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Motorcycle GPS Vs. Tablet?? Motorcycle GPS Vs. Tablet??
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Navigation - Maps, Compass, GPS How to find your way - traditional map, compass and road signs, or GPS and more
Photo by Marc Gibaud, Clouds on Tres Cerros and Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia

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Photo by Marc Gibaud,
Clouds on Tres Cerros and
Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia




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  #1  
Old 15 Mar 2016
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For me, I want a GPS that I can use both on and off the bike, so it needs to be hand portable (walking) and water proof (riding in the rain). A tablet would not suit me.

'Free' maps tend to be what people use - especially on a world trip where the costs of maps tend to be high for the amount of use you would have. OSM tends to be the source of these free maps in various forms - on a GPS, a 'smart' phone, a tablet. While you might see the app called 'maps.me' for example .. the base data is OSM, only the way in which it is presented and the amount of data used changes from one app to another.
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Old 15 Mar 2016
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I used an iPad mini for navigation round the USA last autumn but not mounted on the bike. It was kept in a pannier and brought out as and when I was lost (quite often!). Even if I could have found a stable cradle it would have been way too big

I have mounted it in a cradle inside my Land Rover and used it as a regular sat nav and it works ok, but no better than a normal sized dedicated one or even an iPhone. There's plenty of free app based sat nav software around.

In reality unless you're navigating somewhere really tricky you don't need the screen working all the time. Just turn it on when you've no idea whether to turn left or right (or slightly before that point anyway)

In your position I'd buy a second hand car sat nav and either buy a cheap waterproof case for it or put a plastic bag over it in the rain.
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Old 15 Mar 2016
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Not using a dedicated GPS anymore. Not sure about a tablet, nor luddite but the android platform has loads more options. Main weak point is bypassing the USB gremlins. Also an issue with some dedicated GPS units though. USB was never designed for high vibration and outdoor use. Doesn't hold up to serious off road for sure. Phones have cradle options that can bypass this issue though with a USB port on the mount that can be hard wired easily.
My fav app for riding is Locus. Others like OSMand. Depending on your needs there may be a learning curve. Although basecamp isn't easy for some either.
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Old 15 Mar 2016
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Originally Posted by tmotten View Post
Also an issue with some dedicated GPS units though. USB was never designed for high vibration and outdoor use. Doesn't hold up to serious off road for sure.
No such problems with the Montana in an AMPS cradle. Used in the car, road bike and dirt bike.
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Old 15 Mar 2016
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I think you would be better off with a dedicated motorcycle GPS, rather than trying to kludge a tablet onto your handlebars.

With a dedicated GPS, you don't need to worry about waterproofing, readability of the display in sunshine, ability to operate (tiny) buttons while riding with gloves on, a user interface that was not designed for ease of use while controlling a vehicle, getting spoken directions connected to a Bluetooth helmet without an electrical engineering degree, etc., etc.

Personally, I use a dedicated GPS (a Garmin) while riding, and a small laptop computer for constructing routes and doing navigation research when not riding. It is true that some of the Garmin units are quite expensive, but there are other manufacturers of motorcycle-specific GPS navigators - such as Tom-Tom - who provide similar capabilities at a more attractive price.

Michael
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Old 16 Mar 2016
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No such problems with the Montana in an AMPS cradle. Used in the car, road bike and dirt bike.
I don't understand what the cradle mounting system's impact is in the secure connection of a USB port. Sure, some connections work. Others don't. This inconsistency proves the fact is not designed for it. I even had burnmoto ports fail in Baja. Had to tape it to ensure the flat contact points connected. It only did to a point off course. Pin connector are used in these environment for this reason. The garmin 4 pin connector was great. The 2 pin is too small and the USB not up to the task. Off course it depends on the amount of abuse.

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