We’ve looked at the Tom Tom Rider 2 motorcycle GPS system, one of the best motorcycle GPS navigation systems available in the world. Specifically designed for motorbikes, easy to use, simple navigating and lots of GPS features.

But like all these things there are always accessories that you can use and if you have a Tom Tom Rider or someone else you know has a Rider then accessories are a great idea to add value to your GPS or as a gift idea. Note that some of these Rider accessories may come with the unit that you have purchased already, so check the box first!

A car charger is always useful. Like most of us you probably drive as well as ride, and so you want to use your GPS Tom Tom in the car as well, and if you’ve got a car charger then you can use it, and charge it, in the car.

And of course if you’re using it in the car you need a car mount for mounting your Rider in the car. Tom Tom advise anyone thinking of buying a Rider car mount to check the back of their Rider GPS unit to see if it is compatible with the mount, so you should do that.

And why not a 12V cable to attach your Tom Tom Rider to your motorbikes battery? A much better solution than relying on the Lithium battery for the Rider, which probably won’t last much past 4 or 5 hours.

Or how about an additional bluetooth headset for your Rider?

Tom Tom don’t do as many optional accessories for their TomTom Rider GPS systems compared with Garmin. Does this mean that they think it’s so good that it doesn’t need much else?

So if you’re looking for a great motorcycle GPS navigator then the Tom Tom Rider 2 will do it, and once you’re set and wired there’s still a few optional extras that you can opt for if you wish.


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Tomtom are well known in the field of GPS navigation systems, and the Tom Tom Rider is one of the most respected systems in the field of motorcycle GPS. Claimed to be the first GPS system specifically designed for motorcycle use, and biker who is considering a GPS satellite navigation system for their bike has to consider the Tomtom Rider.

Previously of course the GPS systems that were in use on motorcycles were car GPS or handheld GPS units that had been adapted for use on motorcycles. There were some problems associated with this, particularly mounting the unit properly on the bike, and also resistance to weather and vibrations.

So of course a GPS system that is specifically designed for motorcycle use is a giant leap forward in motorcycle GPS technology.

The Rider was developed from the Tom Tom Go automobile GPS. It is hooded to make viewing easier from the motorcycle riding position and reduce glare, and it comes with it’s own Tom Tom rider RAM mounting hardware that fits just about any bike. That eliminates one of the major problems of adapting the GPS unit to bikes, mounting it properly.

It’s a tough unit although there is some question about the Tom Tom Riders waterproof ability. As we understand it the original Rider was only claimed to be water resistant rather than waterproof, and was not submitted to the IPX-7 waterproof specifications test requiring that it demonstrate waterproofing ability for half an hour at a depth of one meter. However Tom Tom have now released the 2nd version of the rider, called, imaginatively, the TomTom Rider 2nd edition, or just the Tom Tom Rider 2.

The Rider 2, Tom Tom state on their website, is fully waterproof, passing IPX7. One problem overcome.

Now of course a GPS navigation system that is specifically for use on a motorcycle has it’s own challenges. It must be tough and durable, vibration resistant, easy to use with gloves and hopefully has some form of communication other than a screen display, as a rider doesn’t want to spend too much time looking down. And if it has a voice communication component it must be one that a motorcycle rider can hear with wind noise and a helmet, so a speaker like those in use for car GPS systems, won’t cut it. And of course mounting.

The Tom Tom Rider 2nd edition is designed to offer all these features, though of course there is still come question about how well it all works. The mounting system allows for car mounting as well as mounting on a bike, and that is important as so many riders drive as well as ride. There is a Rider car mounting kit (with speaker) that allows this.

It is designed to be used with gloves, which is essential for any motorbike rider, and has bluetooth capability so that voice commands can be relayed directly to the riders ear where they can be heard over the noise of the wind and the motor, though some have still reported that the voice is not as easy to hear as could be expected.

It comes loaded with maps of North America on an SD card so you can plan your route anywhere without worrying about locating maps to download. You can even program it to tell you essential points of interest along your way, like fuel or accomodation, and you can ask it to navigate you to your destination avoiding, for example, all toll roads.

Tomtoms rider gps navigation system is simple, intuitive and easy to use. You can plan your itinerary at home on your computer or do so on the Rider itself, if you don’t have time to do all the planning beforehand. You can even review and test your selected route at home before you leave if you wish.

The unit itself is an easy to use 3 1/2 inch display that is designed to be used with motorcycle gloves, which is a must with any modern motorcycle GPS system. Choose 2D or 3D maps to view if you wish to view.

Take hands free calls via your bluetooth capability and onscreen touch commands, so you have the phone just a touch away.

Criticism of the Rider 2nd edition from users include difficulty hearing the commands, difficulty typing commands into the unit with heavy gloves and lack of detail in the manual. Nothing is perfect and there will always be some who have problems, but overall user comments are positive and support the conclusion that as far as motorcycle GPS navigation systems go, the Tom Tom 2 GPS is one of the best. It is up there with the Garmin Zumo 550 and offers and impressive range of capabilities.

