Satnav software for Macs? (TomTom/Garmin)

[Suitor_Stu]

I'm looking to buy a bike specific satnav for my GS, the main selling point would be that you can mark waypoints on a computer at home and then upload to the device (have a car one I use occasionally, but the battery life is shocking, plus you can't do the plan the route before you go thing - oh and if it rains, it's buggered!).

Have been reading up on the pros and cons of the Garmin Zumo 660 vs the TomTom Urban Rider (here and on other forums) and although I think the Garmin seems to win on 2 big points (powered cradle and waypoint software straight out of the box as far as I can see). I can't help, however, but be tempted by the TomTom Rider's cheaper price...even more so that using Tesco's latest clubcard voucher exchange thing I can get a brand new 'Europe' version of the rider for £160.

My main question is from what I have read on this forum that the standard software for the TomTom doesn't really do the whole custom route thing straight out of the box and that using TYRE is better. Problem being that I use a Mac, so this is unsupported.

Does anyone have any experience (namely with the TomTom) and macs? Or would the consensus being that the Garmin would be better suited for my situation and that if price was a concern I would be better off with perhaps the 220.

Any opinions appreciated!

Cheers,
Stu

 

[Damien]

Garmin basecamp is the free software you need for a Mac, works well.

I have no idea about Tomtom.

 

[muppix]

Speaking as somebody who's owned both the Rider II and the Zumo 550, I can safely say the Garmin is better in my opinion, even taking into account TYRE. It's not just about waypoints but routes, and in this respect Garmin's heritage as a long-time producer of GPS products shows.

True, the options for the Mac are limited, so I just stuck 8 gig of RAM in my MacBook Pro and run windows purely for Garmin's mapsource app and my photo software.

 

[Deleted account Cooperman]

I run Parallels software on my Mac to allow me to run windows without having to reboot (i think you have to with Basecamp).

Have the Zumo 660 which has never let me down, but the Mapsource software is so un-intuitive. As you don't use it all the time its a real PITA to get back up to speed each time.

I tend to plan my routes with Google maps which allows you to drag around routes and then re0do in mapsource using waypoints.

 

[Balders1450]

I use TT rider with a Mac......

I just enable "drop long/lat coordinates" in Gmaps, put loads of waypoints on map, then just put coordinates into itinerary in T/T, only takes a couple of minutes....Simples

 

[stolzy]

I run Parallels software on my Mac to allow me to run windows without having to reboot (i think you have to with Basecamp)

No, Basecamp runs on the mac, no need for windows at all

Unfortunatly, the software is even less slick than MapSource (which is pretty bad)

 

[muppix]

Unfortunatly, the software is even less slick than MapSource (which is pretty bad)

Oh I dunno, if you use MapSource regularly you soon get used to the way it works. I find myself taking the keyboard shortcuts a lot now and the many ways you can build routes are pretty flexible. I like the way that the routes you create and re-shape on the PC are transferred turn-for-turn to the Zumo, regardless of the unit's own routing parameters. This makes sharing routes very easy as you know that you're looking at the exact path that somebody gave you and not just a string of waypoints, something that always irritated me about the TomTom / TYRE combination. This makes up for the slightly unfriendly / dated interface that is MapSource.

 

[stolzy]

Oh I dunno, if you use MapSource regularly you soon get used to the way it works. I find myself taking the keyboard shortcuts a lot now and the many ways you can build routes are pretty flexible. I like the way that the routes you create and re-shape on the PC are transferred turn-for-turn to the Zumo, regardless of the unit's own routing parameters. This makes sharing routes very easy as you know that you're looking at the exact path that somebody gave you and not just a string of waypoints, something that always irritated me about the TomTom / TYRE combination. This makes up for the slightly unfriendly / dated interface that is MapSource.

Don't get me started on this or we'll be here all day.

But just a couple of tasters: there are loads of towns which exist in MapSource, but which cannot be found in a search

And why do you have to specify the country in a town search? The software fills in the box with the name of the town as you type, it finds thr name of the town, but you still have to specify the correct country

 

[muppix]

And why do you have to specify the country in a town search? The software fills in the box with the name of the town as you type, it finds thr name of the town, but you still have to specify the correct country

You don't have to input a country if you don't want to, I never do since the towns I search for seem to be fairly unique within my map set. But the option is there in order to narrow the search results if your town has a common name - try searching for "Springfield" in the US and you'll see that every single state has one.