Satnav recommendations please

[Steffan]

Just booked my "post Easter pilgrimage" to France and I thinking about one of these beasties for the bike/s.

Any suggestions will be gratefully received

Steffan

[Mart]

I use Tomtom in the car and Garmin on the bike both work well but Tomtom is more user friendly. Have you tried divine guidance?

[Andy M]

What's your phone like? I won't be buying another dedicated Satnav, my Galaxy phone is basically usable in a £10 bicycle holder/case with a £15 bike to USB socket wired in. If you have an I-something it's 100% ready now, (they'll just be charging you by the hour to rent the app).

I'd agree with Mart on Tomtom over Garmin, it's just plug and play rather than unlock codes and US English descriptions ("turn left onto the Great North Road" = Fifth exit, signpost A-1 etc.) and other features my last two Garmins had (I feel old now, just worked out I've had bike satnav since 1999!). Tomtom's bike mount is garbage, mine lasted a year and is now "upgraded" by having the little door at the bottom cut off and power supplied by their more robust car charger. Budget for RAM or Touratech kit to hold it if sliding into the top of the tank bag won't work.

Andy

[SRXweb]

Have you tried divine guidance?

In France we say : "all roads drive to Roma"
Is it a divine guidance ?

[Richard]

You're not taking Mark this year then ?  With his unerring sense of direction.

[Steffan]

I have a spare berth going there and back (no sleeping on the floor anymore)

Steff

[SRXweb]

On bike I tried my iPhone with a GPS application. It works well.

You can also hear your MP3s. I can tell you that cornering on a mountain road with ZZ Top Tush on your hear is a must have.

You can find specially designed GPS for motorbike.

[tj63]

I use a Garmin Zumo 550 on the bike. Expensive but very good, and the package includes bike and car mounts, leads etc.

As it's been superseded by the 660 now, you may be able to find one second hand. 


Trevor

[Mark]

Simon Morgan seems to be a bit of a kiddy regarding these things and is well impressed with his Chinese version.

Might be worth a chat.

Mark

[sexually oriented]

I bought a recon TomTom with European mapping from fleabay and have it in a ram waterproof box,does me great,can take it out to use in the cage too if i need,package cost about £160 all in,TomTom 1XL that is

[500 T C]

       Iwould recommend a garmin,reason, use one all the time in my service van,to find new customers,and secondly I chose garmin firstly,because I used to work on helicopters and they fit garmin bits to them, no laybys at 2,000 feet.
   NO,Iam not a sales rep,speak as I find.

[sexually oriented]

        secondly I chose garmin firstly.

 

[Steffan]

I have a Garmin Nuvi I bought as a standby last summer (over packing, too many contingencies) So I am going to take sexually orientated's advice and use this but get it a RAM box.

I have noticed that using a waterproofed car item is a popular option against paying all the extra on  a bike specific one.

Thanks guys

Steff

[OZ]

I've ridden in Europe quite a lot. I've always used maps. Been lost countless times but I've ended up either in interesting places or the place I intended by a different route.
Sad, but I really like looking at a Michelin and map and then completely failing to follow the planned route.
OZ

[SRXweb]

You're totally right.

On an other hand GPS system indicate where radars are located.

If you use a smartphone you can load Wikango. There's a free app. It is not a GPS System but it uses the GPS of the smartphone to indicate you're entering a "danger zone". very efficient with non-mobile radars that raise in numbers in France.