It is clearly designed with the needs of the motorcycle rider in mind and has been specifically designed to be biker friendly.

If you’re looking for a great motorcycle GPS navigation system the Tomtom 2 shouldn’t disappoint. Like everything, being one of the best around it’s also not cheap. However we are able, with the use of modern internet technology, to bring you the cheapest prices in town for the Tom Tom Rider 2. Look below and follow the links to find the cheapest place on the net for the Rider 2.

And check out this video about the features of the Tom Tom Rider GPS navigator. It covers it all pretty well:

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It is the Garmin Zumo range of motorcycle GPS units that is probably the most well known of the Garmin range of GPS navigators that are specifically designed for motorbike use, but the Zumo’s are not the only dedicated motorbike GPS system that Garmin make. They do other Global Positioning navigators as well that are specifically designed to be mounted on a motorbike.

Of course the first thing to observe about a motorcycle GPS system is that it needs to be vibration and water proof. There’s no point in mounting a GPS unit on a handlebar unless it’s both. The Garmin StreetPiloot 2820 is just that, water and vibration proof, being specifically designed for motorcycle use.

The 2820 was based on the 2730 but has incorporated some extra, extremely useful features that add some hot functionality to the 2730 for the motorcyclist. Blue tooth technology is really standard these days, and the 2820 has it, so that audio can be directed to the ear under the helmet.

And a slightly bigger screen than the Zumo, always useful. A fine sunlight readable touch screen display and of course a MP3 player built in, which also seems to be pretty standard now.

Of course all US mapping is included with some 6 million points of interest, and who could utitize even a fraction of all that. You’d spend your whole life riding to see even a fraction of that, (and what’s wrong with spending your whole life riding)?

As you’d expect you get the choice of voice or screen display to navigate with, voice being essential for a motorcyclist. 2D or 3D viewing and text to speech as well, so you can get street names to your ear.

Use one of various possible traffic receivers for real time traffic information so you get to avoid those traffic jams that use up time and fuel. If you choose GXM 30 for your real time reports then

you can have satellite radio as well as your up to date traffic information through an XM traffic network receiver, though you need to buy this and subscribe.

Unlike the Zumo you don’t get configuragle icons and the picture viewer that I have talked about with the Zumo., and you don’t get the special lock which drastically reduced the risk of theft of your GPS. So make sure you don’t leave it lying on your handlebars where it may get lifted.

And it won’t accept data cards for additional memory unfortunately whereas the Zumo will take an SD card.

On the positive you get 2000 waypoints whereas the Zumo allows only 500. It will fit previous Garmin mounts and power cables.

Overall the Garmin StreetPilot 2820 is a top end high quality Garmin GPS navigator that will do the job for any motorcyclist. It has all the features you’d expect with a motorcycle GPS unit with the best that modern technology allows, and any motorcyclist who chooses one will be the proud owner of some of the best motorcycle navigation on the planet.

The Garmin Zumo 450 GPS is a fine GPS unit. It doesn’t pack quite all the features of the Zumo 550, but then it doesn’t come with quite the same price tag.

Of course it all depends on what you want your GPS unit to do. Modern technology can design just about anything into a GPS, it’s all done by computer chips. But you’ve always got to ask yourself if there are some features of the top of the range model, in this case the Zumo 550, that you just don’t need?

Because of course less features means less cost, and if there’s something you don’t need why pay for it right?

So lets check out a direct comparison between the Garmin Zumo 450 GPS and the Zumo 550 GPS, and see what comes out.

The first thing you notice doing a direct comparison is that almost everything on the Zumo 550 GPS is available on the 450. Note I said “almost”. There are still some big differences, so lets see what they are.

Firstly the Zumo 450 doesn’t recognise and speak street names, whereas the 550 does. So the 450 will tell you to turn left in 500 feet, but the 550 will tell you to turn left in 500 feet to 1st Street. You get extra information from the 550 that may just make all the difference in particular situations. But how often will this matter? How often when you’re navigating will the street name matter? That’s up to you to decide.

Difference number 2. Do you require Bluetooth capability for hands free phone calls? If so the Zumo 550 motorcycle GPS gives it to you and the 450 doesn’t.

And the 550 has XM Navtraffic, the 450 doesn’t. This is a weather and radio service that is a subscription service that gives you details about accidents, road construction and weather-related traffic delays, and offers alternative routes. All useful, but at a cost.

But with the Garmin Zumo 450 you still get features like preloaded maps, ability to add maps as you wish, mp3 player, audio book player, picture viewer and much more.

And the Zumo 450 is somewhere around $200 cheaper than the Sumo 550, depending where you buy it.

