Garmin Zumo series or other motorcycle GPS

Dustin

Dustin

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I have a low end Garmin Nuvi 265 that I received as a birthday gift a few years ago. It was an awesome gift and is a good, simple GPS for a car. I currently use it on my motorcycles with a RAM mount but I find it inadequate for a lot of reasons.

I've been looking at the Garmin Zumo line of motorcycle-specific units and wanted some feedback. I'm mainly looking for the following:

Waterproof (I use a plastic Ziploc for my current GPS)
Easy to read screen in direct sun
The ability to upload routes rather than just direct point-to-point routing

Any options/experiences?
 
I find the tomtom rider pro 2 is a great GPS. I don't like the bracket it came with so I made my own using the charging mount (which you have to buy separately) and a bicycle triple clamp mount.

My father in law has the Garmin bike GPS but we both prefer the Tomtom.

pics of my homemmade mount below
 

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I discovered that the Garmin Nuvi 550 has the same features as the Zumo series sans the Bluetooth integration. I found one for $295 taxed and shipped. I'll pick it up on the way home from my California vacation this week :)
 
I use my Android Cellphone and run a hardwire ear plug into my helmet. Now I have a Element Helmet with Bluetooth but I have found the battery will run down after a while (like all bluetooth). Then I am stuck - so for longer trips - I just use some Skullcandy earbuds. They are cheap and pretty good quality.

The App I use is currently is TeleNav. It's OK. I am always trying out new GPS programs and all have plus and minuses. The main thing you want to consider with using your cell is battery life. Lot's of threads about the Cig Lighter Upgrade to the motorcycle. That is a lifesaver. $20 to $30 mount on your handlebars and then you are set. A lot of times I will just plug mine in and I will stick the phone in my pocket.

People are making new apps all the time. It's worth the few dollars you pay if you have to pay at all.
 
I have many years of experience with Garmin GPS and I have to say that if you're looking to plan routes on your computer and then follow them on GPS, prepare to be incredibly frustrated!

I currently use Nuvi 2455, which uses the same "Trip Planner" as Zumo (really the only difference is you cannot get voice prompts via bluetooth and it's not weatherproof, but I have a waterproof case for that).

BaseCamp (Garmin's software for route planning) is quite terrible.. totally counter-intuitive but once you do figure it out and you're happy that you can now create routes, wait till you actually ride the route!

The longer the route, the more messed up it will be. On any given trip, I get the "off road" (not off route.. that's different) prompt at least 2-3 times.. it seems to have no idea where next point should be and guides me nowhere near my intended path.

I thought there might be something wrong with my Garmin, but I have another one for the car.. 1390... does the same darn thing.

I would say Garmin is a great tool to never be fully lost, but if you're looking to follow complex, pre-planned routes, look elsewhere!
 
I see what you are saying about the Garmin system. My current Garmin has been satisfactory for navigation but you have to be very careful what you enter. The ability to add a custom route should make that a little easier but I can see how it would be frustrating. I tend to research where I'm going before I leave so I'm using the GPS to give me something to follow. I have a terrible sense of direction

I will report back how the 550 is. The ADV guys seem to like it
 
The tom tom pro is excellent at creating routes to follow. You plan an itinerary with either towns or intersections as waypoints (you can also tap the screen to create a waypoint on the map) and then the last one on the list you insert as a destination (usually home) and away you go.

I store my favourite rides as separate itineraries so I can do them again. You can also record a ride, so if you ride with friends that have their favourite route, you hit record at the start of the run and stop at the end and bingo, you have a new planned route saved on the GPS.

One thing I don't rate, is the headset link to the GPS. It's OK if you use an open face helmet as it is pretty bulky, but after seeing what happens when you land chin first with an open face helmet, I will never wear one. A smaller slim line unit would be much better. I am yet to find one that is compatible.
 
The 550 I ordered was out of stock and they issued me a refund. I spent some more time looking around and I opted to just get a Zumo 220. I ended up paying more than I wanted but it does have some neat features I wouldn't get with the Nuvi 550. I don't care about the Bluetooth but maybe some day?

I will report back
 
I ended up using a car gps. I am still looking for the right bike gps but that needs easy rout porting from the pc and should be able to give me twisty roads as a profile. In addition I would like some more customizing like saying how long gravel roads could be in the route and of course the altitude profile should be shown for each route. How often were the mountains still snowy and I had to turn back and search for a path with lower altitude. You can loose a lot of time with this...

Anyway it seems that motorcycle gps are just water resistant and have some sunshade. I had a motorcycle specific one (no name product) which was unusable until I changed the software to navigon mobile navigator which was pretty good but again that software is for cars, only that in the motorcycle profile they kept you off the freeway and routed to pretty nice roads.

In case anyone knows an app or program which can plan routes with altitude information please post the name.
 
