Your Garmin help, please

My G705 has died AGAIN, fucking thing. It shut down and dwont turn back on, I could probably buy another battery but it hate the pissing thing now. So do I buy an 800, an 810 or a touring?

eTrex 20.

Managed to make it last two and a half day (backlit off in daytime) out of mine on audaxes.

It's bulky and doesn't have those lovely mount like the cycling version, but it's bloody tough as nail.

The trouble is, it depends so much on how you use them. If I keep on proddling my 800, turning the backlight on and switching pages all the time, I can kill the battery in under 8 hours. Leave to do its own sweet thing, and just look at one page of numbers, and it'll do considerably more. So doing a proper back-to-back empirical test would be tricky.

Anyway, if the battery life's not enough then just buy another one and switch over at a convenient moment...

There is no convenient moment when you're racing.
Extended battery packs are a better option. I'll stick with the 800s.

My 510 gives a good amount of time, left work at 6pm fully charged and rode to lmnh with a couple of stops and then home via balham got in about 9:30pm, flicked it on now to check and it says 80%. Not noticed a sudden jump down in the battery it's pretty accurate so far, have done the ride home from work which is about 30min 8% battery as I left work and made it.

Can you lock the map in facing north, when using the Garmin Edge 500 for 'navigation'? Don't want the map to turn round and round dependent on which way Garmin is guessing I'm facing.

You can use the 500 for navigation? with actual maps?

etrex 30 is best for mapping, battery life and hr/bike stuff; My 510 provides a bread crumb route which is really only good for approx 200km wouldnt use it for 300km the battery will be dead by then with the etrex you can just fit normal AA batterys no need to carry extra battery packs

^ What about the maps? I can't find online whether it can use custom ones (OSM) or if it forces you to use the ones that come with the device.

etrex 30 is best for mapping

And support ANT+ too (AFAIK).

The Extrex 30 doesn't seem so easy to mount on the handlebar.

^ What about the maps? I can't find online whether it can use custom ones (OSM) or if it forces you to use the ones that come with the device.

If you are referring to the etrex series (20, 30 and legend, vista ), they can use osm as well as the garmin maps.

^^
That's the main drawback I found with the eTrex, doesn't use the same system as the cycling version;

^^ thanks! that's good, I somehow have the feeling that the factory maps are ok for hiking/walking but not ideal for cycling/touring.

Factory maps are shit, might as well navigated without it.

^^ thanks! that's good, I somehow have the feeling that the factory maps are ok for hiking/walking but not ideal for cycling/touring.

The basemap gives you motorways, a few of the main A roads and in this area the thames and thats about it.

A screenshot of the basemap on a garmin 800.

Tutorial to make 500 act a little navigational http://velogps.com/garmin-edge-500-turn-turn-directions-courses/

RIP little buddy

Didn't quite make it to 3 years but got over the 26k km mark.

Garmin replacing for £68 is alright.

How do you do that to something that's mounted to a handlebar? Are you chewing it when you're laying the power down?

That's just effect of 1,024 x 2 presses of the start stop button. I think the rubber or urethane started to break down.

Help.......big fucking problem.
My 800 done the dying thing 170 odd miles into my bikepacking bivvy 4 dayer......bollocks!
It wouldn't get past the loading screen for the last 40 or so miles.....there was 80% battery. When I got back, I was hoping to do some googling and find a way to save the initial 170 miles though.....I did a forced pairing with my laptop and managed to save what I thought was the correct .fit files (activities) and then followed some blokes instructions to press the power button while holding down the other two....this should have done a soft reset, retaining all my totals......did it fuck!
I now have a factory reset fucking object of hate.........
Can I get my 5000 odd miles back?

Help.......big fucking problem.
My 800 done the dying thing 170 odd miles into my bikepacking bivvy 4 dayer......bollocks!
It wouldn't get past the loading screen for the last 40 or so miles.....there was 80% battery. When I got back, I was hoping to do some googling and find a way to save the initial 170 miles though.....I did a forced pairing with my laptop and managed to save what I thought was the correct .fit files (activities) and then followed some blokes instructions to press the power button while holding down the other two....this should have done a soft reset, retaining all my totals......did it fuck!
I now have a factory reset fucking object of hate.........
Can I get my 5000 odd miles back?

The file you need(ed) are totals.fit, device.fit and settings.fit

I've tried using various recovery software and think I've got them.... I can't put them back on though?

I've tried using various recovery software and think I've got them.... I can't put them back on though?

Why can't you put them back?

went for a 500k ride this weekend with 4 friends. devices used were 3 x Garmin 800, 1 x Garmin 510

all 800's died somewhere along the way and failed to record anything over 350km, luckily the 510 did save the entire ride.

very, very disappointed with Garmin... is there any way to prevent shit like this happening, or should I just buy some other device to replace my 800 and be able to record rides like these?!

I recorded 357k on my 800 yesterday without issue. I get about 13hrs out of the stock battery using some navigation and a bit of screen flipping.

I've also recorded 833k in a single ride on an 800 using an external battery pack with it. Even though the power died the ride file was fine.

What version firmware are you using?

don't have it at hand atm. last night Garmin connect said my firmware was up-to-date, so latest I guess?

I recharged mine once, but during the night it died (without battery warning) and did not want to start again.

does your 800 complain about getting connected to a (random, China) battery pack?