ATCguy
Goldbutt
Retired Tin-Pusher
Posts: 43
Bike Year / Level: 2007 - Level 3
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Post by ATCguy on Nov 3, 2014 14:51:05 GMT
Not sure how many of have noticed, but Garmin's got a whole new motorcycle GPS hitting the market... and it's got some pretty good features. It's the 590LM:
An entirely new interface & presentation that more closely matches their new trucker & RV units, with slide in/slide out menus where the map never leaves the screen... and it has a few nice features that we've been asking for. My friend Brian Rathjen (editor of Backroads magazine) was given a pre-release beta version by Garmin to demo, and gave us a review in this month's issue.
* The screen is slightly larger than the ZUMO 660/665 models, and it can be used in either standard widescreen 'landscape' view... or turned 90-degrees for a vertical 'portrait' view that shows more of your route in 3-D mode.
* A much BRIGHTER screen than the ZUMO models that can easily be seen in sunlight without the need for a sunshade.
* An integrated MP3 player has been brought back (dropped from their previous new motorcycle GPS)
* 'Round Trip' and/or 'Curvy Road' programming that can be toggled on/off instead of mere shortest route or fastest time modes.
* A 3-jack wire harness for external music input, phone, and sound system interface... and an improved Bluetooth software (Brian says it "...worked better than just about any other Bluetooth we have ever used motorcycle-wise".
* Includes interfaces for Garmin's on TPMS and their VIRB Camera system (both sold separately)... which are displayed right on the GPS screen! In other words, no need to add yet more monitor units into our cockpits. I'm not sure how the camera system works (not sure if it will accept a GoPro type setup), but the TPMS is relatively easy by simply using their sensors that screw right on to the valve stems like the Doran system I currently use.
* A built in Service History Log, where you can enter your own service updates for the bike.
The mounting cradle looks very similar to the ZUMO 66/665 mount, but don't think it is quite the same, as I mentioned above it has extra input ports for various electronics. For those who want a locking mount, Tourartech is already on it, and has a locking mount available.
In closing, Brian did say there were a few hiccups in it over the few months he had it... but attributed many of them to this being a pre-release Beta unit. He got an updated one about ⅔ way thru, and reports that many of the gripes went away.
Anyway, just thought I'd let you know. At $900 MSRP, it's an expensive unit... but with lifetime maps and the added features, it just may be worth investing in at some point.
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robeth
The Parking Lot
Retired Tooth Destroyer
Posts: 103
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Post by robeth on Nov 3, 2014 23:11:05 GMT
Wow! Half the cost of the factory unit! :-) :-)
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Post by Lewis EC on Nov 6, 2014 21:23:52 GMT
Hopefully it overcomes the issues the 550 had on Bluetooth....
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LarryM
Goldbutt
Posts: 55
Bike Year / Level: 2002 Illusion Blue GL1800
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Post by LarryM on Nov 20, 2014 16:57:25 GMT
Your post says they did away with with the MP3 player on previous units. I have a 665 and it has it. Was there another unit after that?
I have a few beefs with Garmin, and will be reluctant to ever buy another one until they are fixed. They are minor and dumb, and shouldn't be, but many of them have been there forever.
1. Garmin is the only GPS mfr that does not show route numbers on their maps. They show them on the computer when planning, but that doesn't transfer over. For example, a small town might have a street called Belvedere Ave, but nobody calls it that. It is known even by the locals as a route #, such as Route 44. I know all of the rural roads here in Ohio by their Route #, but yet I often have no idea where I am at or what road I am approaching because some obscure name is on the screen. They maddening part is that they are built into the database. Once in awhile, if you zoom into the closest zoom, the route number will show up. Maybe they could put that into the options when you select the amount of detail you want on the screen.
2. Time to get into the 21st century. That 1000 song, 8GB limit, and only being able to play fixed rate Mp3's is simply archaic. I saw a little RCA mp3 player at Best Buy for $9.95 a little while back that had more capabilities. And only recognizing songs if the folders are laid out a certain way is ridiculous.
3. Garmin dropped that great dashboard that they had on the Zumo550, and they need to bring it back. My GPS is on the bike at all times, and most of the time I am not using the GPS for navigating. The stats screen on the 665 is hard to read at a glance.
4. They need to add a "Back" button, or toggle button to allow you to quickly switch between screens, such as map and mp3 or stats and mp3. The 550 wasn't bad, but could have been better. The 665 was a huge step backwards in this regard.
5. I don't want the lane guidance feature to only show up on the screen for a few seconds 2 miles before the turn. I want it on when I am approaching the turn. Take a lesson from TomTom on how to do it properly Garmin.
