GPS

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Jimmy, I have the Garmin Zumo 660 and really like it. It does not give you the curvy road option but it is supposed to be waterproof. I switch it between my bike and truck all the time. Have the bike mount permanently mounted and wired. Wish I would have gotten the 665 for the XM radio but I can still listen to that through my phone.

Built like a tank and you can add lifetime maps as an upgrade through Garmin. Caveat....it is a little "slower" on commands than a newer one, but you can drop kick this into next week and it'll turn on and work.

It comes with both bike and car mounts in the box w/all the necessary hardware to connect.

Oh yeah... it has micro sd card capabilities and I play my mp3's through this thing. I think it has a slightly better volume range that the OEM mp3 function of the Honda. Probably just my imagination but you're the audio expert.

[Av8er]

I keep my phone in the pocket of my riding pants. If the bike and I get separated in an accident, I want the phone accessible. Also, I don't have a large data plan, plus some of the remote areas in the western US don't have cell phone service. And, I like building rides in advance and loading them to the GPS before I make a trip, that way I can include all of the great, out-of-the-way roads that I want to hit.

I have used my phone. It works pretty well as long as I have a signal. My phone is a Note 4 that is supplied by my employer plus I don't pay for it or the data.

I just finally thought I might use a dedicated GPS that isn't reliant on a phone signal when I need to set up directions/navigation. Most of the time this isn't a big issue, but when it is, it's frustrating.

Not a bad thing to have the phone stay with you in an accident. Never thought of that. I have an iPhone and an app that I can load routes into. I also dont think you have to have phone signal for the gps portion to work. Please correct me if I am wrong.

[F6Bster]

You are correct. GPS will work without cell/data signal, but you will still need a mapping program to overlay with it.

Not a bad thing to have the phone stay with you in an accident. Never thought of that. I have an iPhone and an app that I can load routes into. I also dont think you have to have phone signal for the gps portion to work. Please correct me if I am wrong.

[dadeo]

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Just curious but why don't y'all just youse an app on a phone? I have had a 550 and a 660 and yes they are nice but for the price I think I will use my phone GPS.

Not to beat a dead horse, but I need to make my point. Phone GPS units are not designed for what touring motorcyclists do. They can work, most of the time, but when they fail, they really fail. There are several types of GPS systems designed for different tasks and situations:
= Phone based apps that use data as you go. You MUST have access to data for these to always work. Even loading Googlemaps onto a phone before losing data will fail if you have to reroute on the fly. Also phones generally can't get wet.
= Phone based apps that load the maps in advance. Usually free, but the routing software is usually dismal, and they depend on a phone that can't get wet as well.
= Marine GPS: Highly accurate location data but No highway routing software. Wanna find fish? Avoid a sand bar?
= General Purpose Highway units and software, most GPS units from Garmin, TomTom and in your car: Pretty poor motorcyle routing,
Off Roading and Orienteering: Usually small screens, but some are close to what we use on motorcycles when off roading. Cheap units have no real routing software. These are usually good for off road hiking, biking, riding. Can be pricey to get same functions as Garmin Zumo series.
= Motorcycle touring Zumo and TomTom Rider 400: Pricey, most durable, not inclined to interface well with phones, often feature bloated, good m/c routing though.
= Trucking GPS: Really big screens, heavy, readable, never waterproof, designed for drivers who have to stay on truck routes. Sometimes the software for these things is slow -- there is an incredible amount of data in these units that does not have to be in car systems.
= Aviation. I don't fly so I don't know much about the last one.

To sum up...
1. Rural areas = no data. Bad or no phone service. That's the biggest reason to have a regular GPS.
2. Phone Based GPS Software = Crappy Routing algorithms. That means bad programming. Not built for mc riding. Result: you take boring roads or end up in mud roads when you don't want to. Example: Googlemaps when off line, Any cheap or free app that you download onto a phone that calls itself m/c GPS software: low quality routing.
3. Safety: Do NOT trust a phone in rural areas. Not for communication, not for directions. Take a look at a national coverage map from Verizon et all. When I go off road in my jeep or out on big water in my boat, we carry CB or FRS or Marine radios AND GPS units with software specifically designed for the situation. Those of you who carry cell phones when traveling alone in "big country" without cell coverage are fooling yourself -- that thing will be not reach anyone when you really need it. Carry a radio. Keep spare batteries. Why do you think the big Honda still has a CB option?

If all your riding is near suburbia and a city, then OK, the cell phone is fine.

Ride Safe

[Bryster]

Using a android head unit in the car with Sygic nav on it, excellent little android GPS app. It runs offline maps so you don't have to have a connection but if one is there it'll give updated traffic info as well. That way you could use on phone and still have directions over music if so inclined.

Just an idea.

