Garmin zūmo XT, All-Terrain Motorcycle GPS Navigation Device, 5.5-inch Ultrabright and Rain-Resistant Display

I’m not sure exactly how many GPSs (almost all Garmin) I have owned and used on a motorcycle. Somewhere around 10 I guess. This is the first “motorcycle specific” Gps I have tried though because until recently, the motorcycle ones were simply too small for my liking. At the time of this latest review revision I have had it for about a year. However, between the pandemic restrictions/concerns and the lack of appeal to ride in our Florida heat and humidity, my actual use has been somewhat limited. A few observations: The screen is killer! Very bright and readable, even in direct sunlight with polarized sunglasses. Way better than any of the GPSs I have used in the past. BIG PLUS!The data fields are very easy to read, and the speed indicator glows an impossible to miss pinkish red when you are speeding. The GPS has a glove friendly screen. Maybe this year I will be able to escape Florida to try it out. The 5.5” screen seems a perfect size. The last 3 GPSs I used were massive truck/RV 7 inchers. Big, easy to read (except in direct sunlight), and extremely competent, but way bulky. The brighter screen on this easily trumps the larger, dimmer screen on the others, and the much smaller overall size fits into the dash area so much better. Another plus. The Zumo XT is Rain resistant. The automotive/truck GPSs I have been using were not. It has never been an issue, but it’s nice to no longer worry about the GPS getting wet. Amazingly, Garmin finally made a GPS with a standard 1” ball mount. No special cradles or adapters necessary. I didn’t use Garmin’s bar mount and arm though, instead opting to use the previously installed Ram clamp-on ball and a 6” arm I already had in a big ole’ box of extra Ram stuff. When locked in place, the GPS seems to be very securely attached to the included dock/mount. You can remove the GPS in a split second by simply pushing a button on the back and lifting it off. No plug to contend with as the cable stays with the mount. Garmin has even included a nice little rubber cover for the contacts when the GPS is not installed. Installation is just about as fast. Simply clip it back on and go. This is all great as long as you have somewhere to securely store the GPS. Some may think not so great when you consider a thief can push the same button and walk away with your $499.00 GPS. Wiring was straightforward and simple. Just a negative and positive wire you need to hook up somewhere. Mine is wired to a hot-all-the-time circuit so that I don’t have to have the ignition on to mess with the GPS.Another huge thing I really like, and believe will make this GPS more useful when compared to any of the newer GPSs I have used, is that the map retains detail when zoomed further out. Unlike in a 4 wheeler or RV, on the bike I don’t generally follow a pre-determined route. On the bike I often tend to just kind of wing it, with only a general idea of where I’m headed, using the GPS more as an electronic road atlas than just blindly following a route. With the map detail turned all the way up, you can still see secondary roads with the screen zoomed all the way out to the .8 mile scale. Most disable secondary roads anywhere above .3 or .5 miles. On this GPS, If you want to know where that little road you are thinking of exploring goes to, you might be able to see by just zooming out instead of having to scroll around and in the process lose all perspective to your location. Usually when underway I disable the auto zoom and prefer to adjust the zoom level myself. So far the auto zoom seems to automatically operate at a useful level. I will try it for now. Time will tell…UPDATE: Yeah, I got tired of it zooming in and out on it’s own and just set it manually now.For the first probably year that I had this GPS, I had a big issue with how this GPS handled custom POIs (Points of interest). For the uninitiated and non-geeks, custom points of interest are lists of locations that may be of interest to you that would not normally be included with a GPS’s factory installed POIs. They can be compilations of a particular chain of resturants and/or retail stores, or they could be a certain type of attraction. The lists can be downloaded through a website like the POI factory, or if you want to really geek out you can make up these lists yourself.On the Zumo XT, the custom POIs seemed to load OK with Garmin’s POI loader, but they were only accessible by digging into the menu system (where to/categories/custom POIs). A top level “where to” search did not seem to include custom POIs. I could live with that, but the worst for me was that there was apparently no way to make this particular GPS display custom POI icons on the map. Whether it’s a Harley dealer, a covered bridge in New England, or the all important Taco Bell, it’s always been nice to just look at the map and see if one is close. Luckily, after a system update in mid-2021, the unit started showing custom POIs! Note that on the Zumo XT, “Up ahead” in the map settings menu must be checked to show your POIs. This also will show Garmin’s less than worthless system icons for fuel, restaurants, and motorcycle related POIs, and it can make the screen a little busy, but hey, I’ll take it. Speaking of POIs….. In the not too distant past I have found Garmin’s pre-loaded POIs to be extremely inaccurate and frustrating to use. Way too many times, they have sent me on a wild goose chase to a business that was either somewhere else or nonexistent. A frustrating annoyance on a motorcycle, way more of a big deal in a large RV. Because of this, a couple of years ago I stopped using Garmin’s POIs altogether and now always use other alternatives when searching for fuel, food, etc. HEY, REALLY…….THEY COULD BE BETTER NOW…….I don’t know. I have been burned so many times, it will be a while before I attempt to use them again, if ever. UPDATE: Against my better judgement, and for the first time since I have owned it, I let the GPS show me the nearest gas station. It showed it to be .5 miles away, so off we went. I passed a gas station on the way that the GPS didn’t know about, and it took me about 5 blocks further up the street to a run down old building that was probably a gas station in a previous life, but obviously had not been for a long, long time….Perfect… Later on that day, we were checking out an RV park for a future trip, and while sitting in the parking lot just for kicks I let the GPS search for nearby RV parks (A category this GPS claims to know). It did not know this massive, well established RV park existed. Bottom line….If you need to find a place, do yourself a favor and forget about using Garmin POIs. Just search Google Maps on your cell phone, then enter the address into the GPS. The weather radar overlay gathers data through a Bluetooth connection with your smartphone. I haven’t had any showers chase me around yet to require street level, minute by minute updates, but it all seems to work well assuming you have a good wireless data signal for your phone. This is really a cool feature.I have only routed a few short trips with it, but if it is like any of my other current Garmins, they will almost always find the address and you can be pretty confident they will get you there eventually, but will also sometimes choose some rather bizarre routes. Always take a quick look at the proposed route and please…..Always choose common sense over what any GPS is telling you. This thing is pricey. Painfully pricey…… In fact, it is the most expensive non-marine GPS I have ever bought. So far, I have no regrets, and would buy it again in a second.Update: After owning it for a year, I still think it’s great and would not want to be without it.I will probably update this review as time goes on and I learn more about it.

