Garmin Edge 500 or 510?

[DooDah]

I am thinking of buying one of the above shortly, but which one? The 500 is cheaper and I have also heard that the 510 has some satellite finding issues. Has anyone any advice or info. from using the version they have?

 

[Andy_G]

Tbh id get an 800 over them all, i had a 500 and i loved it but then i got the 800 and its everything i want.

 

[DooDah]

Tbh id get an 800 over them all, i had a 500 and i loved it but then i got the 800 and its everything i want.

Thanks, but just a bit too expensive for me, and I prefer not to have maps. What did you think of the 500?

 

[Andy_G]

Thanks, but just a bit too expensive for me, and I prefer not to have maps. What did you think of the 500?

I rated it highly and the only reason i got the 800 was for the maps, if i didnt need the maps then i would have stuck with the 500 and not even bothered getting the 510.
And i did find picking up satelites quicker.

 

[Garz]

I have the 500, and from the top of my head the only advantage it has (apart from being cheaper) is it can follow a course. This can be buggy but when it does work it can be a great feature. Size wise isnt the 510 also larger?

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

I have the 500, and from the top of my head the only advantage it has (apart from being cheaper) is it can follow a course. This can be buggy but when it does work it can be a great feature. Size wise isnt the 510 also larger?

Yeah it's closer to the 800's size IIRC.

DooDah if you are patient you can get an 800 for less than a new 500 on well known auction sites. Yes, you say you don't need mapping, if anything the 800 is simply superior in ease of use. Worth it, IMO (I have one so slight bias) for that alone.

 

[BDK]

After an edge 500 bundle myself,anyone get one recently for a good price?Sorry for the thread hijack...

 

[Salis]

I have the 500, and from the top of my head the only advantage it has (apart from being cheaper) is it can follow a course. This can be buggy but when it does work it can be a great feature. Size wise isnt the 510 also larger?

Can you say a bit more about how the following a course works? Does it alert you when you turn? Or show a map?

 

[Garz]

Can you say a bit more about how the following a course works? Does it alert you when you turn? Or show a map?

Sure.

You can follow a breadcrumb trail and see whats coming up or keep your preferred screen layout and it flashes up warnings before the waypoint. They are basic but I have used it a few times to venture into unknown territory and it has guided me well. Dependant on the software version you have it has been known to crash but this has only happened to me the once. Venture over to the garmin edge 500 forum and you will see some of the negatives associated with it, but dont let that put you off as the benefits make it a worthy purchase.

If i'd had known I would have bought one straight off instead of progressing through some cheap computers.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

One point to note - you will quickly get addicted to it and want more/use it more.
We purchased the Edge 200 back in January this year. In March we were lucky enough to drop on an Edge 705 (for free) and are already finding it more useful than the 200. the maps do come in handy and are a useful feature. I would be patient with 'dropping on a cheaper 800' if I was you, now that we have both the 200 & 705.

Edit: and this is from someone who did 12months of an aborted world tour using paper maps and paper maps only.

 

[DooDah]

One point to note - you will quickly get addicted to it and want more/use it more.
We purchased the Edge 200 back in January this year. In March we were lucky enough to drop on an Edge 705 (for free) and are already finding it more useful than the 200. the maps do come in handy and are a useful feature. I would be patient with 'dropping on a cheaper 800' if I was you, now that we have both the 200 & 705.

Edit: and this is from someone who did 12months of an aborted world tour using paper maps and paper maps only.

Thanks for the info. I might just wait for a 800. Mind you, does it tell you to go "Straight On".

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Thanks for the info. I might just wait for a 800. Mind you, does it tell you to go "Straight On".

the username is a bit of a joke from before the world tour... we never had satnav (still don't in the car) our edge 705 is the closest thing (not counting the iPhone my brother gave us in the last 2 months of our world tour) and we have only had that for about a 10 days or so...
anyhow - whenever we saw someone's satnav device in their car (us overtaking them, them overtaking us) it only ever said one thing... straight on. And when on tour and lost, we would always go straight on.... so the username became obvious.

 

[DooDah]

the username is a bit of a joke from before the world tour... we never had satnav (still don't in the car) our edge 705 is the closest thing (not counting the iPhone my brother gave us in the last 2 months of our world tour) and we have only had that for about a 10 days or so...
anyhow - whenever we saw someone's satnav device in their car (us overtaking them, them overtaking us) it only ever said one thing... straight on. And when on tour and lost, we would always go straight on.... so the username became obvious.

I was only kidding....I hope you are on the mend and can resume your tour, my hat goes off to you. The reason I was thinking of the 500 is partly due to the cost and that I don't really want maps. I just like taking off and exploring and more often than not I find my way home without any issues, I guess I like the freedom of the road without knowing exactly where I am going.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

I was only kidding....I hope you are on the mend and can resume your tour, my hat goes off to you. The reason I was thinking of the 500 is partly due to the cost and that I don't really want maps. I just like taking off and exploring and more often than not I find my way home without any issues, I guess I like the freedom of the road without knowing exactly where I am going.

me too, but when i have to get from A to B and know it is right at the limit of what I can cycle, getting lost is not an option...

It may tell you to go straighton sometimes btw...

 

[Garz]

I was only kidding....I hope you are on the mend and can resume your tour, my hat goes off to you. The reason I was thinking of the 500 is partly due to the cost and that I don't really want maps. I just like taking off and exploring and more often than not I find my way home without any issues, I guess I like the freedom of the road without knowing exactly where I am going.

Just to mention - reiterating this point you made, it is cheaper and for me personally 90% of rides you know where you are going. I can see the maps being handy, but like driving the car - you get so dependant on the satnav you get lazy and stop remembering routes taking in the waypoints/scenery. That's my justification anyhow, that and its way smaller meaning it isnt being a aero-drag on the bars .