|
| TomTom Rider 2 GPS Navigator for Motorcycles and Scooters | 
 enlarge
| Brand: TomTom
Category: CE
List Price: $649.95
Buy New: $532.04
You Save: $117.91 (18%)
New (6)
Avg. Customer Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 11600
Color: black
Media: Electronics
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: Yes
Native Resolution: 320 x 240
Includes MP3 Player: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 5.7
Dimensions (in): 4.5 x 2.1 x 3.8
MPN: 1K00.180
Model: 1K00.180
UPC: 636926016841
EAN: 0036926016849
ASIN: B000VB6VOC
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
|
| Customer Reviews:
 Tom Tom Rider 2 February 17, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
This is our first GPS and as much as it cost you would think it would have more on it. You pay a lot just for the water-proof case! I would think they could include some of the options that you find on non-water proof GPS for the about the same price. We got it about 2 months ago and since we live in Ohio we haven't tried it on the bike yet. We haven't gone out of town yet so we have been using it around home to get use to it. It works well in the car but we have been using a styles to type and select the options, that will be a problem on the bike. Also when you look up a point of intrest it doesn't give you the address so if you're going to a chain store for example, it gives you the closest one and out from there but if that's not the one you want you don't know where the next one is without selecting it and looking at the directions. It would be nice to have the address or at least the street name so you can select the one you want. We were very tempted to return it and get a non-water-proof one and take or chances. Either way is a lot of money to spend and not have what you want.
 Beware of Tom Tom February 6, 2008
11 out of 17 found this review helpful
I am writting this review forty four days after receiving my TomTom Rider II for Christmas. Unfortunately I am unable to review the device because I have not yet been able to see it actually work. Currently I have been on hold for 58 minutes and thirty eight seconds with Tom Tom support trying to determine when the device will be returned to me. I have spent over six hours on the phone with their support team in an effort to get the GPS device repaired. I shipped it to the support center as requested, at my own expense, and a month later I am still waiting for it to be returned to me. Once the device is returned, if it is ever returned, I plan to send it back to Amazon and request a full refund. This is totally unacceptable. The people I have talked with in the support center have been friendly but have not provided much help. Buyer beware, Tom Tom support is the worst.
 TomTom Rider 2 January 13, 2008
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
Awesome product; the perfect GPS tool for motorcycle enthusiasts that enjoy touring but hate getting lost. Easy to use, mounted easily; simple enough for anyone to install.
 Good GPS, OK interface, horrible tech support... broken 6 months later January 7, 2008
11 out of 13 found this review helpful
UPDATE: 2 STARS
(amazon won't let me change the rating)
see my update comments below
my unit arrived with a defective memory card. from my computer i was able to access the data on the card and copy it to a new one which worked fine... i feel sorry for the more computer illiterate who wouldn't have figured that out. the Backup and Restore feature of the TomTom software doesn't do what it is supposed to... unless it's supposed to crash the application, then it's pure gold.
a call to tomtom customer support had me on hold for 2 hours before i was told that they wouldn't replace the defective card. i was told reformat it and see if that worked, if not, i would have to buy a new SD card at my own expense and download the data files from their website. a nice work around, but why should i have to pony up the additional cost due to their negligence on a brand new product? turns out the reformat did the trick.
over the next two days i spent an additional 5 hours on the phone between hold and actual tech support trying to figure out why the car mount speaker wasn't working. turns out it was defective, and the level of bureaucracy in getting the unit replaced was excrutiating. i ended up sending it back to the retailer since the recommended and proper channels were painfully inefficient.
i have to say if you DO have to deal with tech support, all 3 people i spoke with were very helpful and friendly, even if they weren't immediately knowledgeable with their products ("oh, the car mount has a speaker built in? are you sure?")
yes, the power button is a pain, you have no idea whether you've actually triggered something or not. it feels like magic when the unit actually pops on because by that point you just aren't expecting the effort is doing any good.
UPDATE: I SENT THE UNIT BACK BECAUSE THE POWER BUTTON CEASED TO FUNCTION see further below.
the Rider 2 does have a trip meter and a speedometer... not sure what other reviewers are talking about.
the only thing missing for me is an altimeter. not necessary, but for geeky fun, i wanted to know just how far below sea level i was in death valley... seems like with all the other unnecessary (to me) frills, the addition of this would have been a no-brainer.
navigating the menus is kind of clumsy without a "back" button. for example, when choosing a destination i had several options come up that began "Joshua Tree National Park" and the rest of the information ran off the page so i couldn't immediately tell which one was North entrance, West Entrance, South Entrance until selecting it (i have since discovered by holding the selection for a few seconds, it would show the entire name) but if i selected North Entrance and realized once i saw it on the map that it wasn't the one i wanted, there was no option to go back and select one of the others. i had to select Done, which took me back to the main display, and then start over with my search.
was able to sync with my iPhone, though the tomtom recognized it as "localhost". the headset works fine, but the earpiece distorts when loud enough to actually hear while riding.
all in all i'm happy with it, but then it's my first GPS and i have no comparison. my brother bought the Garmin Zumo 550, so once i have a chance to compare the two, i'll return and update my review.
