Zumo 660 - UK Version with free shipping

[CraigH]

Seeking advice.
Can buy above off ebay for AUD955.
I expect that after purchasing would then have to buy local maps to load - yeah ? Are there other risks or issues with this approach,
versus of course waiting for the 660 or juts getting on and buying [thanks BurnieM for advice] a 550 locally ?

Any input would be appreciated....

[BurnieM]

City Nav Australia would cost an additional AU$195

Garmin Australia are not going to bring in the zumo 660 so you would probably have to send it overseas for any warranty work

We are planning to bring one in shortly to compare features.
At this stage it looks like a widescreen nuvi 500 with stereo bluetooth.
.

[jasonveale]

make sure there is a warranty from the ebay seller. If there isn't then Garmin Australia won't replace it if bought from ebay.

j

[Just Dan]

Is there any news of the Zumo 660 being released in Australia Or should I not wait and just go for the Zumo 550?

[BurnieM]

Originally Posted by BurnieM

Garmin Australia are not going to bring in the zumo 660

....

[Just Dan]

Thanks Burnie, I have been reading some of the overseas forums on the 660 vs 550 and I will stick to the 550. A lot of unhappy campers with the 660

[BurnieM]

Originally Posted by Just Dan

Thanks Burnie, I have been reading some of the overseas forums on the 660 vs 550 and I will stick to the 550. A lot of unhappy campers with the 660

Its in a early development stage and there where also a few teething issues with the zumo 550.

Main thing is that it seems to be a less technical version than the 550; fine onroad but you probably want the 550 for onroad/offroad
.

[veetwo _tls]

Zumo 660 i payed $829 free shipping on ebay (Seller: Ausluck)

GARMIN ZUMO 660

LATEST MODEL

2011 AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND MAPS

MULTIPLE ROUTES PLANNING

INTERNAL ANTENNA

GPS NAVIGATION SYSTEM

BRAND NEW IN SEALED BOX
ONE CLICK TO PLUG IN
SWITCH ON AND GO
DOOR TO DOOR NAVIGATION IN AUSTRALIA
"CAR MOUNT + CAR CHARGER INCLUDED"


"IF UNIT FAULTY WE REPLACE NEW UNIT WITHIN THREE WORKING DAYS"
ONE YEAR MANUFACTURES WARRANTY
AUSTRALIAN STOCKS

[MotoHappy]

CraigH

I have got a Zumo 660 and I am extremely pleased.

It got me around Australia and because of the rugged build I have never had any problems.

Update the firmware and you have got one of the best, if not the best motorcycle unit out there.

Here is some of the functions the 660 provides that the 550 does not:

• Lane assist (guides you to the proper lane for navigation)
• 3-D building view (displays buildings in 3-D)
• Speed limit indicator (displays speed limit for most major roads)
• Bluetooth with A2DP technology
• Where Am I? (find closest hospitals, police & gas stations, nearest address & intersection)
• World travel clock, currency & unit converter, calculator
• Garmin Garage™ Custom voices (new voices)

I bought it from GPS4US for around 640 USD + shipping costs around 40 USD:
https://www.gps4us.com/GARMIN-zumo-660--P556.html

I do not worry about the warranty since the unit is build to last, however if you were unlucky and you had to do a RMA, you have the option to either ship it to Garmin Europe or Gamin US for a repair.

If you buy from GPS4US it will come with a preloaded US map, however maps are easy to replace with Aussie maps. Currently I am using:

City Navigator Europe 2011.40 (using when visiting EU family)
City Navigator Australia & New Zealand 2011.30 (using mainly for bitumen roads)
TOPO Australia & New Zealand v3 (using when going Bush)
OzTopo 2.1b (using when going Bush)

Even better all the above maps are on the same card (16GB MicroSD + Internal memory).

I my example with those aussie maps loaded onto the unit, using the MapSource software you can cross reference information and you will always have enough details for proper route planning, weather you go bush or road.

Obviously you would have to buy the Aussie maps or if you are a bit of a "techie" like me, you could visit one of the GPS sites (enough said)


And just a quick comment to BurnieM:

I do not agree that the 660 is a less techical version, it actually provides a lot more features as you can see in the above bulletlist. Also all Garmin unit are providing output based on the loaded maps and the units features. Therefor a 550 would not be better a off-road choice than the 660. As an example, if I have TOPO Australia & New Zealand v3 map loaded on a 550 and 660 and I am standing in the middle of the "Great Central Road" the "Where Am I?" feature of the 660 would quickly allow me to find the closest gas-station, the 550 however would not provide such a function, even though it has the same map loaded.

For a comprehensive feature list of Zumo units go here for:

Zumo 220
Zumo 550
Zumo 660
Zumo 665

Any Questions let me know.

Hope this helps

[GodSilla]

I'm glad you like yours MotoHappy.

The deal breaker for me is the lack of track functionality. I dunno if Topo from Garmin lets you route over fire trails, which would go some way to alleviating that shortcoming, but I've been places by GPS that without Tracks I'd never have gone there. And that's where the more technical units shine, but there's no extras like blueteeth or spoken words or mp3, just GPS.

[MotoHappy]

GodSilla

I can understand your concern and you got a good point.

As for the routing goes, it comes down to what map you upload to your GPS.

As an example here are a couple of excellent aussie maps with different uses:

City Navigator Australia & New Zealand
Contains a lot of bitumen road details but limited offroad track / trail details but routable in the GPS

OzTopo 2.1b Road
Contains a lot of road / offroad track / trail details but they are not routable in the GPS

TOPO Australia v2 or v3
Contains a lot of road / offroad track / trail details and they are all routable in the GPS

Now obviously when you are talking about firetrails, which are secluded track in the middle of nowhere, TOPO would be the only option.

Let me show you what I mean with a few shots from the MapSource software, which simulates GPS limitations for the individual maps. Take a look at the below pictures.


All the below shots are from the same section of Kanangra-Boyd National Park, NSW


From City Navigator Australia & New Zealand, hardly any details



From OzTopo 2.1b Road, a lot more details but not routable



TOPO Australia v2, a lot more details and routable



TOPO Australia v2, picking a route along the "Kanangra Walls Track"



TOPO Australia v2, changing route to go past "Whalans Firetrail"



Hope it makes sense, and helps you decide

[GodSilla]

Thanks for that Motohappy. I didn't know that Garmins TOPO was routable over fire trails and such, so I learned something new today.

I've been using a GPS60CSx (I bought a spare one too as they are cheap(ish) now). I paid for OZTopo but was disappointed that it wouldn't route, so I "obtained" CN 2006, which gives me that capability for most places, and I use that in cities where I need to get somewhere, say in Sidenee. The ability to do Tracks is pretty spiffy for non-routable mapsets, I also use Shonky and Tracks4Australia (which is coded not to drop detail when you zoom out, real handy in the outback) so I've got most bases covered, and I find in remote places I can end up using 2 or 3 mapsets for the same ride, as they each have different strengths and weaknesses.
CN 2006 is now missing a lot of new roads and freeway bits, so if you feel like PM'ing me about CN2011 I'll be receptive.

[Josh69]

Are you shitting me, Zumo 660 for $1000, $900, $800???

You can buy it off Amazon UK for GBP397.91 which at the current exchange rate is A$610.

[Tradey]

Cheapest USA retail for Zumo 660 today is BestBuy at US$650.

Ryda.com.au have them locally for $538 online and in store:

http://www.ryda.com.au/ProductDetail...ctCode=ZUMO660

[Reklaw59]

Whatever you pay it will be too much for this over rated piece of shit.