HP Mini 10 laptop, DeLorme Street Atlas, and a motorcycle!

What do any of you think about a mini laptop running DeLorme Street Atlas 2009 attached to the top of the fuel tank on a touring motorcycle? The mini laptop is about 300 dollars US as opposed to the self contained GPS units that are very expensive for motorcycle use, about $600. Just a thought!

You have to factor in the cost of the navigation software and a GPS dongle. I don't think the Mini 10 with GPS is $300 but I could be mistaken. The standalone GPS units for a motorcycle would be more rugged, waterproof and sunlight readable. I am not a rider but think a tank mount netbook would be awkward to see as well.

Terry

Hey Bill,

You don't need to spend $600 for GPS for a bike. If you're willing to risk a $350 netbook on the tank, you should be even more comfortable with a $200 Garmin Nuvi type of nav device mounted on the bars or inside of the fairing. The Nuvi (TomTom, whatever) type of GPS would be quicker and easier to shove inside something when the rain starts. And it's lots cheaper if you manage to destroy it.

I have a Garmin Legend HCx that I use in a handlebar mount on my mountain bike (the sort with pedals ... uggghh). My buddy uses the same GPS and mount on his BMW 650GS and also on his RS. It's rugged and weatherproof and small enough to stuff in a pocket when you go walkabout.

If you want a computer thingy for the bike, you might consider the Viliv S5 or if that's too small you could see if you could find a small tablet style laptop. The ideal thing would be something that would fit inside the transparent map case on the top of a tank bag .. you know, the place where we used to put the real maps?

...ken...

Thank you all for the quick response. I was sort of going toward the lesser expensive Nuvi or something along those lines but knew that there would be some good advice in this forum. I would need to run an accessory fused 12 volt line for the exclusive use of the GPS unit. There are Nuvi's etc available at Wally-World in the 200 dollar range. When my wife and I travel in our truck, I use an older HP laptop with SA2009 but was just interested in a unit for my motorcycle.

Here's something inspirational: A Biker Uses His Ultra-Mobile PC For GPS Navigation