Tom Tom Rider Europe

Tom Tom Rider Europe
There seems to be few rider reports on this GPS System, compared to the Garmins it seems good value.
Ive got a Street Pilot and frankly Im not impressed at all in fact I rarely use it now as its slow and often gives turns ending up in fields,and updating the software was an absolute nightmare.
Im just wondering if the Garmin has a snob value or everyone else has got one so Id better have one as well to fit in?,a bit like bling on your GS dont buy one with out all the toys half of which never get "used"
Very much like a Rolex compared to a Timex the time doesnt change both do the nesessary job Telling Time.
So if its so bad whats actually wrong with the TTR does it not direct you to the right place do they not hold Hotel directions,not work in the rain/air/cold/hot etc.
There must be someone on here thats using one?
ian

I've used a tt rider 1 for three years through Europe no problem and then it caught the dreaded fail to charge in the cradle disease. So do I give tomtom more money to see if they've got it right on Rider 2, me thinks not? The zumo I've just bought to replace it has better functions and features, like the mp3 player (how hard can it be to put a simple radio in one of these things anyway- now that I would like?) it's easy to use and the cradle looks like it's made to last. Let's face it, they're all too dear but as motorcyclists we always pay more for everything and manufacturers know it.

I can't comment on the Garmin or other types, but the TomTom rider 2 I've been using since summer 2007 has been faultless. It's been used on three european motorcycle tours, several long trips around Scotland, at times in very heavy rain, and I use it at least two full days a week at work whilst driving.
It does what its supposed to which is good enough for me.

fatal said:

I can't comment on the Garmin or other types, but the TomTom rider 2 I've been using since summer 2007 has been faultless. It's been used on three european motorcycle tours, several long trips around Scotland, at times in very heavy rain, and I use it at least two full days a week at work whilst driving.
It does what its supposed to which is good enough for me.

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Same as above and stil works perfectly. Its personal choice but I prefer the TT Rider.

Hi Ian,
I've been using TomTom Navigator 6 on PDAs for about 4 years now and I'm really pleased with it, so I bought a TTR2 for the bike and a car mounting kit as well. I've used it all over the UK and in France, Italy, Belgium, Holland and Germany and it's never let me down. A couple of times only on the PDA it did get a bit confused when we were in a town (Bourg-en-Bresse, France) with narrowish streets and tallish buildings, but this was due to the satellite signals bouncing off the buildings I guess. I find TT very accurate, user friendly and easy to get on with. There are a wealth of Points Of Interest available on the net, both free and commercially. I've used CoPilot in the past, both here and abroad and, and in my opinion TT is far superior. I found Copilot would seriously under estimate journey times whereas TT seems to over estimate a little meaning you always arrive at your destination earlier than it first tells you, which in my book is far more desirable. I haven't used any of the Garmin bike units but I have used a GPSmap 76S which is a marine unit that I use when open canoeing. It's a good unit, I've had it about 8 years or more now and it's been totally reliable and it's been under water several times! Satellite acquisition time is a bit slow though, but to be fair it is now an old unit with old technology. Acquisition time on the TTR is very good, almost always less than 30 seconds.
The only thing I haven't managed to do yet with the TT is to save a track log, which is a bit of a pain; not sure if the unit is not capable of if it's just me not found it yet.
Overall though I'd thoroughly recommend the TTR 2

Mick

billynomates said:

Tom Tom Rider Europe
Im just wondering if the Garmin has a snob value or everyone else has got one so Id better have one as well to fit in?,a bit like bling on your GS dont buy one with out all the toys half of which never get "used"
Very much like a Rolex compared to a Timex the time doesnt change both do the nesessary job Telling Time.
So if its so bad whats actually wrong with the TTR does it not direct you to the right place do they not hold Hotel directions,not work in the rain/air/cold/hot etc.
There must be someone on here thats using one?
ian

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I don't think its a 'snob' thing, more a case of deciding what are the important features for you. I've used TT s/w on a PDA and thought it was very good for getting A to B. On the bike I've used a Quest and more recently the Zumo 550. For me, there were two key features of the Quest & 550 which TT didn't really match - the ability to record a track log (shows where you've been, when you upload onto a PC and view in Mapsource) and the ability to pre-plan a route along twisty back roads on a PC (again using Mapsource) and then using the GPS to guide me along that route. They're not the sort of features that you'd be interested in as a car driver, but for a rider they're brilliant.

