Older thread I realize, but can someone explain what a $500.00 zumo xt is going to do for me over say a dedicated android phone with an app like onx? A phone and the app I should have less than $150.00 invested. I've used an older gpsmap 76 along with a basic gpx reader on an old phone I had so I'm somewhat familiar with both, just older tech. BTW I hate having to deal with the whole dance with basemap or Basecamp or whatever it's called. Just looking for route planning, strictly off road type trails. I'll just use Google maps for road and street routing.
GaiaGPS and an older phone. I use an older iPhone 6+ that the camera died in. It's worth next to nothing so I don't even bother to take it off the bike unless I'm on a trip where losing it would suck. Gaia has a ton of different maps to download. Everything from Topos to Satellite and more. Gaia online has excellent route planning for roads and offroad. Routes automatically migrate to all your devices. Yep, it's a subscription for the full feature set, but at $35/year I can pay for 15 years for the cost of a Zumo XT.
Gaia pros:
Lots of offline maps available
Great route planning on the web app
Routes/waypoints/tracks etc auto-sync to any/all devices running Gaia
Share/export/import routes
Great 'trip computer' for recording tracks and stuff
IF your device is lost/stolen/broken everything can sync to a new device
Can run on iOS and android with same account.
Gaia Cons:
No offline route planning. Maps and pre-planned routes available, but hard to create new routes offline.
No voice or turn by turn directions. I use any of the 'traditional' nav programs for that
Not that great for on-road nav, again, I use the usual suspects for that when needed.
Little bit of learning curve, but very powerful once you get it dialed
Phone pros:
Cheap entry price and easily replaceable - I don't use my actual 'phone'.
Can do other things, even work as a backup phone if my main phone is damaged
Many nav optons, not just Garmin and it's associated apps
Phone cons:
Screen is not quite as bright as the Zumo
Maybe not quite as durable as a standalone GPS unit
The overheating thing - only a problem for some people. I have only had it happen once in 105deg weather with the phone mounted behind my windscreen.
Lots of other options out there but that's how I'm rolling right now. YMMV