Dummies Guide to the Garmin Edge 800

129 Responses to Dummies Guide to the Garmin Edge 800

1. Brocky | March 16, 2011 at 9:46 pm | Reply

   Good start on the 800, Frank. With regards to Calorie burn, I always thought that the 705 greatly exagerated this aspect. The 800 on the other hand appears closer (within 10%) to the reported calorie burn on the Tacx Fortius (TTS ver 3.4). Have done a few rides now and there is defintely more cosnistency. Note – experiment carried out wearing 2 x HRM bands.
   • frankkinlan | March 16, 2011 at 11:18 pm | Reply

     Hi Brocky, thanks for the input. I’ve never been obsessed with the calorie counting of anything Garmin related due to the fact that it counts calories freewheeling downhill. My Cadence sensor issues seem to have been fixed with a new GSC10 battery.
     I’m still between a rock and a hard place with regards to anything Route or Course planning as the Garmin site is so poor. I’m bumping into people repeadadley who have problems with the most basic of functions. (705 never mind 800)
2. Dave Oniffrey | March 17, 2011 at 3:00 am | Reply

   I would like to create a cycling route on a web site (www.ridewithgps.com) and upload the route to the Edge 800. Can this be done and how?
   • frankkinlan | March 17, 2011 at 11:49 am | Reply

     Hi Dave, providing you’ve Garmin Communicator installed the Route should upload with no problems. RidewithGPS.com is new to me but I’ll be trying it out in the next few days. Looks good at first glance.
3. Steve | March 30, 2011 at 5:02 pm | Reply

   A few additional comments which I hope will save future users of the Edge 800 the many many hours I have wasted on getting the blasted thing to work, especially for Mac users and those who bought the City Navigator map separately via a download.

   1. The Edge 800 only connects to a Mac if it is switched off before connecting. This is counter-intuitive but I have come to realise that the techies who designed the 800 have a mind of their own.

   2. If you do download the City Navigator, you need an SD card. Silly me, I thought it would just download onto the device itself but there is insufficient space on the internal memory of the 800 to take City Navigator so you will need to buy a Micro SD card separately.

   3. When you do copy City Navigator off your PC / Mac onto the SD card you must first create a directory ‘Garmin’ on the SD card to take the files. Then, if you have a Mac, you need to call the support line at Garmin and they will guide you through a bizarre process that includes emptying the ‘Trash’ directory on the Mac. This is clearly becoming a well worn path for the support guys.

   4. Thanks for guidance on displaying the data fields above. I have the heart rate monitor which the Edge recognised but nowhere was the heart rate displayed. I thought the device was wrong but the instructions in the quick start manual (Page 11 ‘Customising your data fields’) are just plain wrong (confirmed by another call to the Garmin support desk). This drove me to the point of distraction.

   5. The GSC10 wasn’t recognised at all until you move the wheels – why don’t they just make this clear up front.

   I’m sure I will find many more problems as I start using the device for what it’s meant for, instead of an intellectual challenge to get it to work in the first place. I haven’t had so much fun with quirky, poorly documented, software since the daily PC crashes of the early 1990s.
   • Steve | April 22, 2011 at 9:11 am | Reply

     So I thought that a Good-Friday 30 min job would be to change from my 705 to a 800 but I’m wrong and now I’m going for a ride.
     I can’t even ‘see’ the machine or the SD disk in my Finder window (Mac OS). I tried turning it off before connection but no icons appear (on my 705 I get 2, one for the GPS the other fort the disk). Any suggestions? I’ve tried the WebUpdater but it simply says that I have nothing connected. I’m not sure I have the correct driver but I don’t know where to find the latest for the Mac OS.
     Do you have any suggestions?
     • frankkinlan | April 23, 2011 at 9:21 am | Reply

       Steve, your Edge is locked up. It happened to my 705. You’ll need to do a hard reset and loose all your data. To save your ride fire up your Edge and save your History as a Course. One other possibility is that you need to add a new device on TrainingCenter.
4. frankkinlan | March 30, 2011 at 5:33 pm | Reply

   Thanks for that Steve, I’ll paste your comment to the page. Had a .fit file error that would not allow an update to TrainingCenter, so that needs to go on too.
   Regards,
   Frank.
5. Nigel Granville | April 3, 2011 at 1:06 pm | Reply

   Frank,
   Your blog looks like what I’ve been looking for!
   I want to use my Edge 800 to navigate around courses that I’ve downloaded (course created in MemoryMap, downloaded as .tcx via BikeToaster); how do I get the Edge 800 to navigate me around my course? When I tried this all I got was it trying to use the built-in road atlas map, rather than the OS maps I’d enabled from the plug-in SD card that I’d bought with it, and so I got a blank screen (I’d disabled the built-in map) with the arrow head and the unit telling me where I was and what direction I was going in rather than it navigating me around my route. Any ideas?
6. Cullen King | April 7, 2011 at 12:08 am | Reply

   Hey Frank, I’m one of the creators of ridewithgps – over the last couple of years I have steered our users toward your site in regards to getting the most of their respective Edge series GPS units. Thought I’d actually drop in and say hello! Glad to see Dave mentioning our service.

   I am finally getting proper instructions setup for Edge series devices. I just did a test dog walk with my Edge 800 for some more data. Looks like the GPX Track is the best way to go I’ll try a GPXX file a little later when the dog needs another jaunt.

   Thanks for providing a great informational site!
   • frankkinlan | April 7, 2011 at 8:06 am | Reply

     Hi Cullen, I haven’t got around to finding out what the Waypoint and Coursepoint limit is on the 800. I think the newcomer is expecting turn by turn direction on a Course and it just doesn’t happen.
     I’m still amazed that at the lack of documentation that comes with the 800 and the likes of Mapsource not supporting .TCX or is it .Fit?
     Regards,
     Frank
     • Cullen King | April 7, 2011 at 8:03 pm | Reply

       I’ll have to do that experiment as well. The GPX Track format is giving me turn by turn directions, though for some reason I can’t figure out, it isn’t actually beeping when I come up on a turn. I get a stylized map (arrow overlayed on the map itself) plus textual directions, but no sound.

       GPXX files work, but don’t seem to be worthwhile – it won’t pickup when I am actually on the course, it continually tries to route me back to the beginning with the shortest possible path.

       GPX Route files seem to do the same as GPXX.

       I need to explore TCX again, but during my initial test it didn’t offer navigation, but beeps when encountering “coursepoints” (cuesheet entries from ridewithgps). I’ll share what I find so you can update your info
     • Cullen King | April 7, 2011 at 11:07 pm | Reply

       Hey Frank, so I took some more time to further document things – here is what I have so far. It’s rough with no screen shots, but it has all the info on GPX Routes, GPX Tracks, GPXX files as well as TCX. TCX files, with Virtual Partner off, Turn Guidance on and Off Course Warnings set to on is the clear winner for the Edge 800.
       Edge 800 instructions
       • frankkinlan | April 8, 2011 at 9:09 am |

         Thanks Cullen, that’s a great help, I’ll post the link into the body of the page. I could do with revisiting GPX Routes to see if the compass is still there from the 305 days.
7. Steve | April 7, 2011 at 8:39 am | Reply

   Training Center v Garmin Connect
   I used the Edge 800 on a couple of rides over the weekend and wanted to look at the exact route on Training Center (I hadn’t planned on using Garmin Connect). Unfortunately the City Navigator maps I use are not transportable onto Training Center and the built in map on Training Center doesn’t provide the detail I wanted. Another call to the Garmin support desk confirmed this and they directed me to use Garmin Connect instead (they were bemused – “why wouldn’t I want to use it?”). I gave in and loaded my rides onto Garmin Connect and finally I got what I was expecting – very impressive, especially in combination with Google Earth. Why they don’t make life easier for everyone by giving simple guidance instead of having people work it out for themselves.
8. frankkinlan | April 23, 2011 at 9:10 am | Reply

   Steve, it hasn’t always been the case and you can do more in TainingCenter. You can copy your City Navigator map over the PCbasemap.
   I see they have updated the manual I’ll have to download it and have a look to see what’s new in it.
9. Steve | April 23, 2011 at 5:54 pm | Reply

   frankkinlan, I bought the 800 with the microSD/SD Card City Navigator Europe as indeed I did with the 705. Just reloaded the Garmin Training Center and tried again but still can’t see. Have done the hard reset in two ways (TLHC screen & etc and also via the “restore to factory settings” but still the drives do not mount on my Mac.

