Bike sat nav - Beeline or something else?
Discussion
I quite like the idea of an inobtrusive display like the beeline, but how well do they work in practice?
It’s more for a few hours riding round the Cotswolds or Wales rather than crossing Europe.
https://beeline.co/pages/beeline-moto
Anything else that people would recommend?
It’s more for a few hours riding round the Cotswolds or Wales rather than crossing Europe.
https://beeline.co/pages/beeline-moto
Anything else that people would recommend?
Google maps works fine for occasional use, I have my phone in a wireless charger on the bike so it stays charged.
On trips to remote areas I use the TomTom app and download maps of the region, so my nav still works when out of phone signal/data range, which can be patchy in many rural areas.
On trips to remote areas I use the TomTom app and download maps of the region, so my nav still works when out of phone signal/data range, which can be patchy in many rural areas.
I have the Beeline Moto...as a motorcycle sat nav it is great. You have to use it for a short while to get used to how it works, once you've twigged it you will find it is very intuitive. The thing for me is a quick glance to get directions no peering at a screen, therefore my eyes are off the road for as short a time as possible. It is easy to route plan. You can import and export routes. Basically you just follow a big white arrow. I have just done 7 countries in 7 days it never failed in its directions........However!! Mine has developed a fault. After about 2 hours my phone and the compass lost connectivity. I had to stop and start the route all over again from where I was. In its defence it is an old machine now as I was a very early adopter. That aside I love it.
bogie said:
Google maps works fine for occasional use, I have my phone in a wireless charger on the bike so it stays charged.
On trips to remote areas I use the TomTom app and download maps of the region, so my nav still works when out of phone signal/data range, which can be patchy in many rural areas.
Smartphone apps may download offline data as well; just used it on a road trip through the Apennines where there are many cell signal holes.On trips to remote areas I use the TomTom app and download maps of the region, so my nav still works when out of phone signal/data range, which can be patchy in many rural areas.
I bought a beeline a few weeks ago. Used it for a trip down to Folembray track in France, works well, you plan the route on your phone & choose the fast or fun route options.
It says you can alter the route to suit you via the app, but I find that virtually impossible to do. I'll be creating a .gpx file for when I want to go on a specific route.
If you just want a very simple go left/go right etc it does the job well.
Mine on my RS....
It says you can alter the route to suit you via the app, but I find that virtually impossible to do. I'll be creating a .gpx file for when I want to go on a specific route.
If you just want a very simple go left/go right etc it does the job well.
Mine on my RS....
If it's A to B route planning Google maps and a quadlock.
If you want to do interesting routes with waypoints etc Google maps doesn't cut it (unless something has changed) as when you get to a waypoint you have to press the screen to proceed to the next one, doesn't work when you have gloves on. So I use Calimoto which is motorcycle specific planning, it's a subscription model for anything over say 100 miles, it takes a bit of planning but it works well, even when I am out without needing to plan a route I leave it running as it will record where I go and I can review etc later.
If you want to do interesting routes with waypoints etc Google maps doesn't cut it (unless something has changed) as when you get to a waypoint you have to press the screen to proceed to the next one, doesn't work when you have gloves on. So I use Calimoto which is motorcycle specific planning, it's a subscription model for anything over say 100 miles, it takes a bit of planning but it works well, even when I am out without needing to plan a route I leave it running as it will record where I go and I can review etc later.
I had one from the Kickstarter as its tiny style very much appealed. Very good in practice as the directions are pretty clear despite the dimensions of the screen, a neat solution for an uncluttered naked bike. Had one charging cable which failed, they replaced it after a bit of faff.
Used mine about 7 or 8 times in 18 months (most of my journeys are local fun), then the battery leaked and killed it. Contacted their support and they basically weren't interested, offered me £10 off a new one. Fair enough by the letter of their warranty, but I must admit I was disappointed that they weren't going to stand by a product that was barely used and always looked after.
If I need another nav on a bike that doesn't have room for a phone I'd have another I think.
Used mine about 7 or 8 times in 18 months (most of my journeys are local fun), then the battery leaked and killed it. Contacted their support and they basically weren't interested, offered me £10 off a new one. Fair enough by the letter of their warranty, but I must admit I was disappointed that they weren't going to stand by a product that was barely used and always looked after.
If I need another nav on a bike that doesn't have room for a phone I'd have another I think.
I've done about 8k miles over last 2 yrs using the beeline. It is neat and I can swap it between bikes without issue. It can withstand torrential rain. I prefer it to a big bulky screen that I find distracting and a map on the tankbag that I find too hard to refer to. It can be tricky with directions when junctions are close together (especially in cities where I wouldn't use it I don't think!) so you have to get used to it but it has never sent me badly wrong ever. Battery life is massive I did 1000 miles over 5 days about 25 ish hrs of riding and I didn't need to charge it once. Some say it drains your phone a lot (cos phone has to be tethered to it bluetooth) but my iphone XR over about 5hrs riding uses maybe 25% of the battery. So plenty of battery in phone and beeline to do a days riding.
I have used it on longer tours and I had a backup of piece of paper in tankbag with written list of main roads and towns just in case I go badly wrong but that is the case when I used phone for satnav as I like a paper backup system!