Garmin claims that they make these units for motorcyclists, and they claim they are interested in our safety, but the poor useability says otherwise. They are the best motorcycle units only because they are the only motorcycle units.
I would never buy all the expensive addons for Garmin units. Garmin has a reputation for abandoning its customers when they feel that a product is obsolete. (which isn't very long) If you get a problem down the road, you are pretty much screwed, because none of those accessories will be compatible with future units. That is a lot of money to throw around every 5 years or so.
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Post by Bartman on Nov 21, 2014 15:56:17 GMT
Larry, just a couple of comments about your post. 1. The 660/665 song limit is 2000 songs. More info here: support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?caseId=%7Ba03da620-e588-11dc-d6fc-000000000000%7D2. There is no need to load or create folders. On your microSD card, just create a folder called MP3 and put ALL of your MP3's in that folder. The first time you insert your card into the GPS, the 660/665 will organize all of the songs. Once that's done, you're ready to go. 3. Switching between the MP3 player and the map is easy. One button. If the media player is on (Tools > Media Player > Play a song), when you view the map, you should see a little button on the map that will quickly take you to the MP3 player. Once in the player, press the "Back" button to go back to the map. In case you haven't seen this, this is a video I made showing some tips and tricks with the 660/665: One tip that a viewer told me about that I didn't include in the video is that you can press and hold the Back button and quickly return to the home screen. In other words, if you are three of four levels into the tools or settings, instead of pressing the back button three or four times to get back to the home screen, just press and hold the back button.
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LarryM
Goldbutt
Posts: 55
Bike Year / Level: 2002 Illusion Blue GL1800
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Post by LarryM on Nov 25, 2014 9:31:21 GMT
Larry, just a couple of comments about your post. 1. The 660/665 song limit is 2000 songs. More info here: support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?caseId=%7Ba03da620-e588-11dc-d6fc-000000000000%7D2. There is no need to load or create folders. On your microSD card, just create a folder called MP3 and put ALL of your MP3's in that folder. The first time you insert your card into the GPS, the 660/665 will organize all of the songs. Once that's done, you're ready to go. 3. Switching between the MP3 player and the map is easy. One button. If the media player is on (Tools > Media Player > Play a song), when you view the map, you should see a little button on the map that will quickly take you to the MP3 player. Once in the player, press the "Back" button to go back to the map. In case you haven't seen this, this is a video I made showing some tips and tricks with the 660/665: One tip that a viewer told me about that I didn't include in the video is that you can press and hold the Back button and quickly return to the home screen. In other words, if you are three of four levels into the tools or settings, instead of pressing the back button three or four times to get back to the home screen, just press and hold the back button. Thanks for the correction Bartman. I suspect that I knew, but forgot that they changed the limitations of the mp3 player. My bad. They do still have the mp3 only limitation however. I know about the icon on the map, but to me, that is a trivial matter. You still have to go into the options to set up the mp3 player every single time you get on the bike. On the 550, the mp3 player held equal footing to the GPS. It was a simple toggle right from power up. Now, it is handled as an option. Besides, as I said earlier, the vast majority of the time I am not using the unit as a GPS. Traveling is a small percentage of my riding miles. I have it on the statistics screen, mostly using it as a speedometer. You can't easily toggle between the stats and mp3 player like you could on the 550. (unless of course you know of a way to do it that I missed.) I understand that everyone uses a product differently, and after all, it is first and foremost a GPS. But they had it right on a previous unit and ruined it. There was no good reason to destroy the functionality like that. There are a couple of things that are better, but overall I don't think it was a worthwhile upgrade. The 550 was much brighter than the 665 too, even though Garmin advertised the 665 as brighter. That was a flat out lie. For that reason, I question their claim on this new 590 that it is brighter. It might be, but I now know not to take Garmin's word for it. It looks like they made the text larger on the 590, which is a big plus. They made everything smaller on the 665, which really made it hard to read at a glance.
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ATCguy
Goldbutt
Retired Tin-Pusher
Posts: 43
Bike Year / Level: 2007 - Level 3
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Post by ATCguy on Nov 25, 2014 16:38:02 GMT
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Wheels
The Parking Lot
Posts: 573
Bike Year / Level: '14" Candy Red with Hannigan Trike Kit
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Post by Wheels on Nov 25, 2014 18:38:36 GMT
One tip that a viewer told me about that I didn't include in the video is that you can press and hold the Back button and quickly return to the home screen. In other words, if you are three of four levels into the tools or settings, instead of pressing the back button three or four times to get back to the home screen, just press and hold the back button. Who said you can't teach and old dog new tricks. Thanks Bart. I did not know this.
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