Just wondering if anyone has used the Garmin Edge 705 for cycling? I read good things about it, but why not get you guys take.
The reason I am splurging is because I recently moved to Los Angeles and do not know the places to ride, besides going PCH north or PCH south.
The big selling point is that I could program a ride and that way I wouldn’t get lost in the canyons, sound cool, but does anyone know how user friendly this is?
Any thoughts would be appreciated,
Thank ST friends
Leo
A few thoughts on the 705-
-its bigger than you think it is once you see it in person
-you can download routes to cheaper garmins too- the 305 has a map function.
-one thing that is different- the 705 has roads on it like a car nav system. The 305 on the other hand just has a dotted line you follow, without other roads marked in- its just a dotted line in space. Works ok but not brilliant.
-the procedure for getting routes onto the garmins (there are a couple, but this one works best for me): a) make route in google maps b) then follow http://www.the-yosts.com/googlemap_cuesheet.html these instructions for converting it to a garmin “route” file. c) load it into garmin software, and from there into the garmin. It is a bit fiddly to do honestly- i do it all the time, but it takes maybe 20 minutes per route to get it all set up.
N
Also, if you have, or plan to have, an ANT2 compatible power meter the unit becomes your computer for power. I love mine, but then I haven’t really seen what a 305 can do. I am sure there’s a lot more differences, do a ‘compare’ on the Garmin website.
Just curious… How about simply transfering direct from Google Maps to MyGarmin. In Google Maps, there is a Send to Garmin option when you create a route.
Process here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_p1x-fL2zc
Note: like I said, just curious. I don’t own a 705 (yet) but this seems like an easy process.
From what i can tell, this just transfers one individual location, not a full route to a garmin. it also seems to only work with businesses?
Either way- you need to transfer a route not a point. The best way i have found so far is using that link i posted above.
I see… thanks for the head’s up.
Thank you guys for the tips.
I am looking into buying a powermeter, I guess do I just buy the hub?
anyways, here is a link on how to make a route with the Garmin edge 705 in more detail
nfreeman,
I keep getting “invalid file type” whenever I try to import the map to training center. When I open the map details in the notepad I save it as “file name” map.crs and “save as type” all files. Do you have any tips?
I have the 705 and use bikeroutetoaster.com to create courses and copy them onto the Garmin. The file protocol is tcx.
It is a great computer and I recommend it.
One note on the GoogleMap to Garmin Course converter at http://www.the-yosts.com/googlemap_cuesheet.html.
The courses generated include Garmin Coursepoints at each turn, so your Garmin will tell you how far to next turn, whether it’s left/right/straight, name of turn (limited by like 15 chars or some silly Garmin limit).
These Coursepoints make the Garmin very useful in Course mode (as opposed to Map mode where you follow the line), as you can have one view that has speed, distance, time, HR, whatever, and also distance to next turn, name/direction of next turn. I find this incredibly useful (almost never use Map Mode), and it makes the older Garmin Edge/Forerunner 205/305 about as useful as the new 705.
Once you’ve got the CRS created and into your Garmin (through Training Center), to use it in your Garmin:
No getting lost. No cue sheet needed.
I have the 705 and love it. The funny thing is, though its a lot more computer than the Blackburn Neuro I had before, yet its much easier to set up and work with.
I use it mainly to track my rides, it has so much more functionality, its amazing.
I wonder though, those of you who import routes, do you stare down at that thing all the time while riding? I know that I can’t really see the maps while riding. I did get lost a few times, and used the GPS to get me back home which was great. It basically goes turn by turn with big red arrows, and even better, gives you a countdown of the time to get to that next turn based on your pace.
Its certainly bigger than typical bike computers but its not an issue at all.
As I described in my previous post, when you import a course that includes coursepoints, on the course display page you will get distance to next turn and direction in addition to the standard speed, time, distance, etc… So, the occasional glance down and you know you have 3.6 miles until a Left on Mountain Road. And, if you go zone out and miss a turn, it beeps at you and tells you that you are off course.
I run a training camp in the mountains and even very compatible riders inevitably end up riding their own pace. Many roads and turns are not obvious and without the Garmins there’s be next to no way to avoid people getting lost. With the Garmins, you’ve got to be an oblivious idiot (yes, we had 2 - Sean and Pete… 
) to get off course.
Ok here is the sequence, it is a bit fiddly:
OK here is the part that is very poorly documented that scews everyone up
4) then (in microsoft XP) go to start/accessories/notepad and open the NOTEPAD program. (NOT WORDPAD IT WONT WORK)
5) go back to your browser. put cursor in the giant text box. Hit “Ctrl-A” to select all, then “Ctrl-C” to copy.
