I reckon if you can navigate a complex road network without a GPS and a paper map you probably won't be able to with a GPS.

Friends of mine use an iphone as a GPS when trail riding without to many difficulties. But off course it's not use for turn by turn navigation. Don't see a big need for this anyway. The old route highlighter on a paper map is a function that can be achieved on a smart phone.

I use a garmin myself because to date I haven't liked the case options, but have just gotten one which may work and plan to use backcountry navigator and androzic for overviews when I change a plan. Garmin for the detail.

Androzic allows for oziexplorer maps. This means you can scan in any paper map or download digital maps, georeference them in oziexplorer and load them in. No need for paper maps any more, mean less luggage and less worry about waterproofing.

Should be perfect for RTW I reckon. Screen are big enough now to work out a route without them. RTW doesn't need to much GPS accuracy. It's mostly open road anyway.

__________________
Tacos Tyring Travels.com

Diversity of downloading offline maps and choices of maps are truly amazing. Heck ,, I don't even know at least 80% of the maps they are talking about ,,
Go here ,,, at the very top download Mobile Atlas Creator,,, read the help me files ,, select the area ,, then choose from some 20+ map formats ,,


Download Mobile Atlas Creator from SourceForge.net

Choose your maps ,, tiles ,, details ,, and create your own map... Click offline map in the setting in your map program ,, copy the map file from MAC ,, place it under Locus/map or any other map program you might be using ,,, before using,,, under setting click offline map.

It will take getting used to ,, experiment with it ,,, but ,, ah,, free maps,,,, great software ,, fun doing it ,, making your own map.

Now for online ,, when you travel ,, ask your carrier for the MONTHLY unlimited flat rate data plan,, which can be used all over the world ,, SK Telecom, in Korea provides 10 USD a day plan,, so you folks must have it in EEC and USA as well.
300 bucks a month ,, for internet,, EM ,,, etc ,,

Also if you go to APP store,, download free Kakao Talk ,, this allows you free chat ,, free sms ,, you can send large photo and video files to those with same ,, All free, as long as you are online.

For those coming to the UK and probably similar for other european countries with Orange coverage -
Orange pay as you go Dolphin package in the UK is only £10 month, no contract, no fee 100mb data 400 free texts. Available on line or at any Orange High street shop

__________________
Chris
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"Never have a stupid argument with an idiot - he gets a lot more practice than you"
there I go again
not too hard really

Just click ,, how,, vector maps , choose your region ,, unzip ,, move it to your Locus directory ,, takes five minutes.
http://www.vectormaps4locus.eu/

Samsung Galaxy S3 – Galaxy S III will have 12mp camera, 2GB ram and more

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Galaxy S3

Well leaked information on the highly anticipated brother of the Samsung Galaxy S II, the Samsung Galaxy S3 will compete against the iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 next year. The Samsung Galaxy S III will heavily challenge Apple’s handsets, as the Galaxy SII did well against the iPhone 4 resulting in multiple lawsuits back and forth between the 2 big companies, Apple and Samsung. With the recent release of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and the hype that comes with every Google phone it makes for the Galaxy S III to have a hard time getting popular.
Samsung Galaxy S3 screen

The Samsung Galaxy S3 will sport a huge 4.6 inch screen bigger than the 4.3 inch screen of the Galaxy S II. Samsung accidently leaked that it would release phones in 2012 with the new flexible glass specifically; FOLED technology. This would make for an interesting concept coupled with the rumored 4.6 inch screen and 1280×720 resolution of the Galaxy S III. Reasons why Samsung have chosen to use the OLED/FOLED screen technology is it uses less power and it also allows for the screen to be curved which is something new.
Samsung Galaxy S III and Android

The Samsung Galaxy S III will obviously run Google’s Android Ice Cream Sandwich, which featured a big database (but not bigger than Apple’s) of applications and games to download. Despite the Android market not having as much applications as the Apple market the Operating system is open source meaning there will be way more customization allowable.



