Bike + iPhone or GPS?

[Disco Dan]

A few years ago I purchased a rather expensive but excellent mount from ramsolutions.co.nz for my Navman GPS. Fitted easily, extremely strong and when I dug it out of a drawer the other day - surprisingly intact.

Now the other week I was riding with my new cigarette lighter attachment, iphone charging away off my bike and the GPS app whirring away in the clear plastic window on my tank bag. All seem well apart from the rather steep viewing angle and it's tendancy to keep flicking from portrait to landscape :innocent:. Then I looked down to see a huge exclamation mark on the screen and it informing me it was too hot. It then turned off. Needless to say I was not impressed. Nor was I able to find my way.

Considering literally 2 weeks before I got my bike I got rid of my Navman after being sick of storing it since I use the TomTom app on Iphone all the time now.

So going back to my original setup. Ram mount on the stem with dedicated GPS. Phone can now be safely stowed out of the sun.

Has anyone else encountered this with their phones? Can you get cases that make them waterproof and keep the heat off?

[neels]

Learn to read a map? They don't care how hot they get.

[iYRe]

RAM make mounts for the iphone.

I use one for my Nexus.

Or, this crowd make stuff for bike/bicycle: http://www.cyclewiz.co.uk/ (bikeconsole) - some crowd in NZ sells the iphone one.. its about 90$ though. From my experience, cheap is not better when it comes to the phone. overheating, leaking water, cant see it.. etc.. gotta pay.

[paturoa]

Some of the newer almost 5 inch screen android phones are significantly cheaper than the equivalent iPhones. You could buy a shed load of apps for the difference.

The downside is no smart phones are water-proof.

You can get a motorcycle Garmin 660 for only about $650 lately in NZ. PBTech is $640. http://pricespy.co.nz/product.php?p=612972

[khabel]

I use my android with headphones, listening to music with the GPS running in the background. When it needs to tell my directions the music automatically stops and then starts again.

Beats viewing a screen imho

Forgot to add that with the android you can use google for directions and sync routes to it from your PC

[iYRe]

if you're still listening to music and riding, you should read this:
http://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/raf-pilot-teach-cyclists/

(bicycle clubs (pedal kind) wont let you ride with music or any kind of wired or wireless headset because it is too dangerous)

[khabel]

I can either be deafened by wind or deafened by music, makes no difference

[iYRe]

actually it does matter.. music engages the mind and spirit in a way that wind noise does not.

[jim.cox]

The downside is no smart phones are water-proof.

Motorolla claim their Defy Xt is waterproof

[steve_t]

actually it does matter.. music engages the mind and spirit in a way that wind noise does not.

Wind noise is shown to cause mental fatigue and lead to inattention. I guess singing along to music can cause inattention too but you won't feel as fatigued

[iYRe]

I think there is a difference between "can lead to" and "will cause".. if you know what I mean

[cheshirecat]

If you update to iOS 6 maps can we all come and watch?

[iYRe]

no, cuz you'll never find him...

[Akzle]

if you're still listening to music and riding, you should read this:
http://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/raf-pilot-teach-cyclists/

(bicycle clubs (pedal kind) wont let you ride with music or any kind of wired or wireless headset because it is too dangerous)
all that proves is that english cyclists are fucking stupid...

Motorolla claim their Defy Xt is waterproof

+1, although i can't speak from experience. but i want one.

[haydes55]

Motorolla claim their Defy Xt is waterproof

Mine passed the drop in a sink of water test. the touch interface doesn't work until you wipe the water off the screen though. (Side note, when I get sweaty fingers and press a button on my defy, leaving a finger print, sometimes the phone thinks I'm holing the button down. Wouldn't recommend a touch screen phone if you like to use your phone in summer months :facepalm:)

[SMOKEU]

+1 to Android. None of mine have ever shut down from heat, even when overclocked and in the sun.

[vifferman]

I've got a Sena SMH10 (well... two, actually), and my Nokia N8 in my tankbag or pocket can beam the verbal GPS instructions from Nokia Drive straight to the inside of my helmet, interrupting the feed from the Walkman to the SM10 to the SMH10 stereo headsets.

[BMWST?]

maybe it was sitting in the tank bag AND in the sun