XmisterIS Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 I've just ordered one of these bad boys: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B008BGUY3II've been biding my time, waiting for it to come down in price ... and now that the 5" version has come out, the price of the 4.3" has plumetted.Arrives later this week.I feel a day out coming on, and bollocks to the desk job, it can wait 24 hours! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 I have been eyeing up the new tomtom they have just brought out although it is lacking a few features Plus I can't find any reviews on it either! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 I've had one for about 4 years now and its proved to be very useful, its also tough having survived coming off (always be sure its locked in place) at 60mph and promptly being run over by a following TRX850.just a few issues with it.shortest route.. this really 'is' the shortest route so be wary.. it will take you through centres when you would normally use a by-pass for instance. in the countryside it can and will guide you down some very 'interesting' roads if that cuts the distance. Fortunately if you have your wits about you and refuse to follow its guide it will immediately recalculate. turn off 'U turns' or it will ask you to turn around. If you have U turns turned off and it still tells you to do so.. then its very likely a good idea.The fastest route can generally be relied upon.. its simple to turn off motorways if they're possibly going to be part of that and you don't fancy the idea.The software for route planning isn't the best, it might be better on a windows machine - some say it is. but i can't make a judgement. On a MAC it takes a lot of getting used to.probably the best 'accessory' you can buy is one of these: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Large-Sun-Vis ... 1268561888as they do suffer badly from glare. and the 'official' garmin shade is crap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XmisterIS Posted May 15, 2015 Author Share Posted May 15, 2015 Thanks for sharing your experience with it!I've read other reviews saying the "shortest route" really does mean dirt tracks and the like!It arrived yesterday and I see it has a "fastest route" option in car-mode, so I am guessing it realises that motorways are quicker than dirt tracks ... !I am going to test it out in the car this weekend - off for a weekend conference, so will post again on this thread with my experiences of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 I'm in the market for a new sat nav and it's a toss up between the 660lm and the 390lmThere is a few little differences but the main one I can see what I will use is the waypoint avoidance of the 390 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joeman Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 I like the idea of Bluetooth tyre pressure sensors.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGD217 Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 I have been eyeing up the new tomtom they have just brought out although it is lacking a few features Plus I can't find any reviews on it either!Me too! I've been waiting for this for a while, now it's been launched i'm a little disappointed with the lack of some features. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 I have been eyeing up the new tomtom they have just brought out although it is lacking a few features Plus I can't find any reviews on it either!Me too! I've been waiting for this for a while, now it's been launched i'm a little disappointed with the lack of some features. yes same here it is lacking some features and IMO its a backward step with what they have done! you cant do hands free calling like on the rider I have although it will be available with an update and there is no music playback available either and there never will be I have also been reading some users views on it and they arent impressed to be honest things like not been able to view waypoints or been able to skip a waypoint I also sent a email to tomtom and it took them more than 2 days to reply! thats not a good start! so on all that I think I shall go for the garmin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGD217 Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 I have been eyeing up the new tomtom they have just brought out although it is lacking a few features Plus I can't find any reviews on it either!Me too! I've been waiting for this for a while, now it's been launched i'm a little disappointed with the lack of some features. yes same here it is lacking some features and IMO its a backward step with what they have done! you cant do hands free calling like on the rider I have although it will be available with an update and there is no music playback available either and there never will be I have also been reading some users views on it and they arent impressed to be honest things like not been able to view waypoints or been able to skip a waypoint I also sent a email to tomtom and it took them more than 2 days to reply! thats not a good start! so on all that I think I shall go for the garmin I've seen a couple of amazon reviews and so far, people are far from impressed. I like the whole TomTom UI and since my car sat nav has given up the ghost i was holding out for this.Off to research the garmin units... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 I have a garmin unit that came with the car and its not the best but it works well I havent really used bike ones I have had a little play with them but no real world usage I'm sure someone will chime in with their views on them .......well I hope they do from what I have seen from the specs of the garmin units there is no pattern to the specs regarding the price IE the more you pay the more you get.....some cheaper units have things some of the more expensive ones don't have! I would expect the more upmarket ones to have the same as the cheaper units plus more for me this makes choosing the right one a bit of a pain in the arse as to get one feature I have to forfeit another! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 I don't use any of the additional features on mine.. bluetooth is disabled. so is 'sound' I use it purely as a visual aid. I do know.. because Garmin told me, that there was a fairly large firmware change a few years ago.. and the older 660s weren't capable of running it.. which implies a hardware change too an upgrade in the flash storage at the very least i would have thought. Hardly surprising really as its been around for almost 6 years.One thing to bear in mind.. all older Zumo's are still fully supported.. going right back to the first from 2006. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGD217 Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 How do you find yours Shorty? What model do you have? Pros/Cons? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 How do you find yours Shorty? What model do you have? Pros/Cons? I have the 660 - its 4 years old so one of the earliest ones. its been fine for what I need.getting to addresses.. all I need is the post code and house number. following routes Ive put together on the computer and loaded onto the mini sd. I'm a bit old school and still like to use maps - its a great 'help' with that. I don't let it rule my riding, if that makes sense. if i go out and take a map with me and get lost.. i can find out exactly where I am.. by asking the gps and then looking at the map. Often i'll go out and just follow my nose.. maybe just use the compass and follow roads that head is a particular direction and get hopelessly lost then just ask the sat nav either where i am or guide me home.Its great for touring for 2 reasons, I never have to worry about petrol as it will tell me exactly how far away the nearest garage is.. and I can ride for longer in the day and know exactly where the next campsite is - I have every campsite in western europe on it (30,00+)It guided me on the scariest day of my life.. when i accidentally took a wrong turn (by ignoring it) and found myself heading into the centre of Rome, in rush hour.. it got me through Rome and out the other side.9/10 I treat it as a 'helper' rather than a full-on guide. If I see a sign and decide to go and look at whatever its pointing to, it will just recalculate the route and so get me back on track afterwards.like i say.. I've never used any of its clever extra features. like linking it to a mobile phone or using it as a 'walkman' feeding music to headphones. That side of it doesn't interest me. its still on its original battery. I have wired the mount directly to the battery on the bike. I left it switched on one night in its cradle.. the next morning the bike started up with no issues. so its 'draw' is pretty low.In the box you get everything you need. it uses standard RAM, so adjusting it to suit your particular bike is really simple. and because its been around so long.. like 6 years, the sheer number of accessories for it is mind boggling. like secure 'cages' so you don't have to worry about it walking. Or more 'elegant' ways of fitting it.. not everyone is happy with it being too far from your line of sight. having to take your eyes off the road - I mean.oh.. and thats another thing. when touring i don't need to worry about forgetting where Ive left the bike if I go for a walk round a town. i just set the gps and it will guide me back to the bike. same goes for any random campsite. just ask it where you are and when it locates it.. add that to your favourites.I have been asked in the past. "is it better than a tom tom?" - i can't answer that as Ive never owned or used one.If it were to die for some reason.. I would very likely get another fairly quickly.Ive found it a really handy thing to have. as a 'helper'. theres not much else i can say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Shorty does the 660 allow you to easily avoid a waypoint if you change your mind about a route? My tomtom allows me too but it's not that easy to do it I sometimes change my mind and take a different route and the last thing I want is to have to stop and alter the route Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Shorty does the 660 allow you to easily avoid a waypoint if you change your mind about a route? My tomtom allows me too but it's not that easy to do it I sometimes change my mind and take a different route and the last thing I want is to have to stop and alter the route not specifically.. but, what if this 'waypoint' is a 'road closed' sign.. just touch the 'diversion' icon and it will guide you around. Its possible the specific feature you want has been added to later versions of the firmware - that mine cannot run. but I don't know.The way I avoided things.. was simply turning off the route.. the gadget would recalculate, tell me (for instance) to take the next left.. if i ignore it. it just keeps on recalculating and telling me what to do until I'm finally back on the route. this is for routes that I've done myself on the computer... for routes the gadget has sorted itself... turn off and it will calculate a new route based on where you are and keep on recalculating just the same until you start paying attention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Ah so if you tell it the road is closed then it ignores the waypoint anyway I may have to try that on my tomtom too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGD217 Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 Thanks for the Informative reply Shorty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.