Samsung Galaxy S3 camera

The Galaxy S3 will likely to have a whopping 12 MP camera (MP is merely one factor out of a dozen) which surpasses the Galaxy S2′s 8MP rear facing camera. But Samsung is going to do something innovative — it looks as if the Samsung Galaxy S3 will have a 1/2.3-inch sensor. That’s much bigger than the 1/3.2-inch CMOS chip found in many phones, including the iPhone 4S. To give you an idea of how that can impact image quality, check out another device using a 1/2.3-inch chip: the ultra-stylish £500 Pentax Q system camera.
Galaxy S3 features

Here is a summary of the features which are rumored to be available on the Samsung Galaxy S3 via CNET

• 4.6-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen at 1,280×720-pixel resolution
• 1.8GHz chip with 2GB RAM for zippy multitasking and games
• Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich with a refreshed TouchWiz skin
• Camera-quality 12-megapixel photos
• Styled like the Galaxy Nexus

And here’s what we’re hoping for:

• A flexible OLED screen on a jaw-dropping curved chassis
• TouchWiz mini apps that put social networking front and centre
• Ultra-high ISO photography so we don’t even need to use the sickly built-in LED flash

Having discussed here ,, meant ,, I had better know what I was talking about.
After a careful due diligence ,, I have come to the following conclusion.

Android phone is best,, since most of the software for navigation is in the Windows / Google format.

Best free navi APP is Locus for both online and offline.

Offline ,, again best is the vectormap/locus.eu ,, that gives you navigation function, for ease of installing and using.

Best offline map to use ,, is mapdroyd APP ,, it covers the whole world , but it will lack some finer city details.

When installing the vectormap ,, the tiles are per each country. Russia, however has regional tiles, which means not knowing where you can be a hassle to select the right map,, for this below , a chart of Russian region ,,, send your self an attached EM with this chart and look it up in your phone,, to see which region it is ,

Attached Thumbnails

 

Thanks for all your research Joe. You might have enough convincing arguments for be to go over to Andriod afterall.

__________________
Chris
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"Never have a stupid argument with an idiot - he gets a lot more practice than you"
there I go again
not too hard really

I recently stumbled across this app that is based around the soviet military maps. For the people that head out in the backcountry a lot this is particularly interesting as often they are the only decent map types out there.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...ovietmaps.free

Besides this I find that most of these maps are as good as each other. My map on an iphone is having difficulties, which makes me glad I stuck with the android platform.

__________________
Tacos Tyring Travels.com

Hearing that a Zumo can tumble down the road and be OK is good news.

Personally I think any phone is built to be fairly tough, particularly basic Nokias, but that must be compromised by both the need to be pocketable, and the fact they don't really want one lasting for 5 years plus. If your phone breaks, well, thats why they sell you insurance, and you can pop to the high street to buy the latest whizz bang smartphone in your next break between meetings.

I would hope something "designed" to go on a bike's handlebars will be tougher than that! A 5" screen phone thats only a few mm thick won't stand much flexing, and I've had one touchscreen phone that got a small crack despite being in its supplied case in my pocket that rendered it useless In fact, maybe the very fact that a stand alone gps isn't carried round as a phone makes it less open to being damaged?

I'd totally agree with the need for a speedy "high sensitivity receiver" unit too. Stationary, and able to stop at a junction of doubt then maybe not. Otherwise, throw in a few trees or tall buildings with heavy traffic and your blood pressure will rise if it won't keep up with what you're doing! How good a smart phone is in that respect though I don't know though?

Can you for instance download all of the UK, France, Spain and Morocco road maps to a smart phone, as well as having Olaf ready to go on arrival? An old Garmin I had you needed to select only map tiles that covered your route which was really annoying, and I don't want to do that again!

As for not needing a paper map? Good gracious me, surely not?!?

Hey Joe,

I'm not sure you've actually hit the nail on the head here - you appear to have ignored everything people have said about dedicated units, I'm beginning to suspect you'd made your mind up before starting this thread..... in fact a quick look back through your posts indicates a certain, um, dislike, of Garmin...

I've had a really good play with the apps and maps you have suggested. Many of them are very good, despite quite a lot of the data being from dubious sources that are quite out of date.

I've played with the apps on my Android phones (all HTC I'm afraid so wasn't able to test on the Samsung jobs) and they certainly work well. The software is complex and difficult to understand - but then again - so is the Garmin set.

A quick experiment with the phones on my bike though demonstrates several things.

1 - If I don't do something to protect my phone it's not going to last long
2 - It takes too long to set up and the data bill will bankrupt me outside the UK
3 - At speed (25mph plus) it doesn't track well
4 - The battery went from a normal use-time of 4 hours to 30 mins using the GPS all the time....

In my mind that makes the smartphone unsuitable for the job unless:

1 - You go buy and custom fit a waterproof, shockproof holder for your phone
2 - You permanently wire in your phone (which damages the phones battery)
3 - You don't stress about turn by turn directions in an unfamiliar city

As ever - YMMV - but I will certainly not be dumping my Garmin Zumo for a smartphone any time soon - not even for my trusty iPhone with Tom Tom software.

