as a visual intermediary between phone and headset, allowing to answer a call only if you wish

Hopefully someone will post a review of their Zumo so you can compare against real usage.

Any further info you want just ask

What about the most important part - the maps - how do the two systems compare? How detailed are the maps and how up to date are they. Can they be updated on line? Can tour planning be done on a PC, then downloaded to the GPS unit? What countries are fully covered? What countries are covered by city plans?

How up to date are the maps ? that's the $64m question

I got my TomTom cheaper by buying the UK version and buying the Euro map seperatly. So far on the UK map everywhere I have used it has been correct, what's more it even shows the new link road (3 years old) at the bottom of my road, this is NOT shown on the Euro map

With the TomTom, you get a free update within 30 days of purchase, basically, if a new version of the maps comes out as you buy your unit you get them for free, otherwise you have to pay again....BUT.....the TomTom software includes a free MapShare service where you can upload & download corrections to the map, for free, so in that respect ongoing updates are free.

With the TomTom software you can only plan routes if the TomTom unit is plugged in, it actually uses all the maps & processing on the unit to plan routes, effectivly the PC screen becomes the unit screen, where's the point in that I hear you ask, well yes, I thought that, but it does work very well.

Also you can use GoogleMaps and send the GPS location to the unit.

As for map coverage, TomTom claim 99% coverage in each Western European country, except Slovvenia & Croatia (around 45% in these)

I have read your discussion with interest. I am not a technophobe and use GPS in vehicles on a daily basis. I've tried them on the bike a couple of times an find them more of a distraction than anything else. I personnal prefer my trusty Tuffmap because it never runs out of electricity, never has a mind of its own and bounces when I drop it!!
But thats enough of my preference, the only thing I would suggest is that you try one before parting with your hard earned cash.

I have both, a Garmin Zumo for the bike and a TT Go300 for the car, I prefer the maps and usability of the TomTom, but I like the way that my phone automatically bluetooth connects to the Zumo and it also connects to my Autocom, neat.

The Garmin sometimes takes me on magical mystery tours and I have little faith in it, which is a bugger as it cost around £350, build quality is good, but it doesnt tell you how far it is to your destination, just the arrival time and other niggly little things, I wish I had bought the TomTom Rider and saved a lot of money.

Al

Not talking bikes for a minute, but I've had both Tom Tom and Garmin nav systems in the car and have settled on the Garmin. The Tom Tom seemed to have a delay and would end up telling you to turn after you'd gone past the junction. The bluetooth on the Garmin has also been very reliable which has not been the case with previous bluetooth products I have used.

Regards

Chimpy

Although not a technaphobe, I am sticking with maps. I need glasses to read, and I doubt I could read the screen without my glasses, and it would be unsafe to ride with them. So when I am unsure where to go I stop, get out the map get out the glasses and do some good old fassioned map reading, and its cheaper

I also had a glasses related problem with maps. With the map on my tank bag, I had to remove my glasses to read it - it was too close and out of focus range for my glasses.
With the GPS unit mounted just inside the windscreen, I found it was within the focus range of my glasses. With the GPS just showing the immediate area and with the voice instructions, the GPS has certainly added to my riding pleasure.
I still carry a map for when I need an overall picture of my location.

I would not even consider a GPS system that did not allow me to plan my routes on my PC, then download them to the GPS unit. Much of the fun is in the planning, it also allows you to sort out any anomaly the system may throw up.

Barry, most unlike you but you have some good, non-contravesial point there

jimmyb wrote:Barry, most unlike you but you have some good, non-contravesial point there

I try to make my comments suit the topic I can when the topic requires it, talk rubbish with the best of them

I have secumbed to the use of sat nav whilst riding me bike! Map reading is definately a pain in comparison. However, I did not want to put a mounting bracket on the bike, consequently, I use my car Navman and put it in me pocket. I use an 'in ear' earphones and it works fine.

I don't tend to look at the screen in the car as the voice instructions are just great! The battery life is circa 3.5 hours which is the only downside! It got me back from Le Mans though!

The battery life is circa 3.5 hours which is the only downside! It got me back from Le Mans though!

What in 3 1/2 hours, did the needle drop below 120

You say you don't want a bracket on the bike, is that an "at all" or a "don't want to drill holes"

If the latter then the TomTom came with a universal RamMount kit that attached to the handle bars, theres lots of different connectors and things in their range, and I was able to root the power lead without having to drill holes too.

if "at all" please feel free to ignore my comments

Alan,

Good spot! I actually extended the life of battery by switching off once on a long stretch of the same road! and from Le Mans to Calais, there were many! After Calais, I did not need it to get home as am familiar with the route! The 540 miles actually tool 7hrs and 20 mins but was lucky as just caught a ferry 10 mins before it sailed!)

I just dont use a sat nav enough to have a permanent mounting. I think that it would spoil the look of me Triumph!

Phew, I was thinking for a minute you had a super-dooper turbo charged triumph