One proviso is that I think it is overpriced, I paid £100 for mine (got a deal) and I am just about happy with that as it has no gps built in or routing (your phone in your pocket does the donkey work the beeline is a bluetooth display really). The retail used to be 149/199 (plastic/metal) and I believe it has gone up a bit more since and I am not sure I'd pay that much even though I have used it a lot.
I have a TomTom550 that I was going to use for bigger tours and europe etc but so far that has been wasted money as the beeline has me covered on two bikes!
I have used it on longer tours and I had a backup of piece of paper in tankbag with written list of main roads and towns just in case I go badly wrong but that is the case when I used phone for satnav as I like a paper backup system!
One proviso is that I think it is overpriced, I paid £100 for mine (got a deal) and I am just about happy with that as it has no gps built in or routing (your phone in your pocket does the donkey work the beeline is a bluetooth display really). The retail used to be 149/199 (plastic/metal) and I believe it has gone up a bit more since and I am not sure I'd pay that much even though I have used it a lot.
I have a TomTom550 that I was going to use for bigger tours and europe etc but so far that has been wasted money as the beeline has me covered on two bikes!
The Beeline is a piece of s
t. Nice idea, badly built. Mine died after a few uses, and they wanted half the price of the unit to even look at it, so it went in the bin. Even when working I found it just gets confused and sends you down one ways, dead ends or generally just bad routes.
I'd get a Tom Tom or Garmin, professional companies who know what they are doing. You can even use a phone with Google maps, which is what I used to ride through France, Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg.
A phone is particularly useful as you can install other apps for your riding preference, ie adventure/off road, green lanes etc.
t. Nice idea, badly built. Mine died after a few uses, and they wanted half the price of the unit to even look at it, so it went in the bin. Even when working I found it just gets confused and sends you down one ways, dead ends or generally just bad routes.I'd get a Tom Tom or Garmin, professional companies who know what they are doing. You can even use a phone with Google maps, which is what I used to ride through France, Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg.
A phone is particularly useful as you can install other apps for your riding preference, ie adventure/off road, green lanes etc.
Edited by Pebbles167 on Tuesday 20th June 18:45
Pebbles167 said:
The Beeline is a piece of st. Nice idea, badly built. Mine died after a few uses, and they wanted half the price of the unit to even look at it, so it went in the bin. Even when working I found it just gets confused and sends you down one ways, dead ends or generally just bad routes.
I'd get a Tom Tom or Garmin, professional companies who know what they are doing. You can even use a phone with Google maps, which is what I used to ride through France, Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg.
A phone is particularly useful as you can install other apps for your riding preference, ie adventure/off road, green lanes etc.
Only note I would add is that the routing on my Garmin is pants. You have to spend a bit of time making sure it’s a route that you want, and then it changes without me noticing…. I guess a phone is probably the best solution with the exception of if you are out of data coverage and haven’t got the maps downloaded that you need.t. Nice idea, badly built. Mine died after a few uses, and they wanted half the price of the unit to even look at it, so it went in the bin. Even when working I found it just gets confused and sends you down one ways, dead ends or generally just bad routes.I'd get a Tom Tom or Garmin, professional companies who know what they are doing. You can even use a phone with Google maps, which is what I used to ride through France, Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg.
A phone is particularly useful as you can install other apps for your riding preference, ie adventure/off road, green lanes etc.
Edited by Pebbles167 on Tuesday 20th June 18:45
I asked a similar question recently, someone recommended the CaliMoto app but I couldn't seem to get it to actually navigate - it just let me plan a route.
I've since downloaded the TomTom Ride app and it seems brilliant. I've got a 7 hour ride through Wales on Friday so I'll update after that.
I've since downloaded the TomTom Ride app and it seems brilliant. I've got a 7 hour ride through Wales on Friday so I'll update after that.
Alex Z said:
Is the TomTom ride app genuinely free?
Sounds promising. I like the idea of a minimal device like the beeline, but the poor reliability would be a concern.
Yes, but it’s a beta version, so you’re effectively testing the software for them and (I think) sharing data with the developer.Sounds promising. I like the idea of a minimal device like the beeline, but the poor reliability would be a concern.
I use it on my android phone and it works very well. It’s the only nav app (other than Google maps) I’ve found that shows live traffic, road works etc plus you can input unlimited way points for customising a route.
Downside - I don’t think you can download maps to use offline, so no mobile signal means no map.
Alex Z said:
Is the TomTom ride app genuinely free?
Sounds promising. I like the idea of a minimal device like the beeline, but the poor reliability would be a concern.
The full app is 7 day free trial or £19.99 for 12 months subscription...just downloaded it ready for a 2 week riding holiday next month Sounds promising. I like the idea of a minimal device like the beeline, but the poor reliability would be a concern.
just seen the options you can do £3.99 a month and just use it for a single trip
https://www.tomtom.com/en_gb/navigation/mobile-app...
Edited by bogie on Thursday 22 June 08:06
Discendo Discimus said:
I've since downloaded the TomTom Ride app and it seems brilliant. I've got a 7 hour ride through Wales on Friday so I'll update after that.
Didn't know TomTom did a biker one so just downloaded to try out. Always like TomTom years ago before google took over the worldGassing Station | Biker Banter | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff