Looking for some help. I have looked back on search and the more I read the more confused I get. So if I could get some answers it may help. I am trying to narrow in on unit I think will suit me best. I do know I want a Garmin. With that said:
1) No really interested in traffic,MP3,cell phone,videos,pics. (blue tooth might be nice if it can easily connect to a Motorala blue tooth ear piece without using phone. Do any of these do this.
2) Are internal maps complete? or are they mostly main rds. I prefer to ride county roads,sometimes secondary roads. Seldom use interstates.
3) If maps are not complete do I have to purchase seperate sortware? if so which is best?
4)Do you find that voice is really functional or can you safely read display only.I have a 93 ultra with Sampsom exhaust. I can listen to stereo but it is somewhat loud.And stereo is an older unit.
5)If you take an unplanned side trip do these route you to the next waypoint automatically or do you have to input a route.other than back tracking.
6)Most units are preloaded with maps(not sure purpose of SD cards).
7) weatherproof
8) pretty much plug and play
9)this will be used for multi state(1000-2500 mile trips)
10) consider overall cost as some have map software,mounts etc.included.
Would greatly appreciate answers to as many of the questions as you are willing to spend the time. Also, in getting an overall view of what I am wanting in a unit if you would give me your best reccomendation of what you believe would suit my purpose. Tx to all that take the time.

 

Take a look at the Garmin Zumo 550. I have a buddy that has one of these and he loves it. It comes with the mount for the bike and also for your car or truck so you can easily move it between vehicles. It is Bluetooth ready and has a lot of other features (Traffic, XM Satellite Radio, etc.) You can find them new on Ebay for around $700 - $750........the dealers sell them for around $850 - $1000. I plan to get one for my Ultra next month.

Keith

 

I have a Garmin 330.

1- no blue tooth connectibilty - I have no problem with this since I ain't got a bluetooth.

2-Around here (Ga) maps are good. Even showed, w/ its name, a road into a brand new subdivision. I can get one free download, but I'm waiting until I really need it.

3-see #2

4-The in the center of the display is a solid red line that shows your path of travel. I can't hear the voice unless I'm going city speeds. The tone is what I hear that alerts me of an up-coming turn. I can easily see the display and have zoomed it out so that I can see "down the road". I can read the name of the next turn's street, and how far away it is, at the top of the screen.

5-you can punch in a side trip and then go back and call up the "previous location" to continue the original trip.

6-maps are preloaded, maps load and then the unit acquires the satellites. Finds them pretty fast, too.

7-NOT waterproof (I have a freezer sized zip lock baggy). It works. In fact, I rode from Columbus to Jekyll Island (4+ hrs in the rain) and unit never got wet. Still works today.

8-absolutley plug and play. Bought it, opened the box, turned it one and was in business. This was my first, and only GPS, so I am truly a novice, but I have had no problems using it. It's very user friendly.

9-multi-state shouldn't be a problem. In fact, I used it in my car to got to a condo in Destin, Fla and it took me right to the address I typed in - I am still amazed at this little thing.

10-can't recall what I paid, I think it was around $250 at Walmart. I think Circuit City asked about $300.

11-I used a Ram-mount to attach the holder for the Garmin 330 to my handle bars. I installed a cigarette lighter thing into my left cover so I could plug it in, if needed. So, far I havent' needed to. The charge last for at least 6 hours, I know. I use the lighter thing more for my cell phane than the GPS. GPS also comes w/ a recharger for inside the house.

12-I know there are some better ones (and more expensive) out there, but for the money, I have no complaints about the 330.

Hope this helps,
Hack [sm=biker2.gif]

 

My recommendation is the Garmin Quest 2
1. an MP3 or a phone
2. has all of north america, canada and PR loaded in it. You also have the option of telling it what to avoid, such as main highways. On recent trip, limited access divided 4 lane, bad accident blocked road both directions what was going to be for hours. Between us and the accident was a small intersection off to our left. GPS said County Road 4 was about 2 miles long and would take up past the accident. We took it, after about 100 yards, we entered the woods and it became two hard packed paths. Looked in the mirrors and found a line of traffic behind us. We continued and rejoined the highway. For the next half hour, every vehicle that passed us, tooted the horn and gave us thumbs up!
3. periodically has map upgrades availible. If you are going to use it on a boat, they do have blue water maps which I believe deal with natical information such as depths, etc
4. hearing the voice is situational to what your setup is. You have to have a cigarette lighter availible to plug it into and depending on your pipes, your age, your hearing, etc. I was able to hear it enough on my Electra Glide Classic to at least draw my attention to the screen to notice if the arrow had changed or I was going past a POI
5. If you're following a route and you go off of that, either by accident or on purpose, it immediately recalulates
6. see #2
7. Quest 2 is water proof
8. yes
9. see #2
10. unit is between $800 & $900. I got mine online from Abe's of Maine for $519.

It has 40 meg of memory so you can save Finds, Trips or load in Points of Interests (POI) I have all the Harley Dealerships ( came in handy on the last trip, 2100 miles on front tire & it developed a bubble in the sidewall) and Starbucks.

Moves from bike to car to hand. battery has 20 life away from power source. As the bike I have now doesn't have a cigarette light, I purchased the electrical charger and on road trips, charge it over night.

For the bike, I have a Ram mount that has 1 1/2" arm, which makes it easy to adjust but it's not sticking up a mile in the air.

There are all kinds of GPS units availible. You just need to decide which one works for you. I found the Quest 2 to be a great unit for the traveling I do.

 

Zumo 550 has som eof the features you mentioned possibly not being interested in, but.....

It will allow you to pair a BT ear piece / headset without a phone.
It has enough internal storage to hold a detailed map of the entire USA ~ some require "uploading portions" of maps, due to limited storage capacity.
Even if ya don;t use some of the features now, they are there if you decide you might like them later.
It comes with two complete installation setups, including separate docking stations & power sources for bike / car.

It's a sweet unit!

I got mine for $689 (shipped overnight) form pcnation.com

 

I have the zumo 550 ,all of the obove, maybe overkill. some options used and found to benot for me,some may use one day? Would I buy it again? yes with cash flow permittingIf not then the zumo 450 or any gps would do 95% of what really counts...keep ya from gettin lost

 

I would stick with Garmin, I have 3. 2 of them are in my plane and one for the bike/car as needed. Most of the newer ones allow you to turn the auto recalucate route feature on or off as you prefer. I normally leave mine on. Sometimes it can be a pain if you take a side street on purpose or circle around the block a time or two.

To me the best feature, is to save your home address or hotel as a waypoint, then ride where ever and how long you wish with no worries as to where you are going and you can always find your way back by selecting the way point and calculate route.

 

Remanufactured Garmin 2610 - buy a 2 gig chip an' load ALL the maps on it. Waterproof, highly favored in the touring m/c community, an' the reman'd ones can be found for around 300 bucks.

 

Check out www.costco.com I just ordered the Garmin 2720 for $349.95. Can't beat that with a stick!!!!

 

not to steal the thread here... but a quick question to those who have purchased a Zumo 550.

Any problems with it just not working anymore? My roomate got one... and after a week on his Ultra it stopped working. He unscrewed the battery and re-screwed it in and then it worked again for 24hrs. Now it won't work no matter what. Doesn't run on batteries, not on AC and not connected in his mount via the bike's power.

Thoughts?