Garmin 2595LmT

I use a Garmin 2595LMT. I had 12volt out let installed to use traffic features
I use ram mount

I recently added Scala G9 to my Shoei Qwest hear phone calls and streamed Bluetooth music from iPod working on getting Garmin directions piped into helmet

Help
:banghead:
 
djunity said:
bump

i am in search of a navi unit. any updates?
Click to expand...

Yes! I was just thinking of updating this thread.

I've used my Zumo 220 over a whole bunch of trips in both Canada and the US. It's excellent and exactly what I wanted. The screen works fairly well in all light, is easy to read and easy to use with gloved hands. It's waterproof and fuel resistant and I can say that both work as they should. :)

It took a little bit of getting used to Basecamp but it's very easy to use once you understand it. I can make a route in minutes, upload it to my GPS and be out the door.
 
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I'm using a refurbished Garmin Nuvi 2595 with a Ram mount. At just over $100 it's a good value and I can see it in sunlight (dim but viewable). I had a water resistant case for it but all the internal reflections made it illegible. If it rains the wind screen keeps the water off until you stop then the ziplock baggie is engaged.
 
Mrgone said:
I use a Garmin 2595LMT. I had 12volt out let installed to use traffic features
I use ram mount

I recently added Scala G9 to my Shoei Qwest hear phone calls and streamed Bluetooth music from iPod working on getting Garmin directions piped into helmet

Help
:banghead:
Click to expand...

Let us know how you manage to get bluetooth out of that Garmin, it's for hands free phone use, I have one too. I just leave mine turned off.

I use my smartphone if I want audio directions over BT using Google Navigate. Navtel is being replaced by Scout which is good for locating some restaurants but I don't like its navigation options or lack of them. Too bad because I was almost ready to subscribe to Navtel for $22/yr.
 
I'm looking at the [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-Zumo-660LM-Motorcycle-Navigator/dp/B008M59RUO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1370409915&sr=1-1&keywords=garmin+zumo#productDetails"]Garmin Zumo 660LM[/ame]. I'd love the idea of recording a route. Anyone know if the Zumo can do such a thing? I know the TomTom was said to do that, but it didin't look like it had lifetime maps. If I'm going to pay over $500 for a GPS, I expect lifetime map updates! Also, I've had many Garmin Nuvi and liked them for the car.

I'm not sure if I'd wire it to charge all the time, or just when the ignition is on. I think I'd rather just do the ignition. A dead battery on the bike is worse than a dead battery on the GPS, plus, even a dead battery GPS will work when the ignition is on and it's charging. Of course, I'm NOT leaving a $650 GPS on the bike when I'm not on it anyway. I won't be buying until next year anyway. I'm still trying for that rear shock. I just can't save money. :(
 
My Zumo 220 allows you to make a custom route in Basecamp and upload it to the GPS. It works a treat.

Mine is hard wired with the supplied cable and mounts to the supplied dock. The dock has a socket to accept a ball mount and I use a handlebar RAM ball mount. Simple. Although someone could possibly loosen the cradle and steal it, I doubt anybody would. If you were paranoid, a locking nut in replacement of the wing nut would do the trick.

When I'm off the bike, I just remove the GPS from the cradle, unplug the power cable (which tucks away and has a rubber cover to protect it) and stick it in my pocket or tank bag.
 
Dustin said:
My Zumo 220 allows you to make a custom route in Basecamp and upload it to the GPS. It works a treat.

Mine is hard wired with the supplied cable and mounts to the supplied dock. The dock has a socket to accept a ball mount and I use a handlebar RAM ball mount. Simple. Although someone could possibly loosen the cradle and steal it, I doubt anybody would. If you were paranoid, a locking nut in replacement of the wing nut would do the trick.

When I'm off the bike, I just remove the GPS from the cradle, unplug the power cable (which tucks away and has a rubber cover to protect it) and stick it in my pocket or tank bag.
Click to expand...

I'd leave the cradle on the bike, just not the GPS. The cradle can be replaced for under $100 and is not easy to get off the bike quickly.

I understand you can create a route on the computer and upload it to the Zumo. I was asking if you could record a route. That way I could follow a friend on a fun route they use, or just keep track of a trip I take when I'm not sure exactally where I'm going.
 
Oops, I misread your post :)

Yes, the Zumo has a 'tracks' feature but I've never tried it. The tracks do show up automatically when I load the GPS into Basecamp but I've never recorded anything on purpose
 
Dustin said:
Oops, I misread your post :)

Yes, the Zumo has a 'tracks' feature but I've never tried it. The tracks do show up automatically when I load the GPS into Basecamp but I've never recorded anything on purpose
Click to expand...

I've turned on "tracks" on my Nuvi, but all I can tell it does is leave a trail on the map of where you've been. I've never found a way to "save" the route. If anyone knows a way to do that, please let me know. I'd love to know if that is possible.
 
I just used the "save" tracks on my Nuvi but it was the first time I even looked at that function. I can see that it does save the data and retrieves it by date.

It was neat to see where I've been but I'm more interested in where I'm going.
 
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