To Garmin or not to Garmin....

[andyfraser]

I use a Garmin Edge Touring Plus and love it. I had the Edge 200 which was great as a speedo and for recording rides and stats but I couldn't get on with the breadcrumb trail on the few occasions I used that feature. I prefer the maps and turn by turn directions on the Touring Plus.

The downside is where I live there are a lot of cycle and mixed use paths in some areas (the word labyrinthine springs to mind) and the Touring Plus has routed me along those before now. They can be difficult to follow if you really don't know where you are. It's perfectly fine on roads or areas with far few paths though.

 

[vickster]

@HelsBells Cambs https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/garmin-edge-touring-special-edition.187092/#post-3893477

 

[Dogtrousers]

Personally, I wouldn't be without aGPS. I've used them for walking and cycling for over 10years.

My personal experience of automatic routing for cycling (as opposed to driving) is that it's poor. I always follow a pre prepared track or navigate by eye using the map.

Bear in mind that you can get free maps for garmins that are pretty good quality. Search these forums for "talkytoaster"

Phone apps are an option but beware that on longer rides they can exhaust the battery, leaving you without a phone or a gps

 

[sannesley]

Bear in mind that you can get free maps for garmins that are pretty good quality. Search these forums for "talkytoaster"

Has anyone from Northern Ireland used the likes of the Garmin 510? I know that maps abound for the UK mainland for bike GPS devices but I'm unsure how good they would be for mapping Northern Ireland?

 

[mjr]

Phone apps are an option but beware that on longer rides they can exhaust the battery, leaving you without a phone or a gps

Recentish phones will happily do 12 hours GPS navigation on half a battery, booster batteries are readily available and Garmin batteries don't last forever either.

 

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

Has anyone from Northern Ireland used the likes of the Garmin 510? I know that maps abound for the UK mainland for bike GPS devices but I'm unsure how good they would be for mapping Northern Ireland?

Theyre not bad but the garmin maps are simply superior for NI. I use the OS maps for mtb but latest garmin for road

 

[Dogtrousers]

Recentish phones will happily do 12 hours GPS navigation on half a battery, booster batteries are readily available and Garmin batteries don't last forever either.

Yes. I tried not to be too definitive about it ... It can be a problem depending on you phone model etc. But in other cases not.

My Garmin runs on AAs so if I ever run out of spares I can call in at a garage. But it's not a cycling-specific model.

 

[Incontinentia Buttocks]

I have a Touring Edge, great when I plan the routes and upload them to the Garmin, shocking bad when I let it choose. Also never ever let it recalculate a route for you. Ever.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I used to use OSM maps for the UK and I was quite happy with them but really the paid-for Garmin maps are way better. I use OSM for other countries which I download from Velomaps.

 

[mjr]

My Garmin runs on AAs so if I ever run out of spares I can call in at a garage. But it's not a cycling-specific model.

I've an AA charger for my phone so I can call in at a garage too, but that's last ditch stuff because AAs are a pretty inefficient power source for it.

 

[Ihatehills]

I have an edge 200 and use the breadcrumb trail quite alot it works well, although I do get a bit nervous when i really have no clue where I am and all I have is a little black line :-)

 

[Tojo]

Aldi will sell a few 500s at £79.99 later this month, in case that's interesting: http://road.cc/content/news/163151-get-garmin-edge-500-7999

.... apparently Thursday 24th.

 

[John the Monkey]

Recentish phones will happily do 12 hours GPS navigation on half a battery, booster batteries are readily available and Garmin batteries don't last forever either.

downsides of using a 'phone (for me at least)

... battery life, finding a mount that seemed secure enough at a reasonable price, heat build up running the GPS & inability to have the screen on without contributing significantly to that heat build up , weatherproofing.
https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/dear-god-please.183910/#post-3800745

I think iOS users are better served, in terms of mounting options &c than Android users though.

 

[Postmanhat]

Does the edge 500 provide any cadence data? Or can it do so with a bit of extra kit?

 

[Cuchilo]

You need a cadence sensor .