Garmin GPS

[ka0t1c07]

Im looking to buy a color GPS unit. Currently in looking at a Garmin Rino 530 two way radio/GPS combo. I was wondering if anyone here have one or have use one. I just want some feedback before I keep it.

[m210]

i use a garmin 205. its great... but a bit tricky on a mac. limited to files from motionbased.com but there is a lot there, so far i've been able to get free maps for all the trails i've needed. when not using a map, its come in handy backtracking out of trails too.
very cool, one garmin between 3 bikes, no magnets or calibrating. milage, speeds and all other feature are very accurate...

[Jordansrealm]

I have 3 of the Garmin Rino 530 units, actually I think one of them is a 520. I did a review in one of my mags on the units for Garmin. Both the 530 and 520 are some of the best handheld GPS units available today but you do pay for them as they are not cheap and you really need a pair to get the benefit of all their features. I used the locate your friend feature in Moab on the Golden Spike Trail and it worked flawlessly. The screen allowed me to find my friend without having them in sight while talking to them, probably one of the best devices for not losing someone I have used. I dont know if I would mount them to a mtb handlebar though as they are pretty heavy units. Like most 2-way radio units they arent perfect but I found the Rino units to be above par with the competition. The screen is nice and clear with bright colors and full adjustability. Also dunked one of them under water and it still worked even though they say not to. I used a pair of units for 12 hours and still had a charge which is pretty good for a unit like this, just take your charger with you if you plan on using it multiple days. I wouldnt suggest them to the person who may use them once or twice a year because of the price but if you are going to be an avid user I would highly recommend them. If you find yourself anywhere in south OC sometime and want to try out the ones I have just let me know.

Jordan

P.S. While you can use these for bike stuff if you want I would recommend them for hikers first because of their size and weight. Something better suited clipped to your belt or in your backpack.

[Waldo]

I'll throw in another question while we're talking about 'em:
I was drooling over the Garmin Edge 305 until I heard that it uses a barometric altimeter to measure elevation. My experience with cycling computers that use barometric pressure is that temp/pressure changes through the day or in and out of sunny/shady canyons & ridges can skew the readings on long rides.

Am I missing something? Does the 305 use GPS or barometric pressure to track climbing & descending? Does anyone have experience with these units where they can verify elevation accuracy against known measurements?

Muchas Gracias.

[Jordansrealm]

Waldo,

While I cannot tell you in ever instance when the 305 has been dead on with Elevation, I did check it against my Car Navigation units in places I could drive to and it was within 10 feet. I think part of the problem you would run into and I am sure I do when riding with the 305 is when you ride through tunnels or thick trees. You can lose reception and then the unit needs to take a moment to re-find itself. According to Motion Based software the measurements are accurate but I dont know if it overcompensates for the 305 reading or not. I will have to look into it more. It sure is a fun thing to have though knowing my ascent and descent and calories burned...

[dstepper]

I have a old Garmin Legend I bought off E-Bay 4 years ago for $80. I almost always have it when on new trails. The only GPS I would consider, is one that can have maps and routes download into the unit from a computer.

My unit has a monocolor screen, a color screen would be sweet. The newer units hold a signal much better than my old unit.

Dean

[mtnbikerdude87]

Originally Posted by Waldo

I'll throw in another question while we're talking about 'em:
I was drooling over the Garmin Edge 305 until I heard that it uses a barometric altimeter to measure elevation. My experience with cycling computers that use barometric pressure is that temp/pressure changes through the day or in and out of sunny/shady canyons & ridges can skew the readings on long rides.

Am I missing something? Does the 305 use GPS or barometric pressure to track climbing & descending? Does anyone have experience with these units where they can verify elevation accuracy against known measurements?

Muchas Gracias.

It uses barometric pressure and also the satellites for calculating elevation so that you get a more accurate reading. So it can correct itself if the elevations readings are off from the satellite one. I have a forerunner 305 and it only uses the satellite signal to track elevation. Sometimes I wish I had barometric pressure also because it can be really off.

[Kid A]

Originally Posted by Waldo

I'll throw in another question while we're talking about 'em:
I was drooling over the Garmin Edge 305 until I heard that it uses a barometric altimeter to measure elevation. My experience with cycling computers that use barometric pressure is that temp/pressure changes through the day or in and out of sunny/shady canyons & ridges can skew the readings on long rides.

Am I missing something? Does the 305 use GPS or barometric pressure to track climbing & descending? Does anyone have experience with these units where they can verify elevation accuracy against known measurements?

Muchas Gracias.

you might want to confirm uses barometric. i have 205 (love it!) and think does not use barometric. with gPs dont think u need it as can get from hitting satelites. the barometic i have (on my burton) works okay at best. does not seem to stable based on weather conditions. i know the elevation at my house and garmin seems to always bee real close, burton (barometic) has alot more variability

[Waldo]

bikerdude & Kid A - I thought it was odd that the 305 had an altimeter included at all, since GPS should be far more accurate & consistent. My best guess was that the
barometric altimeter would be there as a backup for coverage in canyons where satellite signals might be blocked, or perhaps even for other applications where a small, low-priced GPS might not be able to keep up as well as a pressure-based unit might. (I'm obviously speculating at this). I just felt like if I'm going to drop $300 on a GPS unit, I want it to use the GPS for all measurements, not just lateral ones.

