Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Having Garmin zumo XT problems? there is loads of help and advice in this forum
Post Reply
seamanstaynes
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Sep 30, 2021 7:57 am
Has liked: 4 times
Great Britain

Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by seamanstaynes »

Hello
I am looking to upgrade from my Tomtom Rider 410 to a Garmin Zumo XT or a TomTom Rider 550 with world .maps. From what I've read, the Zumo XT is an excellent device but would value feedback from anyone who has done the same. Any regrets from switching systems? Another question is can I use alternative maps such as Open Street Maps on the Zumo. I am looking to travel to Turkey, Iran and the Caucasus in the near future. The ability to do this would be a deciding factor.
Any advice would be gratefully received. Thanks!
jfheath
Posts: 2808
Joined: Sat Oct 19, 2019 4:17 pm
Location: West Yorkshire, Uk
Has liked: 369 times
Been liked: 781 times
Great Britain

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by jfheath »

No regrets - not now, but I had very mixed feelings when I first bought it.

As always - it is a steep learning curve, but once you get to know its foibles, it does exactly what you want.

OSM maps - Ive installed those, but they do not have any speed limit info, so calculating time of arrival is always very wrong.

But the website for creating OSM maps has been suffering recently. Last time I tried (about a month ago) it reported that it would take over a year to produce the maps that I wanted. Someone may have another site where these can be created.
Have owned Zumo 550, 660 == Now have Zumo XT2, XT, 595, 590, Headache
Use Basecamp (mainly), MyRouteApp (sometimes), Competent with Tread for XT2, Can use Explore for XT - but it offers nothing that I want !

Links: Zumo 590/5 & BC . . . Zumo XT & BC
electro_handyman
Posts: 151
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2018 11:47 am
Location: Iowa
Has liked: 1 time
Been liked: 33 times
United States of America

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by electro_handyman »

I've also used OSM maps on my XT(as an experiment....) and while they can(but not always) be more accurate than the Garmin provided maps when it comes to roads and other geographical details(ie bike trails, attractions, etc...) the OSM still are lacking in other database background info.
Like Jfheath mentioned, the speed limit data isn't there.
The 'search by address' data is mostly non-existent as well so you have to route by stored favorite points or you have to make your route using your destinations LAT/LONG information.
Even despite the drawbacks, I think OSM maps are still a decent viable alternative to purchased maps.
I still use them in my sp2820, and have them for my 550 when Garmin drops the lifetime map updates for it.
seamanstaynes
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Sep 30, 2021 7:57 am
Has liked: 4 times
Great Britain

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by seamanstaynes »

Thank you for the great feedback! Currently I use an app called Kurviger Pro to plan my routes on my phone and then upload the gpx file to the GPS unit. As the Kurviger uses OSM and I can easily download all the world maps, I thought integrating the system would make more sense. I wasn't aware of the lack of road speed info as the TomTom had taken care of that!
sussamb
Posts: 1799
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2018 1:06 pm
Has liked: 343 times
Been liked: 368 times
Great Britain

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by sussamb »

Should you go down the route of installing an OSM map just be aware that if you have it and the Garmin map selected at the same time you will get very unexpected results, assuming the maps cover the same area, so ensure only one or the other is selected but not both.
HarveyM
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri May 04, 2018 11:18 am
Has liked: 10 times
Been liked: 9 times
Canada

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by HarveyM »

You can find a list of websites supplying Garmin compatible Open Street Maps here:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/OSM ... n/Download

some of them ask for money, others not. Plus the tools for creating your own from OSM are available.
seamanstaynes
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Sep 30, 2021 7:57 am
Has liked: 4 times
Great Britain

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by seamanstaynes »

Thank you.
User avatar
Aushiker
Posts: 14
Joined: Sun Jan 22, 2023 1:18 am
Location: Western Australia
Has liked: 14 times
Been liked: 1 time
Contact:
New Zealand

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by Aushiker »

Bumping an old thread but I have found https://www.openandromaps.org/en/downloads good for map downloads.
jfheath
Posts: 2808
Joined: Sat Oct 19, 2019 4:17 pm
Location: West Yorkshire, Uk
Has liked: 369 times
Been liked: 781 times
Great Britain

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by jfheath »

Aushiker wrote: Sun Jan 22, 2023 1:35 am Bumping an old thread but I have found https://www.openandromaps.org/en/downloads good for map downloads.
Thank you for the link @Aushiker

Are these maps compatible with Garmin Zumos.
I couldn't find a way to have these installed for BAsecamp or for the Zumo.
Have owned Zumo 550, 660 == Now have Zumo XT2, XT, 595, 590, Headache
Use Basecamp (mainly), MyRouteApp (sometimes), Competent with Tread for XT2, Can use Explore for XT - but it offers nothing that I want !

Links: Zumo 590/5 & BC . . . Zumo XT & BC
User avatar
Aushiker
Posts: 14
Joined: Sun Jan 22, 2023 1:18 am
Location: Western Australia
Has liked: 14 times
Been liked: 1 time
Contact:
New Zealand

Re: Open Street Maps on Zumo XT

Post by Aushiker »

jfheath wrote: Sun Jan 22, 2023 3:59 pm I couldn't find a way to have these installed for BAsecamp or for the Zumo.
Good point. I haven't received my Zumo yet (thanks Australia Post) so cannot confirm. Having used the site for my Android phones I made the assumption that it would be okay. Sorry about that, I should have double-checked.

I have downloaded the V5 Map and the zip file contains three files. Once my Zumo arrives I will play with the map file and see if it works.

Image

Another option recommended by DCRainmaker and one I have used with my Garmin Edge is https://garmin3.bbbike.org/. Caveat: Still to be tested with the Zumo.
Post Reply