Reading through the phone mounting thread made me think of what I'd actually like to see on a built-in display along with the usual stuff like speed, tach, time, and mileage. I'd like a compass/barometer/altimeter enabled display or device. I'd like it in the car/truck too. Those items would be very useful. I do have a cheap compass mounted for navigation. I can't imagine looking down at a phone constantly. I've seen that cause a crash. I hope none of your are mounting anything on the tank.
The mountable gadget I'd like to see
- Thread starter Tom_imp
- Start date
Phadreus_imp
Running like a top
Here is kind of a cool option for around $700 US:
Hiram E. Varona_imp
Running like a top
why is any of this necessary?Tom_imp said:
well necessity is in the eye of the beholder I guess. The compass can tell what direction you are headed. this is the way I refer to navigate. I don't do GPS in motion, but I know if my destination is north west of origin, I am doing just fine if am heading more or less north or west. The thermometer, barometer, and altimeter can do a really nice job with short term weather prediction. Falling atmospheric pressure tells me it's about to rain while rising pressure tells me it is clearing up soon. I can also use the temperature for planning future rides. Wow 55 is cold; bundle up more next time I am going to ride when it is in the 50s. The altimeter just tells me how high I am. Actually it can help with riding in the mountains. Do I still have a ways to head up before getting to the other side of this range or not. Will I be approaching the river I plan to follow soon or is still pretty far down the range. I also like to fish and these instruments can often tell me what if any bugs might be hatching but that's for a different board.
Tev62
Road warrior
I often use a live rainfall image on the phone from our national weather provider. I have used it to decide on a direction for a "leisure ride" that doesn't require a specific destination. You will often see a huge band of rain running west to east and you can be quite canny and get a dry day out of it.
tod.branko_imp
Been there
In 2021 I believe our smartphones are always with us, they make any extra gadget almost redundant. But yes, I know batteris can run dry, designated GPS devices don't depend on network connection so they can prove useful in remote areas, and when riding abroad I'd usually rent a navigation system with the bike.
At home I don't have any gadgets mounted on my bike, I know all the roads in the country and I know the weather is always hot, so I don't really need any of those things, and the phone is always in the pocket if needed. When we ride in the mountains and get lost we just look for higher ground and that would help with determining an azimuth, that's usually enough.
'14 CB1100 STD 5 speed
At home I don't have any gadgets mounted on my bike, I know all the roads in the country and I know the weather is always hot, so I don't really need any of those things, and the phone is always in the pocket if needed. When we ride in the mountains and get lost we just look for higher ground and that would help with determining an azimuth, that's usually enough.
'14 CB1100 STD 5 speed
GoldOxide_imp
Road warrior
Yes. And heck, your smart device (e.g. phone) likely has a digital compass application anyway - and a pretty good one too. No GPS or network required.tod.branko_imp said:
Why smart phones don’t work that well on the m/c has been discussed plenty. Display in sunlight, battery time etc. But wrt Tom’s request, the smartphones simply lack the necessary sensors. The solution is a separate sensor pack you put anywhere (in your backpack) and link it via BT to your phone. Next you need an app to show all the data communicated. As far as I remember, an app called Lokus can do this for you, so you get maps, speed and all the data from the sensor pack on one screen. If you can’t find such black box for m/c, look in the hiking section.
GoldOxide_imp
Road warrior
... Samsung Galaxy Series phones work fine, especially when the RAM X-Grip is used.
Sensor clusters makes sense and exist - yes.
Sensor clusters makes sense and exist - yes.
Gone in 60
Road warrior
Can confirm. At my last job, we sent vehicle sensor data via Bluetooth to phone displays for testing. On motorcycles and go-karts, Iphones in direct sunlight were unreadable and overheated to shut-down point fairly quickly. Our $99 Samsungs, however, were more easily visible and never shut down on us.GoldOxide_imp said:
emptysea
Road warrior
Yeah...there was a long thread talking about how smartphones don't work well in sunlight and stuff.....I was one of the contributors. Ultimately, my phone has got too hot exactly one time and i rarely have any problem with glare. I changed from a Ram mount to a Quad-Lock mount because of the vibration dampening that was included with the latter. Have not destroyed the phone or the camera or had any problems with it save the one time it over-heated and shut itself down.
I would like to have the thermometer and maybe the barometer on the bike. I don't need the altimeter as my Scenic app records that and shows me my direction of travel. Knowing the barometric pressure at my bike might be more useful than checking my weather apps because I might be 30 miles or more from where the app got its reading.
I would like to have the thermometer and maybe the barometer on the bike. I don't need the altimeter as my Scenic app records that and shows me my direction of travel. Knowing the barometric pressure at my bike might be more useful than checking my weather apps because I might be 30 miles or more from where the app got its reading.
Can confirm. At my last job, we sent vehicle sensor data via Bluetooth to phone displays for testing. On motorcycles and go-karts, Iphones in direct sunlight were unreadable and overheated to shut-down point fairly quickly. Our $99 Samsungs, however, were more easily visible and never shut down on us.Gone in 60_imp said:
Just proves that “expensive” alone is not equivalent to superior quality. Apple products are good quality, but this is their Achilles heel.
GoldOxide_imp
Road warrior
I believe Apple puts out some top shelf stuff, just as conversely Samsung puts out some bizarre piles of s**t. As usual, buyer beware - do the research. Product leaders cannot bat 1000 all the time.
emptysea
Road warrior
Can confirm. At my last job, we sent vehicle sensor data via Bluetooth to phone displays for testing. On motorcycles and go-karts, Iphones in direct sunlight were unreadable and overheated to shut-down point fairly quickly. Our $99 Samsungs, however, were more easily visible and never shut down on us.j3gq_imp said:
Just proves that “expensive” alone is not equivalent to superior quality. Apple products are good quality, but this is their Achilles heel.
First...iPhones have changed over the last couple of years. Second, I don't know what your test showed, but as long as I'm not wearing polarized sunglasses, I can read my iphone just fine and I'll wager that I've ridden more miles in high sun with my iphone mounted on my handle bar than just about anyone in this forum. One heat shut down in 50,000 miles of regular use isn't too bad...but in fairness, the one heat shut down was on my iPhone X and I've probably only had that for 25,000 miles.
I may sound like a shill for Apple. I'm not. I couldn't care less what smartphone anyone uses. I think it's not quite fair, though, to those seeking information here if alternative opinions are not presented.
Ironically, I think we need a compass to get this thread back on course. LOL
I would be interested in anything that gave me instant and accurate temperature and barometric pressure even though I can set the alert on one of my weather apps to pop up on my iPhone while I'm riding.
I may have ridden one or two miles in bright sun and high temperatures with an iPhone in a case mounted on the handlebars and I can report that I've never had a shutdown due to heat. The models in question were an an iPhone 5 and an iPhone SE (1st generation) which I am still using.
I can't always see the screen clearly if the sun is striking it.
I suspect Pterodactyl has ridden a few more miles than me with his iPhone (various models) up front and, so far as I know, he's not had a shut down due to heat.
I can't always see the screen clearly if the sun is striking it.
I suspect Pterodactyl has ridden a few more miles than me with his iPhone (various models) up front and, so far as I know, he's not had a shut down due to heat.
I might have to ask Santa for this: All analog and no batteries: https://www.amazon.com/Sun-Company-Navig...7098&psc=1