   At a bit of a loss really
   • frankkinlan | April 23, 2011 at 6:02 pm | Reply

     Steve, have a look at the 2.20 update section I pasted into the page last night. It mentions Mac timer problem.
     I’ve got a new problem with it now Auto Pausing and not recording rides.
10. Steve | April 23, 2011 at 6:11 pm | Reply

    “Steve, have a look at the 2.20 update section I pasted into the page last night.”

    Frank, I can’t see this anywhere I’m afraid. I am not certain that I have the right driver for the Mac OS 10.6.7 that I run and, moreover, I don’t seem to be able to locate it. Why can’t they send you a disk and a decent manual? BTW, I have found the .pdf of a newer, longer one.
11. Steve | April 23, 2011 at 6:21 pm | Reply

    Frank, I have just ascertained that I only have software version 2.10 installed. Since the volumes do not load, I cannot run the updater!

    Not sure how to progress, again.
12. MikeM | May 5, 2011 at 9:36 pm | Reply

    Frank, just received new unit today and found your site – all useful info.
    I am wanting to use mine in France and the UK. Can you download details road maps for France similar to the navigator ones I bought with the unit.
13. frankkinlan | May 7, 2011 at 1:59 pm | Reply

    Hi Mike go on to the Garmin site and see what’s on offer, I’m using City Navigator Europe which covers everything I’m likely to need. Also have a look at the OSM maps for the part of France your going to be riding in.
14. RickS | May 19, 2011 at 2:00 am | Reply

    Frank,
    I just found your very helpful guide. Nice job. Thanks.
    Here’s a tidbit that I’ve discovered during the two months I’ve had the unit.
    The unit (Software Version 2.2) does not always play well with my iMac (1.25 GHz Power PC – OSX 10.5.8 and 10.4.11) when connected to GTC. The unit will upload activities fine, but, after ejecting the unit and disconnecting, it freezes during restart. This requires a hard reset (hold lap/reset, start/stop and power button until unit shuts off and comes back on – be patient) which resets all data to factory settings including removing all recorded activities and added courses. The work around I use is to upload activities data to Garmin Connect (http://connect.garmin.com/ click on the “upload” button), once uploaded, click on “export” in the bar above the map and then click on “TCX file.” In GTC import the TCX file(s) you just exported (File>Import). The files will now appear in GTC under MyActivities/History.
    Somewhat of a pain, but less so than reconfiguring all the pages and reloading courses.
    Ride safe.
    • frankkinlan | May 19, 2011 at 5:20 pm | Reply

      Thanks Rick , I’ll add your Comment to the guide.
15. Sherlock77 | May 24, 2011 at 1:14 pm | Reply

    Good afternoon Frank,
    I have just aquired a 800 and having read the information on your site did so with some trepidation. The first thing I did when i had the item was to connect it to my computor and look for program updates and also down loaded the manual off the Garmin site. Took some finding.

    Having entered all my personal details and bike information set off to set the bike up.

    This worked fine working from the skimpy manual provided.
    Comment is not happy with speed sensor sticking up so that if it was ever hit by a spoke it would most probably break. Thought of putting it below the chainstay, but then it will get a load of muck off the road. Interested in anyone elses solution to that one.

    When I connect garmin to my computor it is not recognised by Gstart any idea of how to fix.

    Garmin when charged off USB shows the amount of battery. However when connected directly to power supply. says it is fully charged…bizarre. and there does not appear to be anywhere to view the status of your battery.

    History down loaded. Considering the amount of information on the screen what is downloaded is pretty skimpy. I have used ciclosports HAC 5 for some time and it gave me
    Max altitude on the ride
    Temperature max and min
    Max % ascent/descent
    Fat burn
    Calculated watts max and average
    Max cadence as well as average.

    All of this must be available on the 800 to be downloaded to the history file.

    Would be interested in other floks thought.
    I live in the S of France and most of our rides can start in pretty cool weather early in the morning and by midday it can be in the middle 20′s and within 40km of here you can be over 1000M. The information is interesting when you compare rides later.

    Yet to get a grip of routeplanning, but that can wait a bit. A great bit of kit however.
16. KenL | June 5, 2011 at 5:15 pm | Reply

    Thanks for the information so far. I’m struggling with my IT skills and the lack of clear instructions from Garmin.
    I’ve managed to download a .gpx file to my 800 for an upcoming sportive, but I can’t work out how to turn one of my previous training rides into a route so that I can use it to compare my performance from week to week.
    Can you advise?
    • frankkinlan | June 5, 2011 at 7:22 pm | Reply

      Hi Ken, go into Courses, then Create new Course then select the course you want to create from your History. You could even schedule the Course in the Training section. You probably want to do this using TrainingCenter.
17. KenL | June 5, 2011 at 10:48 pm | Reply

    Well, that was straightforward enough, thanks. I’ll hopefully try it out tomorrow and see what happens. Thanks again.
18. Anonymous | June 9, 2011 at 7:55 pm | Reply

    Frank
    Re: the Edge counting calories when going downhill.
    You’re still burning cals going downhill, just as you burn cals while you’re sleeping. As long as your heart is beating, calories are being used. The amount of calories the body needs just to function on a basic level, let alone undertake prolonged strenuous exercise, is based on your basal metabolic rate (BMR).
    If you’ve just slogged your way up a hill, your heart’s bound to be pounding away burning up cals. On the descent the body’s still going to be burning cals. Thus the 800 will record that fact.
    As for the accuracy of the 800′s calorie counting abilities, I wouldn’t like to say. I’ll leave that for others to assess!
    Excellent blog. Keep it up.
19. Ed | June 9, 2011 at 7:56 pm | Reply

    Frank
    Re: the Edge counting calories when going downhill.
    You’re still burning cals going downhill, just as you burn cals while you’re sleeping. As long as your heart is beating, calories are being used. The amount of calories the body needs just to function on a basic level, let alone undertake prolonged strenuous exercise, is based on your basal metabolic rate (BMR).
    If you’ve just slogged your way up a hill, your heart’s bound to be pounding away burning up cals. On the descent the body’s still going to be burning cals. Thus the 800 will record that fact.
    As for the accuracy of the 800′s calorie counting abilities, I wouldn’t like to say. I’ll leave that for others to assess!
    Excellent blog. Keep it up.
20. geoff | June 13, 2011 at 5:07 pm | Reply

