Sat-nav systems can help, writes Conor Twomey, but they have their dangers
Motorbikes, as anyone who owns one for recreational purposes will tell you, are all about escape. You spend your entire time concentrating on what the bike is doing, shifting your body position to help negotiate corners and watching the road ahead for the million different things that could send you flying, so there's no room left in your head for worries or problems.
Satellite navigation is one way of putting the fun back in exploring the countryside, but because it's a relatively new technology to motorbikes, bespoke units like BMW's Garmin-developed Motorrad Navigator III are still quite pricey, retailing for around €1,400 including installation, but not including a headset or any other extras. I borrowed a BMW F800S fitted with the Navigator III satellite navigation system to see how well the system worked and if it's worth the investment.
On the F800 the Navigator is perched atop the fuel tank and sits into a specially integrated base which is wired into the bike. There is no integrated battery, which means there's no swapping it to other bikes or cars, using it for exploring the city by foot and if you stall the bike or nip into a shop, the system has to reboot which can take a minute or two.
The relatively small screen and its position on the tank means it's not easy to keep an eye on it as you ride along, but it's too bulky to mount anywhere else, so you're stuck with listening to the voice commands. This is only achieved using a Bluetooth headset - in my case I used a Cardo Scala Rider headset which clamps neatly on to the side of the helmet and has a tiny, flat speaker for positioning inside the helmet and a small microphone mounted on a short flexible stem.
Getting the Navigator to link up to both the headset and Bluetooth mobile phone was easy once the Cardo headset could be cajoled into "Discoverable" mode for that initial link-up. Once mated, the Navigator gave clear, simple instructions and even read out the street names to me so I knew where I was without having to peer at the screen. Problems arose at speed when wind-noise made it impossible to hear the headset, forcing me to glance down at the map to make sure I was on the right road - not a good thing at 100km/h.
There are a number of dedicated buttons for zooming in and out and various other functions (route planning, trip computer, etc), but the on-screen menus are blighted by icons too small to operate with gloved hands and a screen that's recessed awkwardly into the unit.
It's a good system and considerably better than stopping and wrestling with a map, but the user interface, the lack of a battery, and smallness of the screen and the sheer size of the unit meant I was a little disappointed with it overall, especially for the money.
I also bolted on a TomTom Rider unit to see how it compared to the BMW unit, and I came away impressed. For a start, it's got universal mounts and can be fitted anywhere, so I mounted it on the left handlebar, just to the side of the F800's dials.
Because it's small and light, it had no bearing on the bike's steering behaviour and it was able to clear the low windscreen with a little adjusting. Its location combined with its larger, squarer screen and simpler graphics made the TomTom easier to follow. It doesn't have fixed buttons, but the touch-screen function uses large icons which are easy to reach even wearing motorcycle gloves. The software is no simpler or more intuitive to operate or program than the BMW unit, it's just easier to operate than the fiddly Navigator III.
The quality of its navigation is on a par with the BMW unit, although it doesn't say out the street names, but on the plus side it comes with a Cardo Scala Rider headset as standard, saving the need for further outlay.
The two things that set the Tom Tom apart are its battery life and its price. Because it can be used without wires it's possible to use it for walking tours or in the car.
Optional chargers and windscreen mounts are available making it the only sat-nav system you really need - remarkable considering it costs just €500. There's definitely a lot to be said for fitting sat-nav, but unless you absolutely have to have a fully integrated and branded navigation unit, it would seem that the TomTom really is the way to go.
Test Bike:BMW F800 S
Engine:798cc liquid-cooled, dry-sump, four-stroke twin
Power and torque:85hp at 8,000 rpm, 86Nm at 5,800rpm
Performance:200km/h plus
Transmission:six-speed gearbox, wet clutch, belt drive
Frame:bridge-type aluminium frame, load-bearing engine
Dimensions:length: 2,082mm, width: 860mm,
Weight:187kg (dry)
Suspension:43mm USD forks; cast aluminium single-sided swing arm, pre-load and rebound adjustable monoshock
Wheels:aluminium alloy wheels, 17-inch front and rear
Tyres:front: 120/70 ZR 17, rear: 180/55 ZR 17
Brakes:Twin 320mm floating front discs, four piston calipers; single-piston rear caliper, 265mm single rear disc
Price as tested:€12,300 including ABS, but excluding Navigator III