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Which GPS Unit should I buy?

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cramers said:
In an ideal world I would have mounted it on the little bar under the windshield right above the dash but it was too tight of a spot to get the whole mount assembly in there.

@Brojon it seems to make you agree to the terms every time it powers up. I didn't notice the update thing but that's a silly feature.
Click to expand...
I just put these on my KLR and it gives you a lot more room for mounting a GPS/Phone.

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cramers said:
In an ideal world I would have mounted it on the little bar under the windshield right above the dash but it was too tight of a spot to get the whole mount assembly in there.

@Brojon it seems to make you agree to the terms every time it powers up. I didn't notice the update thing but that's a silly feature.
Click to expand...
GPS in cradle powered by cradle with power controlled by switch.
Turn off bike removing power.
Checking for update message pops up.
It's mostly annoying because chances are you're not near the wifi you paired it with.
Pairing with wifi is IMHO the real root of the "dumb idea" when a map update can represent a sizeable chunk.
No way that thing can power on by battery long enough to do a map update.
There's a reason Garmin made Garmin Express to manage updates and such.
 
Thrasherg said:
They are normally $500, but every now and then Garmin USA runs a special offer of $400.. You have to wait for Garmin USA, or purchase from abroad with questionable warranty and probably the wrong maps..
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Right before Christmas Garmin offered them for $400. Pretty much any place that sold Garmin units around Christmas had these units for $400.
 
copb8 said:
This is a good point and I wonder why Garmin hasn't done something to facilitate locking the units down to the bike. Could be as simple as providing a reinforced loop in the case that a hardened wire tether could pass through.
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This is the one area that I think BMW really thought about on the GS/GSA. The Nav unit locks into the cradle. Touratech and others sell locking units if you end up putting on one of BMWs cradles (they differ slightly from the ones they ship from the factory). Now, the downside is you have to use the BMW Nav unit which is an older Garmin unit and costs a pretty penny. The Nav VI units also seem to suffer from 'ghosting' where it thinks you're touching the screen when you're not. I'm on unit #2. Some folks have reported being on 5 and 6 replacement units. The only good thing is Garmin has been exchanging these no questions asked when they fail out of warranty. I'm sure BMW and Garmin have something worked out there.
 
William Wolfen said:
3 bikes, 3 mounts, 1 GPS to move between them. What's the issue?
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I'm not a fan of this, so what I've done on the Himalayans (and previously on the HD Pan America) was wire everything up so the mounts had an SAE connector and I terminated the wiring from the battery with an SAE connector, this makes it easy to move the mount and GPS to any bike regardless of which GPS unit (I have both a Nav VI and XT, I move the Nav VI to my Himalayan and put the XT on my wife's Himalayan when we ride those ... I did have to find a Garmin Zumo 660 mount which are extremely hard to find these days for the Nav VI unit).
 
wbrisett said:
I'm not a fan of this, so what I've done on the Himalayans (and previously on the HD Pan America) was wire everything up so the mounts had an SAE connector and I terminated the wiring from the battery with an SAE connector, this makes it easy to move the mount and GPS to any bike regardless of which GPS unit (I have both a Nav VI and XT, I move the Nav VI to my Himalayan and put the XT on my wife's Himalayan when we ride those ... I did have to find a Garmin Zumo 660 mount which are extremely hard to find these days for the Nav VI unit).
Click to expand...

I had a 660. I'll have to see if I still have the cradle.
 
BTW - prospective buyers - I got my XT from an outfit called "Greentoe.com".
I researched the heck out of them and they're legit.
What you do is look up what you want, then you make an "offer".
They have a gauge to tell you you're likelihood of success.
In the case of the XT it already had a suggested price of $385 or so.
It appears the price has gone up $10 or so - likely because folks are buying them. Supply and demand and all that ;)
That's tax ands shipping included!
You put in your bid and wait to see if it's accepted or they make a counter offer.
I had my unit via FedEx in less than a week.
You agree not to post who fulfills the order but I can say that it is an old and respectable outfit that has been in business for decades.
 
wbrisett said:
I'm not a fan of this, so what I've done on the Himalayans (and previously on the HD Pan America) was wire everything up so the mounts had an SAE connector and I terminated the wiring from the battery with an SAE connector, this makes it easy to move the mount and GPS to any bike regardless of which GPS unit.
Click to expand...
Exactly what I did with the 590 and plan to do with the XT
 
Brojon said:
BTW - prospective buyers - I got my XT from an outfit called "Greentoe.com".
I researched the heck out of them and they're legit.
What you do is look up what you want, then you make an "offer".
They have a gauge to tell you you're likelihood of success.
In the case of the XT it already had a suggested price of $385 or so.
It appears the price has gone up $10 or so - likely because folks are buying them. Supply and demand and all that ;)
That's tax ands shipping included!
You put in your bid and wait to see if it's accepted or they make a counter offer.
I had my unit via FedEx in less than a week.
You agree not to post who fulfills the order but I can say that it is an old and respectable outfit that has been in business for decades.
Click to expand...
After communicating with Brojon I did the same thing and received a brand new sealed unit from an authorized dealer. Thanks for the heads up.
 
I signed up and made an offer on GreenToe, no response yet.
 
I did the same and after a day they came back with a message saying you have a better chance of a retailer picking up the order if you raise your offer. Oh duh.