Picks up satellites quickly. Map updates are relatively quick. Screen is bright and easy to read. Searching for addresses or location names is easy. The on-screen keyboard is easy to type with.It’s not bad enough to deduct a star, but I have to note that the power cable could’ve been better designed. It has a proprietary connector on one end to connect to the device, and a voltage regulator box a few feet away from that that is permanently connected. The distance between the connector and the box is about an inch shorter than ideal for my 2012 Harley FLHTK. When I turn hard right, the cable is tight. Another inch would’ve given me the slack that it really should have. But with the power under the seat and the GPS on the grip mount, it just barely makes it. The voltage box is too big to tuck under the backbone cover with the main harness, so it had to go under the seat. It works, but it could be better.Update: I purchased a second mount and power cable to install on my 2018 Harley FLHCS. Same trouble with fixed cable length. I was able to make it work, but a couple extra inches between the device connector and voltage box would make things soo much easier.I’ve only used it for a couple of local rides that I’ve done without nav a million times. In comparison to the factory GPS units in my 2015 RAM truck and 2019 Dodge Challenger, it’s way easier to use. It’s also far more accurate than those built-in automotive units. It’s almost as easy to use as Google Maps.It pairs consistently with my iPhone and Cardo Pack Talk headset. I have to agree with most other reviewers though. Their Base Camp and Explorer programs are terrible, and their documentation is pretty useless. It’s quicker for me to just randomly explore the device UI to see what happens than to read either the PDF or on-line manuals.But overall, I love the unit. It does what I need it to do very well. Get me where I need to go. I normally just use my phone in my cars, but on a motorcycle I need weather resistance and glove friendly. This unit is everything I need for both my bikes.

