Gps advice

I usually tour with maps, but on the latest trip found that alot of bikes were using Gps. As a complete Gps virgin I would appreciate it if some of the GSclubs Guru's could pass on a bit of their wisdom.
Do the units give directions too late?
Do you have to spend £700 -1200 to get a system more convenient than maps?
If for example I wanted to do a 4000m tour of Europe could it be downloaded in enough detail to show Minor roads/trails, if not do you carry some of the route on mem. cards?
30 waypoints per route doesn't seem alot how is this overcome?
If once you are halfway through your planned route you want to go on other roads can you accomadate this? And finally can you scan the areas on your Gps map (on route) to find the winding scenic roads(that we all love) like you can on a map?
Sorry this is long winded but any help is appreciated.
Regards
Flynn

I notice that you're from oop north. Pity. Bracken's BMW in London is organising a GPS/Touratech information evening that club member Yosi has put together, on July 30th (drinks and nibbles). I'm sure you'd have all your queries answered but I accept it's a long trip!
Meanwhile, explore all the other threads here because they are a mine of information. I finally latched onto Paul the administrator and collared him for info about his GPS176. That's the best way to do it.
Good luck

Flynn

Like you, I was a complete GPS virgin until a couple of weeks ago. I've now waded in and bought a StreetPilot III Deluxe - perhaps the best purchase I have ever made!

I've spent the past few days working out how to use it and it's awesome!! I trialled it in my car this weekend on a run up to Darlington. Just the exercise of trying to find my hotel in the dark in a unfamiliar area became an absolute doddle!

Using the 128MB chip that comes with the Deluxe version, you can have the entire UK mapped down to streetlevel, by name and with a reasonable approximation of street numbers. This includes even the smallest residential street. This data needs to be preloaded into the chip using a PC and the CD-ROMs supplied. If you don't load this, you have to rely on a 'basemap' which is preloaded to the unit. The basemap covers all of Europe but only details main roads. The detailed streetmapping is broken down into small units which can be loaded into your chip seperately. For example, you could load 'Leeds', 'Dover', 'Calais' and 'Paris', navigating between centres using the basemap and using the detailed maps when you are within the areas that you have loaded.

Up to 500 Waypoints (destinations) can be programmed using streetname, town, housenumber etc or Lat/Long references. If you ask the unit to route you to a waypoint, it will calculate a route according to your preferences (shortest/quickest/no motorways etc etc). As you travel that route you get a countdown to the next navigational point measured in distance and time and up to three advance warnings (starting at about 2 miles on a motorway) of what turn you should take. The screen then shows a clear schematic of the junction/roundabout etc showing which way you have to go. If you get it wrong, the GPS calculates a new route for you.

There is also a voice prompt which tells you which way to go. If you get it wrong, it disarmingly tells you that it is recalculating a route (I normally get from the SO "You're a pillock- why didn't you turn left back there like I told you?!!!").

Only having had the unit a few days, I am tempted to say that I'll never buy another map!!

GFI

Best

Greg Masters
London

Flynn wrote:
I usually tour with maps, but on the latest trip found that alot of bikes were using Gps. As a complete Gps virgin I would appreciate it if some of the GSclubs Guru's could pass on a bit of their wisdom.

You'll be double plus chuffed with GPS whatever you decide.

Flynn wrote:
Do the units give directions too late?

Sounds like you have decided on autorouting? If so and you want a Garmin then I think you only need only consider 3 receivers:
V
Streetpilot III
196........yet to be released in the UK?

As to your question.......I've never used autoroute but I would think warning to turn would be user configurable [most things are],i.e. off, auto, 20ft, 50ft, 80ft,.......etc. before turn.

Flynn wrote:
Do you have to spend £700 -1200 to get a system more convenient than maps?

Only certain receivers have the ability to accept detailed maps. I paid £400 for my 3+ [cheaper now, no autorouting] and a new Streetpilot III is £1200. *Some* etrex models [<£700]can handle downloaded maps too but don't do autorouting.

Flynn wrote:
If for example I wanted to do a 4000m tour of Europe could it be downloaded in enough detail to show Minor roads/trails, if not do you carry some of the route on mem. cards?

Tricky one....all depends. 4000m in France or 4k covering 10 European countries in full detail.
Streetpilot III and 196 can except a maximum sized datacard of 128MB, the V has a non expandable memory of 19MB which could well only be enough for 1 days touring. What do you do when that touring day is over? Better pack a laptop.

So then, that leaves the Streetpilot III and the 196.

Flynn wrote:
30 waypoints per route doesn't seem a lot how is this overcome?

As someone else has stated 254 waypoints/route seems to be pretty standard with newer units. With 30 points you could always start a new 30 waypoint route were the old one left off.

Flynn wrote:

If once you are halfway through your planned route you want to go on other roads can you accomadate this?

I believe an autorouting GPS will simple modify the original route to account for the deviation.


Flynn wrote:

And finally can you scan the areas on your Gps map (on route) to find the winding scenic roads(that we all love) like you can on a map?

Depends if the area is on your GPS in detail, even then you couldn't really tell which are the scenic routes like you can on a Michlin map.

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The way I see it, it depends on you now, are you a big kid or Captain Sensible?

Big Kid/can't wait approach - Buy Streetpilot III or 196.

Captain Sensible approach - Buy 3+ off ebay, use it for a while to learn what you really require from a GPS and what the limitations of various units will mean to you and then resell on ebay.

Russ.

The problem seems we know that we'd like the Streetpilot deluxe GL / XL / GTI version, but want to spend the money on petrol or a nice new exhaust, or some one else would like a new dress / suit / house etc!

As for the green snakes next to Michelin roads, I seem to remember Autoroute used to have the facility for "scenic" roads in the preferences, but the current version dosen't have it. But as the bigger market is presumeably for the four wheel market, and what do most of them care about apart from being 2inches from your bumper, then Autoroute etc probably won't bother with a scenic option. (Should this bit have been in the Sanguine forum?)