Motorcycle GPS, phone or CarPlay screen? An honest comparison
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We sell CarPlay screens for motorcycles, so we have a side in this. That's why the comparison below gives each option its due, with the product facts taken from the makers' own pages.
The three options side by side
| Dedicated motorcycle GPS | Phone on a handlebar mount | CarPlay screen | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | A standalone navigator built for bikes, such as Garmin's zūmo range | The phone you own, in a holder on the bars | A screen on the bike that shows your phone's apps |
| Maps | Stored on the device | Any map app on your phone | Your phone's CarPlay or Android Auto apps |
| Without mobile signal | Works, maps are on board | Works with maps downloaded in advance | Same as the phone: download maps in advance |
| Rain | Built for it (Garmin rates the zūmo XT2 IPX7) | Depends on the phone and the case | Depends on the screen (GS Goods BMW screens: IP68, 1 m for 30 minutes) |
| Handlebar vibration | Built for it, per Garmin | Apple warns it can degrade the iPhone camera's stabilisation and autofocus | With the wireless BMW screens, the phone rides in your pocket |
| Music and calls | Through a paired phone | Everything your phone does | Through CarPlay or Android Auto, sound to your helmet headset |
| Needs the phone | No | It is the phone | Yes, the phone runs the apps |
| Price | Check the maker's current price | The cost of a mount | GS Goods: from €119.95 |
No option ticks every box. The rest of this article helps you decide which boxes matter on your rides.
When a dedicated motorcycle GPS wins
A dedicated navigator works on its own. The maps live on the device, so a valley without signal or a phone with a flat battery doesn't stop it.
Garmin's launch announcement for the zūmo XT2 gives it a 6-inch display and an IPX7 water rating, and says it is equipped to operate with handlebar vibration (Garmin press release).
Pick one if you:
- ride multi-day trips through areas with patchy signal
- want navigation that doesn't depend on your phone at all
- want to manage tracks and routes on the device itself
Where it falls short: it's one more device with its own maps and menus to learn, and your messages, contacts and playlists still live on the phone.
When your phone is enough
For a 40-minute ride to the coast on a dry Sunday, a good mount and the phone you own will get you there. It costs the least, and your apps are already set up.
Over a season of riding, four things show up:
- Heat. In our research into riders' questions, phones getting hot on the handlebar in summer come up more than once, and one rider reports his switching itself off.
- Battery. Navigation with the screen on drains a phone, and one rider describes it running down faster than the charger keeps up.
- Rain. The phone goes under cover, or you hope the case holds.
- Vibration. Apple warns that long exposure to high-amplitude vibration, like that from high-powered motorcycle engines, can degrade the stabilisation and autofocus of the iPhone camera. For those bikes Apple doesn't recommend attaching an iPhone at all.
If you ride rarely and briefly, these risks stay small. If you ride every weekend, they add up.
When a CarPlay screen fits
A CarPlay screen sits in the middle. You keep your own apps (Google Maps, Waze, Kurviger, Spotify) and use them on a screen made for the bike. With a wireless screen, the phone rides in your jacket or tank bag.
It suits you if you:
- ride most weeks and already like your phone's map apps
- want calls and music in your helmet without touching the phone
- want the phone off the handlebar
What you get with a GS Goods screen:
- On a BMW with the original Navigator cradle: the BMW Motor CarPlay Screen clicks into the cradle, connects wirelessly to CarPlay and Android Auto, works with the Wonder Wheel (with original, up-to-date BMW software) and shows the bike's own data next to the map: speed, RPM, gear, temperatures and voltage (tyre pressure with the GS Goods sensor set). IP68, 6 or 7 inch, from €289.95. The RT has a 5 inch version.
- Without the BMW cradle: the universal Motor CarPlay mounts on the handlebar, runs CarPlay and Android Auto with Siri or Google Assistant, and takes power from the battery. 5 or 7 inch, from €119.95.
Where it falls short: it needs your phone. No phone, no maps. And a route app like Kurviger shows less on CarPlay than on the phone; planning stays on the phone.
Every GS Goods screen comes with a 5-year warranty and 100 days to return it. For the full list of things to look at before you buy, read the 7 checks for a motorcycle CarPlay screen. BMW riders will find the model-by-model view in BMW motorcycle navigation and CarPlay options, and the Navigator side by side in BMW Navigator 6, "Navigator 7" or CarPlay.
Which one is right for you?
- Long tours off the grid, phone-free navigation: a dedicated motorcycle GPS.
- Short, occasional rides on a budget: your phone on a good mount.
- Weekly rides with your own apps, phone off the handlebar: a CarPlay screen.
A dedicated GPS for the big trip and a CarPlay screen for the rest of the year can make sense too.
Conclusion
A dedicated GPS for the wilderness, the phone for the quick run, a CarPlay screen for everything in between. If the last one sounds like your riding, see the CarPlay screens for motorcycles.
