I can't believe it's another GPS question!

[Me-109]

No it isn't - it's probably lots of questions!

For a start I don't really want to end up paying several hundred pounds more than a road map. Not a Luddite, just brassic. I'm also not sure how much I need one, even given the reasonable mileage I do on bike and car as I tend to know where I'm going. I'm looking for something to help me out if I go off route to avoid an accident/hold up or am away from home but wanting to get to somewhere specific - like meeting 'Trixters at the pub!

So I've done all the searching (though the pace of technology means many of the found posts are somewhat out of date pricewise), I've been watching fleabay and I've had more than a couple of conversations. I think it may be a Garmin, because they have bike fitting kits. With that in mind I'm trying to get a picture of what is really old hat and what some of the key differences are. So....

Is the timeline Streetpilot 3 - Quest I - Quest II - 2610 ..... ?
Seems from the searches that the 2610 has no battery, the SP3 does, but what about the Quests?
How do I tell a QI from a QII?
How much faster are the newer ones in recalculating routes?
Which ones have ridiculously expensive and dedicated memory cards, rather than generic SD/CompactFlash?
Which ones have onboard receivers and/or where do you put the external antenna?

And instead of getting fixated on Garmin, has anyone tried any other solutions such as PDAs or NavMan/A.N.Other car-types?

[bigblackfalco]

Some of the guys use PDA's at work and from what I've seen they are painfully slow and the screen is way too small. They use the latest Tom Tom system.
I've been toying with the idea of getting something to do away with all my paper maps, but like you, It's all a bit of a grey science to me and I don't really see why they cost so much money!
I'm worried about longevity on a bike all day everyday.....no use if it only lasts a few months and the buttons or display stop working.
Bailey.

[tripe]

I've had a Garmin 2610 for 2 years now and I have mixed views on it.
Negatively it is expensive for the use I get from it
It took me a while to get used to the software so finding places until I knew what I was doing seemed to take forever.
It doesn't like narrow streets with tall buildings either.
The software works on a PC only so useless on my Mac at home
Newer models have POI's/camera warning that mimic a road angel, can't do that on a 2610
Sometimes they choose the most bizarre route


But on trips you can get where you want without stopping at every junction.
Spoked instructions via the headphones saves squinting down at a map on a tankbag.
The true speedo is very useful.
It tells you what time you will arrive at your destination pretty accurately
The PC only software is great for planning and creating routes in advance.

To be honest it is a great toy that is very practical.
The 2610 uses memory cards, bought a 2gb for £30 last year. The whole of europe is on this card

The speed of recalculating routes has not been a problem
Its been through some torrential downpours with no problems.

It doesn't need an external antenna and not sure what you mean by onboard receiver.

Its the usual thing with technology though, the more you spend the more you get.

Do watch out on ebay though for two things.
1. if unlock codes are previously registered then the maps may not work and would need you to buy a new code £££$$$£££
2. If its an import Garmin UK have told some owners to return it to country of origin when there is a problem.

I love it

Henry

[snavetrauts]

Ditto all that Tripe said ... but mine is the Garmin Quest. Bought second hand on fleebay with all the bike bits as well.

Good Luck

stuart

[wicker]

There are generally plenty of used Garmin GPS on e-bay or for sale in the UKGSer website as a lot of people do seem to like the latest toys and constantly upgrade.

Streetpilot III was superseded about 4/5 years ago by the Garmin 26XX series, then the 27XX series was released and the current variant is the 28XX.

Garmin have also released a motorcycle specific version in the past 6/9 months called Zumo - two types, one with UK only and the other (the 550) with Europe maps. The price of GPC has fallen considerably over the years. The latest Zumo 550 can be found new for £500 whilst the 28XX series is priced slightly higher.

Until fairly recently you could pick up reconditioned Streetpilot 111 from the GPS Warehouse for about £180. Only downside with Streetpilot is that it uses a 128MB card which is not quite big enough to hold all UK maps let alone Europe. Cards are about £30-£40 these days but not all work in the unit so check before buying. Streetpilot also relatively slow to recalculate routes etc compared to the more modern GPS but remaisn a workmanlike GPS.

If you are not in a hurry, shop around as there are cheap discontinued or used units out there.

[Huw]

I do about 60k-70k p.a and believe me I would not be enjoying m/c couriering if I did not have sat-nav!! Did 6 months with A-Zs and maps and (I do not mind the sniggering from the Luddites) it was DIRE!

For 2 years I've used the Quest (original) but over time found it slow, small and limited e.g No proper Post Code search. It was returned to Garmin twice because it packed in and water got into all terminals causing corrosion and, eventually, it's demise.

I had a very bad (financial) week last week and all I could do was indulge in retail therapy to lift my spirits! Decided on the TomTom Rider with Western Europe mapping and my experience over the past two days is......it's fec***g brilliant!! Full (boring ) description in Betwys. Oh by the way - £399 from Maplins (car kit not included £26 ) but my chum made a similar purchase (Dunno what mapping he has) from H.G at the same price but they threw in the car kit in gratis!

Ride safe...spring is here!

[throttlemeister]

Do not buy TomTom if you want to create proper routes at home on the pc. The only thing the pos TT stuff is good for is on the fly A to B navigation/calculation. Which explains Huw's love for it. Works very well like that.

If you want a proper gps with excellent at home mapping capabilities, exchanging routes with others, waterproof units etc, go Garmin.

Q1 has 59mb fixed memory, not a whole lot and quite limiting.
Q2 does not have that limitation, but like the Q1 it has a pretty small screen.
THey do run on batteries and for quite a long time.

26xx/2720/2820 are excellent but expensive (though the discontinued 2610 is going pretty cheap these days) 2610 has CF card, the others have built in flash with preloaded (updateable) maps of europe. They are fast and have a biggish screen, but need to be vehicle powered. 2720 and newer have have text to speech, so don't just say left or right but also give you the street names and road numbers.

Zumo is motorcycle oriented, but slightly limited compared to the 2720/2820 series. (these can be customised in the way they present information on the screen) It is also a little cheaper than the 2xxx series.

Zumo and 2xxx have motorcycle specific mounts available from Garmin, together with power/sound cables to hook it up to the battery.

[Rob B]

2610 for sale here. £150 before it hits ebay.

Rgds,

Rob

[Me-109]

PM sent.

Yours ever more confused,

Graeme

[Rob B]

PM back to you.

Rgds,

Rob

[Steptoe]

(though the discontinued 2610 is going pretty cheap these days) .

They were being sold for £180 new, that included the V9 map upgrade.

I paid £470 for my 2610 just over a year ago. And even at that price it's worth it.

2GB card has the whole of europe on it, and it has a topo map of morocco as well ( went 3 times last year, going again end of the month) which is fantastic for use .

[Rob B]

Mine's now sold.

Rgds,

Rob

[Steve W]

Huw

Not sure which mount you are using but you might want on of these.
http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=100334

Steve

[adamski49]

Q1 has 59mb fixed memory, not a whole lot and quite limiting.
Q2 does not have that limitation, but like the Q1 it has a pretty small screen.
THey do run on batteries and for quite a long time.

Err, the above isn't quite right. Quest 1 has 243Mb of internal memory, plenty for most requirements. It is restricted to 4 figure postcode searches but is far quicker in operation than the Quest 2 for some strange reason.

2610s at the right price (£200 or less) are a bargain but I can't fault my Quest 1 that has taken me all over the UK and Europe with some strategic map selection.

Adam