Just one more convenience my Droid affords

[stuhasdroid]

I've just added another convenience to the list the Droid provides for me.

I ride an Aprilia and you just don't find Aprilia dealers on the corner like you do Harley dealers. So in the previous summers when doing a little touring with friends out of state I would keep a few key chapters of the maintenance manual with me in one of my panniers or duffels.

Now, I have copied the complete set of manuals and maintenance as .pdf to my Droid. While I haven't experimented with the best .pdf reader yet, no worry, because having the .pdf with me either allows me to Bluetooth copy to their pc or simply email them as I stand there and discuss whatever unfortunate service it is that I may need. Should that ever happen.

Pretty sweet to have the volume of storage we do to not even worry about carrying 8 .pdfs along with all of your music, pics, etc ..


My Droid is quite functional.

 

[Jonny Kansas]

I've just added another convenience to the list the Droid provides for me.

I ride an Aprilia and you just don't find Aprilia dealers on the corner like you do Harley dealers. So in the previous summers when doing a little touring with friends out of state I would keep a few key chapters of the maintenance manual with me in one of my panniers or duffels.

Now, I have copied the complete set of manuals and maintenance as .pdf to my Droid. While I haven't experimented with the best .pdf reader yet, no worry, because having the .pdf with me either allows me to Bluetooth copy to their pc or simply email them as I stand there and discuss whatever unfortunate service it is that I may need. Should that ever happen.

Pretty sweet to have the volume of storage we do to not even worry about carrying 8 .pdfs along with all of your music, pics, etc ..


My Droid is quite functional.

Droid DOES biker road-trips! I love it!

 

[Big Cam]

That's awesome, aprilla's dealers are far and few between.

Glad the droid can make your life easier!

 

[G_Neo]

Aprilia? Which one do you ride? Have you ever considered using your Droid on top of your tank or in a tank bag for navigation?

 

[stuhasdroid]

Droid for GPS on cycle

Funny you should say that. I have for years considered GPS. Always decided against and just dealt with maps. I'm in KC and what we often do is ride the country. Gentle sweeps and turns on lone country roads at speed. Take lunch in some dot on a map along with farmers and ride back. And we do sometimes need maps.

Sometimes I make maps with Google maps and keep those handy.

Now with the Droid, I don't intend to mount on the bike but it will absolutely be handy. Very handy. And Verizon covers the midwest pretty well. Double nice.

Caponord in the garage. Very seriously considering a Mana GT.

 

[justbob]

As a former RSV-1000 rider, I can say that would be kinda hard to see on an Aprillia. They're sprung rather firmly.

 

[jsh1120]

Think Aprilia dealers are few and far between? I ride another Italian bike, even rarer; a Moto Guzzi. Like others, I've used Google maps for a couple of years to handle routing for those trips over the Cascades here in Washington. The Droid's navigation capabilities virtually eliminates the need to carry paper maps.

Likewise, having a shop manual for the Guzzi on my phone eliminates another major PITA when I'm traveling.

P.S. I've noted some other riders considering mounting the Droid for use as an onboard GPS with the display facing the rider.

Frankly, I'm skeptical about this use. At least for me, the size of the Droid makes referencing the display when I'm riding an iffy proposition. Add to that, the potential issues associated with vibration concern me. (GPS's designed specifically for motorcycles are designed with these issues in mind.)

I do, however, use my Shure e3c earphones along with my iPod to listen to music when I'm on the road. I'll now be able to use my phone for the same purpose and with navigation turned on, I can be alerted to turns verbally. Quite a convenience.

 

[Boris Badenov]

When I started riding with GPS there was no going back… I have Garmin 2820 mounted on a handlebars and XM receiver on a tail box. It gives me voice navigation, radio, traffic updates and weather forecast.

Droid in a tankbag should work just fine, especially with Bluetooth helmet!

:icon_ devil:

 

[BayouFlyFisher]

As an old (me not the bike) BMW rider and long time GPS user, some of the best trips/rides I've ever had were to due to the use of GPS. A group of us would ride from Louisiana up to Arkansas. Once in the mountains we would simply pick a spot on the GPS and tell it to use the shortest route to get us there. It took us down the tiniest two lane, twisty, mountain roads you've ever seen. Roads you would never have turned on without knowing where they went. With the GPS you did not have to worry about where they went. Ground down some tires and foot pegs in those days. Me and all my buddies are now retired and on most forums I'm know as Geezer Squid. My squid days are behind me now, but still have many, many fond memories.

 

[DarrellM5]

One of my bikes is an '02 BMW K1200LT. It came with the Garmin StreetPilot III installed. It's been great so far, but the GPS features of the Droid blow it away. The BMW has music, gps, intercom, cell phone interface and cb all going to the helmets via cords. I think my Droid is going to replace all but the cb. I'm thinking of getting a couple of bluetooth helmets and mounting the Droid on the dash. Time to cut the cords.

 

[G_Neo]

Caponord in the garage. Very seriously considering a Mana GT.

Very nice! :icon_ peace:

As an old (me not the bike) BMW rider and long time GPS user, some of the best trips/rides I've ever had were to due to the use of GPS. A group of us would ride from Louisiana up to Arkansas. Once in the mountains we would simply pick a spot on the GPS and tell it to use the shortest route to get us there. It took us down the tiniest two lane, twisty, mountain roads you've ever seen. Roads you would never have turned on without knowing where they went. With the GPS you did not have to worry about where they went. Ground down some tires and foot pegs in those days. Me and all my buddies are now retired and on most forums I'm know as Geezer Squid. My squid days are behind me now, but still have many, many fond memories.

Bahaha. Geezer Squid. That is a bit of a contradiction there sir. Squids by nature are very short lived. If you have gained Geezer status then you outlived your squid years and are now a squid no more. Unless youre still a squid. Hmm. ainkiller: