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Garmin 810 Edge & Japan maps - help please.

MisterRips

Cruising
May 30, 2013
33
4
Hi,

So I recently got an 810 Edge and now want to try out the Sat Nav...... I'm f useless with tech stuff, so if ayone can spare a minute, I'd be v grateful.

Which Japan maps are FREE and which are best?
How/where do I download to a Mac?
How do I then get these onto the Garmin?
Is it straightforward to use from there on?

Any help and links etc would be great. I've had a look through the online Garmin manual etc but not much luck so far....

tvm

Rich
 
:confused: Which Japan maps are FREE and which are best?

Open Street Maps (OSM) are free.
UpUpDown (UUD) maps are a commercial product but much more detailed and you can buy them preinstalled on a plug-and-play microSD card.
Official Garmin maps will only work with the Edge 810J and come packaged with it.​

'Best' is a judgement call - do you prefer detail or zero cost!?​

:confused: How/where do I download to a Mac?


:confused: How do I then get these onto the Garmin?

Easiest way is to buy a preinstalled microSD card from UUD.

For either OSM or UUD you can also get the download version and make your own map set on a microSD card. Garmin supply software for your Mac to do this. Garmin Mapinstall. Garmin Map Manager. I have never used these programs although I'm also a Mac user. I always do Garmin stuff with their Windows software using a virtual machine. Garmin's Windows software is marginally less shit than their MacOS software.​

:confused: Is it straightforward to use from there on?

Sometimes.

 
Cheers for all the info.
Have downloaded OSM to a micro SD and will do a test ride shortly.
The pseudo Romaji-Chinese place names are a bit of a nightmare to read tho!
 
So with the Edge 810J Japanese version, does anyone know if the menu's can be changed to English? I understand the maps may only have Japanese, which is fine, but just wondering if I can be able to configure it if I buy one here in Japan. It seems the good maps are only viewable on the Japanese version.

Cheers,

Rob
 
So with the Edge 810J Japanese version, does anyone know if the menu's can be changed to English? I understand the maps may only have Japanese, which is fine, but just wondering if I can be able to configure it if I buy one here in Japan. It seems the good maps are only viewable on the Japanese version.

Cheers,

Rob
Just go to settings and choose English. This works fine with one major drawback: search function reqiures kanji/hiragana names (makes sense, since the map is in Japanese) but these cannot be entered in English menu mode.
 
Hey thanks much Pucci. So it seems it may be the best option if I live here in Japan to go with the 810J version.
 
The inability to sensibly search for Japanese addresses is a major drawback of the UpUpDown maps. But with a little preparation at home or side-by-side with an iPhone to compare points on the map this can usually be overcome.

From http://uud.info/en/map/ under Limitations:

You may not find places by address. Searching by address is technically impossible using Garmin devices manufactured for United States and European market. The Japanese banchi address system is not based on the street number system like the US or Europe. Instead you may search and set destination by selecting city, place name(Chome/Oaza/Aza names), postal code, point of interst, geogrpahic coordinate, and browsing the map.
 
So I decided to go with the 810J and I know the maps are Japanese, but I can do ok with Kanji, so not worried about that. However are the maps that come with the device pretty good or is it best to upgrade them? I know Garmin always sells upgrades but just wondering how good the stock maps are.

Cheers,

Rob
 
Not quite in the market for an 810J yet, but maybe someday.

Besides the big advantage of having the Japanese display properly, does anyone know about the quality of the maps themselves?

For the price, I'd hope that they'd be the best out there, and freely updatable a couple years after purchase when the actual maps may have been updated.
 
does anyone know about the quality of the maps themselves?
They're good, detailed maps.

I would have no problem reading the Japanese place names, and it would make the map tidier. But for my purposes the UUD maps are better, simply because they combine topo data (contour lines) and navigable road data in a single mapset. With Japanese maps you can have one or the other, but not both in one mapset.

IMHO the big advantage of the Edge 810J with its Japanese maps is that you can navigate accurately to a street address; the OS is rewritten for Japan to make this possible. Hence the price markup. So far I've not found this a limitation as I plan my journeys.

For the price, I'd hope that they'd be […] freely updatable a couple years after purchase when the actual maps may have been updated.
Your hopes will be dashed.
 
Thanks, Mike. I'll buy you one of those malt-laden things someday.
 
Hey everyone. For my Garmin that I bought in the UK I did the below steps to get the free Open Maps version working:
  1. Download the OpenStreetMap_Japan_contours file. Tried to attach the zip file to this message but it's 700 odd MB and too big to attach. If you need it, ask and I'll WeTransfer it to you.
  2. Unzip the zip file.
  3. Insert your SD-card into your SD-card reader or connect your Garmin directly to your computer using a USB cable.
  4. Open the SD-card with the file manager. If there isn't a folder on the SD-card called Garmin, you can create one.
  5. Copy the gmappsupp.img file into the Garmin folder on the SD-card. Garmin must start with capital 'G'.
  6. Safely remove the SD-card and insert into Garmin or eject Garmin from PC.
  7. Turn on your Garmin. You'll need to enable the "Japan OSM" and disable other Maps. The steps to enable the Japan OSM map varies depending on GPS type. Try either of the following:
  • Tools > Settings > Map > Map information
  • Tools >Trip Pages > Map > Map information > Select Map
I did this on my Garmin edge touring but I'm pretty sure this process also works with Edge 530 / 705 / 810 / 820 /1000.

Good luck and ask if you need the file.
 
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