New to Zumo XT and soooo many questions

[Florida Red Wing]

WOW! This whole thing of getting used to using a new Zumo XT and Basecamp sure is a challenge for a 75 year old that is accustomed to using a Zumo 550 with Mapsource.

1. I've got enough understanding of Basecamp that I can now plan a route and transfer it to my gps by plugging the Zumo into my pc. I have read about loading routes using my cell phone, but I'm having difficulty understanding where to put my routes so they show up when I open the "Drive" app on my phone. If someone can beat that into my hard head I would appreciate it.

2. I am trying to connect all the following by way of Bluetooth and I'm struggling to get everything connected at the same time. What's possible and what's not possible.
A. Zumo to my Sena Freewire. (This is important to me because it's the only way I have found to get the CB radio into the headset and remain wireless)
B. Zumo to my Samsung S22+ (I'm assuming the phone has to connect to my Sena S20 EVO and not the Freewire.) But if that's the case I won't be able to get traffic and weather information from the phone to the Zumo and the Zumo screen won't alert me to phone calls and/or text messages. Or, can I Bluetooth the phone to both the Freewire and the S20 EVO at the same time?

I appreciate any and all help y'all can give me.

[Peobody]

1. I've got enough understanding of Basecamp that I can now plan a route and transfer it to my gps by plugging the Zumo into my pc. I have read about loading routes using my cell phone, but I'm having difficulty understanding where to put my routes so they show up when I open the "Drive" app on my phone. If someone can beat that into my hard head I would appreciate it

IIRC...
In Basecamp, save the route to your HD as a .gpx file.
Attach that .gpx file to an email that you can get with your phone.
Share the attachment with the Drive app.
When the XT next connects to the Drive app it will see to route and offer to import it.
I also had success putting the .gpx file on iCloud, accessing it with the phone, and then sharing it with the Drive app.

Note: My phone is an iPhone. The share step may be different on your phone

FWIW, I use the cable because I find it easier. I often create a track of my routes and transfer them to the XT as well. I don't know if the above processes work for tracks. The cable also give me the flexibility of saving routes and tracks on the SD card instead of on internal storage. These are rides that I plan to enjoy in the future but don't need them imported immediately.

Regarding Bluetooth connections, my iPhone and my Cardo headset are connected to the XT. My iPhone is not connected to the Cardo. One thing I can tell you is that the spoken navigation and alerts from the XT overrides any headset to headset communication. This is regardless of the priority set in the Cardo. I now turn off spoken navigation when riding two-up or with a group. I suspect that CB communication will be susceptible to this XT dominance issue. Hopefully someone who has experience with a BT device like the Freewire will provide firsthand advice.

[jfheath]

FWIW, I use the cable because I find it easier. I often create a track of my routes and transfer them to the XT as well. I don't know if the above processes work for tracks. The cable also give me the flexibility of saving routes and tracks on the SD card instead of on internal storage. These are rides that I plan to enjoy in the future but don't need them imported immediately.

For someone like @Florida Red Wing this method is probably the easiest to adopt. It is almost identical to how Mapsource worked with the Zumo 550.

And yes- the tracks are transferred in the same way - and possibly att he same time.

One gotcha with the XT which is different from the 550.

If you transfer to internal storage, the transferred files are not cumulative - they do not build up. - ie you cannot transfer half a dozen, come back the next day and transfer 10 more and expect to have 16 routes in there to import. The original half dozen will be overwritten. They will remain in the Zumo if you have already imported them, but they will not be there to reimport after transferring the next 10.

Its OK to send 6, then send 10 if you keep the cable connected to the computer.

So the best thing to do is either.
Transfer everything that you want to keep in the Zumo while you have the cable connected. Even if you have transferred it before.
Or
Transfer them to the SD card instead. That always works but can create other smaller issues. I prefer the first method.

You don't have to set up Bluetooth, Drive or phone call communication if you do not want to. It works perfectly well as a stanav without doing any of those things. The BT adds a little more functionality.