I think there are 3rd party apps that allow you to pre-plan routes on the TT, and possibly also to record track logs, but I doubt that they're as neatly integrated as the Garmin Mapsource s/w is with the Zumo etc. BTW, if you DO go for a Garmin, and want to pre-plan routes on your PC, make sure you get a DVD of the maps, with unlock codes, included with the GPS package. If you only have maps on SD card they can't be loaded onto PC for route planning.

HTH

Thanks for your usefull comments will probably go for the TTRE as im not interested in riding too music or riding the route on the computer.
To be honest Im not a SatNav fan as i Quite enjoy getting lost as I think you find more interesting places this way,I'm more concerned about finding a Hotel in Europe at the end of the day quickly.
Cheers Ian

I heard a rumour that TT might be Beta testing a piece of software for creating track logs/route planns. I hope so as I could then sell my Navigator 2 and stick with my TT Rider.

Pukmeister said:

I heard a rumour that TT might be Beta testing a piece of software for creating track logs/route planns. I hope so as I could then sell my Navigator 2 and stick with my TT Rider.

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They already do - that "click this button to share your data and improve road speeds" message on the latest ones stores tracks, although they are encyrpted, and no one has yet bothered to hack it/use it.

buellzebub said:

Hi Ian,
I've been using TomTom Navigator 6 on PDAs for about 4 years now and I'm really pleased with it, so I bought a TTR2 for the bike and a car mounting kit as well. I've used it all over the UK and in France, Italy, Belgium, Holland and Germany and it's never let me down. A couple of times only on the PDA it did get a bit confused when we were in a town (Bourg-en-Bresse, France) with narrowish streets and tallish buildings, but this was due to the satellite signals bouncing off the buildings I guess. I find TT very accurate, user friendly and easy to get on with. There are a wealth of Points Of Interest available on the net, both free and commercially. I've used CoPilot in the past, both here and abroad and, and in my opinion TT is far superior. I found Copilot would seriously under estimate journey times whereas TT seems to over estimate a little meaning you always arrive at your destination earlier than it first tells you, which in my book is far more desirable. I haven't used any of the Garmin bike units but I have used a GPSmap 76S which is a marine unit that I use when open canoeing. It's a good unit, I've had it about 8 years or more now and it's been totally reliable and it's been under water several times! Satellite acquisition time is a bit slow though, but to be fair it is now an old unit with old technology. Acquisition time on the TTR is very good, almost always less than 30 seconds.
The only thing I haven't managed to do yet with the TT is to save a track log, which is a bit of a pain; not sure if the unit is not capable of if it's just me not found it yet.
Overall though I'd thoroughly recommend the TTR 2

Mick

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You should try CoPilot. You get the same as tomtom, plus a "copilot central" PC application that lets you view on maps and tracks and click to add way points then add them to your device. I've tomtom as well, and copilot is brilliant. Plus you can change the road speeds and save them in profiles, which means you can force it to avoid motorways and perference B roads etc.. Good support, and decent maps. It is not quiet as "easy" as the tomtom, but if you have used tomtom to its extent for a few months you will be fine....

billynomates said:

To be honest Im not a SatNav fan as i Quite enjoy getting lost as I think you find more interesting places this way,I'm more concerned about finding a Hotel in Europe at the end of the day quickly.
Cheers Ian

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You can go wherever you like, you're not compelled to follow the instructions from your GPS (even turn the sound off). When the ETA display is just before dinner/beer/bed time (substitute as appropriate) you suddenly become 'unlost' and faithfully follow Doris to your hotel. If you particularly liked the roads you ambled around then, if you have a Garmin, you can download the track-log to see exactly where you went.

There are many ways to use a GPS, they're not just a tool for getting you from A to B.

T T Rider or Other

Hi I use a TomTom for work have done for about year and a half its a good bit of kit clear and easy to use, however it is now onto its 2nd docking / charging unit, other bikes on our fleet have also suffered same prob Tom Tom wer'nt exactly helpful in their replacement, they don't seem to think they have a problem, on my own bike I have a Garmin 2610, old yes but current maps got me round Poland , Germany etc with no probs now looking to upgrade and will get a Garmin Zumo, 2nd hand off ebay they're not a bad price