UPDATE: BUY THE ZUMO 55O INSTEAD!
the Garmin provides a richer visual interface and feature set.
a firmware update to the Rider 2 added a nice little convenience: the inability to turn the device off. it would go through the motions as if it were going to power off, and then would restart. and now the power button won't even turn the device on. so i've sent it back. after a week in transit it will be another 2 weeks before it, or a replacement is delivered back to me. yes, malfucntions occur, no product is perfect, but i've had too many issues with this thing. i wish i had bought the zumo. if i could have gotten a refund, i would have, and i have to much integrity to pawn this thing off on to someone else... i'd leave it on my bike to get stolen, but i just couldn't do that to a thief.
one more thing... while the customer service reps are trained to perform with congeniality and sparkly voices, the customer service system itself is a labyrinth of hurdles and bureaucracy. in addition, never end a call with them promising to call you back. it will never happen.
tomtom doesn't deserve your money.
UPDATE 2:
i sent in the unit to be repaired and they sent me back a brand new unit. great. the power button i struggled with on the original unit was defective from the start. the new one turns on and off with a noticeable click like you would expect. bothers me that tomtom denied the button was ever an issue.
one more issue i have with this GPS: there is not indication whatsoever that the unit is charging. if the unit is being charged while turned off, there should be some indication on the unit or the charger that the thing is actually getting juice. i had the motorcycle mount installed and wired 8 months ago by my service center. only recently did i use the GPS for longer than a few hours. by the end of the day, with the unit securely fastened into the motorcycle mount, it had lost it's charge. so the unit had never been charging while on the bike and i had know way of knowing that since there was no charging indicator.but there is a dying battery indicator. that's certainly well thought out. one more reason to avoid the mistake i made. buy the zumo.
An excellent GPS for bike or car January 2, 2008
25 out of 26 found this review helpful
I received this unit for Christmas primarily for my bike, but once I purchase the car mount adapter it will be used in the car as well.
This is an excellent unit, to say the least. One reviewer mentioned that it's too difficult to turn the unit on- I say "hogwash". The pushbutton is stiff, yes, but that's done to keep the unit from turning on accidentally while in your jacket pocket or carry bag (and with a touch screen, you can well imagine how much mischief one could accidentally create if it turned on without your knowledge). Ditto with the Scala Rider headset- you don't want the thing accidentally turning on, running the battery down, do you?
Another reviewer mentioned that it doesn't have a "speedometer" or trip meter function- it most certainly does have a speedometer, and what I assume is the "trip meter"- but since TomTom set the unit from the factory to eliminate as much extraneous information as possible, you have to activate it in the menus. Once that has been activated, it'll be there until you turn that feature off. In fact, there are a great number of features you can turn on and off in the menus.
I found the documentation to be adequate, and to the point. The printed documentation is to get you up to speed until you charge the units and turn them on- it's easy sailing after that. The unit is very easy to use, and it has tutorials right on the unit, so in my opinion further paper documentation is rather redundant- actually, I think it's pretty smart on TomTom's part to include tutorials on the unit itself rather than supply a printed book- that way I don't have to carry around the book, as all of the information is already on the unit! They really don't say much about the bike power cable, but I can certainly understand why- it's not possible to provide information about every bike out there, and if you aren't familiar enough with your bike, or can't figure out how to install it, it's probably best to get someone who is (like your bike dealer) to do the installation.
I've got a Motorolla Razr phone, and the TomTom easily hooked up to my phone via Bluetooth, and it painlessly downloaded all of my phone numbers I have stored on the phone (thank you for providing this helpful feature!).
I do wish that it gave the street name when it gives you instructions to turn, but I soon got used to how it works- not only does the display give you very clear instructions on where to turn, it also gives you the street name. Once you get used to it, it's easy. But I would like the option of hearing the street name (my PDA does, but the map display isn't as easy to see as the TomTom). While playing with the unit as my father-in-law drove the car, I discovered one potential issue with having the street name spoken to you- what happens when the street name is changed, but your maps haven't been updated? If you rely on the spoken street name, you might miss it- it's best to take a glance at the screen to make sure you're taking the correct turn (I found one such road- the name has recently been changed, but the map showed the old name instead). Still, I'd prefer to have it spoken, and visually double-check the map.
Overall, I give the TomTom an A-. TomTom, if you're reading this, I'll give you an A+ if you guys update the software so that it'll give you the street name by voice- then you'll have the best bike GPS available! However, I'd still buy the unit as is. It would just increase the functionality by including this feature.
|
|
|
Copyright
©
2006 Adminpal LLC | |
