Komoot app

[Matt2matt2002]

Lots of head scratching and wallet inspection here at Matt Manor.

In a nut shell: for my forthcoming Thailand tour I will be following some GPX routes I have downloaded from other riders.
They are GPX files. One route per day.

After reviewing Garmin units I'm now inclined to use an app like Komoot on my phone.
I'll have a battery back up for it.

Anyone any experience/ comments on my suggestion?

I won't have use for a Garmin here at home so reluctant to splash the cash in that direction.

Komoot is a one off worldwide cost of £29.99.

Best

Matt

[in4]

I’d probably do the same as you and go with Komoot. I dare say putting your phone in aircraft mode will make the battery last longer too.

I’ve yet to buy a cycling gps but read they are improving over time. For circa £400 I’d  prefer to spend my coin on other goodies. Buy some electrolytes instead Matt.

[Danneaux]

For my back-of-beyond tours, I take two GPS units and the same maps loaded on my phone(s) with various apps, but try very hard not to use the phones because they are my primary source of communication. Electronics do fail...my Garmin Oregon 400T rubber power button split, then perished entirely on my on my return leg through Romania and I had to cover the hole with a plaster for continued waterproofness and turn it on and off with sharp sticks found roadside. Paper maps and a compass are always with me as well, for backup.

If you'll be staying in lodging regularly, you may consider asking your hosts to draw you some crude maps with the roads labeled. I've done this on occasion with restaurant or hotel staff and found them remarkably accurate compared to my GPS maps/tracks and also sprinkled with "special features" like favorite picnic spots and family swimming holes...even restaurants and lodgings operated by relatives at a discount for "friends and family". I found a delightful pension in Romania that way...and a cafe rustica operated by a cousin of the proprietor...and one of the best roast ducks I've ever eaten, at a discount! The fresh vegetables were gathered from the garden out back while the duck was cooking and I petted the family cat while catching up on email. I never would have found the place on my own.

If you will be relying on a phone app, be sure you can access your maps while offline. Nearly all apps allow this provided you download a base map in advance, but sometimes you can find yourself riding past the tiles you've downloaded and will then have need to do some updates using wifi provided along the way.

I like riding with cue sheets , usually made fresh the night before or morning of my day's ride, but there's no reason why they couldn't be made well in advance; I sometimes do and it has worked fine. A mainstay of randonneur riding, it allows me to concentrate more on the ride and scenery and to use my maps to resolve any routing questions, typically at turns. Explained a bit more here...
http://thorncyclesforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=12866.msg111046#msg111046

Enjoy your trip!

Dan.

[JohnR]

Ever since I discovered they existed I've had phones capable of using two SIM cards and the first priority when arriving in another country was to get a local SIM card so that I could make and receive calls and use data at the local rates while still being able to receive calls or messages on my home number. Most of Thailand seems to have good phone coverage outside what I suspect are the more mountainous areas (see, for example, https://www.nperf.com/en/map/TH/-/19345.AIS-Mobile/signal/?ll=9.259719138127894&lg=102.54199191927913&zoom=5 ).

I would also recommend installing OsmAnd (for Android phones) and downloading the Thailand map. You can import a GPX track into OsmAnd. I've not tried navigating using OsmAnd but it's easy to see where you are and whether you are on track.

PS: If you are going to keep the phone screen working for hours then you'll need to have a power bank in a bag (eg a fuel bag on the top tube) near to the phone with a cable between the two. Phone screens are good quality but use a lot of backlighting power whereas the cycling-specific devices are designed to have modest power consumption.

[Matt2matt2002]

Many thanks JohnR and others.

I downloaded the OsMand app and tested it at home.
Very impressive. I then downloaded my area/ Scotland.
I transferred a route from Crazyguy and the app directed me to the start. Lots of details/ minor roads, points of interest.

This afternoon I downloaded another route while out over 4G. Again I was able to be directed to the start from my location. While on the route I received voice turn by turn directions.

So far, very impressed.

No adverts. How do they make money?

Thanks again folks. Very grateful.

Best

Matt

[JohnR]

So far, very impressed.

No adverts. How do they make money?

Thanks for the update.

OsmAnd used to have a subscription requirement for downloading more than a few map tiles but I haven't encountered that recently. I wonder if the main source of income is now through licensing to commercial users who have realised that community-updated mapping tends to be better more accurate than other commercial map products.

[Matt2matt2002]

In addition to OsmAnd I'll be using ' What3words'.
I'm new to all this kind of tech stuff but W3W looks amazing.
Anyone any thoughts on it?

Best

Matt

[PH]

OsmAnd used to have a subscription requirement for downloading more than a few map tiles but I haven't encountered that recently.

I don't use it very much, I had a go last year when I was considering whether to replace my worn out Garmin with another, or use a phone.  In the end I went for another Garmin, I prefer the screen and also keeping the devices separate, I use the phone as a back up.
Just had a look and my OsmAnd app is still prompting me to take out the pro subscription at £2.99 a month or offering me Maps+ on offer at £5 for the first year (It doesn't say how much after that) When I first came across it, recommended on another forum, the enhanced version was available for a one-off fee.
Be interested to see if matt gets everything he needs for free.

[PH]

I'm new to all this kind of tech stuff but W3W looks amazing.
Anyone any thoughts on it?

Best

Matt

Leaving aside it's a bit of a political hot potato, the controversy of monetarizing something that we may all come to rely on. Also the very occasional glitch where two names are close enough, phonetically and physically, to cause misdirection.  Otherwise, it is absolutely fantastic! I do some delivering and when customers put the words in the delivery notes, it's better than an address.