Also, with this talk of big vs small and color vs monochrome screens, I wonder about using the 305 for actual navigation. Is it really functional for finding your way on a new trail, or is it really just suited for tracking what you just rode? (which probably would be 95% of my use for it)

[Kid A]

Originally Posted by Waldo

bikerdude & Kid A - I thought it was odd that the 305 had an altimeter included at all, since GPS should be far more accurate & consistent. My best guess was that the
barometric altimeter would be there as a backup for coverage in canyons where satellite signals might be blocked, or perhaps even for other applications where a small, low-priced GPS might not be able to keep up as well as a pressure-based unit might. (I'm obviously speculating at this). I just felt like if I'm going to drop $300 on a GPS unit, I want it to use the GPS for all measurements, not just lateral ones.

Also, with this talk of big vs small and color vs monochrome screens, I wonder about using the 305 for actual navigation. Is it really functional for finding your way on a new trail, or is it really just suited for tracking what you just rode? (which probably would be 95% of my use for it)

checked website and appears 305 does have (my 205 does not). am sure used as described (in conjunction) to enhance measurement...makes more sense.

I have never really used my 205 for nav but think u can download from sites like geoladders and such. do not think unit was developed for that primary means and other models would excel at nav but can get it to do so, if you use for tracking and downloading your ride stats works great (i used motionbased as software provided is way weak). as an aside held up well in my crash test (mounted on h-bars). also can push ride info to google maps and save pics (quick lap at el moro)

also unless you really are gonna use cadence and/or heart rate you may want to get 205 as almost all same functionality sans above and much cheaper

[ka0t1c07]

Jordan,

Can the Rino 530 download Geoladders files?

[Jordansrealm]

Originally Posted by ka0t1c07

Jordan,

Can the Rino 530 download Geoladders files?

You know what I dont know. I havent downloaded any of the Geoladders stuff because its like $100. From what I read you have to get the program and then pay for the routes too.

[Innes]

Originally Posted by Jordansrealm

You know what I dont know. I havent downloaded any of the Geoladders stuff because its like $100. From what I read you have to get the program and then pay for the routes too.

You can get a 30 day free trial of Geo Agent and there are some files you can download for free from geoladders.com

Check it out. It's pretty cool.

[Bergsteiger]

I just got my Garmin Forerunner 305 and for the life of me can't get it to download my ride into Geoladders.
Any tips?

[Abui]

The barometric altimeter is used to correct/adjust the GPS altitude readings. Regardless of day-long drift due to weather fronts the altimeter is superior to GPS for altitude. GPS is great for horizontal position but inferior for vertical position. (Basically the satellites are overhead and looking down at you, position on the earth (North,South,East,West) is obvious, vertical distance is harder to "see".

The 305 has the new SiRF chipset. I have never lost a signal even under trees in a canyon.

[Innes]

Originally Posted by Bergsteiger

I just got my Garmin Forerunner 305 and for the life of me can't get it to download my ride into Geoladders.
Any tips?

I believe you have to download the free trial of GeoAgent.

[PacMan]

Originally Posted by trekker

The barometric altimeter is used to correct/adjust the GPS altitude readings. Regardless of day-long drift due to weather fronts the altimeter is superior to GPS for altitude. GPS is great for horizontal position but inferior for vertical position. (Basically the satellites are overhead and looking down at you, position on the earth (North,South,East,West) is obvious, vertical distance is harder to "see".

That is right on. I have a Garmin Forerunner 301 and it is usually 20-25% low on total elevation gain figures/readings. A friend of mine uses the 305 and it is way more accurate. I plan to get a 305 in a few weeks and can't wait.

[mechmann]

hey pacman...

hope you didn't run out of memory on your garmin today with that extra long ride you did...

just kidding man. sucked to see that break on your buddies frame.

see you on the trail!!

[PacMan]

Originally Posted by mechmann

hey pacman...

hope you didn't run out of memory on your garmin today with that extra long ride you did...

just kidding man. sucked to see that break on your buddies frame.

see you on the trail!!

Thanks...I think

Our day didn't go too bad. We drove up to Fallbrook to my parents' house--to where my Yeti was. I let Jeremy ride my Reign and I rode the Yeti. We busted out a good 3 hour ride.

We also ran into an old friend of mine on the trail, about halfway through the ride. We got to catch up on life since the last time we rode together and he rode with us the rest of the day, so it all turned out pretty good.

Glad you guys had a good time. I wish we could've stayed. I'm down for the next one for sure.

I'm thinking of hitting up SART with you guys next month.

[ka0t1c07]

Ok, Geoladders have a .GPX file which Garmin uses. I download it last night (its Free) and it appeared on the Rino with the 1-2-3-4 turn markers on it. Rode that route today and its accurate.