[jmdaniel]

3. Safety: Do NOT trust a phone in rural areas. Not for communication, not for directions. Take a look at a national coverage map from Verizon et all. When I go off road in my jeep or out on big water in my boat, we carry CB or FRS or Marine radios AND GPS units with software specifically designed for the situation. Those of you who carry cell phones when traveling alone in "big country" without cell coverage are fooling yourself -- that thing will be not reach anyone when you really need it. Carry a radio. Keep spare batteries. Why do you think the big Honda still has a CB option?

Hell, I can't trust my company issued phone in my house. Verizon cell service sucks here, and I lose signal 3-5 times a day, while on calls.

[JGF6B]

I've owned my Zumo 595LM for about three months now. I took the plunge because I was able to obtain one from Amazon using only credit card points. This unit is very expensive.
I was really looking forward to the "curvy roads" feature but I am very disappointed in it. I always select "avoid highways" and set the curvy roads slider to 1 or 2 (options are 0, 1, or 2). With these settings this unit repeatedly sends me through downtown Worcester or Lowell, MA. It is downright ridiculous. Last Sunday I was south west of Worcester navigating home which is north west of Worcester. The stupid GPS wanted to extend my trip by 30-40 minutes through downtown Worcester just to find the desired curvy roads. The curvy roads feature might work ok if there was an "avoid city centers" option. It seems like the GPS unit knows of a few nice curvy roads and then tries to get me on them at all costs, regardless of how many traffic lights I'll have to sit at. So far, for me, Garmin Adventurous riding = traffic light riding.
You do have the ability to browse the map and add custom avoidances but the areas for avoidance are too small so it isn't a useful feature to me.
If you don't ride near city centers, the curvy roads feature may work better for you.
There are a few features I really like. I really like seeing text messages on my GPS screen. My phone will be in the cubby charging and the texts get relayed to my GPS screen. I also ponied up the $120+ for two tire pressure sensors and I am quite happy with having active tire pressure monitoring while I'm riding. You can program alarm pressures for each tire.
I am a little disappointed in the brightness of the screen. I can't say I've used a GPS with a brighter screen but I can say this screen still isn't bright enough depending on how the sun hit the screen.
I do use the blue tooth for hands free calling and for playing media (mostly audio books). The 595LM does well there, although I do have to disconnect/reconnect blue tooth occasionally because of poor sound quality. I connect my helmet speakers to the GPS and to my phone. I can listen to media from either my phone or my GPS. I can also take calls using the buttons on my helmet speakers or by using the touch screen on the GPS. I wish I could figure out how to turn off the voice while navigating, I don't like it overriding my audio book.
The touch screen is glove friendly.
There are traffic features that I have yet to investigate.
The 595LM comes with both a motorcycle cradle and a cradle for use in your car so it seems it would be easy to use in both. I only use mine on my motorcycles.
The bottom line for me is that I would have returned it but I was too lazy. It was a bit of a project to get the power routed from the accessory power block to the windshield. I didn't find the time to remove the cradle and power cable from the motorcycle so I ended up keeping it. I still use it all the time and I still get frustrated with the absurd curvy roads navigation all the time.

[Jimmytee]

Using a android head unit in the car with Sygic nav on it, excellent little android GPS app. It runs offline maps so you don't have to have a connection but if one is there it'll give updated traffic info as well. That way you could use on phone and still have directions over music if so inclined.

Just an idea.

Thanks for the heads up. Just downloaded the app. Will give it a whirl this weekend. It comes with a 7 day trial for the premium. Don't know what the subscription cost or what I lose once the premium trial ends. It looks promising. I downloaded the maps for the states I will most likely be in this weekend. I have driving app on my phone that gives me all the apps I want in large short cuts. Plus it gives me directs access to music on my phone etc... I have it in a cradle that is installed on my Helibars with charging. The only downside with the phone has been map availability with no phone signal and of course even with the Defender case , it isn't rain proof. It seems no matter which GPS I would choose, there are compromises from what I am accustomed to having with my phone. I'll check out the app more tonight and over the weekend. I'll make a decision after this weekend what I want to do.

[dadeo]

GPS units all have compromises.... Thanks to Apple's latest OS 11.0.3 update, I can't get traffic on my Zumo 590... I don't know who is to blame, Apple or Garmin. So there is something to be said for the simplicity of using just the phone in and around cities. I view the newer "feature" of having to use a phone to get traffic data as a DESIGN FLAW! It was easier and more reliable with the traffic receiver in the GPS unit itself. Like my old Nuvi. Like my ancient Magellen.

[F6Dave]

Am I the only cheap guy here? I just have a Gamin Nuvi 2557LMT with a RAM mount. The entire setup costs well below $200. The unit has live traffic, a bright screen, works great with gloves, and doesn't mind the rain. The RAM Mounts are the best made. For the price it's hard to beat.