GPS / App route Guidance used audibly ?

[Richard Fairhurst]

with the screen off?

On iPhone yes. On Android not yet (though it will with the screen dimmed to black, undimming at turns).

 

[richardfm]

I got spooked when I turned this on inadvertently and only found out while riding on a deserted road and I heard a voice from behind me (back pocket)

I've been spooked by this. I've never knowingly turned the spoken guidance on or off. I create routes on cycle.travel then send them to Garmin. Sometimes I hear instructions, sometimes I don't. Maybe they are there all the time but the phone's volume is down.

 

[steverob]

Another here who has been caught surprised by the muffled voice coming from their back pocket!

I'd been using the Garmin Connect app for ages (mainly so my Edge would display any incoming text messages) so chances are the setting was on for quite a while and I hadn't noticed, either cause the volume was down or maybe the noise of traffic / birds / heavy breathing drowned the directions out.

 

[steveindenmark]

Ride with GPS certainly does.

But a word of warning. For all the apps I can think of and I have used a lot. Do not expect to select a point on a map, 30 miles away and just expect tha app to give you a lovely carefree ride.

It will take you on roads and tracks you did not want to be on. Take it in very short sections and double check your route and then check it again.

 

[sevenfourate]

Ride with GPS certainly does.

But a word of warning. For all the apps I can think of and I have used a lot. Do not expect to select a point on a map, 30 miles away and just expect tha app to give you a lovely carefree ride.

It will take you on roads and tracks you did not want to be on. Take it in very short sections and double check your route and then check it again.

With the cycle.travel app (And a paltry £1.99 month contribution) it appears you can touch spots on the map. And the app creates that exact route you’ve chosen……

 

[Dogtrousers]

But a word of warning. For all the apps I can think of and I have used a lot. Do not expect to select a point on a map, 30 miles away and just expect tha app to give you a lovely carefree ride.

It will take you on roads and tracks you did not want to be on. Take it in very short sections and double check your route and then check it again.

100% this. Don't expect an algorithm to give you a good route. Cycling isn't like driving where you don't care what route your satnav gives as long as it gets you there. Cycling is all about the route.

 

[chriswoody]

With the cycle.travel app (And a paltry £1.99 month contribution) it appears you can touch spots on the map. And the app creates that exact route you’ve chosen……

I tried cycle.travel a while back and was not too impressed by it for the type of riding that I do. Then 6 months ago I needed a quick route compiling so decided to give it another try. Like you say, I tapped on my start point and my finish point 30km away. It came up with a fantastic gravel route I wouldn't have discovered otherwise and all completely fault free.

I was so impressed I tried again earlier this year, again tapped a start and finish point, this time it created a 75km route which was amazing, in fact it's one of my favourite gravel routes. So whilst I generally agree with @steveindenmark to be cautious, the two cycle.travel gravel routes I've created with cycle.travel have been flawless. Which reminds me, I owe Richard a coffee or two.

 

[sevenfourate]

I tried cycle.travel a while back and was not too impressed by it for the type of riding that I do. Then 6 months ago I needed a quick route compiling so decided to give it another try. Like you say, I tapped on my start point and my finish point 30km away. It came up with a fantastic gravel route I wouldn't have discovered otherwise and all completely fault free.

I was so impressed I tried again earlier this year, again tapped a start and finish point, this time it created a 75km route which was amazing, in fact it's one of my favourite gravel routes. So whilst I generally agree with @steveindenmark to be cautious, the two cycle.travel gravel routes I've created with cycle.travel have been flawless. Which reminds me, I owe Richard a coffee or two.

Great ! You also choose intermediates spots on that route too. Not just a start and finish (If that’s what you did)…..Picking many spots along the way to be linked together: to form the route. So it’s YOUR exact / particular route laid out. Not one ‘made’ for you by the app designer; and ‘just’ linking A + B together as they’ve chosen…..

 

[chriswoody]

Great ! You also choose intermediates spots on that route too. Not just a start and finish (If that’s what you did)…..Picking many spots along the way to be linked together: to form the route. So it’s YOUR exact / particular route laid out. Not one ‘made’ for you by the app designer; and ‘just’ linking A + B together as they’ve chosen…..

Well I must admit that my prefered method of creating routes is to use RWGPS and just click along a route on a map creating lots of waypoints. Creating my own route by reading the map and linking up gravel roads and places I want to go. I find the route creation tools really comprehensive and I do have a premium subscription so I can use the advanced tools like route splitting or reverse routing.

My two examples above, were like you say just giving in a start and finish point and submitting my soul to the AI gods. I've tried similar with RWGPS and it's been woeful, but whatever magic pixies Richard has employed, they do a fantastic job. I could also add in intermediaries, but in my examples I only really needed a start and end point, the rest I was happy to give up to fate.

In my experience there really is no answer to which is the best online route creation software. RWGPS works if you are into self creation of routes and tinkering with maps, Komoot has a fantastic library of user generated routes to follow but woeful route creation software and cycle.travel seems to have magic pixies creating fantastic routes. I can't comment on Strava because I've never used it.

 

[HLaB]

My Garmin seems to do it through my phone. Not something I used but when setting up a new device it suddenly started because I'd not disabled it.

My newer A55 Samsung (bought Jan 25) talks to my Garmin 1030. but my last Samsung J16 (bought 2018) didn't.

 

[sevenfourate]

Firstly - thanks to all who contributed. What a minefield !

So; longshot is i've now subscribed to: cycle.travel GPS App. Thanks to what i've read here. Online generally. The support the founder Richard appears to invest in his baby. And not to mention some helping words from someone who already uses this App: @ColinJ For Moi:

1. You can get routes via on-screen or via audible cue's i believe. The latter being what i'd be interested in trying; at the very least.
2. It's all possible on a phone - That for me is brand new every year through work. I will have no battery issues to worry about. And keeps my Tech in one place. And simple. *I dont want to get bogged down, invest time in downloading GPX files. Have multiple devices, mounts blah blah.
3. I can either have the App plan a route for me. Or simply touch / click on actual points on a map (Actually many different options of what sort / type / appeareance of map) to creat a personalised route.
4. I can also have the 'Sister' website on a computer at work. Where i can create a route [On a bigger screen, i'm lead to believe also with slightly more expanded features ? etc]; save it as one of 'My Routes'. Then simply navigate from that on my phone; being a saved route on my profile.
5. Subscription starts at just £1.99 a month. and there no long-term commitment if it turns out not to suit.

We'll soon see !

 

[sevenfourate]

^^^And i've just saved the App on my work PC - created a looped route for tomorrow (Took literally a few minutes to learn how.....without reading any instructions ).......and i've then gone to my Phone. And there the file is in my saved routes. Great start !

I've got some modern Clip-on ear-buds that project sound into the ear. And i sometimes wear just in my left ear (Away from Traffic).....to have some background music on the go; while riding. I'm hoping / imagining if i have the route cues set to audibly - and have my earbud in; it will interupt the music to give me those cues........

 

[mjr]

[...] have some background music on the go; while riding. I'm hoping / imagining if i have the route cues set to audibly - and have my earbud in; it will interupt the music to give me those cues........

Depending on the music player and settings, the music should either pause or duck (reduce in volume) while the app is speaking.

 

[ColinJ]

One thing I forgot to mention... Routes in your profile can be set to private, but if not then they are public so make sure that the sunglasses are dark unless you want stalkers/bike thieves camped out on your doorstep!

Start and finish your routes from elsewhere in your town if you want to make them public?