GPS Upgrade

[Mogan]

I just sold my Garmin 2730 with my beemer and will need to replace it for use on the FJR. I had no complaints about the 2730 and got heavy use out of the satellite radio and MP3 player. My only real beef was the memory limitation for MP3s and the fact you had to move through multiple screens to adjust volume.

So, WHAT'S THE BEST UNIT OUT THERE with satellite & MP3? Zumo 550? 2820? Other?

Thanks in advance.

 

[mdisher]

Of the units I've played with, I'm thinking Zumo.

I just snapped up RUlchers Quest2 (have a Quest 1 and it's petty good, but got tired of loading maps to go places). But damn the Q2 runs about about 1/3rd the speed of the Q1.

I've played with the Zumo 550 and it's my next GPS... But it will be a while cause I'm a cheap ***.

 

[madmike2]

The best one is going to come out 2 weeks after you make your purchase. :lol:

 

[bramfrank]

Garmin 276c /376c / 378 or 478

Even if the comparo pages for these models onm Garmin's site are wrong!!

376 and up offer XM/Weather and such

 

[dtyo]

I have a Garmin 176c and love it. I just wish it could auto route. What really bothers me with this and the other Garmin models in the 27x and 37x family is that they use Garmin's proprietary data card. Otherwise I think they have the best screens and are the most durable units you can get.

Dan

 

[bramfrank]

I have a Garmin 176c and love it. I just wish it could auto route. What really bothers me with this and the other Garmin models in the 27x and 37x family is that they use Garmin's proprietary data card. Otherwise I think they have the best screens and are the most durable units you can get.
Dan

Actually, the 378 and 478 don't use external memory at all. They are 'full load' models and are preloaded with roads and waterways (the 378 primarily differs from the 478 in that one is loaded with fresh water information and the other with salt water).

On the other hand, the folks at Garmin offer a 512 Meg card for the 276 & 376 (you can put up to 256 Megs in the Streetpilot-III) - and unless you are Agirl and on a round the continent tour, that is more than enough - and even if you ARE touring, you are probably bringing along a laptop to capture your routes, document the trip and stay in written contact, so even that isn't a hardship because you can load almost half a continent - heck you can route from New York to Los Angeles in less than 128 megs.

 

[Pierre]

Don't buy anything from Tom Tom, have the Rider, love it but very poor after sale service.

Could not upload the new 2007 maps, returned them for credit after a long long long discussion

any many many many uncessusful tries..... :angry:

 

[Bike Effects]

I've gone from the 2730 to the zumo mounted on a TechMount Stem Mount and I am very happy with the result. It is just a better unit for a bike.

 

[daddysbike]

I like my Zumo. Its my first GPS and I don't use the mp3 player or XM. I like the way it looks/mounts with the short Techmount which replaces the steering stem nut, I used the low mount and it sits right below the tach/speedo field of view.

The Zumo is GPS I've ridden many days/miles in the rain and no problem.

It goes from bike to car with the flip of a button and the built in battery lasts long so you can mess with it off the bike in your hotel room.

I don't really like the mapsource software maybe because i don't know that the heck I'm doing but it seems wayyyyyyy to time consuming to do a custom route so on my multi day mutli thousand mile trip last week to NC/VA/WV/TN/KY I used regulare maps to get a good overview the just told the zumo the state road/city I wanted to get to and picked better roads if I used them. It worked really well for me going from small town to small town and backroad to backroad.

Steve

 

[kulwen]

I just installed my Zumo 550.

Holy cow is it great!!!

I now use it instead of the GPS which in my truck. I am not sure about the other GPS units on the market but this one allows the user to create custom points of interest (POI). One, of which you can pay $25 a year and get an update of all traffic cameras. The GPS will alert you when you approach a camera to allow you to slow down.

Link

Another site for POI

Link

It also has battery power allowing me to start doing some geocaching.

Link

I also enjoy having the built in MP3 player that pauses when the GPS is going to give instructions.

The tour guide feature also seems interesting to me, but I have not used it yet.

Link

There is some software out there to help people create their own tour guides. I am pondering if this would be helpful on long organized trips. If the event organizer was to create the tour files, he/she could warn the riders about sharp turns or possible hazards, or even about the small town having many LEOs. This will also help learn about the areas they drive past.