Maps first, Garmin second, phone for emergencies - seems sensible to me!

There is one argument that does stand up... cost. The Garmin Zumo is currently retailing at $649 / £400 (https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=15000&ra=true) but you can get a decent Android handset free with a contract or for about £100/£150 without. A good waterproof / shockproof case is about £50 (cheaper are available but not as good) and the cost of wiring the phone in / buying a spare battery is minimal.

So for me it boils down to one of the oldest arguments in the trademans handbook.... buy a cheap tool that just about does the job or buy the proper tool that does the job very well.

__________________
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http://thelondonbiker.com/blog

Watch some of my camp cooking videos

AIM: mattcashmore
SKYPE: matthewcashmore
MSN: matthew@matthewcashmore.com

You know ,, when I did USA and Europe last year,, I did carry a bunch of maps ,, expensive,, big ,, terrible to fold flapping, tearing ,,, becoming more and more bulky.,,After leaving LA ,,, some where in Oklahoma ,, I threw them all away. Try this offline map that gives you the sense of where everything goes ,,

True offline maps for your Android - unplugged ! | MapDroyd

All free of course...

Hello Matt ,,
I hear you ,, My gripe with Garmin is well documented here,, at same time ,, angst ridden tight wad I am,, I also carry a Garmin ,,

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...in-gps-62780-2

My personal issue with Garmin is their marketing of the units, in Korea. On purpose ,, they delete Korean keyboards from all Garmins sold overseas ,, therefor,, they charge ,, USD 1,400 for your Zumo here ,,
Another issue is when it breaks,, they must be sent to Taiwan ,, their H/O ,, repair cost plus USD 90 for the DHL .
Lastly,, you your self have said , that their software sucks. Maps expensive.
I have been using Garmin here in Korea ,, through hills and mountains ,, my Garmin battery goes dead in 20 minutes ,, Always recalculating the routes,, recalculating,, My Galaxy s2 with GPS and 3G on ,,,always on target,, battery lasts 8 hours ,, and I have the music ,, some 3,000 songs. This is both unplugged of course.
I pay USD 48 a month for UNLIMITED 3G data here, in Korea ,, and when I travel the world,, USD 10 a day again UNLIMITED.

I use Ram box mount usually I have my Android around my neck in my bosom
See the picks here ,,
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...in-gps-62780-2

Locus ,, will update your map ,, every other day ,, their Vector maps (Basically an OSM map , ,I am sure you are suing it too in your Garmin) ,, I think two months ,,
Some one sad ,, brilliantly ,, we are using this for RTW ,, not to run down the grocery store. Straight line he said.

Again ,, I hear you ,, get a cheap Garmin ,, stick it on your handle bar ,,, smart phone for all encompassing ,,, multifunction ,,,, in your underwear,,I also carry a small notebook,, only because I have to do online banking and download pictures.

Bottom line ,, Smart phones offer far more choices ,, at free cost of the software ,, free internet via wi-fi ,, free messaging,,, learning Russian on it now ,, got instant voice translator of some dozen languages "Talk to Me",, currency converter ,, skype for free phone calls ,, Viber also works ,, love the Kakao Talk for chatting and sending large files ,, camera that matches normal digital camera ,, even got it's own mini tripod,, several EM programs,,,can watch CNN ,, BBC,,,, Listen to the TED speeches "TED air" ,,,keep track of the finances ,, "Global Stock Market" ,, world weather ,, time ,, not just a lip service like Garmin.
I can back up all the files ,, I pay USD 1.8 per month for the insurance,, for two year coverage in case of theft,, breakage ,, or loss,, I get a new one.

Now ,, for some one at a cross road of buying new ,, Garmin or Smart Phone ,,
Go for the Android ,, I say ,, like you said ,, for 150 quid ,, with a two year plan and insurance.

Truly remarkable details in that program ,, I was impressed ,,

Hi Joe,
"Told you!" - I had a hunch this subject would bring out a load of high quality information and views.

The soviet maps source is, in fact, the sponsor of this forum - therefore the link is showing up at the top of this page.

I am still reading, and watching, intently.
There's no rush for me.

__________________
Dave

Hey ,,,it was a very good idea for you to suggest to start this thread,,

Discussions interesting and very proactive....

Look at the Galaxy s3, when it comes out ,, I am dying to get my hands on it ,,
Saw the Galaxy Note ,, lots of nice functions ,, just too damn big.