Tourmaster Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I'm planning a bike trip in Ireland this summer and am considering getting a GPS. I do not have or use now, always been a map kinda guy, but I'm thinking a GPS might be handy for finding an address or attraction overseas. Most of the units here seem to come with lifetime N.A. map updates, anybody know if N.A devices will download European maps or is it different software? I guess what I'm asking is do I need to buy a GPS in Europe to use in Europe? Am I better off with just a cel phone GPS for location finding purposes, I don't intend to use it for turn by turn navigation. Thanks in advance. Link to comment
Guest Kakugo Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Your cheapest option is a cell phone-based GPS. You can get a Garmin Nuvifone on the cheap these days: it's not that much of a phone (I already hate Android and Garming implemented it poorly) but offline GPS works extremely well and you get Garmin maps for any European country. If you just need to find a location while on the road, it's the most cost-effective option: a refurbished/in good conditions Zumo will cost you at very least 200€, while a brand new Nuvifone will set you back at around 150€ (that's what I paid for it)... provided you can find one. Link to comment
Chris K Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 My wife and I rode in Ireland last June and the GPS with suggested routes was included with the bike rental. Link to comment
greiffster Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I guess what I'm asking is do I need to buy a GPS in Europe to use in Europe? Am I better off with just a cel phone GPS for location finding purposes, I don't intend to use it for turn by turn navigation. Thanks in advance. No. You can buy/install maps of Europe on a GPS, and take it with you. Whether or not you're better off using a cell phone is debatable. However, if you are not using it for turn by turn, then I think the cell phone would work fine. Link to comment
Kritou Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Do you by any chance use an iPhone or iPad? Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I've taken my 550 Zumo to europe 3 times with Euro maps loaded. Works perfectly. Have fun/might see you in Ireland. Link to comment
Tourmaster Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 Do you by any chance use an iPhone or iPad? I use a Samsung Ace II (Android) cel but also carry an older i-Pad on trips...it seems to work a lot better on wi-fi than my cel. Link to comment
Kritou Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 In which case put the Pocket Earth (Pro) app on the iPad. It is the perfect offline/online mapping and journey planner - fully scalable and, as in Mapsource, routes can be modified in a similar manner to "rubber banding". As it is based on Open Street Maps (OSM) data it is well up to date, unlike the Garmin maps Link to comment
elkroeger Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 One problem I've seen with the phone, is you need cell service to load the maps. I think you can save maps on your phone, but you can't save vast regions. I dunno, maybe you can and it's just that I'm an idiot.... If you go with a stand alone gps, you can save other maps to your N.A. unit. Openstreetmaps.org is sortof a wikipedia of maps, and is a very good source. More than likely you'll need to go to a 3rd party to download a region, in a format your gps can use. OpenMapChest.org is one such source. And it's free. It should be pretty easy. Hell, I did it... Don't discount the turn by turn directions. Not only is it convenient, but it really frees you up to enjoy your vacation. That gps will pay for itself in time and gas wasted getting lost a few times. Link to comment
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