 

[mehaffydr]

I have a Garmin 176c and love it. I just wish it could auto route. What really bothers me with this and the other Garmin models in the 27x and 37x family is that they use Garmin's proprietary data card. Otherwise I think they have the best screens and are the most durable units you can get.
Dan

Actually, the 378 and 478 don't use external memory at all. They are 'full load' models and are preloaded with roads and waterways (the 378 primarily differs from the 478 in that one is loaded with fresh water information and the other with salt water).

On the other hand, the folks at Garmin offer a 512 Meg card for the 276 & 376 (you can put up to 256 Megs in the Streetpilot-III) - and unless you are Agirl and on a round the continent tour, that is more than enough - and even if you ARE touring, you are probably bringing along a laptop to capture your routes, document the trip and stay in written contact, so even that isn't a hardship because you can load almost half a continent - heck you can route from New York to Los Angeles in less than 128 megs.

You can add additional memory to the 378 with the Garmin card.

This is what I have and love it. The Satelite weather is Great

 

[bramfrank]

I stand corrected - Since they preload roads and either inland or salt water charts I guess I just assumed they didn;t bother with the memory card . . . but it makes sense. That provides unlimited memory expansion for when you go beyond the coverage area of the internal database.

 

[Mogan]

Garmin 276c /376c / 378 or 478
Even if the comparo pages for these models onm Garmin's site are wrong!!

376 and up offer XM/Weather and such

I'm surprised. I thought all of those units were older/inferior from a functionality perspective in relation to the 2830 and Zumo 550. And I don't need water nav stuff. What am I missing?

 

[mehaffydr]

I stand corrected - Since they preload roads and either inland or salt water charts I guess I just assumed they didn;t bother with the memory card . . . but it makes sense. That provides unlimited memory expansion for when you go beyond the coverage area of the internal database.

Garmin also offers things like TOPO maps that can be loaded on the GPSMAP series ( 276 376 378 478 ) So that is what you might use that extra memory for.

Mogan. I am not at all a GPS guru but what I found when researching was that the new units Zumo,27xx,26xx,28xx. My immpression was that they are cost effective ways to have GPS but none have the extensive fetures as the GPSMAP series.

I have the 378 and it is an excellent Mptorcycle GPS and a total marine unit also.

Having weather radar and info is a Great thing on Bike or Boat.

 

[bramfrank]

I'm surprised. I thought all of those units were older/inferior from a functionality perspective in relation to the 2830 and Zumo 550. And I don't need water nav stuff. What am I missing?

Let's start with a higher resolution display, MUCH longer battery life (compared with the Zumo, since the 2830 doesn't have any batteries), better cabling than the Zumo (one cable for power, alarms and audio).

I always have issues with touchscreen navigators, gloved hands and rainy days . . .

There's probably more, but that was more than enough for me (and presumably a bunch of others on the list).

 

[Jackson]

I have the 378 and it is an excellent Mptorcycle GPS and a total marine unit also. Having weather radar and info is a Great thing on Bike or Boat.

Mehaffydr-

I have been considering getting the GPSMAP 378, primarily becasue it can receive NEXRAD radar. Did you subscribe to the XM Aviation LT package for about $30? Are the radar maps usable?

(edit)

I just saw your post in the other thread that answers my question. I just ordered the 378, the XM antenna, and a Ram mount.

 

[TCFJR1300]

Zumo 550 with xm radio and traffic rocks!

 

[mehaffydr]

I have the 378 and it is an excellent Mptorcycle GPS and a total marine unit also. Having weather radar and info is a Great thing on Bike or Boat.

Mehaffydr-

I have been considering getting the GPSMAP 378, primarily becasue it can receive NEXRAD radar. Did you subscribe to the XM Aviation LT package for about $30? Are the radar maps usable?

I subscribed to the Fisherman package which is very similiar but the activation is only 50.00 and still 30.00 month.

It seems to better for what info I wanted to get.

The nexrad radar is vey good to have on the trips.

 

[SkooterG]

I'm surprised. I thought all of those units were older/inferior from a functionality perspective in relation to the 2830 and Zumo 550. And I don't need water nav stuff. What am I missing?

They don't have touchscreen. Something I could not live without now that I have had it on my 2730. They do have nice screens though.