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Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2008 11:24 pm Post subject:
Quote:
+ MM Cycle Track Data 330kb
It would have originally come from here (free Memory Map download), but clicking on the link now seems to get a blank screen
http://www.memory-map.co.uk/share_routes_tob.shtml
Turns out its an overlay of a cycle road race across Britain. _________________ Aprilia Tuono, Zumo 550
Ipaq 2210/Fortuna/TomTom Nav6
& Road Angel 7000 + Memory Map
The Road Angel appealed to me some time ago, but the thing that put me off was the fact that the map apparently doesn't rotate based on the direction you were heading. Is that a feature that has now been implemented?
My intention is to use a gps unit for mountain biking, and the obvious two choices are Satmap and the Road Angel. Satmap clearly has a number of issues and is extremely expensive when maps are included.
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 2:24 pm Post subject:
No the map doesn't rotate, it would be good to have a choice. Though a map rotating like a Tom Tom (street routing) where the names and labels are still the right way round is different from a SatMap map rotating feature which (though I haven't seen it in action) would merely rotate the map and feasably could have it upsidedown (text included). The advantage the Road Angel has over the SapMap is that it has a large(ish) direction arrow to follow which always points in the direction you need to go (or turn) and thus the mapping can become secondary ( which it has to be if you're blitzing along on your mountain bike). I personally think it could be a bit tricky at speed on a mountain bike with a SatMap. With walking it is more of a level playing field, but I still think a glance down at the RA and see the Memory Maps direction arrow (with the mapping still there for a closer look) is easier than a system without the direction arrow. _________________ Aprilia Tuono, Zumo 550
Ipaq 2210/Fortuna/TomTom Nav6
& Road Angel 7000 + Memory Map
Last edited by Brian on Tue Jan 08, 2008 3:02 pm; edited 1 time in total
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 2:48 pm Post subject:
Some of you may be interested in the extended battery pack I've bought for my Road Angel, it is the lithium-ion rechargeable pack I mentioned earlier, available from ..
http://www.portablepowersupplies.co.uk/usbliionbatterypack.htm
.. I paid £22.50 (incl postage) for the one with the extra adapters to future proof me for other gadgets, I did without the mains charger as the one that came with the RA surprisingly is virtually identical so that can be used to recharge the battery pack, it can also be recharged via the usb slot on your pc (cables included). It charges via a mini-usb connector and outputs via a regular usb connector (see pic below).
I intend to use mine while mountain biking and I expect under most situations the RA's battery will probably be ok, but if extra power is required then I will plug it in to the car bracket (which I have modified to fit to my mountain bike via a quick release tripod mount that is clamped to the handlebars. The battery pack will sit in a small waterproof saddlebag that will sit under the handlebar ( have a look at the neat saddlebags available from Asda (yes Asda!) for less than £4).
I haven't tested how long it will power the RA but I anticipate it will be at least several hours more, and it takes approx 4 to 6 hours to recharge. It will also act as a charger for the RAs battery while it powers it.
For walking you can velcro it (with supplied velcro) to the back of the RA but I personally will probably leave it in my pocket wired to the RA (with the included retractable usb cable) while I handhold the RA.
Maybe the SatMap guys might want to invest in one of these!
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 8:34 pm Post subject: Using Memory Map and Road Angel for Route Navigation
A simple guide to creating a route in Memory Map and using Road Angel + Memory Map for navigation
I know guys you've already done this a million times, but if you haven't and you're new to this then here is a guide to my method of hammering out a route on your PC using Memory Map, reviewing it in 3D and in Google Earth, printing out your back up copy, loading the route into the RA using MM's 'Mobile Device / Export Data to Device' and then modifying your route if you want when you return.
My example is just navigating around my local streets just to demonstrate.
Not all these options are available in every version of MM, ie Printing and Exporting GPX files are only included in the PRO version. Updates can be bought via MM's website.
You can catalogue your routes with photo's using Google Earth, download an example of a GE KMZ file below which has photographs embedded within it, see here for how to do this (example from a Garmin Zumo but the theory is the same for other sat nav's.
Google Earth Flyby file: (Click below .. Rename the .zip file as a .kmz file, Google Earth needs to be installed on your PC)
Embsay Moor KMZ file _________________ Aprilia Tuono, Zumo 550
Ipaq 2210/Fortuna/TomTom Nav6
& Road Angel 7000 + Memory Map
Brian - is that the standard bike mount in your image, or a modified version that you've built. The reason I'm asking is that it looks like a bit of a monstrosity and is rather offputting to me as a potential buyer of this system (I'm currently weighing up the merits of this or Satmap).
