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154 of 154 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great piece of kit, 9 Feb 2008
This review is from: TomTom Rider v2 Satellite Navigation - Western Europe (Electronics)
Having used a Garmin for work i decided to purchase a SatNav for my bike, and after checking the alternatives, i plumped for the TomTom Rider, because:
- you get a wireless headset
- you get a mounting kit
- this is supposedly designed by bikers, for bikers
- its a 2nd version, so any problems would hopefully be ironed out
- TomTom have a reputation for making good SatNavs.
Having purchased the Western Europe version (as the price was reduced in the sales) the package duly arrived. Getting the unit up-and-running was simplicity itself (after charging both the wireless headset and unit for a few hours beforehand). The menu system is pretty easy to work out and is also useful when on the move (although there is a reduced menu-system in this situation) for safety reasons, but all you need to do is pull over for the larger menu.
Initially I did wonder how i would get the mount onto my bike (GSX-R600 K6) but after quickly realising that it wouldnt go anywhere on the handlebars, or clock set up, i attached it to the right mirror stand. This works like a dream as its level with the eyeline and pretty secure. I did have to tighten up the nuts at one point, after going approx. 100 miles, as the mount slipped down when going over rough tarmac, but after that incident it hasnt moved. Just in case it wouldnt fit, i searched online and found a nice alternative mounting system (telferizer - easy to find online), which has a central mounting system (which they say will fit any bike, but you will need to use the back mount of the enclosed ram mount system to attach the TomTom Rider). This does work nicely, but can be a bit uncomfortable as its set below the clocks.
I've driven in high winds and torrential rain and although i was drenched through, the TomTom Rider kept on working and didnt miss a beat. I've seen comments about the voices not being loud enough at high speed, which is a fair point, but when you use the well-designed visual display with the voice prompts (i use a loudness setting of 95% as 100% is distorted) i've not had any problems 90% of the time, and thats with using ear plugs to reduce wind noise too).
To update the software and to get additional downloads you'll need to install the software and register your unit using TomTom Home. This is again simple to use and quite useful as you can get information on any possible traffic problems before setting out (not that thats a problem for bikers ;o). The unit checks for updates either automatically or when you decide to and informs you of anything pending, then its a simple matter of choosing what to update (this can vary between unit updates, safety camera updates or other downloads, i.e. new voices).
The speed cameras, errm, i mean safety cameras download i consider to be an essential purchase for a biker (you get a years supply of updates for the whole of Western Europe, for a one-off payment) and the audible warnings for each camera is well in advance of the camera location (approx 400 yards) and again its an easy process to update the database by connecting to TomTom Home. I did read (after going online a few times) that you can get a free download of safety cameras if you do this the very first time you run TomTome Home, but this isnt clearly spelt out enough in the documentation.
You are also able to link up your mobile phone with the TomTom so that you can receive calls when on the move via the headset (and also make a call when stationary). Linking my phone to the unit was again easy (even though it wasnt one listed - K850i - it connected straight away with no issues), a few clicks, and its linked, and if you choose to do so, every subsequent time you want to in the future automatically.
The additional voices are a waste of money, imho, i'm still waiting for John Cleese to say something even remotely amusing and the 'sexy voice' is anything but.
One minor thing would be that i had to remove some, albeit unused software (voices) from the unit so that i could add other downloads, as the unit said it was full, even though it was straight out of the box.
I really cant find any significant fault with this SatNav (a clearer voice would be one thing but thats minor) and would recommend it to any biker looking for the best biker SatNav on the market.
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44 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rider version2, 16 Jan 2008
This review is from: TomTom Rider v2 Satellite Navigation - Western Europe (Electronics)
Very good piece of Kit, comes with mounting brackets that should suit any sort of bike.Works well on the bike(better than any other Sat Navs for Bikes that Ive seen).Bought the car mount kit(ensure it is the correct V2 version), which works well and is no fuss to swap between car and bike.The rider2 can be used tas a rider to pillion wireless coms set if you buy an extra headset. My only gripe is that the extra headsets are fairly expensive.Then again, you get what you pay for in the world of intercom systems. Recommended.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent piece of kit - with just one little hiccup., 21 Dec 2008
This review is from: TomTom Rider v2 Satellite Navigation - Western Europe (Electronics)
Having previously used TomTom Navigator 5 on a PDA, I decided it was time to get something better for use on my bikes. Having looked at both the Garmin and TomTom offerings I went for the TomTom Rider V2 Western Europe.
On both bikes the TT works a treat - getting me accurately where I want to go. The itinerary function allows me to plan an "interesting" route more for pleasure than getting somewhere.
On the VFR I tend to wear a fixed chin bar Arai RX-7RR4 full face helmet, so don't use the bluetooth headset in that helmet. That means giving the screen the odd quick glance to see the next direction. When on the Pan European I wear a flip front Shoei Synchrotec II and have the headset installed in that helmet. The route instructions, as well as taking mobile phone calls on the move, come through clearly at speeds in excess of the legal limit.
One change I made was to replace the supplied Cardo headset, although perfectly adequate, for a Cardo Scala FM headset. I can know hear instructions in both ears, listen to the radio or an MP3 player (by using one of those small FM transmitters).
The TT Rider has navigated me successfully to southern Spain, so no complaints there. In my local area it's routing can be a tad strange - but no SatNav possesses local knowledge. So it's a matter of remembering that one small fact.
The MapShare technology allows users to input any errors they find in the units map to download to TomTom for map corrections. I found a new roundabout, logged it and a week later TomTom had corrected the map to show the roundabout.
The optional in-car kit allows the unit to be transferred quickly from bike to car.
The only real glitch was that when updating the maps, the original SD Card wasn't large enough to cope with the transition from one map to the other (it wanted to put the new map on before it deleted the old map, so not enough space). So I copied the data from the original SD Card to a 4GB SD Card and fitted that to the unit in place of the original.
Overall, a truly excellent piece of equipment. I'd highly recommend adding a 4GB SD Card to your purchase and, if you also own a car, getting the in-car kit. Had it not been for the memory issue, I'd have given it a 5 star rating.
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