[jacksonspop312]

Hello and new to the group and the Zumo XT.
After reading this thread, it is possible to transfer saved places and routes I have in Basecamp to the XT using the supplied USB cable instead of what seems like a more complicated process of saving each as a gpx file and sending it in an email to my iphone.
I like things as simple as possible.
Bill

[TripleThreat719]

Transferring tracks via a cable led to a great deal of frustration for me because of the differences in the way in which the XT works over previous Garmin devices. While the physical act of transferring a gpx file via a cable it is the same as other devices, the results are far different.

My greatest frustration with the XT, when I purchased it, was the fact that when transferring a track to the unit, none of the waypoints and custom icons for those waypoints would display with the track (even if you selected to transfer Waypoints when sending the GPX file to the unit). That is totally different behavior than any other Garmin device I have ever owned. My GPS60csx and my Zumo 660 would all display those waypoints and custom icons whenever you made the particular Track visible.

The XT requires the use of Garmin Explore in App form on my phone, and an online Garmin Explore account, along with Garmin Drive in order for me to be able to display custom icons and waypoints when a Track is active on the screen (actually, only when the whole "Collection", which contains all the waypoints and the track, is visible. (transferring gpx files wirelessly is a whole different topic)

Once I learned that "feature" of the XT, I actually like it. Some people don't... YMMV

I arrange all of my tracks in collections, and usually also convert all of my tracks to "Trips" so that I have turn-by-turn spoken directions whenever following the Trip. I simultaneously display the "Collection" so that the original Track is visible on the screen while following the "Trip" that I created from the "Track". By doing this, I am able to tell if the "Trip" varies from the original "Track" very easily.

I think it would have been simpler, and far more intuitive, had Garmin left things the way they were and left it so that if you transferred a track that had waypoints in it, that when you displayed that track, those associated waypoints also appeared on the screen.

Also, to date, I haven't found a way to display a label with a waypoint, only the icon. It would be nice if the label could be displayed.

[jfheath]

Hello and new to the group and the Zumo XT.
After reading this thread, it is possible to transfer saved places and routes I have in Basecamp to the XT using the supplied USB cable instead of what seems like a more complicated process of saving each as a gpx file and sending it in an email to my iphone.
I like things as simple as possible.
Bill

Hello and Welcome from West Yorkshire, UK

Yes. Quick answer is to transfer them all to the SD card into the GPX folder. If there isn't one there already, make one. Capitals GPX.

It isn't entirely problem free, but it gets the job done. Saved Waypoints do not appear automatically on the XT, but they can be imported into FAvourites. The bonus is that you can delete them fromt he XT screen and reimport them as you wish. Ditto the routes.

One problem is that you must have one Favourite / Saved place saved in internal storage - otherwise the XT will not find the ones that you have on the memory card. Yeah - don't ask.
To put one into the internal storage if there isn't one there already - tap the map. To get a blue flag. If it doesn't appear, tap the map again. Save whatever point you have put there. Give it a name - Dummy for example. That will enable you to import your SD card waypoints to Favourites/Saved.

There is mention in the previous post about Garmin Explore. You do not need to set this up if you don't wish to. That uses Waypoints / Favourites in a very different way when it is set up.
See section 7a of my notes on the XT - main index here. viewtopic.php?t=1464

[jacksonspop312]

Thanks for the responses. I was able to transfer my 'favorites' to the XT with the usb connection. I have another question that maybe someone knows the answer to. I have a Zumo 395 with all of my saved favorites and routes on the sd card that's in the 395. If I put that card into the XT, will the XT be able to use data on that card?
Thanks,
Bill

[jfheath]

Yes.

[lkraus]

One problem is that you must have one Favourite / Saved place saved in internal storage - otherwise the XT will not find the ones that you have on the memory card. Yeah - don't ask.
To put one into the internal storage if there isn't one there already - tap the map. To get a blue flag. If it doesn't appear, tap the map again. Save whatever point you have put there. Give it a name - Dummy for example. That will enable you to import your SD card waypoints to Favourites/Saved.

I picked a very distant location for my "Dummy"point, further away than I will ever go, and named it "Never Delete". The Favorites (Saved) list is sorted by distance, so the dummy is always out of the way at the bottom of the list.

[colirv]

Heh. I use the opposite approach. Home is always closest, so when deleting I tick "Everything" then untick Home.