On 3/4/2013 2:19 PM, Garth Webb wrote:
Ok, I normally don't get in on these threads but I do have an opinion about this one and it didn't cost me $7-8 hundred dollars. I bought a TomTom Rider 2 (motorcycle specific GPS) about three to four years ago. It retails for $550-$650 - something like that. However, I bought mine through Craigslist (admittedly after being patient and searching) brand new in a factory sealed box for $250.00.
No, it's not as fancy as the ZUMO and it does not have satellite radio. It's screen is kinda small and it's definitely not "glove" friendly. In fact, sometimes I think it's a bit touchy with bare fingers. And to be honest, it's not the easiest to see in full bright sunlight. All that being said, let me tell you the good of it. It is 100% waterproof. I've ridden in hurricane rains (literally) with this thing and it has never shown any sign of moisture inside or any trouble because of moisture. Also, this thing is durable. I've got mounts for it on both my RT and my GS and I've ridden thousands of miles with it - on pavement and off. This GPS went to the top of Alaska (Dead Horse/Prudhoe Bay) on my GS and endured pounding punishment mile after mile and it works just as good today as the day I bought it.
It comes with a bluetooth ear deal for your helmet (rechargeable). While I have that thing on my helmet, I rarely use it for instructions. Almost always, I simply watch the screen and I've found that to be very easy to do. I will use the in helmet audio directions particularly when i'm going to be navigating in a city environment where I feel the need for more eyeball time on heavy traffic and what not.
Bottom line is this is a significantly less expensive solution (if the "I've got the best thing going" cool factor isn't an issue for your ego -OR- if you just don't have the cost of a ZUMO burning a hole in your pocket).
I mount mine with a ram mount off my brake reservoir which works great and places the device at a good viewing level. I bought two mounts which stay on either bike all the time and since I can only ride one machine at a time I simply swap the GPS between whatever bike I'm on. Oh yeah, I did also buy a second power cord for the second bike so it is hard wired for power on which ever machine I'm using.
And while it's not the most sexy GPS, I was able to buy a car adapter from TomTom that also allows me to use this in my car (which I do). So for one price, I've got a GPS for two motorcycles and my car.
Tossing in a couple ebay links. The unit is a refurbished model, which i'm also not opposed to if the seller is a dealer and reputable. Or go searching, I only glanced at ebay - there's a whole great big internet out there (Amazon is good for a lot of things).
Thanks guys. Sure do miss you. - Garth
Here's a link to a "refurbished" model from ebay:
Here's a ling to the car adapter on ebay (and this part is tough to find):
Here's a link to car charger cable (the car adaptor listed above doesn't look like it comes with one, but you'll need one. I bought a new car adaptor kit and it includes it):
Here's a link to a second power cord:--
On Mar 4, 2013, at 10:52 AM, Manuel Baca <mjbaca900@yahoo.com> wrote:
Another alternative would be to carry a couple of extra charged cell phone batteries. Just look them up on eBay and you can find them pretty cheap when compared to walking into an electronics store or provider store.
From: Anthony Sean Donnelly <seandonnelly1@msn.com>
To: emrat@googlegroups.com
Sent: Monday, March 4, 2013 8:32 AM
Subject: Re: [emrat:2198] What's your GPS?
--I agree with Capt. Bob on that. If you spend any significant money on a GPS, particularly a Zumo model, then the Touratech lockable mount is a must have to protect your investment. It isn't cheap, but neither are the Zumo's.
I also agree that they are worth the money. My 1495 didn't survive long. I don't think it held up the the shock well. While I could use it (somewhat), with gloves on, the interface and buttons are too small for it to be considered "glove friendly."
It lacked some of the motorcycle specific routing, was difficult to see in the sunlight (the washout Capt. Bob describes), lacked bluetooth for turn by turn directions and lacked the trackback feature with the ability to turn tracks into routes.
I resisted the purchase of a Zumo was well, but now that I have one, I am happy that I do. Sara and I each have one.
Otherwise, if you want to continue to use the phone based GPS, investing in an auxiliary jack for USB power would be worthwhile. I used to do that before experimenting with the 1495 and eventually the Zumo. It kept it powered, and I still use the cable to recharge the phone while I ride.
- Sean
On Mar 3, 2013, at 8:19 PM, "Robert & Denise Wendl" <radwendl@oneimage.com> wrote:
I ran a Garmin nuvi 350 form years. It worked okay and I was able to integrate it into my com system. However, it wasn't waterproof and the display would washout on bright days.Last year I upgraded to a Garmin zumo 665 which I love. The 665 has XM satellite radio, XM NavWeather, Bluetooth, glove-friendly 4.3-Inch touch screen, turn by turn directions and it is waterproof. I have integrate it into my com system and having the XM capability with GPS navigation in one device is great. The only negative item about the 665 is the facture mount. Take my word don't trust it. I upgraded to a Touratech lockable mount which is sweat.The zumo's are pricey. However, I feel they're worth the money.CPT BobGreat day for riding today -- I took a short loop from Windsor to Bellvue thru Horsetooth down to Masonville and around to Loveland -- while the trip thru Horsetooth is a short one, it was beautiful scenery and would recommend it to anyone biking around NoCo. Made it back home right before the wind started to pickup, but was surprised my phone ran out of juice because I was using 4G and GPS to navigate and listen to tunes.
It's about time I invested in a GPS, but I can't stomach paying $650-$800 for a Garmin Zumo. Would love to hear from folks as to what GPS they are using and how they have it mounted and whether they use Bluetooth to get turn-by-turn. And, no need to respond with, "real motorcyclists don't use GPS" :)
Thanks.
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "EMRAT" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to emrat+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to emrat@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/emrat?hl=en.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "EMRAT" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to emrat+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to emrat@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/emrat?hl=en.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "EMRAT" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to emrat+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to emrat@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/emrat?hl=en.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "EMRAT" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to emrat+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to emrat@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/emrat?hl=en.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "EMRAT" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to emrat+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to emrat@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/emrat?hl=en.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
0 comments:
Post a Comment