    Hi Frank,

    Great site, i have downloaded the cycle map from Mapomatic but i can’t figure out what to do next, i don’t know how to unzip the file so that i can view the map on my laptop, any help would be much appreciated.
    Geoff
    • frankkinlan | June 13, 2011 at 8:53 pm | Reply

      Hi Geoff,
      There is a Word file detailing the installation to Garmin MapSource, I followed this to the letter and it worked. You get the Map in MapSource and TrainingCenter. You need to copy the file to the Garmin directory. I’ll post some links to getting the files to work on your 800 in due course. The Contour map looks really good considering it’s free, loads of POI’s not on the normal Garmin maps.
21. Steve | June 21, 2011 at 4:45 am | Reply

    Thanks for the guide. This is way easier than rtfm lol. You should also check out the Garmin Edge 800 Screen Protector from xoskins. I just had one installed and it is incredible. You can’t even see it on your edge. It hides fingerprints which is nice while you’re riding.
22. Anonymous | June 23, 2011 at 10:59 pm | Reply

    I did say my IT skills were pretty poor, didn’t I? I rode a Sportif in Belgium the other week and when it came to uploading my Garmin data I realised that I hadn’t ended my previous activity before starting the main ride. So, I had a short shake-down ride in the UK, then a straight line on the map all the way to Belgium, then the Sportif data. is there any way to edit out the begining of the activity to just leave the sportif data? Thanks for any suggestions. KenL
23. KenL | June 23, 2011 at 11:03 pm | Reply

    Is there any way to edit out part of an activity? I forgot to end an activity when I took my bike for a short test ride after fitting a new chain and cassette the other week. Two days later I rode a sportif in Belgium and the Garmin continued recording it as part of the same activity. Is there any way to edit out the test ride part and leave just the data for the sportif? At the moment it is showing a short ride in the UK, then a straight line all the way to belgium, then the Sportif route. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
24. Rob Buck | June 28, 2011 at 10:46 am | Reply

    Hi,
    Just got an Edge 800. I’ve plotted routes with http://www.ridewithgps.com. Is it best to transfer them as GPX or TCX files and what is the best way to configure all the settings?
    Thanks
    • frankkinlan | June 28, 2011 at 6:45 pm | Reply

      I’ve stuck with TCX but a GPX course works I’m told. When you are going to ride the Course , select the Course but select the wrench Icon and turn, Turn Guidance: On, Off Course Warnings: On, Map Display: Course Points: ON

      There are a lot more screens to configure that come in to play when you are riding a Course. Distance to next Coursepoint etc are useful. Start out doing a short local Course yourself rather than relying on someone elses. That way you know what to expect come the big event when all the setting up goes out the window.
25. Rob Buck | June 29, 2011 at 6:45 am | Reply

    That’s great – thanks. I wonder if you could help with one more thing?
    First time out with the Garmin last night. Half way round i asked it to navigate back to the start of the route. The map correctly showed me where I was but I got no prompts as to where to turn. Any ideas?
    Thanks
    Rob
    • frankkinlan | June 30, 2011 at 3:54 pm | Reply

      Rob, you won’t get any turn prompts if you are going back to start, just the pink line on the map. If you go off the Course you won’t get a warning either.
      Frank.
26. Rob Buck | July 1, 2011 at 6:14 am | Reply

    Thanks again – my colour blindness has caused the problem here. Can you change the line colour?
27. Ed | July 1, 2011 at 2:48 pm | Reply

    Hi Frank

    3 weeks after purchasing the 800 and I’m still getting to grips with it (blimey, it feels longer than that!!!). I haven’t had a bike GPS before so it’s taking some getting used to. Some of it is fairly intuitive, while some is a bit of a mystery. It’s certainly nowhere near as simple or intuitive as a car GPS. The absence of a detailed and comprehensive user’s manual is an absolute bloody disgrace for a device of this complexity – especially given the price of the damn thing! Garmin really ought to be thoroughly ashamed of themselves. The quick start manual isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on and, as you say, the user’s manual (which you have to download and print out yourself from the Garmin website- cheapskates) is little more than a list of features, rather than a detailed manual. Several of the features and settings aren’t even covered in the manual. Which brings me to the point of this post:

    Have you any idea what the speed zone settings are for (Menu / spanner icon / Bike Settings / Speed Zones)? I can see what they are but what are they for? I would have thought they had something to do with the training features but aren’t sure. In Menu / Training / Alerts you can configure alerts to sound for just about every metric, including time, distance, calorie, heart rate, cadence and power – all of which can be set according to your personal needs. But nothing for speed zones.

    I found this on the Garmin forums: https://forums.garmin.com/showthread.php?t=15991&highlight=speed+zones which sort of backs up my theory. Have you any thoughts on this?

    Keep up the good work.

    Ed
    • Anonymous | July 14, 2011 at 10:42 pm | Reply

      Ed

      As far as I can tell, it seems to be linked to the Garmin Training Centre when/if you download your data. It has ranges for where you were in cycling levels. Seems a bit of a gimmick to me, I havent seen another use for it.

      Clive
      • Ed | July 16, 2011 at 9:52 pm | Reply

        Thanks Clive. I’ve just had a look at GTC and see what you mean: a bit of a gimmick! Thanks for the reply – you gave me more than the owner’s manual!
28. Jan | July 3, 2011 at 5:18 am | Reply

    Hi Frank,
    Thank you for all the info and tips. I have a question though (please forgive me if the question has been asked already).

    I created about 16 courses using MapSource and exported the courses to the GPS (and the maps that go with the courses to the SD card). When I look at the GPX file in text editor, all the courses are there.

    However, when I turn on my Edge 800, only about 11 of 12 courses are available as .fit files and thus visible for the GPS unit.

    I looked at the GPX file and validated it using XML validator and it seems to be OK. I have 75MB free on my Edge.

    Any idea why this happens?
    Thanks in advance,
    Jan
    • Jan | July 3, 2011 at 11:19 am | Reply

      Just found this on the Garmin forum, it seems exactly like what is happening to me:
      https://forums.garmin.com/showthread.php?t=19330
29. theweedrammer | July 14, 2011 at 10:43 pm | Reply

    Ed

    As far as I can tell, it seems to be linked to the Garmin Training Centre when/if you download your data. It has ranges for where you were in cycling levels. Seems a bit of a gimmick to me, I havent seen another use for it.

    TheWeeDrammer
30. Anonymous | July 31, 2011 at 1:51 pm | Reply

    Hello Frank,

    I have just discovered your excellent blog about the Garmin Edge 800. I currently live in Cyprus (where the Garmin was brought), but am returning to the UK and was wondering what mapping I would need? I have looked at Wiggle who offer different types of mapping – but am unsure if all this is compatible with the Edge 800? I have narrowed the choice down to Garmin City Navigator Europe on a micro SD card, or Garmin Full UK & Ireland Maps on micro SD card, or All of Great Britain 1:50K (much more expensive!!). Not really sure the difference in these (apart from the price!) Also, would you suggest downloading the mapping directly from Garmin – there is plenty of space on my SD Card, as the Cyprus mapping hardly uses any space at all! Excellent site by the way.

    Cheers
    Graham
    • frankkinlan | July 31, 2011 at 7:38 pm | Reply

      Hi Graham,
      I’m currently using the free OSM UK map with contours from the Mapomatic link at the side of the page. If you look at the Cycling map this will show the NCR routes on the map and other shortcuts navigable by cycle.
      You get a lot on City Navigator Europe, All of GB 1:50K is Ordnance Survey mapping as an overlay on the Garmin Full UK so you still get Garmin routing on an OS map.
      1:50K is a reasonable option if you buy it as a bundle with your 800 but not if you have to buy it as a standalone.
      As for which map it’s down to price, the cost of the SD card is negligible.
      See how you get on with the OSM maps, they cost nothing.
      Regards,
      Frank.

