GPS question......Buying a new one.

I'm going to be buying the wife a GPS so she can find her way to California and other points while there. It should be able to talk to her like some of those units do.

Is there any moto-worthy GPS out there that will give the wife what she needs and also serve as a good GPS for on and off road use?

I'll be using it on my 640 Adv.

S.C.

Garmin Zumo 660.

Thanks. I'll look that one up.

S.C.

"Suggested Retail Price: $ 649.99 USD" :eek1

What about the Nuvi 500?

S.C.

It sounds like she just needs a very basic GPS for driving versus something that allows you to design routes. Go with any ~100 unit from Garmin or TomTom and she'll have all that she'll need for simple "get me to this address/place" type stuff. Units in that price range will more than satisfy the needs of someone just trying to get around an unfamilar town.

Zumo 660. Has sterio BT and all the goodies except weather.
Love mine. Got mine for 489$

Don't need the extraneous goods, just something to talk the wife to Kali and back and then serve as my new GPS on the Adv bike.

S.C.

I doubt she will be able to hear directions with a helmet on and road noise. Also you want one useful off road, you want Tracks. A Nuvi doesn’t support that, my Zumo 450 does
I really like my Zumo 450, It is very helpful but not to be relied upon religiously.
You know there is a forum on ADVRider just for GPS questions?

So, you probably want water proof?

Sorry, I wasn't clear. She is driving.

That's not good.

Yeah, I figured since this was about buying gear more than talking about routes, this would suffice, but I do see your point.

S.C.

A large portion of the GPS forum is about what unit to buy .
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I bought an old riding buddy a Nuvi 550 because they were so inexpensive and my Zumo has been so useful. I don’t like the Nuvi on the bike but there are fans of the Nuvi

GPS 101 - Which GPS For Me

Awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!2!W@@2@!!!!!!!!!!!!!

S.C.

I'm one of them... I bough the Nuvi550 because it's one of the few waterproof
models and I didn't want to spring big $$ for a Zumo, altho they do have nice features.

I've had it for a couple years and have used it in all weather conditions on the bike and have been really happy with it.

Stay away from Magellan, unless you want to spend all your time figuring out how to use their operating and file system.

Get a Zumo 450:
moto-friendly
big screen
less $$ than the 550 or 660
easy to operate - even my wife can use ours (totally not computer savvy)
comes with mac or windows-compatible software
supports topo maps
voice prompts
has an option that allows you to preferably navigate off-road, but this only works with the garmin basemap (not topo); still, I have been directed to some great riding with this feature

Check out Craiglook.com - search engine for all the craigslists in America. I'll bet you can find some Harley rider in Daytona who has one new in the box because he doesn't know how to wire it up

I like my nuvi 500.

One caveat:
Buy the garmin ram mount with cable. Do not buy the cheaper no-name mount. The cheaper mount has no allowance for a cable so you have to plug the gps in after it is in the mount, and can damage the mini usb plug by trying to pull the gps out of the mount without unplugging it first.

Say, after a ten hour ride when your brain doesn't work anymore. *cough*.


The garmin cradle+plug is a bit pricy ($50), but far, far better. Once you tally the no name cradle and a no-name cable you only save about $20 over the garmin one, anyway.

The nuvi comes with a suction cup car mount and a car charger, and works just fine for car travel - it even had mode settings so you can configure it differently for bike and car and switch regularly.

I'm liking the Nuvi as well. I think that will be the one.

Were you referring to a cradle for the car or the bike?

I also like the Touratech mount for the bike.

http://www.touratech-usa.com/Store/...tech-Nuvi-500-550-and-Zumo-220-mount-Lockable

S.C.

Oh they are probably fine but my Zumo has spoiled me. It seems so much easer to use on the bike then a Nuvi and a little more capability.
My Zumo has improved the quality of my rides; I use it all the time.
There is a learning curve though, the first few weeks I had it, I wondered what for.

The wife is the one who this unit is actually for. She is a techtard and also directionally challenged. Simple is better. A minimal learning curve is best.

S.C.

The bike.

I know nothing about the TT one. If it locks permanently to the bike you won't need to worry about ease of removal. With the garmin cradle (and the no-name) you'd have to pull the GPS at stops if you're solo.