I’ve been lucky to have been a part of some exceptional motorcycle tours and adventure rides whilst working at our publication, some were led by riders with years of experience, others were gnarly “let’s wing it” rides, but the best have to be the detailed treks. You don’t always have to be prepared for anything and everything, but you do want to have a great ride and see everything you planned on seeing along the way. For years, the simple GPS has helped the adventurer do so, I mean, early versions of the GPS that used the Doppler Effect helped the United States track satellites back in the “Sputnik Era”. GPS systems have been around for years and have helped us track, log and share some amazing routes and experiences with other like-minded travellers.
Nowadays, more and more people are beginning to get the adventure itch, and the less hardcore travellers are also looking to get off the beaten path and experience the same lifestyle, but not as intensely and not as far off the grid. Technology, although overwhelming to most, is always adapting, getting better and also simpler for the average Joe. We see this with these new and seriously affordable CarPlay & Android Auto displays. Yes, it’s no Garmin, but it also doesn’t pretend to be; it’s a simple plug-and-play unit that you could use daily to listen to music, answer calls, make notes, find local coffee spots, or, in fact, mirror most Apps off of your phone.
There are what feels like hundreds of these displays online, and they cost you less than a quarter of the price of what we’ve come to think is the only navigation option out there. Maybe your top-of-the-range adventure or touring bike already has turn-by-turn navigation or cell phone connectivity built in, then maybe one of these systems isn’t for you; maybe it’s for your mate who is struggling to keep up.
With so many options on the market, and yes, Chinese ones, it’s tough to decide which company to trust or which brand to go for. We found carplaymotorcycle.com to be the most informative, well laid out and easy to understand and order from. There’s nothing wrong with going to an AliExpress, Temu or any other online website, but ‘CPMC’ is so much simpler, direct and therefore, in my opinion, trustworthy.
On the tail end of “Black Friday” and heading into the Christmas festive season, CPMC has two units on promotion, in particular the CPMC P7 (7-inch) and the Aoocci C3 Plus (5-inch). These units with the ZaBikers30 code are 30% off till the 5th of December and are thereafter 22% off with the code ZaBikers22. Both units are hands-free voice-assisted (once you connect your helmet intercom), feature a 60FPS refresh rate for smoother performance, are waterproof and dustproof, have glove-friendly touchscreens, and are compatible with any motorcycle.
When it comes to setup, carplaymotorcycle.com gives you a few fitment and wiring options to choose from in the box. In the neatly branded and packaged box of the CPMC P7, you’ve got a 360° adjustable mount and a choice of USB or battery to fuse wiring. I like the idea of having a temporary touring setup, so the USB ticks my preference, but for full-time use, the latter is the best route. In the Aoocci C3 Plus box, we see a bracket kit for a handlebar or GPS bar mount, which is attached to a 4-hole shock-absorbing bracket. Wiring is similar to the P7, but with an additional option of wiring directly to the battery supply.
In due course, we will bring you a review of both units tested in the Southern African adventure environment. As for now, both units are feature-packed and even come with tyre pressure monitors that screws directly onto the front and rear valves. For under 3K for the P7, I doubt you will find something that can compete at this screen size and for 2K on the dot, the C3 is sleek and just about all the light-weight traveller needs.
For more information, please visit carplaymotorcycle.com and remember to use the ZA Bikers discount code ZaBikers22 for even more of a bargain.