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32. dog | August 8, 2011 at 9:14 am | Reply

    I have a new 800 with europe maps installed. My problem is the navagation on the unit. Sitting at home I asked the unit to give me a route to a near by town (20 kms away). The route came back with a huge loop west east and south of the destination before turning north to arrive at the town. Total distance of 154 km’s. At a friends house (2kms from mine) we compared routes on his unit. Every time the 2 units gave differing routes as much as 100 kms more in some acses. The new route to the same town 20 kms away now worked on my unit ( direct route about 24 km’s in length) but both units gave a 150 km journey plus to a different town 20 kms away.

    I bought the unit to help on my cycle touring. I can’t see how I can use it with such varying results. I have always had Garmin sat navs in my car and have always got on well with them. Am I doing something wrong.
    • frankkinlan | August 8, 2011 at 8:23 pm | Reply

      If you select avoid major roads in the routing it will send you up the garden path. Try planning routes on the web bases sites and not using the inbuilt algorythms. Ride your own planned Courses then you’ve only got yourself to blame. It’s a steep learning curve but you need to do it and have confidence in the Course you have planned. It’s not helped by Garmins next to non existant manual.
33. dog | August 8, 2011 at 9:34 pm | Reply

    Thats ok if you know where you will be going. On tour I know an end destination ( may be 1000-1200 km away usually) but want to be able to explore the towns and villages in between. stopping to use a laptop to plan a route to a hotel at 8pm in the rain isn’t really what I had in mind. I expected the 800 to do that for me and to be able to trust the results. Has everyone who has bought this unit just given up on the navigation side of it? Courses are great for training runs and sportives and I will use them I’m sure but why can’t Garmin get the navigation side to work when all their other sat nav’s work fine?
34. mike | August 10, 2011 at 8:41 am | Reply

    Dog, if you turn the routing from bicycle to car it will give you a more direct route. I have just purchased the 800 and tested on the way home from work. I was wondering why it was trying to take me through all the side roads and not direct. I did as above and it directed me the way I thought.
35. Parag | August 14, 2011 at 4:34 pm | Reply

    Hi guys, wonder if you could help. If I create a route in BaseCamp and transfer it to my Edge 800 via the inbuilt software it works fine – I get the navigation etc etc. However, no elevation profile on the Edge despite there being one visible on BaseCamp (when the Edge is connected up and it can use the SDcard OSM). If I create a ‘Course’ from a previous activity I of course get an elevation profile. I’ve scoured the web and am getting increasingly confused trying to use TCX, GPX and whatever else files. All I want is to plan a route in BaseCamp (if possible) and transfer it to my Edge 800 with navigation as it is and with an elevation profile. If I export a route as a TCX or GPX file then put it in the ‘Courses’ folder the Edge doesn’t recognise is, presumably as it needs the ‘.fit’ format. Am going slightly mad plugging in, unplugging, switching on and switching off the Edge all the time to see if anything works. Or do I have to use bikeroutetoaster and some kind of OSM hack to plot a map on their and somehow transfer it to the GPS? Any takers? Thanks! – Parag
    • frankkinlan | August 14, 2011 at 7:15 pm | Reply

      Hi Parag, you may need to export it to the “New Files ” folder and let the Edge convert it to .fit format. I’ve yet to find a use for Basecamp. The tried and trusted webbased sites work as .tcx or .gpx have CoursePoints at junctions etc. Garmin should address these issues rather than leave it to third party sites.
      Regards,
      Frank.
    • Ed | August 14, 2011 at 7:17 pm | Reply

      Hi Parag
      I always use Bike Route Toaster, as I find it easy to use and does what I want it to do.
      If you’re confused about the various file types associated with the 800, have a look at this: http://ridewithgps.com/edge_800 This another of the popular route planners but I think BRT has just got the, ahem, edge.
      Don’t copy new courses to the ‘courses’ folder of the unit; it must go in the ‘new files’ folder. Once it’s in there the 800 will automatically convert it to the fit format.
      Not sure about your elevation problem.
    • Ed | August 14, 2011 at 7:20 pm | Reply

      Further to your elevation problem. Have you looked at or joined the Garmin forum? There’s a forum on there specifically for the 800: https://forums.garmin.com/forumdisplay.php?f=245
      • Parag | August 14, 2011 at 9:34 pm | Reply

        Thanks guys, have posted in the BaseCamp forum but in the meantime BRT sounds like the best bet although there’s no OS-mapping as far as I can tell?
        • Ed | August 15, 2011 at 9:10 am |

          No, there’s no OS mapping on BRT. However, as you’re probably aware, BRT utilises several different map sources, including Google maps and Open Street Maps (OSM) – the latter of which is available in street view and cycle route view. I really like the look of OSM street maps – I think they’re visually nice to work with. However, If you’re using the autoroute option on BRT, I’ve found it’s best to tick the ‘Google’ box under the ‘Auto Route’ > ‘Data’ options on the right. This is regardless of which map you choose to display. The reason is that different maps use slightly different ways of measuring/calculating their data. The overall result (ie the map itself) may look about the same but there will be differences in the background algorithms. This could present minor problems with the waypoint/course point/navigational settings. The best way of discovering these nuances is to devise a shortish route through a mixture of town and countryside roads using the various map displays and settings. Note, especially, where the course points occur (at junctions, roundabouts, turnings, etc. Not every turn will have a course point, depending on the mapping selected and the options chosen. Experimenting is the best way of seeing what works.
          To give you some idea of the differences between the two map sources, try this:
          In BRT, using the Google maps view, locate a hamlet called Alfrick near Malvern, Worcestershire (it’s easier if you locate it first using the search facility on the Google maps homepage). Next, in BRT, use the zoom facility until the post office and stores information comes into view. You should then be able to see a triangular section of road junction just above it. Now, with the autoroute option selected, start to create a route that starts say a few yards or so before the junction, on the road that approaches Alfrick from the east (right). Create the route to turn left at the triangular junction (heading towards ‘Upper House’). That’ll do for the time being, just a very short stretch that turns left at the junction. Now select the OSM ‘Street’ view. See how the triangular junction is not displayed and appears instead as a simple junction? See also how, in OSM, the route just cuts across until it rejoins the road? Now, delete the route and re-plot it but this time ensure that the ‘Data’ option under the ‘Autoroute’ heading is set to ‘OSM’ rather than ‘Google’. See how this different option results in BRT plotting a slightly different route because it uses OSM’s algorithms instead of Google’s? Use the ‘Satellite’ view and zoom right in to see how the junction looks in reality.
          My experience of using BRT is that Google maps is pretty accurate – especially when you toggle between it and the satellite and hybrid views when creating a route. This is especially useful if you want to see the layout of junctions or to see where cycle paths/shortcuts are (you might have to disable autorouting to do this). As mentioned above, I’ve found that the autoroute option is more effective when Google data is used rather than OSM. As far as I can make out, the Google maps data option provides more navigational turning/course point warnings than the OSM option and Google maps are just a bit more accurate than OSM’s. As I said, try creating a short route using the various settings available to see what works best for you. It’s a bit of trial and error but at least it will make you more aware of what the different settings do.
          I’ve got TrackLogs digital OS mapping (Landranger edition) installed on my PC. When I import a course to TrackLogs that has been created using Google maps in BRT, the result is pretty accurate. I’ve also created courses in TrackLogs and used them without problem on the 800. The only problem with the Landrangers is the lack of detail in urban areas. This is where Google maps comes into its own, as pretty much every street and lane is both shown and named.
          I don’t know which maps you’ve got installed on your 800. I’ve got the full Garmin European City Navigator; these work absolutely fine with routes created using BRT and TrackLogs OS Landrangers.
          There are ways of downloading the OSM maps and installing them on your 800 and using them as your default map. I think Frank explains how to do this somewhere on this blog (or it might be on his dummies guide to the 705). Failing that you can do a Google search of how to do it.
          Apologies for the ramble! Hope some of it is of use/interest. Good luck!
    • eugene gaudet | December 20, 2011 at 7:40 pm | Reply

