Beeline Navigation

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

I won't try to do a video of the Beeline as there's plenty on YouTube already which show how it works.

I have tried various navigation systems, sat nav, various phone apps and different phone holders. I've never really got on with any of them on a bike. I use a dedicated sat nav in the cars and all systems have their strengths and weaknesses.

What I like about the Beeline:

Its simplicity. In route mode you get an arrow telling you which way to go. A dot that tells you which direction your next turn is. The distance to your next turn that counts down as the turn approaches. A scale that shows how much of your journey is completed. For junctions or roundabouts you get a symbol that gives you notice - eg for a roundabout you get a symbol with a number, the number is the exit you want.

 

 

 

As you approach a turn the arrow and dot should coincide if you're going the right way.

 

 

If you take a wrong turn the arrow turns black and you either ride back to where you went wrong, or press a button to recalculate the route.

In compass mode the arrow just points to where your destination is. You then just ride down any road you like and head in the general direction of where you want to end up.

You don't get speed warnings, estimated arrival time or a detailed map. For me I find these don't work using sat nav on a bike. I just find it too much to take in. I like the very simple information you take in at a glance.

I have it set to avoid motorways so I haven't tried it with multiple lane junctions.

I bought the kit with an additonal bar mount so I have a mount on each bike and just swap the unit between them. The mounts are nice quality, as soon as you open the box you know someone takes pride in this product.

The display unit is linked to your phone which runs the Beeline app. I understand this is based on Google maps so you've got up to date maps all the time. The app allows you to set how you want to navigate - route or compass mode. You pick a destination, then you can add waypoints to tailor the route. If you want you can have the phone duplicating the display unit, or you can use the phone as a display unit in a car for example.

The display is very adaptive to light conditions, it keeps a constant level of visibility as you go under bridges, in bright sunlight, or at night.

You can do the obvious things like set it for km or miles, avoid tolls, motorways or ferries. The Beeline Moto was developed from a version made for cycling so the Moto version can be set to do both motorbike and bicycle routes. I do a lot of off road riding on a pedal bike and the routes it works out are the best I've found of any cycle navigation system. As a bit of a bonus the display clips into the cycle mounts I use for my Garmin cycle sat nav (which is useless).

Cost is £149 for the black version. Or £199 for either of the versions with a bit of coloured trim around the edge. There are a variety of mounts. It comes with a universal band held mount and a stick on mount. There is a bundle deal which adds an additional mount of your choice - as said I went for the bar mount which is a nice bit of kit.

It won't be for everyone. If you like your dedicated sat nav with all the information on a coloured screen this will seem a bit strange. But it is very intuitive and easy to ride with. The one minor niggle is that where two juctions come very close together it doesn't tell you in advance. That's where your sat nav with a visible map will be better. But usually those kind of junctions are in built up areas where you can easily just take the next turn to get back on route, and using a dedicated sat nav I've had dud information about directions at times so no system is 100% accurate.

Overall for motorcycling I like the Beeline's simplicity, clarity, option to go freestyle and explore whilst still heading in the general direction. The display works for me and doesn't clutter the handlebars. The app is very easy to use and in terms of selecting routes the best I've found yet.

The battery life is reckoned to be about 30 hours so there's no wiring involved.

[manxie49]

I like the look of this, nothing fancy but it does exactly what you want it to do....Good review

[raesewell]

I have looked at this before and it looks great for A to B journeys. How does it perform on journeys with multiple way points?

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

I have looked at this before and it looks great for A to B journeys. How does it perform on journeys with multiple way points?

 

I find it the easiest system I've found so far to add waypoints. Once you've set the destination you then tap the route anywhere and it opens a waypoint marker. You then drag that to where you want it to be and it plots a route via the waypoint. You can zoom in or out to be as specific as you want.

My favourite route between home and the Ponderosa goes by a very out of the way route because there are a couple of really nice roads I like to ride. It took just two additional way points for the app to find that route and then you can save it for future use.

You can also track routes you've ridden and if you find a road you like that can be saved as well.

It's very intuitive to use which I find is a sign someone has thought this out.

[onesea]

Tried this today on my phone on a little 180 odd mile jaunt:

I found it really struggled if it did not have internet, even though I have downloaded maps as google maps was still running.

I liked the simplicity,

Found the number for roundabouts a little hard to read,

I found that running google maps in a window filled in the gaps that when it was struggling r I have not learned how to follow it,

It also jumped to cycle mode taking me down some very interesting lanes...

I can see it being a good system if you don't have phone charging or a phone mount, my phone can go a day navigating IF I don't have the screen on. There is also always a battery pack in your pocket to keep your phone charged.

On the downside for me now it means I have running:

Beeline

Google Maps,

TomTom Amigo, (told me about to moible cameras today),

Music Playing App...

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

Just to update this, I have found myself more used to how it displays instructions and whilst in built up areas where there might be turns in very close proximity it isn't as clear as a conventional satnav on more open roads it is brilliant.

It also copes with going off route very well. I now have it set to automatically reroute and it does so very quickly.

[fastbob]

I know where Scotland is . Seriously though , it's a very informative review and the product is absolutely inspired . Back in the day I used to have a map in a tankbag but my brain absolutely could not process the information when I was moving . This is a Satnav boiled down to the basic necessities by the look of it .

[Breezin]

I like the look of it, and the simplicity. But I'm not sure it will do anything that Waze can't... Waze has a mode with just arrows showing the next turn too.

[raesewell]

Does Waze have maps installed or does it rely on data transfer and mobile phone signal?

[Tankbag]

TomTom Amigo, (told me about to moible cameras today),

 

Onesea do you have a route planned on TomTom Amigo or do you just have it on in the background, if you get me ?

[husoi]

Does Waze have maps installed or does it rely on data transfer and mobile phone signal?

 

Waze is google online based.

MapFactor Navigator from google app store allows to download all maps for free and works offline.

I don't know if is available for Icrap.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mapfactor.navigator&gl=GB

[onesea]

Onesea do you have a route planned on TomTom Amigo or do you just have it on in the background, if you get me ?

In all honesty I have never actually used Amigo for Navigation, I thought it was charged. I run it in background so it Auto starts on connection with Bluetooth. Latest function I have started using is its speeding warning, you can set for a limit EG Speed limit +10mph, you get one subtle single ping. Shame it wont do as percent but that's probably my being picky.

I am again paying for TomTom GO, which is my go to app for navigation as I like to pre-plan routes before departure and be able to stick to them ish...

[mention]husoi[/mention] Uses OPEN Street map as source, OPS maps are crowd sourced so maps can be corrupted, similar to Wikipedia. This may or maybnot be bad thing depending on your view point.

[mention]Breezin[/mention] " Waze has a mode with just arrows showing the next turn too." cannot find the option for that one...

[Breezin]

Does Waze have maps installed or does it rely on data transfer and mobile phone signal?

 

Waze is google online based.

 

 

Yes, Waze is based on Google maps, which can be downloaded in Google, so I suppose it works offline in those circumstances. Not certain though, as it hasn't been an issue.

[Breezin]

@Breezin " Waze has a mode with just arrows showing the next turn too." cannot find the option for that one...

 

It's previewed at the top of the screen -- a big white arrow on black, with distance to the turn. Click on that and the map disappears. Instead, the upcoming set of six turns or so is displayed.

Not as clean and funky as the Beeline, I'll admit.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

Just a few examples of how Beeline looks to a rider at a few junctions.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

A bit of a follow up. My Beeline is now four years old. The charging unit got a bit tricky to get a good connection a couple of weeks ago. It still worked but I had to give it a firm press.

 

I contacted Beeline who immediately sent out a replacement free of charge.

 

They have a brilliant attitude to looking after customers.