garmin edge 305 and traditional maps

[Hadron Quark]

Would it be relatively straightforward to use a garmin edge 305 with a
"real cyling map"? Has anyone used one of these on a cycle tour?
Opinions? Remarkably few reviews out there.

[Booker C. Bense]

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In article <871wsia...@mail.com>,

Hadron Quark <hadro...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>Would it be relatively straightforward to use a garmin edge 305 with a
>"real cyling map"?

- - No. It's navigation interface is pretty minimal. You can get
back to where you started, mark waypoints and follow downloaded
routes, but it has no map support. It's really meant to be a super-duper
cyclometer.

> Has anyone used one of these on a cycle tour?

_ Charging it would be a problem. It will only go 8-10 hrs on
a charge and does not have replaceable batteries. You can get
a mini-usb battery pack, but it's still a relatively short
battery life.

>Opinions? Remarkably few reviews out there.

_ It's a very nice toy and lot's of fun for looking at your
daily rides. It replaces the triple of altimeter, HRM and
cyclometer into one nice package, but it's largely meant
as a training tool, not a navigational tool. For touring,
I would get a larger GPS that had better map support, or
maybe even one of the new cell phones with GPS navigation.

_ You can find out more at the forums at www.motionbased.com.

_ Booker C. Bense

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[peter]

Booker C. Bense wrote:
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
>
> In article <871wsia...@mail.com>,
> Hadron Quark <hadro...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >Would it be relatively straightforward to use a garmin edge 305 with a
> >"real cyling map"?
>
> - - No. It's navigation interface is pretty minimal. You can get
> back to where you started, mark waypoints and follow downloaded
> routes, but it has no map support. It's really meant to be a super-duper
> cyclometer.
>
> > Has anyone used one of these on a cycle tour?
>
> _ Charging it would be a problem. It will only go 8-10 hrs on
> a charge and does not have replaceable batteries. You can get
> a mini-usb battery pack, but it's still a relatively short
> battery life.

The mini-USB pack that takes AA cells can take care of the battery life
problem reasonably well. But the lack of maps is a much more serious
issue. I've been using a Garmin eMap for over 6 years for cycle
touring (as well as regular day rides) and have found the detailed
downloadable maps to be very useful. They include almost every road,
incl. small country lanes and minor residential streets and also have a
database of business locations such as motels, grocery stores,
libraries, restaurants, etc. that is nice to have on a tour. The eMap
I use is now pretty obsolete, their current models that I'd recommend
are the LegendCx, VentureCx, VistaCx, and 60Cx & CSx. To get the
detailed streetmaps and business locations you also need Garmin's
CityNavigator-NA version 8 map product.

[sally]

Hadron Quark <hadro...@gmail.com> wrote in
news:871wsia...@mail.com:

> Would it be relatively straightforward to use a garmin edge 305 with a
> "real cyling map"? Has anyone used one of these on a cycle tour?

The Garmin Edge is designed to be a training tool, not a navigation tool.
There are lots of other GPS units that are better for navigation.

[Jason Settles]

I use a Garmin Edge 350 and agree with these comments. The Edge is more of a
super training tool than a "GPS". Nevertheless, I really like it for daily
rides.

"Booker C. Bense"
<bbense+rec.bicycl...@telemark.slac.stanford.edu> wrote in
message news:e9je98$2ba$1...@news.Stanford.EDU...

[joe.s...@gmail.com]

I agree that the 305 is quite a fun little toy. That said, it seems
strangly lacking in mapping capabilities.

None the less, you can still create routes online and convert them to
GPX files which can be downloaded and used as a route on your 305.
There's a link or two on this page that can head you in the right
direction if you want to try:

http://www.saltlakecycling.com/gpsinfo/index.html

Joe

[trino]

Is there a gps that just tells you how far you travelled without maps. no
speed, hr, met, etc Or do they not work that way. Neat if they did.
>

[trino]

"trino" <s8ayqzw...@jetable.com> wrote in message
news:Kytvg.211077$Mn5.136329@pd7tw3no...

>
> Is there a gps that just tells you how far you travelled without maps. no
> speed, hr, met, etc Or do they not work that way. Neat if they did.
>>

okay, I found it
GARMIN FORERUNNER GPS SYSTEMS
http://www.bikemania.biz/FORERUNNER_GPS_SYSTEMS_p/garmin_forerunner.htm

>
>

[Booker C. Bense]

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In article <JJtvg.211089$Mn5.87631@pd7tw3no>,

If you only want to use it on a bicycle, the Edge is much easier
to read and use. Software and capablity wise they are pretty
similar.

_ Booker C. Bense

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