      Funny but this is what I have been trying to do all month long and I fell onto your letter and somehow feel less stupid, or at least have found someone as dumb as me. Whezn will Garmin make a program that is user friendly, i;e; for dummies?
36. Parag | August 15, 2011 at 4:44 pm | Reply

    Dear Ed,
    Thanks for the detailed advice. I have exported a couple of map tiles of the City Navigator onto the Edge 800 but use the GB OS Landranger maps from the ‘Trail’ bundle as the main base-map on the Garmin. Will have a go with the OSM Street maps though, they do look good but I see your point about routing. I’ll stick to Google Maps routing for the time being anwyay. The Garmin App developer replied saying that they’d ‘look into it’ – so guess it’s not a problem they had previously been made aware of. In the meantime BRT’s routing abilities far surpass those of BaseCamp anyway which I increasingly think at the moment is mainly a pretty piece of fairly useless software unfortunately. Thanks for your help! – Parag
    • Ed | August 15, 2011 at 5:16 pm | Reply

      You’re welcome. If you haven’t already done so, you may want to have a look at the route planning capabilities of Ride with GPS (http://ridewithgps.com/). It’s pretty good but I don’t think it’s quite as good as BRT. One of the things that makes BRT that bit better is the ability to set turn warnings to sound/appear on the approach to a turn at a given distance of your choice. I emailed RWGPS about this and they told me it’s something they’re hoping to introduce at a future date.
37. Chris_from_Frankby | September 16, 2011 at 4:47 pm | Reply

    Frank,

    I’ve just been trying to use BRT for an audax I’m doing on Sunday and the website isn’t there any more!
    Managed with Bikehike (after a 2 hour learning curve).
    Do you know if BRT has been pulled?
38. Chris_from_Frankby | September 18, 2011 at 5:41 pm | Reply

    Just finished Audax and now BRT is back ?????
    Sorry for false alarm (but where did it go, or is it a network problem?)
39. mjclarke01 | October 16, 2011 at 3:42 pm | Reply

    Hi Frank.
    Thanks for the really great page – it has come in very handy.

    On Friday I tried to update my Edge 800 and when I switched it on next it came up with “System Software Missing” – basically it was now an expensive brick. I contacted Garmin and they send me a zip file which allowed me to fix the problem, so it is now back and working fine.

    Just thought I would post this in case anyone else has a similar problem.

    I don’t think these files are available on the web, so if anyone wants to host them I can send them a copy.
40. Dean | October 16, 2011 at 10:29 pm | Reply

    I built a route on my computer and am travelling from point A to point B. How do I reverse the route for my return trip? E.G. Form B to A.
    Thaks for any help.
    Travel light go far
    Dean
    • frankkinlan | October 17, 2011 at 8:31 am | Reply

      Hi Dean, go into Where To from the Menu Screen and you’ll see Back To Start, that should do it.
      • Dean | October 31, 2011 at 7:01 pm | Reply

        When running a route if I go to (Where To) I only have one option.
        (Stop Course). All the options are no longer there when running a route.
        After stopping the route I want to back track then I see the options of Locations, Back to Start, Coodinates All points and so on.
        If i am going East to west on a route, and then want to return on the same route but on reverse I get one option (Stop Route).
        Thanks for the help but it is not that easy an answer.
        I believe itis something that was missed with the 800 Edge.
        I can reverse my route on my Etrex CX but not the edge.
        Travel light go far
        Dean
41. Jack | October 24, 2011 at 9:15 pm | Reply

    Hello to all. I decided to purchase an Edge 800 but was tormented by the many bundles on offer and simply became confused.com. I then discovered this blog and feel I must congratulate you all on turning night into day and making ownership a pleasure and not a chore.

    I decided on the perfomance bundle with the UK OS 1:50k as I both road and MTB. I am 50 yrs old, but feel like a small boy waiting for his favourite to arrive, as I really am that excited. I also take solace in the fact that should I have a drama, I simply need to ask on here, as the level of subject matter experts is astounding.

    I tip my cap to you all.
    Kind Regards
    Jack
    • frankkinlan | October 25, 2011 at 8:07 pm | Reply

      Thanks Jack, been running the site for a few years now a lot of the traffic is Garmin related but the other pages still get a look in.
      Regards,
      Frank.
42. Desiree | October 26, 2011 at 7:31 pm | Reply

    I got the edge 800 as a present to help me finding my way around now I’m riding further then the area I know well. I’ve used a routeplanner for bikes to make several courses and loaded them into the Garmin. I’ve used it a few times and after some learning it is working correctly now.
    But…
    The names of the courses all start with the general direction and then the kilometers. I thought that they would be sorted alfabetically, making it easy to select a course going in the direction I want to go.
    However, this is not so. It is sorted on the distance from the starting point and this is a bit different each course because the routeplanner doesn’t know my house/streetno. Is there a way to get all my courses sorted alfabetically?
43. Jack | October 27, 2011 at 5:41 pm | Reply

    so my Edge 800 arrived and because I had been trolling on here it took me no time at all to get it set up. I managed to create a course and download it onto my device and then download from my device back onto my Garmin account.

    What a fantastic bit of kit and worth every penny IMO. It will certainly keep me entertained and help me train for my JOGLE in June 2012.

    Fantastic Blog Frank your a Legend………
44. Dan | October 31, 2011 at 7:22 pm | Reply

    Frank,
    Are there sites where one can download training programs that other people/trainers have already created for the Edge800? I’m not that creative in my workouts and I was hoping that someone would have already created workouts so I didn’t have to! Thanks.
    • frankkinlan | November 1, 2011 at 3:32 pm | Reply

      Dan, try TrainingPeaks. They are not that hard to generate, I made one that just showed Heartrate and Calories for spinning classes. I only know 1 person that has actually used the Training side of ANY Edge.
45. RickS | November 20, 2011 at 1:20 am | Reply

    For those considering a screen protector, take a look at the ones from atfolix (@folix). They have both clear and non-reflective (no fingerprints!) versions . It fits well and does not effect the touch screen operation, even while wearing full finger gloves. I have only had it installed for a couple of rides, but I will update and provide additional comments as necessary. It’s less expensive then other I have seen – $5.59, £3.59, or €4.11+ shipping from amazon. It ships direct from Germany – 5 days from order to receipt in Virginia, USA. I have no connection with the company or amazon.

