Hi,

Looking for a bike GPS. It will be used for navigation, including following pre determined routes and for when a bit of direction is needed! I require all the basic data (Distance, Speeds, elevation, heart rate e.t.c) and would like to be able to analyse the info on a computer, cadence a bonus but not essential.

The mapping must be good enough to use in unknown locations and be able to follow downloaded routes, I think with Garmin this requires additional mapping? Wiggle models come with the TOPO GB mapping is this the best available?

Budget is really best value for money but would like to keep it under £300, don’t want to buy something then want more features!

Any help appreciated

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/gps-cycle-computerssatnav

Rather than paste what I said there.

Thanks for that, Are the supplied Garmin maps just not up to the job then? Seems a bit much having to buy the unit and then another £100 for maps on top, or is it just how it is?

SatMap for me. Big screen is very handy. No HRM, but lots of other riding stats.

Garmin 800 is a faff to use for navigating from, but best for training aid or flashy bike computer.

The garmin base map is pretty much useless. However, you can download very good opensource maps for free.

I picked up an Edge 705 second hand off ebay and it does everything you list. I think I paid around £130 with a HRM but no maps – hence the need to download the free ones.

If you decide on an Edge 800, I would recommend the Enduro package (GM4800) as it comes with heart rate, cadence sensors and 1:50K full UK O.S. mapping.
Much cheaper in a bundle than buying separately, and as said previously, the base mapping is virtually useless for anything but basic on road navigation.

Unless you want the latest then a Garmin 605 (or 705 if you want HR) with openstreetmap is what I’ve got and would recommend – you should be able to get one about £150 second hand and Garmin are great on warranty (even if you’re not the original owner though that might not be official).

IME OpenStreetMap (contains offroad too) is better than Garmin’s topo maps (which I have too) and it will continue to get better as people update it. This will be affected to some degree though by where you live/ride as some areas on OSM aren’t yet comprehensive however I found Topo pretty useless in terms of having offroad bridleways mapped.

Thanks for clearing up the mapping system. Singletracksurfer does the Satmap 10 GPS come with mapping, can’t see that it does but just to check?

that openstreetmap stuff is meant to be good, I’ve not tried it yet. I have the euro road maps and the 1:50k os maps. I find the OS maps amazing for trail riding, but I prefer the road maps for the road.

The bryton is definitely worth a look though from what I’ve seen.

It is also worth seeing one in the flesh to decide if its for you.

Satmap gets my vote – clear screen, easy to use controls, not touch screen, decent battery life (with the li-ion battery), OS mapping (although this is pricey)

There are deals around on Satmap’s with full UK 1:50k mapping – £299 here

The Satmap certainly looks good, what the computer readouts of your rides are like, if either of you use the function. Also can you add a heart rate strap, looks as though one’s not included and cannot see any mention about buying an after market one.

Thanks for your help

read out of one of my work out with the garmin at garmin connect (dont judge how pish I am) http://connect.garmin.com/activity/108316618

http://www.singletrackworld.com/magarchive/issue-66/
Page 112

no, hrm can’t be added to the satmap

ps never tried hooking up to the pc for ride stats.
don’t think it does, i just look at whats on the screen.

I’ve got an edge 800, brilliant bit of kit. I bought the enduro pack, I tried the 50k mapping and it just wasn’t detailed enough for me. My local woods were just a green blob, didn’t show footpaths or bridleways. I then downloaded the opensource mapping and for me it is much better – takes a little getting used to the different keys.

At some point I might try a ride further afield with the 50k installed, but the opensource stuff does the job.

I use a Garmin Dakota 20 with the OS discovery 1/50k maps. I had a look at others but decided on this because it uses AA batteries. It’s good to use and easy to follow and batteries last long enough, but I take spare batters just in case I do a longer ride or multi day ride (Bivi ride) if they do go flat I can just got to a shop and buy some cheap ones to get me home (but it’s always worth taking a map just in-case).

Down side is that mount is a bit week but I upgraded the mount to a RAM Mount 🙂

Sorry to drag this up again- I thought I’d post here first rather than start a new thread…

How well do the modern GPS units hold a signal? I have an HTC Desire on Orange which I thought would do the job of recording my rides but it never gets a GPS signal! Any problems with Garmin and the like?

I am looking for all the same features as the OP (Real time mapping/ navigation when exploring trails and getting lost, HR, cadence, elevation and all the normal bike computer functions) and seem to have only come up with the Garmin Edge 800. It seems decent but is rather pricey. Are there any other options to consider?

Also, are they robust and waterproof or do they benefit from a protective case?

Many thanks in advance, Dan

They hold a signal a damn sight better than an HTC Desire, judging by mine!