So before you grab a Garmin Zumo 550 GPS navigator consider the alternatives, like the 450, and compare the features. You may well find that the differences between the 2 are not great, that you don’t need those extra features of the 550, and that you can save yourself $200 or so. It’s all up to you and your needs and wants. But do your homework on exactly what you want from your GPS navigator.

Then, once you’ve made some decisions on exactly which motorcycle GPS unit is best for you jump onto our website and buy one at the best prices around.

And while you’re here check out this video about the Garmin 450 Zumo GPS, it’s worth watching.

We’ve talked quite a bit on our website about different motorcycle gps systems, but lets look at exactly how GPS works for a minute, so you understand the technicals.

GPS is a satellite based navigation system and positioning system. GPS stands for Global Positioning System, and that’s what it is. It’s a technology that allows you to locate your position on the globe with extraordinary accuracy.

It was originally developed by the US department of defence for military purposes, and is officially called the NAVSTAR system. NAVSTAR stands for Navigation Satellite Timing and Ranging and consists of 3 essential elements.

1. A range of available satellites to send signals.

2. Earth based monitoring stations to receive the satellite signals.

3. Your GPS receiver.

There are 24 satellites that send continual radio signals to earth that are used by the GPS network. Your GPS navigation unit needs signals from at least 4 satellites at any time, so it is essential that there be a number of avialable satellites available so that signals are constant.

There are 5 monitoring stations, the main one in Colorado springs and 4 others spread around the globe. The signals from the 4 are sent to the main station which “corrects” it and sends it back to the satellites, which then allow your GPS receiver to use it.

As we said, it is satellite based, but how exactly does the GPS signal arrive?

It comes by low power radio signals which can pass through clouds, glass and plastic and other soft objects, but not through solid things like buildings. It must be a “line of sight” from the satellite transmitter to the GPS receiver, so if you’re somewhere where you can’t see the sky chances are pretty limited that you’ll get much reception.

The signals are cross referenced to produce a reading that gives you a precise location on the globe by latitude and longitude.

That’s the basics of GPS. It has advanced a long way from the basics now, and with the advent of modern sophisticated software and mapping solutions GPS navigation has become the most successful navigation technique ever invented for the mass market.

GPS navigation systems are now available for private use, rather than just military. It is used on land and at sea, by people from all walks of life. From cars to planes to motorbikes to handheld to boats and more, GPS is the future of navigation systems to allow us an easy and effective method of determining exactly where we are, and where we want to go, and much much more.

I’ve been asked quite a bit how to mount a car GPS unit onto a motorcycle.

It’s a good question. There’s plenty of people who have car GPS units and who want to be able to use that on their bike without the need to go out and buy a dedicated motorcycle GPS unit.

Here’s a video we found that tells you how one rider mounted his car GPS onto his bike. It’s well done and we thought it might offer you some good idea if you’re a do it yourself person who wants to save a little money.

Enjoy.

Did that give you any good ideas? We hope so.Now go and try it yourself and see how you go.

There’s no doubt that the Garmin Zumo 550 is one of the best motorcycle GPS systems available for the motorcylist today. We have some great deals available for you on the Garmin Zumo 550, the very best place to buy a Zumo 550 is at eBay believe it or not, and we have, in our motorcycle GPS store, listed the best of the deals on the Zumo 550.

But today I wanted to show you some videos I’ve been watching. Two parts about using the Garmin Zumo 550.

Here’s part one:

And here’s part two:

Oh and by the way, here’s some good info about how GPS works. That’s all GPS of course, motorcycle gps systems work like any other gps system.

It’s also a high end motorcyle GPS unit as well, and well worth considering for any motorcyclist who is looking for a high quality motorcycle GPS that will do the job at any level.

Have a read of my article about the Garmin 2820 StreetPilot.

Hi all, we’ve just added a page about the Garmin Zumo 450 GPS motorcycle navigation system. Thought we’d let you know as we’ve put up not just some information about the Zumo 450 but also a video about the Zumo 450 as well.

Makes for interesting viewing. Make sure you don’t miss our page about the Garmin Zumo 450 GPS and view the video, the link is in the sidebar.

There’s no doubt about it, Garmin make some fantastic motorcycle GPS systems.

Our Hot Motorcycles GPS Deals website site is up and running. It’s exciting, it’s all going.

It’s taken a little work, but it looks from the testing that all is go.

So come back often if you’ve just arrived here, there’ll be lots of information about motorcycle GPS systems, and in particular about the price deals out there that we can find to bring to you.

Because at the end of the day it’s all about the price you pay for your GPS motorcycle navigation system. There’s no need to pay $1000 or more for a Garmin Zumo 550 GPS, you can get them way cheaper than that if you check out our recommendations for the lowest priced deals on the net.

So if you’re thinking of buying a motorcycle GPS system any time soon make sure you click onto some of our deals before you do. You won’t be disappointed.