    Rick
46. RickS | November 26, 2011 at 9:57 pm | Reply

    Frank
    I just discovered that unit software version 2.4 is available:
    http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=5237#Instruct
    Ride safe.
    Rick
    • frankkinlan | November 28, 2011 at 10:44 pm | Reply

      Thanks Rick, I’ve just upgraded.
      Will have to do a test ride ASAP.
      Regards,
      Frank.
47. Chris | December 8, 2011 at 10:38 am | Reply

    Hi there,
    I have had the edge 800 bought as a birthday present, and what I want to use it for is, downloading routes onto the device for me to follow. Do I have to buy extra software/maps for this..? I have tried to download routes but have been unable to do this..? If anyone can tell me how to do this and where from would be much appreciated, as you can tell I am a total beginner with this device

    Thanks
    Chris
    thanks
    Chris
    • frankkinlan | December 8, 2011 at 1:16 pm | Reply

      Hi Cris,
      you really need a plugin map such as City Navigator or the OS map,they are normally bundled with the 800 at a good price. The OSM maps are free but best suited to a user with at least some experience. The basemap that is built into the 800 is really basic and is not suitable for cycling.
      You can now plan Courses on GarminConnect.com, which is where you save your ride. You can also plan ride in the web bases sites I’ve listed on the side of the page. You should be able to ride a saved Course without a map but there would be no detail to look at.
      It’s a steep learning curve initially but worth it in the end.
      Start by going out and just saving a ride or two and uploading them to GarminConnect, just seeing where you have been on the map means your halfway there to downloading a Course into your 800.
      Hope this helps,
      Regards,
      Frank.
48. Chris | December 8, 2011 at 2:08 pm | Reply

    HI Frank,
    Thanks for the reply, I do a lot of mountain biking, trails etc and been out with the edge a few times now and saved my routes but as you say there is no detail on screen. The wife just bought me the edge with no additional bundles, i have seen some reviews on the GB Discoverer wondered if this is any good, I just want some kind of map so i can see where I am on the trails and also plot my own on them or download others.
    Thanks again
    chris
    • frankkinlan | December 9, 2011 at 8:28 pm | Reply

      Chris, try this link below it’s the IOM and it’s free.

      http://www.garmin.com/uk/maps/isle-of-man-map

      I don’t think your going to see trails on a 1:50,000 map and the 1:25,000 are generally of the national parks.
      You can make your own maps and there is a section on GarminConnect forums for it.Dave has done one for Llandegla MTB center using a pdf of the trail guide. It does need a fair bit of experience to get to that level.

      I’m using the free map at the moment as it includes all the NCR routes.
      GB Discoverer 1:50000 is about £50 as part of a bundle but a lot more separate.

      Plotting Routes offroad is a bit more involved as there is no road to automatically route to and has to be done manually. It can be done though.
      You can always save your rides as a Course for others to ride again.

      Regards,
      Frank.
49. Alejandro | December 16, 2011 at 1:33 pm | Reply

    I am a new owner of a Garmin edge 800.
    I only have maps from USA since I bought there. I am from Chile and I need maps from Chile.
    A friend of mine told me that now you can load the maps from google
    Does anybody know how to do it or what are the alternative.
    thanks for your patience
    Alejandro Bañados
    • frankkinlan | December 18, 2011 at 6:05 pm | Reply

      Hi Alejando,
      apart from buying a card off Garmin the only other option is to download the free maps from

      http://www.openstreetmap.org/

      I use the UK version of the OSM maps and they work fine.
      Santiago looks well catered for from what I can see.
      The Basemap in the 800 will be of no use to you.
50. Alejandro | December 20, 2011 at 4:29 pm | Reply

    is it possible to load maps from google into the Garmin 800.
    I am in Chile and the maps they sell here are not so good.
51. Sarah | December 28, 2011 at 11:41 pm | Reply

    Hi
    On your recommendation, I have just created a route which I want to export to my Garmin Edge 800.But when I click on export (gpx) it automatically brings up memory maps – which I would have to buy to use. Can you explain how I can do this without using memory maps (my Garmin has the full bundle of maps). i used to use Google maps then convert using googlemap cue sheet but for some reason I am not able to do this any more.
    Many thanks
    Sarah
    • frankkinlan | December 29, 2011 at 2:46 pm | Reply

      Hi Sarah,
      it looks like Google has associated .gpx with MemoryMap and not Garmin and GarminConnect. Try saving a GarminConnect ride as a Course on your 800.
      Use one of the Courseplanning websites and not Google Maps. They are optimised for for the Edge series and you should get CoursePoints telling you which way to turn.
      A GoogleMap cue sheet is not the best thing in the world.
      Let me know how you get on.
      Regards,
      Frank.
52. Sarah | December 29, 2011 at 4:21 pm | Reply

    Thanks. I tried finding a course on Garmin Connect but it doesn’t seem to want to give me one! (I just get the loading button whirring round for ever).
    I have created a route on Ride with GPS but when it comes to exporting, nothing happens. Any other way to get a route on my lovely Garmin? (which, funnily enough, worked perfectly in the summer riding through France! )
    I am feeling frustrated and incompetent – but very grateful for your help!
    Sarah
53. Certified Honda repair shop | December 29, 2011 at 4:45 pm | Reply

    Wow, superb weblog structure! How lengthy have you ever been running a blog for? you made blogging look easy. The full look of your web site is wonderful, let alone the content material!
54. Anonymous | December 30, 2011 at 11:47 am | Reply

    What a lot of time trying to sort out a simple problem! Well, I have managed to export a course from Garmin Connect, but still having problems with RWGPS. When clicked on “export” GPX -or any of the others- a pop up window appears saying that it cannot open the file. I have already downloaded the communicator plug in so don’t know where to go next. Still waiting to hear from RWGPS…
    I have re-read manual from Garmin but no help there. I have promised to lead a ride so would love the confidence of knowing that the Garmin will help me out!
    Sarah
    • frankkinlan | December 30, 2011 at 2:26 pm | Reply

      RWGPS doesn’t save using GarminCommunicator you have to do a file transfer to the 800. There is/was a guide on the site but I haven’t used it for a while.
55. Sarah | December 30, 2011 at 5:39 pm | Reply

    Yes! I have finally cracked it! Created a route, exported it and then followed it. 100% successful and many thanks to Frank!
    The trick was to manually put the saved file from downloads to my Garmin device – simple really, when you know how!
    • frankkinlan | December 30, 2011 at 9:30 pm | Reply

      Glad it worked out in the end, it’s a steep learning curve but rewarding in the end. I’ll alter the Dummies Guide as it’s evolving all the time.
      Regards,
      Frank.
    • Howard | December 31, 2011 at 5:53 pm | Reply

      I just got the 800, my first bike gps, and this site is a great resource for figuring things out. I’ve been using rwgps for a couple of years, and just became a premium member for various reasons. One of the choices offered to premium members is downloading a route to the gps using what they call “garmin write.” Connect your garmin to your computer, view your route on rwgps, click on garmin write and your route is loaded to your garmin instantaneously. I lead a lot of rides for my bike club and being able to do this easily and quickly is fantastic.
      • frankkinlan | December 31, 2011 at 7:15 pm | Reply

        Thanks for that Howard, I’ll have another look but first time users find it difficult when other sites are using GarminCommunicator to do the same thing.
56. Chris | December 31, 2011 at 1:00 am | Reply

    Hi, very helpful blog. Was curious is it possible to display average moving speed on your screens? I cant find an option for this . It does show once file is uploaded to garmin connect but i defo cant see it on the deivce.

    Thanks in advance
    • frankkinlan | December 31, 2011 at 6:47 pm | Reply

      Hi Chris, here goes Wrench Icon / Training pages/ Timer then User Defined you should see 5 pages. Page 1 (mine has 10 boxes)
      Select Green tick box.
      Scroll down to Speed and select Average
      The same goes for any data you want to change.
      Altering displays really comes into it’s own when you start to ride a Course.

