Minimalist smartphone sat nav idea

[DevonDamo]

Ideally, I prefer to navigate using maps, but I've recently been planning a trip which would require too many maps if you wanted them at a useful scale. So I've opted to simply write out a basic route (actually quite easy using the Belgian/Dutch bike network numbering system) and use a satnav backup when I'm paranoid I've missed a turn etc. I've trialled a satnav set-up and I think it's perfect for my needs - so I'm sharing it in case anyone else finds it useful:

1. Download the CycleStreets app. (And the offline UK map if you want.) My phone is Android, and it's free on that. I believe it's also available for iPhone.
2. Although it's a UK app, I've been able to use it to plan routes in France, Belgium and Holland. I don't know what other countries it can cover.
3. With your phone connected to wifi, plan any journeys you have to make, e.g. trips from ferry port to a railway station or from station to hotel etc.
4. These routes are automatically saved, but the naming system isn't very helpful so change them into something more recognisable, e.g. 'Paris station to hotel'
5. This way, you can build up a library of routes on your phone covering all the trips you're likely to make. Whilst on your travels, you can plan more using free wifi in cafes etc.
6. When you're on the road, if you think you're 'off-route', open the app (data and wifi can be off, but keep the GPS on.) Load the appropriate saved route.
7. Press the button in the bottom right which shows where you are on the map. If you're out of the UK, there'll be no map - just a line (route) and an arrow (you.)
8. If you've missed a turn, the line and the arrow should be enough to get you back on course. No need to start the 'live ride' navigation system - the route overview is enough.

This may sound like a primitive way to use satnav and definitely isn't for anyone who needs all the bells and whistles. The huge advantage of it is that it doesn't require any phone data usage and it uses very little battery. I trialled it yesterday and today with a couple of 50 mile NCN routes. I had the app running throughout, but kept the screen off, only switching it on when I needed to check if I'd lost the route. Yesterday, when I'd got to my destination, after 3 hours on the road and I'd guess around 30 checks on the phone (bad signage and a road diversion) I'd used 3% of the battery. My phone has amazing battery life, so I'm confident it will cope with my planned trip without the need for a plug-socket or portable charger. (However, If you've got a phone with a massive screen, or you don't know how to manage your phone so it's not fully dormant when the screen is off, your phone probably isn't the right tool - you'll burn through your battery as normal.)

[tempsperdu]

Will this work on a tablet?

[DevonDamo]

It will work on any device that you can download CycleStreets to, so an Android tablet would work. However, I didn't mention the other innovation I'm pleased with: a handlebar mount consisting of a single loop of elastic which holds the phone securely on top of my two lights - the phone itself is waterproof so job done. Mounting a tablet will be a bit trickier.

[simonineaston]

What if it rains?

[DevonDamo]

I refer you to my previous response...

[Sweep]

As a slight variant of this i use my android tablet to plan a route when in reach of wifi.

Takes seconds.

Then later, with no wifi, data or owt (ie: in the tent of an evening) some key points on this generated route can be put on to my garmin etrex20 for the next day's pedal.

Wetherspoons handy for wifi, recharging and other stuff.

[Samuel D]

Then later, with no wifi, data or owt (ie: in the tent of an evening) some key points on this generated route can be put on to my garmin etrex20 for the next day's pedal.

What is the general method for doing this, though? Are you manually entering waypoints?

[theDaveB]

Can you keep GPS on with phone signal and data off ?

You can't on iPhone, you can only use wifi in aeroplane mode, so no GPS. What you don't want is anyone calling or texting you abroad as it costs you money. If it's a phone just for navigation, then stick a pay as you go sim in it and then GPS should be fine.

I used Maps.me app today for the first time while out on the road and it was pretty impressive. Downloaded the UK map before leaving and made sure data was off for that app.

Dave

[DevonDamo]

Can you keep GPS on with phone signal and data off ?

On Android, you can use GPS whenever you like, regardless of airplane mode or data/wifi being switched off. I don't know much about iPhones, but a quick Google search suggests that the GPS doesn't work in airplane mode in iOS version 8, whereas it used to work in version 7. One workaround, apparently, is to take your SIM card out rather than use airplane mode. (Personally, if I owned an iPhone, I'd jailbreak it and install a hacked version of iOS with all these flaws ironed out.)

Re Maps.me: does it route for cycling or will you find yourself on motorways? It isn't clear from their website.

[Sweep]

Then later, with no wifi, data or owt (ie: in the tent of an evening) some key points on this generated route can be put on to my garmin etrex20 for the next day's pedal.

What is the general method for doing this, though? Are you manually entering waypoints?

Yes. It might seem a bit of a faff but it makes the next day's cycling smoother.

I try to keep the points minimal (less than the normal number i would use for point to point navigation when producing a route on my home laptop) just a few in judicious places and get the etrex to autoroute between them. You do need to pay a bit of attention on the road, ie: ignoring the etrex's odd attempt to autoroute you up a path "shortcut" when a moment't thought will tell you to pedal on for you had surely designed a road route.

The system is a variant of one i have used with paper maps and the etrex. You need the paper map or tablet of course for the bigger picture. It would be impossible to do using only the etrex.

[DevonDamo]

Yes. It might seem a bit of a faff but it makes the next day's cycling smoother.

Okay - I hadn't realised you were setting up a route manually. You could speed your Etrex system up by using the CycleStreets website to plan a route and then select 'export as a GPX file' and then put the resulting file straight onto your Etrex SD card. (I dont' know much about Etrex, but if it doesn't use GPX, there are plenty of free apps that can change satnav files from one format to another.)

So far, I've found the CycleStreets routes have been pretty sensible - I sometimes use variants, but I've never had any major complaints about their routes.

[Sweep]

I understand your point dave but i prefer to spend as little time fiddling with computers on tour as possible. I agree about cyclestreet's routing. Very good. With the odd exception

[Samuel D]

Thanks for elaborating, Sweep. I am all for simplicity in these matters, and your method sounds straightforward – a big plus.

When I had an eTrex 20 I found it to be slow at calculating routes in and around Paris (which is of course a maze of roads, so perhaps that was the problem). It was so slow that I sometimes had to divide a journey into segments just to get it to calculate in a reasonable amount of time (e.g. three minutes). You don’t have that problem?

Smart phones are quicker and easier to use than any Garmin device, in my experience.

[Sweep]

Well on longer routes i would be using a point to point system with no autorouting at all.

Yes, it can be slowm and as you imply, to the point if unusability, if you try to ask it to navigate too far between points, so i try to keep points relatively close.

If find it managable.

I try to number the points so if all goes wonky i know which is the next point i need to get to.

As you doubtless know you have to spend a long time getting to know the etrex20 and its ways.

[Samuel D]

As you doubtless know you have to spend a long time getting to know the etrex20 and its ways.

Alas, I gave up before mastering it. The eTrex 20 struck me as the kind of thing even a ship’s navigator might find tricky to use – it’s not remotely user-friendly in the modern consumer-electronics way.

I swapped it for an Edge 800 which is … nearly as hard to use! (But in its defence, it’s usefully quicker at calculating routes or processing GPX tracks.)

I have a terrible sense of direction, and getting lost has always been the bane of my cycling. GPS has been a game-changer for me, but I still haven’t found an ideal device/set-up/method of use. Thanks to all who share their ideas in threads like this one – it’s helpful.