What I want from a GPS thingy

waltho bum gravy

OK, I'm looking to splash out a bit on a GPS device but it seems the more I look into it, the more confused I get. My usual answer to this is to just think that I'm probably better off saving the money than buying something I don't want. However, I am keen to get hold of something, and I don't really care what, that can do the following:

Tell me where I am when I'm touring, where I've been and where I need to go if I want to follow a preprogrammed route.
Show me a route profile in advance and a another after I've finished as I tend to go off route a bit.
Show me details such as how far I've gone, how long it took, what my maximum speed was, all that sort of stuff so I can analyse my performance.
Has maps available for the whole of Europe, (or at least France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany), as well as the UK.
Has a heart rate monitor, (I could live without this I suppose).
Is reasonably straightforward to programme and get data out of.
Is reasonably small and lightweight.
Is reasonably robust and can be fitted easily enough to handlebars.

As I said I'm splashing out a bit, so I'm not overly concerned about the cost. I don't mind paying for the features but cannot seem to find one that does everything so have decided to ask for assitance from the community. Thank you in advance.

Rob_L

To get all that functionality, what about a PDA with a GPS reciever?

I personally have a Garmin Map60c which is a great GPS but I plan my routes on either my laptop or or the PDA. I have all the UK OS maps at 1:50,000 on the PDA and it also shows all the profile information and saves having to buy the specific (and expensive) TOPO software for the GPS.

piedwagtail91

a garmin vista cx will do all that,except the heart rate, but it'll cost you for the built in maps.

psmiffy

I use a garmin vista to record my daily stats and as a record of where i have been (easily record two weeks at 500m intervals) (very useful if you are using a digital camera make sure the clocks are the same - work out where on earth that was in photo 125 of 312)

if you have the maps very easy to work out route - only disadvantage I can see is that the good maps do not down load to garmin - can download route from them but not mapping

I was considering buying the garmin europe -anybody any experience is it any good

all a bit over the top but so what

psmiffy

I use a garmin vista to record my daily stats and as a record of where i have been (easily record two weeks at 500m intervals) (very useful if you are using a digital camera make sure the clocks are the same - work out where on earth that was in photo 125 of 312)

if you have the maps very easy to work out route - only disadvantage I can see is that the good maps do not down load to garmin - can download route from them but not mapping

I was considering buying the garmin europe -anybody any experience is it any good

all a bit over the top but so what

TomB1960

Like Waltho I a too am thinking about taking the plunge and investing in a GPS thingy. My research is consistently pointing me at Garmin devices, but what I can't establish is whether in addition to mapping etc etc they will tell you where you need to turn off to follow your intended route, any ideas anybody?

Hairy Jock

A quick Google search for the Garmin Map 60c showed that will it is still in the shops Garmin have now discontinued it, the replacement is the Garmin Map 60cx (Garmin have great imagination when it comes to names). If you want some software to go on your computer to for getting data in and out of your GPS, I can recommend GPS Utility, it works with a huge range of GPS units, there is free version so you can try it out and if you like it, it is really cheep.

A hirsute Scotsman.

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Best advice I ever got was "better get a bike then"
Cycle commuting since 1994. Blog with cycle bits.

piedwagtail91

i've got garmin city select europe 7, you have to buy it with a car mounting kit which makes it a ridiculous price.
i just use it as a base map in a vista c as , has been said above, other mapping is better for route planning. i use tracklogs and download to the gps from that.it does make downlaoded tracklogs easier to use especially where junctions are close together as the tracklog is overlayed on the "base map".
the quality is functional, it's not as good quality wise or visualy as autoroute. it's basicly just lines for roads with no other detail other than place names and symbols.

the vista c will tell you where to turn it that function is switched on, it displays a direction arrow before the junction and again at the junction. on roundabouts it will show which exit to take, it seems to work well both on the bike and in the car.
i sometimes use it but more often than not just follow the display on screen and watch for the next turn coming up.

TomB1960

thanks for that Piedwagtail

T Newing

I'm using a Garmin Map60CSx, which includes inbuilt compass and altimeter. I recently used it to navigate from St David's to Lowestoft, mounted on my handlebars using the Garmin mount and it worked well. I initially planned the route using Memory-Map then transferred it into Garmin MapSource Topo GB, via the GPS, so I could have the rolling map display on the GPS monitor. Garmin MapSource works better that Memory-Map if you're plotting an on-road route, and you need to have it anyway if you want the maps displayed on the GPS. The map display was a great help when were diverted because of roadworks onto a new road not on the map - I could see which way to go to get back onto our planned route. However the maps aren't so easy to read on your computer monitor and are not as detailed as the OS maps in Memory-Map, so you really need both to get the best out of a GPS, unfortunately.
Next trip is to France, using Garmin City Navigator.

Anonymous

Garmin Edge 305 has all the things you want. Don't use it with memory map - get the tracklogs software. You can also find the garmin compatible European maps somewhere on the internet for nowt, alledgedly.

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Unknown

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Kirstie</i>

Garmin Edge 305 has all the things you want. Don't use it with memory map - get the tracklogs software. You can also find the garmin compatible European maps somewhere on the internet for nowt, alledgedly.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">Er, no it hasn't - detailed unit-uploadable mapping capability for a start, not to mention vector mapping that is routeable. The mapping only works on the computer if you have a 305.

Waltho - for touring, detailed unit mapping is invaluable, and worth the money. Have a read of THIS for some examples of why splashing out on a top-level routeable-mapping GPS unit, such as the Garmin 60CSx, will reap dividends.

Anonymous

In English, please! Works OK for me.
Once you've uploaded a route you get the route outline and height profile before you start. You also get what you've actually done when you've finished too. It's possible to compare it all on a PC.
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Unknown

But you can't view the maps on the unit with a 305......and the 305 won't navigate you via bike-suitable roads/tracks if you haven't prepared the route on the computer first (or at least without an immensely time-consuming unit-programming exercise whilst looking very carefully at a paper map).

Top mapping GPS receivers will navigate you via your preferred type of roads, with just the end destination/address entered, or intermediate waypoints should you wish.

The benefits of having detailed maps on the unit screen are incalculable.....then there are all the (geographic, or touristic) points of interest embedded in the maps (easily set as destinations....all without reference to a computer). Superb invention, and highly complementary to paper maps rather than replacement/subsitute.

Unknown

I have a Silva Navigator, no maps, just Lat and Long co-ordinates to let me know where I am, and a rice trail back home to the camp if I go off for a ride or hike.

This is because some of the best times I have had are when I go off my intended route ( by mistake). The unexpected is one of the pleasures of cyclo-touring.
And also, I have to ask local people directions, so it helps me learn languages, and meet some amazing people.

Enjoy whatever you choose, but have fun out there.

george

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