      I’ll post this reply to the page for others to see.
      Regards,
      Frank.
57. Nick | January 1, 2012 at 2:46 pm | Reply

    Hi Frank..Hope you had a happy New Year.
    I have an Edge 705 which my son wants to use. Never had a problem with it ..perhaps I am lucky!!
    This leaves me to buy the 800. At the moment I have copied my City Navigator maps (installed on my PC),to the micro disk in the 705. To create a new course all I do is make the new course on the PC and copy it as a gpx to the 705 and we are away. In short does this work with the 800??
    • frankkinlan | January 1, 2012 at 9:12 pm | Reply

      Hi Nick, as long as you have GarminCommunicator installed you shouldn’t have a problem. The file format is a little different, if you’ve the option use .tcx , gpx is fine though.
      Regards,
      Frank.
58. Kate Bryson | January 2, 2012 at 8:26 pm | Reply

    H-E-L-P I got a lovely Garmin Edge 800 for Christmas…..thing is I can’t get any maps – apart from the base one that’s already on it. Reading this site it seems it should have been bought with ‘a bundle’ and I need a ‘micro SD’ card to get them…. why can’t I just plug it in and get going? The ‘quick start’ manual makes no mention on any of this… why? is it some kind of secret? Can someone explain in very simple terms (I’m not very good at technical stuff) what on earth I have to do?
    thank you Kate
    • frankkinlan | January 4, 2012 at 9:11 pm | Reply

      Hi Kate, you can buy a map on a micro SD card from Garmin but it is cheaper if you buy it with the 800. You just plug it in and your ready to go.
      You’ve bought a complex piece of kit with a list of functions for a manual with still no guide on how to use the thing.
      If you can try the mappomatic link someone is supplying the FREE OSM maps that I use on a micro SD card for about £17 at last look.
      If you can follow the instructions it’s just the price of a 2gb card.
      Regards,
      Frank.
59. Raminder | January 3, 2012 at 12:10 am | Reply

    Hi Frank. Thanks for a great site.

    I shall be grateful for some advice. I live in Rossett between Wrexham and Chester. It seems you are local to me.

    I am looking at buying the Edge 800. My main reason is for navigation purposes. I want to be able to upload routes in the UK and then be able to ride those routes without getting lost.

    I would also like to get into competitive cycling therefore need the heart monitor and cadence device.

    Will the Performance bundle be sufficient? Could I supplement this with a mapomatic free download map or do I have to buy the costlier City navigator bundle if I want good navigation and route uploads?

    Do you know where I can get a good deal on the Edge 800?
60. frankkinlan | January 4, 2012 at 10:00 pm | Reply

    Hi Raminder,
    your in a better position than most Edge 800 buyers in that you’ve asked about the maps before the purchase.
    If your going to ride in Europe at any stage in the next couple of years it has to be a European NT map bundle with all the add ons, HRM and Cad.
    UK only, OS map bundle as it looks like an OS map but with NT GB underneath it.

    Wait until you understand it more before going for the free OSM maps.

    As for a deal you could try 3 local bikeshops, Vita Cycles, Eureka Cycles and the BikeFactory. If pushed they can get damn near to internet prices but you have to ask. 10% Discount min (for a clubrider)if you ask for it.

    I’ve had the gangleon op, great site, I’ll give you a link.

    Regards,
    Frank.
    • Raminder | January 6, 2012 at 11:38 pm | Reply

      Thanks Frank. I’ve bought the Maps and performance bundle as advised. Your site was a great help in deciding to go for the maps. I too mistakenly thought the base map would be OK – nearly bought just the performance bundle. Keep up the good work.
      I hope your ganglion op went well.
      I can get to meet a lot of friendly cyclists whose broken bones (mostly collar bones) I have had to fix with plate and screws.
      Take care.
      Raminder
61. Jim Mihalick | January 4, 2012 at 10:27 pm | Reply

    I have read through this, and I sure wished I had read it when I first bought my 800. Very informative. I was wondering the best way to extend the battery life of the 800. It has lasted me about 12 hours at the longest. I am going to do a double century where I will need to have about 15-17 hours. Is there any extra battery pack or what do you suggest?
    • frankkinlan | January 5, 2012 at 10:20 am | Reply

      Hi Jim,
      thanks for the comment. There is an external powerpack it looks like a re-branded Power Monkey product.
      https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=69043
      It’s an easier option to charge on the move with the 800 as the port is rear facing.
      It was a tight squeeze against an oversized stem on the 705.
      I’ve played around with various home brew battery packs since the 305.
      One thing to bear in mind is that charging is not instantaneous, the battery pack needs to be secure on the bar,stem or top tube.
      Been there done that and had the battery pack bouncing down the road on a 200km Audax.
      Regards,
      Frank.
62. Bobbzilla | January 7, 2012 at 10:23 pm | Reply

    Hi, I love the site. Great ammounts of informatiom here. I received a gpx file from a local rider who has all of the “private trails” marked on it. I am trying to create a route based on some of his GPX file, and get it into my garmin 800 as a course. I have tried with bascamp with no luck.

    I do have the garmin map for my area purchased if that helps

    Any help is appreciated.
    • frankkinlan | January 8, 2012 at 8:40 am | Reply

      Hi Bobzilla, Garminconnect will allow you to import a .gpx file. TrainingCentre is computer based and seems to have fallen out of favour compared to web based sites but is good for comparing rides. Try some of the web based route planning sites, Garmin are sadly lacking when it comes to course planning and it’s getting beyond a joke now.
      For offroad or MTB courses things are a bit different as it quite hard to plan a Course offroad and it tends to be a previous ridden ride.
      You could always start off by saving some of your History as a Course, you can do this from the 800 screen.
      Regards,
      Frank.
63. Pete | January 9, 2012 at 10:06 pm | Reply

    Hi, Edge 800 Newbie question if I may – I was out for a ride for the first time in months at the weekend where I was deservedly dropped in the middle of nowhere. I had my new edge with me so I thought I would just use the “Where To” feature to take me to the village where I knew the group were heading for a cafe. The problem was, all I knew was the name of the village. Not the address, coordinates, the nearest town or it’s Post Code. For the life of me I couldn’t find a way to use the edge to say, please take me to this village. The feature doesn’t appear to let you just search for names of “villages”. Please can anyone tell me how is this done?
    • frankkinlan | January 10, 2012 at 6:19 pm | Reply

      Hi Pete,
      You won’t see any POI’s at all if your still on the basemap. Even the free OSM maps have thousands of POI,s.
      One method is to go on to the map screen, scroll around the map until you find where you want to go and mark it with the red pin.
      I’ve a couple of locations marked like this but never got around to Navigating to them. I’ll try adding a new one, but I’m not sure if my OSM map is routable. A routable map should give you turn directions just like a normal Car GPS.
      It’s a good point and wants adding to the guide.
      Regards,
      Frank.
64. Rob | January 10, 2012 at 1:31 pm | Reply

    Frank,
    A quick question, regarding the 800. I currently have a 205, with a bike mount for it on each of my bikes. Obviously this allows me to transfer the 205 to whichever bike I want to use.

    Does the 800 have the same mount? I think 305s fitted the 205 mount, is the 800 the same? These mounts are unreasonably expensive.