Anyway I waited another day but got nothing so raise my offer to $395 and it was immediately picked up.
 
Pinhead said:
I need to change my GPS unit. Last year I made a mistake and bought the Garmin Overlander. It may be a great unit for Trucks or SUV but it is horrible for bikes.
When I checked out the Garmin page they have now a unit called Tread which is looking exactly as the Zumo XT but seems to use a different app for trip planing. Both units are advertised as Motorcycle GPS, but I don't really get the difference other then the $100 more for the Tread.
On the other side, I never had a TomTom and the Rider500 has some interesting features too, but will it work off road? Finally the Garmin Montana 750, which is for sure a brillant off road gps, but I don't see that it is capable of On-Road TbT navigation.

Which one can you recommend and why?

Important for me:
- Connectivity, means Bike, Phone, GPS, Communicator all must work just fine
- Planing software (like Basecamp)
- Weather proof
- On- and Off Road capability
- Traffic Updates


Thank you
Click to expand...
For road use the TomTom craps all over Garmin and it’s all in all a far better unit. However, off-road it won’t do you any favors. You can record your tracks but there is no detail below county road level.
Connectivity is brilliant, the software is phenomenal, the technology is brilliant too.
It is extremely easy to import gpx files via the software (which is cloud based), all updates and uploads to the unit are wireless, I just turn mine on in the garage and it does everything automatically. I’ve used hotel and Airbnb wifi before me with no trouble and the app for my iPhone is plenty sufficient to make changes on the road.
But off-road I would not recommend it. However I also hate Garmin with a passion. They are a bunch of no good sheisters who have a special place in ****. If you can find a phone solution for off road and use the TomTom on road that’s a perfect solution.
 
BigKev72 said:
For road use the TomTom craps all over Garmin... However I also hate Garmin with a passion. They are a bunch of no good sheisters who have a special place in ****. If you can find a phone solution for off road and use the TomTom on road that’s a perfect solution.
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lol - tell us how how you *really* feel!
I've used TomTom (it's out of Europe), Magellan and a couple of others that used funky maps.
While Garmin has "quirks" they've been utterly reliable for me.
I like being able to use BaseCamp to setup POIs and routes then upload them to the GPS.
In fact way past what could reasonably be expected such as a car unit on a bike.
I researched the Tom Tom Rider and I felt like the menus were way too fiddly.
Curious why you hate Garmin so badly...
 
After all the input, research and some testing in store, I went with the Garmin Tread Base Edition and so far, it’s one of the best decisions I made. It has everything I was missing on the Overlander plus some extra features for motorcycles.

I highly recommend this unit.
 
I usually go to the AAA office and get free GPS. They don't need to be charged or plugged in. I can see the BIG picture and get a better perspective. They always have coverage and are never out of range!

I've been gone for a week so I'm late on my reply to this new technology. :sun:
 
Jeff S said:
Is there a simple comparison somewhere for all the Tread editions?
Click to expand...

I don’t think so.
Besides the display sizes and build-in InReach (Overland Editions) and the hand-mic kit (SxS Edition) they are identical. Same functions, software, apps etc.

I really was close to get the Overland edition, but it’s just way to big to put it on a bike.
 
Xclimation said:
I'm reluctant to post this because it can be annoying for one who wants a dedicated GPS to hear this..... But the Rever app on a phone has all the features of the top of the line GPS and then some including using Butler Maps. The app comes from Comoto group. Before buying a dedicated unit, I'd check this out. And again, sorry for being one of those annoying posts.
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I have tried mapsme and that other app, also the maps on my i-phone. I don't like them as the moment you inadvertently touch the screen, its doing something other than showing the map and travel. So does the Rever have a lock screen function? What I like about GPS is its easy to get back to the navigation screen without loss of presets. Also I can leave my gloves on.
 
On sale. $399

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Garmin zumo XT Motorcycle GPS Navigator

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With two vendors putting these on-sale there's a good chance everybody who carries them has them on-sale.
 
I gotta chip in that this GPS has exceeded my expectations.
Garmin has really upped their game. Much better pairing and control with devices.
This is the first Zumo that the gas tracker feature actually works.
I put in my tank range and warning distance for what the bike issues and - *boom* it agrees perfectly with my bike low gas alarm.
So now I can set it for a little extra just to get notice before I head off on a long dry stretch.
The brightness is phenomenal much easier to see than my 590.
 
These days, I rely almost exclusively on my smartphone when I need GPS guidance. It's a very familiar tool I always have with me.

I don't get to tour much on my motorcycles, especially in recent yrs. So it has been mostly for near-home and short trip use. As for wet weather... I am more averse to it than my electronic devices. If weather forecast says greater than 15-20% chances of rain that day, I pretty much don't ride. Still, a lot of current smartphones are already IP65 higher or higher. My current and previous ones are both IP68. Speaking of my previous phone, I bring it with me on long trip just in case something were to happen to my current one. I don't have a SIM card in it, but it works just fine as a standalone GPS, tethered via wifi to my current phone (safely in my pocket) set up as a hotspot.
 
FWIW, Garmin.com also has the XT on sale for $400 plus tax, so I pulled the trigger on one. I already have a 396 LMT-S and a cheap Chinese GPS, so the XT will replace the cheap one and run companion with my 396. Instead of Greentoe or GPSCity, I decided to go with Garmin directly and pay the extra $25 for tax. 2-day shipping was free.
 
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