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2008 4:11 pm Post subject:
Yes I like that Neil, great program GPSVisualizer (GPSV).. I've never used the 'speed' colourize option and its a shame you lose the 3d fly through with it, but I've sussed an easy fix ..
.. after importing your Track (track-log) under the option 'Colourize by' select 'Track (recommended)' then open up the resultant kml (or kmz) file in Google Earth (GE), go back to GPSV and repeat but select 'Speed' under 'Colourize by' then also open the kml file into the same instance of GE .. this way you will have both Track overlays and clicking on the Fly-by icon (3 spheres) will give you the fly-by with a colourized track.
note: if you've never used the 'speed' setting note that it only works with the tracklog and not with a route initially plotted in MM. _________________ Aprilia Tuono, Zumo 550
Ipaq 2210/Fortuna/TomTom Nav6
& Road Angel 7000 + Memory Map
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2008 4:21 pm Post subject:
squired wrote:
Brian - is that the standard bike mount in your image, or a modified version that you've built.
Don't worry I'm sure the proper bike mount looks better than this, I modded the orignal car mount by removing the 'sucker' section and replaced it with a bracket and quick release mount, it works well but does look a bit ungainly, I need to mod it again to try and lower the profile. (or stump up £20 and buy a proper one )
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2008 10:07 pm Post subject:
Quote:
it's quirky. For example, the unit has to be switched on, but on standby to be charged.
No it doesn't, just plug the charger in when the unit is switched off and it will charge, (if you're talking about the battery isolation switch on the back you leave that permamently switched on unless you're not going to use it for a few months).
Quote:
the touch screen is not suited for using OS maps outside. You can use a finger, which you may have to do because it will only be a matter of time before the stylus goes missing
Its no different from a pda running Memory Map in that respect _________________ Aprilia Tuono, Zumo 550
Ipaq 2210/Fortuna/TomTom Nav6
& Road Angel 7000 + Memory Map
Brian - is that the standard bike mount in your image, or a modified version that you've built.
Don't worry I'm sure the proper bike mount looks better than this, I modded the orignal car mount by removing the 'sucker' section and replaced it with a bracket and quick release mount, it works well but does look a bit ungainly, I need to mod it again to try and lower the profile. (or stump up £20 and buy a proper one )
There are two options:
Road Angel do a 'Bicycle Mount' on their website for about £23 - suitable for handlebars up to 1" with an integral (unpowered) cradle assembly
Herbert Richter do a Bicycle Mount attatchment - available at gpsforless.co.uk for £6 - this lets you use the standard cradle
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 2:28 pm Post subject:
Well spotted - good price. I didn't know the official RA cycle mount/cradle didn't have a power socket on the back - I'm glad you mentioned this as I want the option of extending the power with the Lithium-Ion battery pack I bought.
So, if you need to buy something as a bike mount, what does the bike mount listed as part of the standard package consist of?
Also, one other question - I've seen conflicting reports about the battery life on here and elsewhere. I would be using the system for mountain biking, so would presumably need the display on all of the time. What sort of battery life would I expect to get in that situation?
Well spotted - good price. I didn't know the official RA cycle mount/cradle didn't have a power socket on the back - I'm glad you mentioned this as I want the option of extending the power with the Lithium-Ion battery pack I bought.
I looked into this, and can't now find the link that suggested the RA mount was unpowered, so it may be worth checking direct with RA. I wouldn't have thoght a bicycle mount would need a power socket.....
Joined: Nov 12, 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Lancashire, England, Great Britain
Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 7:17 pm Post subject:
squired wrote:
So, if you need to buy something as a bike mount, what does the bike mount listed as part of the standard package consist of?
It has the handlebar fitting and another 'cradle' like the one you get with the RA and cost £20, with the cheaper mount above you just clip on your existing cradle
squired wrote:
Also, one other question - I've seen conflicting reports about the battery life on here and elsewhere. I would be using the system for mountain biking, so would presumably need the display on all of the time. What sort of battery life would I expect to get in that situation?
I can only go off my own experiences and that is with the backlight set at 60% and on a full charge I got 6 hours use (satellite reception, mapping displayed and backlight on all the time), I've bought myself a backup lithium-ion power pack battery just in case (see above), which - though I've not fully tested how long the whole combination would last, I'd guestimate it would power it from dawn to dusk easily. I believe the power pack would fully recharge a Road Angel 4x over!! Call it insurance. _________________ Aprilia Tuono, Zumo 550
Ipaq 2210/Fortuna/TomTom Nav6
& Road Angel 7000 + Memory Map
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