Which GPS

mattock

Hope to get down the country and try out some different cycling routes later in the spring/summer, when the ice age has moved on, so I am buying a GPS, but which one?
It will need to have hr monitor and cadence sensors.

Haldir

Bought the Garmin Edge 500 in CRC at Christmas. Used it once so far with no problems. Have the heart monitor and cadence sensor with it. Extensive review here:
http://dcrainmaker.blogspot.com/2009/11/garmin-edge-500-in-depth-review.html

mattock

haldir,
Thanks, that is some review, can you say where you purchased.

Edit: just seen the CRC bit ,I went straight for the link ( lost already ).

Home:Ballyhoura

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=63838758#post63838758

JacksonHeightsOwn

Haldir wrote: »

Bought the Garmin Edge 500 in CRC at Christmas. Used it once so far with no problems. Have the heart monitor and cadence sensor with it. Extensive review here:
http://dcrainmaker.blogspot.com/2009/11/garmin-edge-500-in-depth-review.html

does the edge 500 have a visible map like the 705 though?

Lumen

chrisbonnie wrote: »

does the edge 500 have a visible map like the 705 though?

No, for mapping you need the 705.

mattock

Lumen wrote: »

No, for mapping you need the 705.

So if I am a total stranger to an area and want to cycle a route with no signage the 705 is the one for me.

Lumen

mattock wrote: »

So if I am a total stranger to an area and want to cycle a route with no signage the 705 is the one for me.

No signage? Well I guess if you were touring in rural China it might be quite handy.

I find the 705 mapping and routing pretty much unusable and would rather use a paper map, but other people with more patience and tolerance find it more than acceptable.

mattock

Lumen wrote: »

No signage? Well I guess if you were touring in rural China it might be quite handy.

How many junctions have you come to, and yes there may be a sign, but some clever sh1t turned it the opposite direction, or there may not be a sign which is not uncommon in parts of urban Ireland.

penexpers

mattock wrote: »

How many junctions have you come to, and yes there may be a sign, but some clever sh1t turned it the opposite direction, or there may not be a sign which is not uncommon in parts of urban Ireland.

What happens if the battery runs out on your 705 and you're left stranded in the arse end of nowhere? I would think you should always have a paper map as a backup if you are cycling in unknown areas.

Ryaner

penexpers wrote: »

What happens if the battery runs out on your 705 and you're left stranded in the arse end of nowhere? I would think you should always have a paper map as a backup if you are cycling in unknown areas.

14 hours of battery life? That is a little unlikely. You should be able to find your way back to a town or house anyway, how navigating lots of smaller roads is a different story.

I'd regularly use the navigation on my 705 and don't have too many problems with it. Works a lot better if you program in a course before hand. Using the GPS tracks and it'll sometimes recalculate the route while out on the road which is annoying.

redmaxi

Someone posted a link to handtec.co.uk for cheaper GPS' once upon a time. I have no idea how reputable they are or what they're like to deal with, perhaps someone has ?
400 Euro for the 705 on CRC - only 300 including shipping with them .....

Gavin

Got my edge 305 from there, no problems with service at all.

Muckers

I bought the garmin Edge 305 bundle before xmas from Pixmania for 254 euro incl postage. Has HRM and cadence,but doesnt have mapping. Suits me fine as i dont intend cycling outer Mongolia when the ice melts.

Ryaner

I bought mine from handtec too. They didn't respond to any emails, live chats or queries through google checkout. They did answer the phone however which was strange. Normally the other way around.

blorg

Lumen wrote: »

No signage? Well I guess if you were touring in rural China it might be quite handy.

If you are cycling down back roads in Ireland there is very often no signage! I have done several quite complicated long cycles with it now (up to 1,000km) in Ireland and also Italy, Spain and France and find it great. If you are cycling roads you know already there is no use for the mapping and a 500 would be as good.

If you are cycling to race/train there is no major need but if you tour it is invaluable.

I like to stick to back roads and this thing will route you along routes which would be simply impossible with a paper map, you would be forever stopping to figure it out.

