Rich thanks for the insights. Do Wahoo devices require a subscription payment scheme to access maps and satellite services? 

Graham, the Wahoo devices include maps with no additional charge required.  The maps are updated occasionally - I've noticed that from time to time there are updates that need to be applied.  (They occasionally update the software on the device, too - no charge).

 The satellite connection (GPS) is also included with no extra costs.  After the initial purchase, the Wahoo devices have worked for me for many years with no additional costs.  I had an Elemnt Bolt for many years before I bought the Roams.  No charges at all.  Kind of amazing, actually!

One thing I would note is that the Wahoo devices I have don't have enough memory to hold maps for the entire world.  To fit the maps into the device, you have to pick and choose what parts of the world you want maps for.  You can change this any time you want, so if you want to tour Oz, and then come to Europe, you can remove the Oz maps, and put European maps in.  Then when you go back home, do the reverse.  I'm able to get most of Europe into my Roam.   At least everywhere we would want to go...

The one area where you might run into subscription problems is with your mapping software.  I use RideWithGPS and I have a subscription, so I can't really test what happens without a subscription.  But I think there might be some issues with creating routes and syncing them to the Wahoo if you don't have a RideWithGPS subscription.  If it exists, it's a RideWithGPS restriction, not a restriction in the Wahoo.  Sorry to be somewhat vague on this part - I just don't know what restrictions there are.

I hope this helps a bit.  The Wahoo devices have been really solid for me.  My old Bolt finally suffered a delaminating screen after about 8 years of hard use.  That's the only reason I replaced it.  The maps and software were still getting updated for free after all that time!

Rich thanks for that thorough explanation. It’s very useful. 

The Etrex was said to run for 18 hours on two AA cells whereas charging opportunities for your phone beyond the black stump are likely  to be .limited unless you are running a dyno hub.

My venerable Etrex does indeed run for a long time on a couple of AA batteries. I relied on it a few times on the Gibb River Rd tour. 

Nowadays I also carry one of those rechargeable power packs to top up my phone if need be. The big one, (20somethings) will recharge the phone several times before itself needs recharging.

In remote areas I would take a couple of those packs, so I should be ok for a week or more without access to mains power.

The information at this link will tell you about what you get for each subscription level of Ride With GPS, but I didn't manage to spot the item that would tell me whether I could create a route them export it as a TCX or other GPS file format using the starter (free) license level.

https://ridewithgps.com/help/compare-plans/

Wahoo claims 16 hour battery life and that is about the max I've been able to get when I used it to shutdown one time over a few days. I ride with a heart rate monitor and radar tailight that are always connected to it over Bluetooth, so without those two things it might actually exceed the ratings.

One issue, which I think some of the Garmins don't have: you can not (well, are not supposed to) replace the battery  yourself on the current Wahoo units because the case is sealed to meet waterproofing standards.  The Element Roam I originally bought (I put that on my wife's bike, I now use an Element Bolt) is about 6 years old and shows no sign of battery degradation but hard to really tell.

So, recharging is certainly needed and on older units some backup approach might be needed.

I got my first Garmin, an Edge 810, when I discovered that tracking my rides on my phone would kill the battery. Granted, it was the Canada Day Populaire in 2013, so 146 km on a hot day, but still. When I wanted to update the person I’d carpooled with to the event, my phone was dead and I was only 3/4 through the ride. 

I chose the Garmin then because it was the only cycling-specific device on the market at the time that offered the navigation features I wanted. I researched again in 2022 when I wanted to replace it and ended up with another Garmin, an Edge 830.  Were I looking now, I’d definitely consider the new Edge 840, possibly the solar model.  I’ve noticed that the 830 definitely has a longer battery life than the 810. 

I live in Canada but prefer to tour outside North America, so I download free maps for my destination area from bbbikes dot org. Garmin-format maps are available but I’m not sure about compatibility with other brands of devices.  Transferring the maps to my Garmin needs a cable connection but routes can be copied over via Bluetooth.

I also learned this summer that, although new Edge devices come with a Trailforks map, I needed to activate it differently.   For a trip like you are describing, having Trailforks available might be useful because TF distinguishes the difficulty levels of off-road bike routes/trails. 

Thanks Jacquie. That’s very helpful.
I’ve just returned from a short tour, and have decided to postpone the decision to buy a new GPS device. Partly because of the cost, and partly because I’m not fully convinced I’ll get enough use from it. So I’ll make do with what I have for the time being.

I occasionally used the EarthMate Garmin App (and GoogleMaps) on my phone but mostly I left my phone on AirPlane mode in my handlebar bag to save battery.

I did have good paper maps as back up, and a Garmin In-reach communicator for emergencies. Thankfully it stayed in my pannier unused.

You mentioned overseas travel. If I ever do more backroad rides in countries other than Australia & NZ, I’ll renew my interest in GPS devices. It seems that either the top-end Garmin, or Wahoo are the two to choose from.

Graham - I use an old iPhone 6 which I took out the SIM card capability. Basically, that means I turned it into an iPod touch with wireless capability as it can no longer make calls. The difference is the iPhone has the GPS chip which means it can pick up the satellite signals and know where the phone is on the globe. Now, that's no good when there's no reference point (i.e. map) underneath the spot on the globe. So to make sure I have this I download my routes from Ride With GPS onto the phone using the wireless before I leave home, and then I'm all good to go.

I have about a 6-8 hour battery life on the phone doing this so to keep it all charged I carry a 20,00MaH battery pack to recharge my devices. Works like a charm.