Odometer and speedometer for google maps

[Doug Williams]

I use a Garmin GPS on my bike occasionally. Not really necessary, but nice to have sometimes. If nothing else, I enjoy the speedometer and odometer since I have no other bike computer. I got a new android smartphone and Google Maps works nicely on it. I’m thinking of dumping the Garmin and using the smartphone (Galaxy Note 3) instead. I like to carry the phone for safety anyway, so I could save the weight of the Garmin.

The thing is; Google Maps doesn’t seem to come with an odometer or speedometer. Does anybody have a suggested app to add a speedometer/odometer overlay to Google Maps?

 

Doug

[Lee Millon]

Try using another google product --  My Tracks

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.maps.mytracks

Have fun!

Lee

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[Massimiliano Poletto]

I am not aware of an actual overlay, and I don't have personal experience with any of these but:

https://play.google.com/store/search?q=speedometer&c=apps

Note: chances are that battery life on your Android will be much lower than on your Garmin.

max

On Mon, Jan 6, 2014 at 10:12 AM, Doug Williams <sal...@minbaritm.com> wrote:

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[C. Duque]

Many people use Strava. Most map apps will drain your battery very fast so better make plans for charging while riding. You can search this list for discussions about chargers.

BTW, you can buy heart rate monitors that work wit your phone and many of the cycling/running apps.

Carlos

On Mon, Jan 6, 2014 at 10:12 AM, Doug Williams <sal...@minbaritm.com> wrote:

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[Robert Sexton]

Don't do it (for long rides).��� A Garmin 500-800 is very light, too.�� I take my phone, but I usually turn it off or put it in airplane mode.��� Places with spotty coverage will drain your batteries faster.�

The Garmin will easily outlast the phone, and you can charge the garmin on the road while it is running.��

- Robert
�
On 1/6/14 10:12 AM, Doug Williams wrote:

I use a Garmin GPS on my bike occasionally. Not really necessary, but nice to have sometimes. If nothing else, I enjoy the speedometer and odometer since I have no other bike computer. I got a new android smartphone and Google Maps works nicely on it. I�m thinking of dumping the Garmin and using the smartphone (Galaxy Note 3) instead. I like to carry the phone for safety anyway, so I could save the weight of the Garmin.

The thing is; Google Maps doesn�t seem to come with an odometer or speedometer. Does anybody have a suggested app to add a speedometer/odometer overlay to Google Maps?

�

Doug

[Lee Millon]

I played with my Garmin and my android. The android doesn't need data or phone signal to work with My Tracks; it only uses GPS. I spent a whole day flyfishing in the delta and taking lots of pictures while also using my tracks on the same phone as well as my garmin 800. I was very impressed with the android. Battery drain for the whole day due to My tracks was about 20% of my phone charge. The based on percent remaining I estimated that the garmin used a lot more power than the phone https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxO9iir2_l9yekozNVppdktFYnM/edit?usp=sharing Click on the red marker (end of ride) to see additional data. Phone uses a lot less power with screen off so I only check occasionally.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.maps.mytracks

Lee

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[Kurt Wallace Martin]

I test a lot of bike computers and tech for work, and so far my fave is just the iPhone tucked into a waterproof (ish) handlebar mount.

With the screen off, I use <10% of a standard battery per hour, and I keep the full computer power of the iPhone while usually running Strava + something. One inexpensive upgrade was Wahoo heart rate monitor that ties to Strava (so I can later see that yes, my heart rate was pegged on Diablo) - the Wahoo software has a decent speedometer so with one click I can check speed, then turn the screen back off to save juice. (You can also turn down your default screen brightness and turn on Auto Brightness to keep the screen’s drain low.)

Kurt

[Marcelo Mourier]

I have no experience with Android phones but I do have experience with the GARMIN 500 and the iPhone 4S running the Strava app.  According to my digital kitchen scale the GARMIN 500 weights just 2 oz, so I think that for any practical purposes its weight is irrelevant.  Just for the sake of comparison, the iPhone 4S weights 5 oz.  With its battery fully charged, and all apps except for Strava turned off, the most I have got out of my iPhone 4S were about 7 hours.  The GARMIN 500 claims to have 18 hours of battery life, and I have used it for 12 hours without a problem.  The 500 has a barometric altimeter, so elevation data is usually more accurate than on the iPhone.

[Tom Driscoll]

I've written an Android app for navigation that also displays speed, distance, etc. and writes tcx files to upload to RWGPS, Garmin Connect or Strava.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cyclebikeapp.gold

I found it distracting to focus on a map while riding, so this app just shows the turn-by-turn directions in a self-scrolling list.
My Sony Xperia will last 5 hours running this app and I have used an external battery pack to keep it going for over 12 hours.
Tom

On Monday, January 6, 2014 10:12:42 AM UTC-8, Doug Williams wrote: