Sat Nav for cycling - walking

[ETAF]

I have searched and read some threads here
Interstign the comments on using an iphone, re battery life, screen in sun etc

I have just purchased two e-bikes and a load of accessories (£1000's)
now i'm looking into the navigation aspect
I have asked a question in another forum about all the APPs , using iphone and watch etc
BUT now i'm considering buying a sat nav

Having spoken with GPSTraining and watching videos - i was very impressed with their support and advice
BUT , having looked somemore - I wondered what the forum here thought

I'm considering the twonav Roc - maybe with a 1:25K OS Map
BUT looking at the twonav range - I'm now thinking maybe the Terra or even if i drop a lot of money the aventura
Only because i see the resolution of the ROC is much lower and screen size smaller
1) screen resolution of the ROC - Dimensions 2.7’’ - Resolution 240 x 320 pixels
2) screen resolution of the terra & the aventura - Dimensions 3.7’’ - Resolution 480 x 640 pixels

of course sitting in front of a computer screen, watching youtube videos - is different to actually out on the road


I will not be going mountain biking , this is for off road - BUT on cycle tracks - the main road etc
places like
Forest of dean
New forest
and then locally on cycle paths and roads around the Wittering, near chichester West sussex UK Area

I have also been looking at other sat navs, other than the twonav
garmin & Wahoo

look forward to people views / comments

 

[PedallingNowhereSlowly]

I'm quite happy with the Garmin Edge 540 for cycling, on and off road.

For walking, I use OsmAnd and I find it pretty great. (I use a Garmin Instinct 2 watch for tracking walks, which I can upload a route to and get direectional prompts). An mobile app is fine for walking as the phone spends most of the time in my pocket and I'm not relying it to provide realtime data. I just take it out of the pocket every now and then to check progress and that I'm still on course.

Have to caveat this by saying I've not tested and compared any rival products, so this isn't necessarily a recommendation. Just saying, both prove to be more than adequate.

 

[fossyant]

Don't know anything about the OP's first choice, so can't comment. What's the pre-planned routing like - that's where Garmin and Wahoo have their strengths. Just been bike packing with my Edge Explore, and two others with a 520 and an older Edge (something). All worked very well on a pre-planned route - some slight GPS loss under thick tree cover, but we were able to view the route and carry on.

 

[numbnuts]

Garmin edge explore gets my vote, but sometimes I would like a bigger screen

 

[ETAF]

@PedallingNowhereSlowly
Thanks , Garmin edge 540 - not on sale at GPSTraining , and with the excellent service i have had from them , i tempted to buy from them
Specs are the same screen size as the ROC , and pretty much the same physical size
so thats interesting you get on fine with that size

i'll look into that osmand, just loading on iphone 13 mini

@numbnuts
I have just made cardboard cutout of the twonac - Roc, Cross & Terra and compared to my iphone 13 mini
But gut feel would be the bigger screen Terra , but then when wlking in pocket
difference in price amoungst those three is £30



@ fossyant

Thanks for the reply

it will take GPX sent via wireless
can use basecamp - which i have (no longer update , i understand) OR the free planning route on the gpstraing website, using 1:25K OS map - or various other mapping tools , cycle.tracts etc etc
and load the GPX file

is that what you mean ?

 

[fossyant]

I think we can only really comment on the units we've used, and I'm quite happy with the Garmins I've had. 705, 200 and the Explore (1). I still use the 200 on my commute. I believe the battery life on the newer Explore 2 is much better and it will take a Garmin piggy back battery, although I get round that with a small 'Anker' cylinder power bank.

 

[Vantage]

I prefer my garmin edge explore for the cycling aspect as that's what it was designed for but, I'd go for a garmin etrex 20x or 30x if you want something that works for both. They were purposed primarily for walking but a bike mount was also made for them. A smaller screen but they're bomb proof and are powered from 2 normal AA batteries with a run time of about 16 hours. The 20x doesn't have the bling of the 30x but runs better due to the lack of bling.

 

[Mike_P]

Q that does arise is how good are they as a SatNav if you go off planned route. My Garmin 530 which is meant to replan invariably comes up with make a U turn. Once having ignored the U turn commands and reached a crossroads the most sensible way to rejoin the planned route was straight on but the 530 wanted a right turn which would have been a Z shaped routing.

 

[ETAF]

i have a garmin etrek10 - and never really liked it - used it in scotland pretty useless for me and got lost , even though i had trackback on

I think we can only really comment on the units we've used,

Thats fine, all i wanted really

 

[ETAF]

Now playing with the OSMand , interersting APP - although the youtube video i found and started watching is 3 years old then the version of app - but that does show a cycle route near me
i wonder if it will load GPX files

 

[numbnuts]

Now playing with the OSMand , interersting APP - although the youtube video i found and started watching is 3 years old then the version of app - but that does show a cycle route near me
i wonder if it will load GPX files

Never done it but google said it can be done :-
Navigate to this menu and select the Tracks option to import your GPX files. Additionally: For single-track GPX files, select the file to import as is. For multi-track GPX files, you have the option to save as a single GPX track or select specific tracks for import.

 

[StuAff]

Now playing with the OSMand , interersting APP - although the youtube video i found and started watching is 3 years old then the version of app - but that does show a cycle route near me
i wonder if it will load GPX files

Yes. Done it many times. Osmand can do turn by turn and give you voice prompts in usual automated phone voice fashion.

 

[ETAF]

thanks the youtube videos dont seem to cover this later version as the screen on the 6th month old you tube is out of date
i have GPX files on my icloud which is on my iphone
But I dont seem to get to upload GPX prompt

you would have thought
>plan a new route

any way seems a bit buggy , as i have a route - which is nowhere and cant delete it

managed to find it in the help file and load a gpx
my places>tracks>... > import
not as intuative as i thought

 

[PaulSB]

@ETAF I don't know the unit you mention, ROC. Literally never heard of it. Within my club everyone uses Garmin or Wahoo. I was interested to see GPSTraining don't offer Wahoo.

My personal experience is very poor. I had two 830s several years ago. I moved to Wahoo and have have had two devices, the Elemnt and the Roam. I had to replace the Elemnt as it was written off in an RTA. Both devices have been faultless. The Wahoo set up is very simple which I see as a big plus.

I ride gravel and cycle paths with a friend who uses a Garmin. For navigation my Wahoo is always more accurate. On roads there is no difference.

You mentioned walking. There's no real substitute for a paper map but we do back this up with the OS app which is very good.

 

[ETAF]

@PaulSB
Thanks , we have a few 1:25 paper OS map , which we have always used walking , so as you say with an APP on iphone maybe the way to go
interesting that GPStraining also do not sell any of the Edge products
anyway
the ROC - is a model made by Twonav.
https://gpstraining.co.uk/collections/handheld-gps-units/products/twonav-cross-roc
https://www.twonav.com/en/gps/roc

I read reviews where the Wahoo have been unreliable, as i was interested in those , but as you say GPSTraining does not stock that make and starting stocking the Twonav , spanish make , a relative newcomer I guess since 2001 , so a bit older than wahoo (2009)