My Satmap is pretty robust and hasn’t leaked yet.

I use a Garmin Dakota 20 with the OS discovery 1/50k maps

+1

Seems to do everything very well indeed, the Garmin mapping is quite expensive unless you use a “trial” version from the usual places

My Garmin 800 survived Kielder at the weekend, which was a bit moist, and it clocked 161km which seems to tally with others results despite lots of heavily wooded sections.

I don’t think the HTC Desire would ever be practical for what I’m after (eg no HR or cadence) but I was pretty shocked by the lack of GPS signal! I’m glad in a way that it isn’t just mine

I hate my Garmin 605. Nothing about using a Garmin is easy, it’s like their software developers do half a job and figure, “Ach that will do” and just dont bother to make things user friendly.

Dont know how many times I have tried following an old route in memory or worse, pulling down someone elses from Garmin Connect and been left high and dry in the middle of nowhere with a screen-full of blurred pink.

I have an HTC Desire on Orange which I thought would do the job of recording my rides but it never gets a GPS signal!

It’s broke, send it back.

It’s never going to be as good as a dedicated device, but the GPS in my Desire is good enough to be a satnav in-car.

get a satmap and a decent sunto – my T6 does cadance and bike distance.

Were can you get some trial maps? would like the Lake District national park 😉

How do you go about downloading the Openstreetmaps into a Garmin?

I think the Edge 705 (probably the 605) are now obsolete, but there is a new range of eTrex’s (10, 20 & 30)that looks promising if you don’t need HRM.

why have garmin got such brand loyalty when their earlier efforts had such poor interfaces and it took a British company (Satmap) to force them to start using decent mapping?

it took a British company (Satmap) to force them to start using decent mapping?

I think you’ll find it took a change in the OS mapping policy and pricing to make it cost effective for them and everyone else.

My Satmap takes a few minutes to lock onto the satelites when first switched on but then maintains the signal. It does sometimes have a small degree of error in very dense forest but it’s never a problem.

It’s also very robust. I’ve had several crashes with mine mounted on the handlebar and it’s been fine (even landing on the Satmap unit on a couple of them – the unit itself and the mount are tough). A couple of scratches and one small crack on the replaceable screen cover were all. Put on a new cover and it was as good as new.

You know that lovely warm feeling you get when you get a new product from Apple? You know when you take the iPad or iPhone out of the box, plug it in and everything just…..works?

Garmin is the polar opposite of that.

If Garmin are less than great mcboo then what are the alternatives? What is wrong with Garmins?

I currently have a Dakota 20, a 305 and 310xt and TBH don’t have any difficulty at all operating them – they just work

It usually takes me ages to get comfortable with these sort of things but Garmin’s seem OK to me

I might be alone in it but I’ve just had a horrible time with mine. As per above, I have a hellish time following other people’s routes or even my own. Its the lack of user friendlyness that gets my goat, have a look at the user guides (you can download), they are awful.

Alternatives I dont know. I do like Garmin Connect, so I’m really hoping they come up with a device that works for me on the trail and can be relied upon.

How do you go about downloading the Openstreetmaps into a Garmin?

Put a microSD card into your Garmin

Plug the GPS into your computer, you should see it as a removeable drive

Create a folder called “Garmin” on the microSD card (on my computer, the internal GPS memory is a drive called Gamin, my SD card is called “Unnamed”)

Copy the .IMG file that you downloaded into that Gamin folder on the SD card

That should be it.

Thanks will give it a spin. I have a 2gb MicroSD card which I have been using for mapping. It shows only 250mb free even though it looks empty. Do you think I need to reformat it?

I just remembered this thread as I was loading some new maps onto my GPS…

Have you had something on that SD card before?

When you “delete” a file, it may just get moved to Trash/Recycling Bin. That doesn’t free up the space but does make it look like the file has gone. On mac, I ended up deleting the file using Terminal. Which is a hell of a faff if you don’t know Unix/Linux.

I bought a 705 a couple of weeks back with the HRM and cadence thingy. I like it, and the OSM maps are so much better than the ones which came with it. It is a bit temperamental, however, and randomly doesn’t show maps – but the old turn it off then on again sorts that. For some reason it didn’t save yesterday’s ride properly so i can’t load it into Ascent which is annoying.

It is a bit temperamental, however, and randomly doesn’t show maps – but the old turn it off then on again sorts that. For some reason it didn’t save yesterday’s ride properly so i can’t load it into Ascent which is annoying.

Thats what I mean. When did your iPhone last perform that badly? Hope you get on with better than I did, gets tiring very quickly.

Aidan, thanks, I found out how to format the card, cant remember how exactly but wasnt hard.