6) swithc back to notepad, and hit “Ctrl-V” to paste.
7) go to file–>save as
8) SWITCH “save as” type from “txt” to “all files”
9) type in the name of the course as “xxxxx.crs” (key here- NOT .txt suffix- .crs suffix)
10) hit save
11) Go into garmin software, and go to File–>import–>courses.
12) choose your course, and then hit enter, it importss1
13) go to “courses” and hunt it down. its often put somwhere odd with an odd name you didnt anticipate.
That works, but i did warn you, it was fiddly. I think most poeple screw up the details around steps 4-9, as they are poorly documented with the original sotware
Thanks nfreeman.
As the author of this script and the “very poorly documented that screws everyone up” lack of explanation, I appreciate you laying things out step-by-step. And maybe I’ll get around to adding these better, more explicit instructions to the website.
The name of the course is set by you in your step 3. If you don’t explicitly set it the name by default will be the short url to your google map (snurl.com/…). This name is what you will see in your list of Courses in Garmin Training Center, so there should not be too much tracking down.
Here’s the full set of instructions from Google Maps to riding your bike:
OK here is the part that is very poorly documented that scews everyone up
4) then (in microsoft XP) go to start/accessories/notepad and open the NOTEPAD program. (NOT WORDPAD IT WONT WORK)
5) go back to your browser. put cursor in the giant text box. Hit “Ctrl-A” to select all, then “Ctrl-C” to copy.
6) swithc back to notepad, and hit “Ctrl-V” to paste.
7) go to file–>save as
8) SWITCH “save as” type from “txt” to “all files”
9) type in the name of the course as “xxxxx.crs” (key here- NOT .txt suffix- .crs suffix)
10) hit save
11) Go into garmin software, and go to File–>import–>courses.
12) choose your course, and then hit enter, it importss1
13) go to “courses” and hunt it down. You can view all the Coursepoints here - feel free to edit any you don’t like.
14) Click Send to Device and select the course. Course is now on your device
15) On your Garmin scroll to Settings page and choose Navigation
16) Choose Courses
17) Choose the course you just imported
18) Choose “Do Course”
19) Ride bike
What you describe is a much more complicated process than what I use on the 705. bikeroutetoaser allows you to create a course using googlemaps and then save it as a txc file. Then all you need to do is copy the tcx file to the 705 courses folder.
Yup, this is pretty cool. This is the first I’ve seen of the sites that utilize the Google API, like bikely, gmap-pedometer, routeslip, mapmyride, etc…, that uses Follow the Road and also auto-generates a cue sheet. To me, that’s the most important thing and this site does it. Nice.
The key difference between this site (and all others like it) and my script, is that my script doesn’t use the API it runs on top of the actual maps.google.com. So, you use the actual maps.google.com driving directions, complete with Street View, ability to type in address of pt A and pt B, and ability to drag the blue line around. And, you’re always working with the latest and greatest roads data, whereas Google exposes older maps via their API.
Personally, I like using the actual maps.google.com. I find dragging the blue line around faster. But, without a doubt bikeroutetoaster.com provides the key feature in an easy way, which is to get the course into your garmin with coursepoints.
Hey Kyle. It’s Sean. Just for the record, Pete and I didn’t go off course. We were looking for some extra miles instead of waiting around for you and the sag wagon after dropping the hammer on your soft legs. Looking forward to SavageCamp again this year. SavageCamp 2008 Points Champion
Really enjoying this thread thus far. Learning some tips. Quick question to the 705 owners.
Do you work from the basic map, or do you have extra Garmin maps? And if so, on SD cards (to insert) or on dvd’s?
Thanks for everyone’s help. The new instructions work like a charm.
“Do you work from the basic map, or do you have extra Garmin maps? And if so, on SD cards (to insert) or on dvd’s?”
If you want details like street names, landmarks, etc then you will want the City Navigator data card with street maps which is in the form of an SD card.
I just bought one (got it yesterday) from a guy on ebay he has the dlx buddle for 544 or so. It’s brand new and the best price i have found for one with the cadence senor, HR strap, and SD card.
I am going to get a second SD card from fry’s and download the map from Japan so I can cycle there with out worry.
The 705 looks better than the navi in my mercedes. I am waiting for my DA SRM to show up. So i can’t speak to the power aspect of it yet, but i got the PCVI incase its not good, but i think its going to be ok. =]
ebay seller ninjashipper is the guy i got it from.