    Thanks

    Rob
    • frankkinlan | January 10, 2012 at 5:38 pm | Reply

      Hi Rob, It’s a different mount but not prone to breaking like the old mount.
      It was first used on the Garmin Edge 500 and use O rings rather than cable or zip ties.

      No problem,

      Frank.
65. Paul | January 10, 2012 at 8:09 pm | Reply

    HI,

    Great page for any newbie purchasing this excellent product. Following your clear instructions had me up and running in no time.

    Interesting problem discovered today. Was out for a ride with the missus who has a 705 with HM monitor and cadence sensor. When I rode within range of her devices they were discovered by my 800. Had similar experiences with my 705 but never caused a problem if I didn’t accept the option to pair the (other person’s) devices. With my 800 it seems to interfere with the data reporting. The speed was way down at 3-4 mph and after riding 10 miles only 2 miles showed up in the distance. Soon as I am out of range the dat reports correctly. I have yet to pair my unit with my own HRM and Cadence senor (awaiting delivery of new ones).

    Any ideas?

    Cheers and keep up the good work.
    • frankkinlan | January 10, 2012 at 9:14 pm | Reply

      Hi Paul, I’ve had a similar problem but it was with my own Cadence sensor. New batteries didn’t seem to cure it but I’ve updated the software since then. Heard a story about a Powertap hub sending a Ant+ turbo trainer crazy too. Dataloss was driving me nuts at the time, I’ll investigate.
      Interestingly there is no Course transfer facility on the 800, or not that I have found.
      No Waypoints either.
      Regards,
      Frank.

66. Pingback: Garmin Edge 800 - Page 2 - London Fixed-gear and Single-speed

67. NICK BARNARD | January 14, 2012 at 12:24 pm | Reply

    EDGE 800 Looses its Bike wheel size custom settings.
    Every time after i connect my Edge 800 to my Mac to download exercises the wheel size of all the bikes change to ridiculously large number resulting in speed reports on the Edge saying that I am doing 240KPH on my road bike.
    How can I stop this from happening?

    Nick B.
    • frankkinlan | January 15, 2012 at 9:41 pm | Reply

      Hi Nick,
      I was hoping for another Mac user to jump in as I don’t have a Mac.
      I’ve just been out on a ride on another bike but with the cadence sensor well set up. It went well.
      Wheel size is Automatic and I’m on the V2.40 software as I had problems with 2.20.

      Give Nick some help here if you can.
      Regards,
      Frank.
    • RickS | January 17, 2012 at 4:32 am | Reply

      Nick,
      Are you transferring a ride recorded on the 800 to the mac? Or are you transferring a route that you created on one of the route maker websites to the 800?

      Rick S
      • Anonymous | January 17, 2012 at 5:10 am | Reply

        I only use the 800 to record training sessions, so I am transferring a ride which has been recorded.The wheel circumference did not change when I transferred my last ride, so perhaps it is intermittent or there is something else causing the wheel circumference to change?
        • RickS | January 17, 2012 at 10:05 pm |

          Nick,
          I don’t have an answer to your specific problem. I have experienced some changed settings on the 800 after uploading rides directly to GTC. However, my Mac is somewhat long in the tooth, and cannot run the most recent versions of OSX or GTC which I think is part of my problem. I have not experienced any changes to the 800 settings after uploading rides to Garmin Connect. If you want to use GTC for your training rides, you can save uploaded GC rides as a GTX or TCX file and import the saved file into GTC.

          Rick
68. Len | January 16, 2012 at 1:21 pm | Reply

    Hi Frank
    Just got this at the weekend and I’ve managed to use the Edge 800 just to record my route and then I’ve uploaded the info to Garmin Connect. However, I have the OS navigation bundle as I do alot of mtb rides but have noticed that when the info is uploaded it only shows a road map and not the OS route. How (or is it possible) do I see my route off-road?
    Cheers
    Len
    • frankkinlan | January 16, 2012 at 4:21 pm | Reply

      Hi Len,
      click on “satellite” view. there is also a terrain option which is similar to OS.
      Some of the other Course planning sites allow other mapping modes such as OS maps.
      Regards,
      Frank.
69. Colin Ritchie | January 23, 2012 at 4:43 pm | Reply

    I have the 750 and one annoying limitation of thast device is that you can store as many courses as you wish on it but you can only actually see the first 49. Does the 800 have the same limitation?
70. Jim | January 27, 2012 at 6:38 pm | Reply

    This unit is driving me to distraction. I have drawn out a dozen or so routes in Garmin connect, RWGPS & Map my ride, and sometimes – and it doesn’t matter which site, nor type of file – only sometimes do I get clear turn instructions on the unit. The rest of the time it just shows where I am, and that’s about as useful as a chocolate fireguard. I’ve also tried all the solutions on this most useful site, set turn guidance to on, off course warnings on, and even spoken to Garmin support. Apparently though I have a cadence rate of 177, which isn’t bad for a 56 year old, although I suspect there’s something wrong there too, because I only do about 12mph!
    My advice it to avoid this unit until Garmin sort themselves out with some proper instructions.
71. mendip5000 | January 29, 2012 at 11:44 am | Reply

    Frank – great work here; thanks on behalf of all of us.

    I’m able to get my Edge 800 to most of what I want it to. I have quite a few activities stored. I notice that they are on the device, not on the 4Gbcard. Do you know when the device will chose to use the card?

    I ask because it takes a long time for me to use the “Upload new activities” option on Garmin Connect – I assume this is because there are lots to look at now. Is the easy answer just to take the old ones off and store them on a PC for archive purposes?

    Jim – just been on a 70 mile road rise with turn by turn Nav from the device – I used Courses part of Carmin Connect – worked a treat.
72. Grant | January 30, 2012 at 6:20 am | Reply

    Hi Frank,
    I have been creating waypoints in basecamp with a proximity alert on them and then copied them into the route i have made in basecamp as well. After selecting “send to” I have sent it to my edge 800 unit. The course is listed on the unit and navigates well with the turn points etc but none of the custom waypoints display and none of the proximity alerts work. Any ideas.
    By the way, great site with heaps of useful info. Cheers Grant
73. Philippe | February 7, 2012 at 8:02 am | Reply

    Hi Frank,
    Same problem here.
    I have a file with courses and waypoints.
    I can see the courses on the EDGE, but no waypoints, although these waypoints are loaded onto the EDGE 800 as they are shown one by one when selected in the locations list.
    • frankkinlan | February 7, 2012 at 10:21 pm | Reply

      Hi Philippe,
      as far as I know there are No waypoints on a Garmin Edge 800, I don’t know why as they date back to the earliest devices.
      Coursepoints which should be unlimited seem to get truncated and screw up with turn directions on the long ride.
      .TCX format is not the be and endall of Garmin formats. It is an unresolved matter, until we complain nothing will be done.
74. Rich | February 13, 2012 at 9:42 pm | Reply

    Hi, whenever i approach a change in direction on my route the garmin changes the display view to a more zoomed out view and gives me excess directions that i dont need and says i need to tap the screen to go back, do you know how to switch this off? its really annoying.

    Cheers
75. GRAHAM KEW | February 18, 2012 at 5:50 pm | Reply

    Hi, My Edge 8 seems to have lost the ability to search via postcode. This was a handy extra when using the Edge for car journeys. Used to be able to search for shops and POI but these seem to have disappeared as well. No problems locating satellites – so not a GPS satellite problem, just looks like some of the menu under ‘Where To’ have vanished! Any help gratefully appreciated. Graham

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