TomTom: Easy does it

The TomTom Rider is a treat for motorcyclists. Photo / Jacqui Madelin

We spent a week with TomTom's Rider motorcycle satnav, and it's a goody. The first unit I've seen designed to be used with gloves on, it delivers TomTom's usual high standard for maps with predictive qualities.

Menus are simple, you can review maps to check your route and easily see the battery level. It should last eight hours on a charge, and given I switched it off when the route was simple, it coped with long days in the saddle.

My companions during a road trip also appreciated the ability to check how far to fuel/coffee, how long each leg would take and finding our hotel without stopping to check paper maps.

The mount bolts to the bike's bars - there are fit accessories if your machine has clip-ons or you want to use it in the car - while the water-resistant Satnav itself easily clips on, then unclips when you leave the bike.

I didn't have the intercom to let it issue verbal instructions wirelessly; the car mount includes a speaker.

At $699 it's not cheap, but use it once and you'll be hooked.