You want a map not so much due to battery concerns (I have a Power Monkey to extend the already long battery life) but as it is very difficult on the small screen to get any sort of overview of what it has planned if you are routing on the fly. But I find a very general map is fine, e.g. for a 800km mini tour our Ireland I just took a small one of the entire country.

Like anything electronic it could crap out entirely but I would just follow signposts until I could get a new map in that case.

The other big downside of the mapping is lack of via points, you can't say I want to go to B and then C, etc.

It's great, a bit flaky in places but I would not be without mine.

Lumen

blorg wrote: »

It's great, a bit flaky in places but I would not be without mine.

Lumen wrote: »

other people with more patience and tolerance find it more than acceptable.

See that, that's you that is.

</Mary Whitehouse Experience>

mattock

Seems like the 705 is the way to go, €367.44 on Probikekit with Hr and Cadence

Lumen

mattock wrote: »

Seems like the 705 is the way to go, €367.44 on Probikekit with Hr and Cadence

Just be aware that Garmin 705 ownership can be a trying experience.

I've busted mine twice, and I'm not alone.

Nietzschean

Lumen wrote: »

Just be aware that Garmin 705 ownership can be a trying experience.

I've busted mine twice, and I'm not alone.

305 users don't seem to have had a much better experience so can't imagine a new product will be better than the more refined ones?

mattock

Lumen wrote: »

Just be aware that Garmin 705 ownership can be a trying experience.

I've busted mine twice, and I'm not alone.

When you say busted I take it you let it fall, or did the bike mount break.

ROK ON

mattock wrote: »

So if I am a total stranger to an area and want to cycle a route with no signage the 705 is the one for me.

On a boards cying trip last summer several people had the 705.
We got lost at least three times. Make of that what you will.

ROK ON

Garmins have a lot of useful features. However like much hardware that I use (the Blackberry for example), the hardware is unstable and not really able to support all the features on a consistent basis.
I have two Garmins and both have proved unstable, flaky and one has simply died.

If you want nice training features by all means buy one. But be aware that they are very much prone to minor failures on a regular basis.

I am not a tech geek, but I have this view that software advances re applications are developing at a far faster rate than hardware. Thus several dvices that I encounter have great applications but do not have (1) appropriate battery life and/or (2) stable hardworking hardware platform.

Just an opinion from a luddite.

mattock

See now what you guys mean by busted.

Lumen

mattock wrote: »

See now what you guys mean by busted.

Previous discussion (for example).

The Garmin 705 is a great gadget, but far from perfect. As long as you enter into the ownership experience with a sense of humour, limited expectations, and the patience to RTFM and get the most out of it, you'll no doubt get great use out of it.

If you need the mapping, there isn't really any alternative.

mattock

Lumen wrote: »

Previous discussion (for example).

The Garmin 705 is a great gadget, but far from perfect. As long as you enter into the ownership experience with a sense of humour, limited expectations, and the patience to RTFM and get the most out of it, you'll no doubt get great use out of it.

If you need the mapping, there isn't really any alternative.

That Previous discussion really says it all how you guys busted the 705, any changes made to the mount after these complaints.

c montgomery

Got my 705 from handtec for christmas. Heart rate and cadence included for 285 pounds including postage. Ended up costing 330 euro and it was delivered within 4 days. No probs.

Still haven't got to use it tho cause of snow and ice:(

gman2k

Lads, I know it has probably been asked before somewhere, but what is the mapping like for Ireland? Is it just roads or is Topo avaialable like 1:50,000 OSI discovery series maps?

Lumen

mattock wrote: »

any changes made to the mount after these complaints.

Garmin changed the mount. I haven't had the newer style mount break, but the button ripped off the front of mine so it's currently patched with duck tape to keep the rain out.

blorg

gman2k wrote: »

Lads, I know it has probably been asked before somewhere, but what is the mapping like for Ireland? Is it just roads or is Topo avaialable like 1:50,000 OSI discovery series maps?

Just roads, like you have on a car GPS. I believe the OSI license is prohibitive for their maps.

gman2k

blorg wrote: »

Just roads, like you have on a car GPS. I believe the OSI license is prohibitive for their maps.

ah fook that so! I have an Etrex, and Nokia mapping on the phone, and won't be getting a power meter....