Is this thing perfect? No. Does it feel like there are wasted features and that “apps” could have made this better? Totally. However, there is still nothing else on the market that works this well.Physically and functionally it is near-perfect. The mounting system is a bit annoying and the little snap feature that allows you to pop it off is worryingly tight. I literally thought it was snapped in until it tried to eject itself on the highway! It feels like you’re going to break something when it finally clicks into place. The touchscreen works great with all gloves and the thing is pretty bulletproof, in general.While it links up to both my Sena 50R communicator and my phone, the integration is a little annoying. There is a notable volume and quality loss when music is being played through the Zumo to the headset. My 50R allows me to switch media to play directly from the phone and this is much better. Also, I cannot, for the life of me, stop it from giving me social media notifications. All of that is turned off, but it still wants to let me know that uncle Mark still thinks I’m a libtard while riding.The only real issue I’ve ever had with this system is its translation of .GPX files, specifically those from Gaia. I had a ~50 mile mixed surface GPX file uploaded and the Garmin seemed to make straight lines for MILES in certain sections rather than following the route. This happened to occur on one turn off to go from asphalt back to a small gravel road, which I promptly missed. I had to have my phone mounted with Gaia running to confirm that the Garmin was following the plan… it did about 95% of the time. I think the solution is to break a GPX file into smaller chunks so that the resolution is better. I haven’t had a chance to try this out again.Now, things that could have taken this from a 95% perfect product to one that I love to use rather than need to use due to lack of a replacement: Google/Apple maps location integration would make my life SO much easier. I hate typing out the name of the place I’m trying to find just for it to think I’m trying to go to the Advanced Auto 50 miles away because it doesn’t recognize that there’s one in the same town I’m in. So, I look it up on my phone, copy the address, paste it into the Drive app, THEN send it to the Garmin. This works fine, but it’s 2 or 3 too many steps, once again. Why… WHY do they call their own features “apps”? Apps like Gaia or Onx would be a real game changer, but I’m sure Gary and Min are too proud of their 2nd rate navigation to let better companies work with their product.Anyway, as I said, it’s a very good product but it feels a bit like those comically large pens that restaurants make you use while signing the check… it works fine but I wish I had something that worked better.

Screen is big, touchy, and bright. Not really good value as it’s one of very few options for its purpose, so it’s pricey. Installed easy enough. Has maps I need for everyday directions and using explore, I can upload tracks and such. Like BDR stuff. NOTE: it’s not compatible itself with the explore app say on your phone or computer, but it has an explore app that syncs with your phone app for uploading tracks and such.And for those who say, I’ll just use my phone. Cool bro. You spend your time making sure you’re going the correct way, after your phone can’t connect to gps because it needs a network. Whilst the rest of us enjoy the trails.Lastly the way it connect and temporarily mounts to your bike, is secure enough. Unless you’re leaving that thing on while you go shopping with the guys, it’ll be fine. I’ve laid my bike down on the trial multiple times and it hasn’t flung off. Bite the bullet, buy it and start making memories

I was previously using a Rider-specific GPS App which worked fine until you don’t have cell service. As a rider who is into exploring off the beaten path, this happens regularly! I decided to give this guy a run and man am I glad I did. My first ride with it was about 4 hours to the destination. With avoidances for highways and toll roads turned on, this unit did a great job of getting me there and back on the backroads and twisties.I really like the actual MPH on the display, along with the speed limit signs (sometimes you miss ’em!) and the pre-warning that the speed is going to decrease. With the way I have it mounted, it is more in my line of sight than the bike’s TFT when looking at the road and I find myself no longer looking at the bike’s TFT display. The Garmin’s super bright display was nicely viewable in bright sunlight and works well with my gloves on.I have this paired with my phone and Cardo Pack Talk Black. I listen to music while I ride and the Garmin will display the song info briefly at the start of every song. The communication from the device through the Cardo is loud and crisp and definitely not annoying or obtrusive while riding. I’ve previously owned a Garmin Nuvi 350 GPS specific unit, a Forerunner 205, a Vivoactive, and currently wear a Venu every day. I have not had a single thing go wrong with any of these items. Garmin builds solid stuff. If you’re on the fence about this vs an App on your phone, do yourself the favor and make the purchase.