TFT and General stuff on the 21 R1250RT
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I like the old fashioned display on my 2019 more and more after reading about real world experiences. My dealer here in N. Texas has two 2021's on the floor. I found out that that handy phone compartment is less handy if you use a phone case on your phone. Larger phones like my Galaxy S20+ 5G will not fit with the case on. So, you either have to yank off the case if you want to use the compartment or not use it all. I also hear, that it you do not have the phone close enough to the fairing the connection between the phone and bike can get spotty. I've not seen any mention of traffic integration in the Nav either.
New tech can be great, but only if it's implemented well. In the case of a motorcycle it needs to be designed logically, needs to be hassle free/easy to use and be totally reliable. At a minimum, BMW should have carried over the the permanent things like fuel lever, engine temp, and the selectable field where you can have range, air temp, etc and have it on the screen all the time. On a screen with this much real-estate it should be easy.
Having tech that is not well thought out and easy to use can make the riding experience a lot less enjoyable, even maddening. Based on what I'm reading, it doesn't sound like this new interface is anywhere close to being well though out. I am happy to stick to my S20+, Rokform mount, Sena, and Garmin for years to come.
New tech can be great, but only if it's implemented well. In the case of a motorcycle it needs to be designed logically, needs to be hassle free/easy to use and be totally reliable. At a minimum, BMW should have carried over the the permanent things like fuel lever, engine temp, and the selectable field where you can have range, air temp, etc and have it on the screen all the time. On a screen with this much real-estate it should be easy.
Having tech that is not well thought out and easy to use can make the riding experience a lot less enjoyable, even maddening. Based on what I'm reading, it doesn't sound like this new interface is anywhere close to being well though out. I am happy to stick to my S20+, Rokform mount, Sena, and Garmin for years to come.
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I don't think the S20+ will fit even without a case. Phone 168.5mm, compartment 162mm
Time to get out the dremel tool!
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OK took the bike out last night and had a fiddle with the TFT and this is an update. If this sounds like a Chinese puzzle, that's because it is.
First the easy bit, there are 2 display options on the TFT screen.
This is option 1, lets call it the Rev screen and it can be full screen or split screen. As you know the split screen on the right has 4 windows and you scroll through them using the wonder wheel.
They are, Map, Music, Trip 1 and bike computer (essentially Trip 2). You cannot program or change anything. The only thing you can change is the area in the stock picture below (lets call it User Def) which is currently showing fuel., using the menu up you can program things like MPG, TPMS, distance to refuel, even the odometer is shown here. Only one of these can be on the screen at any time..
![172842]()
Option 2, lets call this the Map screen.
![172843]()
The Map screen is excellent for GPS information, you have the map in the middle and on the split screen you can see next turn information, the split screen shows type of turn, distance to it and I think lane information. This is the screen you want when following a route.
Now the stupid stuff, remember you have two screens and four windows on the split screen and everything else is in a menu, somewhere.
On the left hand fairing we have four pre-set buttons, non programable.
Button
1 Audio on or off, when you stop the bike audio will be muted and you need to press this again to activate it.
2 Heating menu for grips and seat, when you press this it will take you to the heating menu and you can adjust things, if you press the button again, it reminds you that you are already on the shortcut menu and that's it. You now have to navigate back to whatever main screen you were looking at. If its the Rev screen its menu up, twice. If its the Map screen you can go menu up and across to navigation and then down or you can press button 4.
3. Audio menu, same as above, change track and then start navigating to your preferred/last display.
4. Map screen as above.
How hard would it have been to allow a second press of the button to return to the screen you had on display? I can switch a light on in my kitchen and off with the same button, I don't have to go into the hallway and jump up and down three times to switch it off.
Now look carefully at the two photos above and notice even though they are split screen, the info on them is in different places e.g. gear indicator, user def button, speed. That's because the split screen windows are different sizes. The split screen is bigger on the Rev screen.
So you are coming to a stop and want to make sure you are in neutral, you look down and the "N" has moved.
Which makes me feel that the only way I will be comfortable on the bike will be by keeping it on one of these two screens. Ok, I can adjust and it will probably be the map screen for me, however, note on the map screen there is no Rev counter. So I am running the bike in and would like to keep an eye on the revs.................................
Ok, lets look at the wonder wheel, it behaves differently on these two screens.
On the Rev screen it can rotate through full screen, split screen, split window 1-4 by pushing it left or right.
On the Map screen, if you push it left it unlocks the map and you can zoom in or out on the map using the scroll up or down. If you push it right it take you to a menu and you can skip a waypoint or repeat an instruction etc.
Ok, lets say I am on the Map screen and my route is finished and instead of looking at directions in the split screen I want to see my audio tracks or I want to change the User Def to check range left etc. I have to menu up to the Rev screen (two presses) and change whatever I want and then navigate back to the Map screen or press button 4.
If anyone finds out anything different from the above, I would love to know.
To sum it up, its a bit like playing a piano with your left hand while riding a motorbike at 60+ mph.
I also know I will settle on a screen format that works for me and so will everyone else, but to do so will involve compromise. For example, when your are on the Rev screen you can display a map in the split screen., but when you are on Map screen you loose your rev counter. Why........................................................
I wonder if the BMW Motorrad people talk to the BMW car people, I don't have a BMW car, I have an Audi and it has a Virtual cockpit, pretty sure BMW have something similar.
Look up Audi virtual cockpit.
First the easy bit, there are 2 display options on the TFT screen.
This is option 1, lets call it the Rev screen and it can be full screen or split screen. As you know the split screen on the right has 4 windows and you scroll through them using the wonder wheel.
They are, Map, Music, Trip 1 and bike computer (essentially Trip 2). You cannot program or change anything. The only thing you can change is the area in the stock picture below (lets call it User Def) which is currently showing fuel., using the menu up you can program things like MPG, TPMS, distance to refuel, even the odometer is shown here. Only one of these can be on the screen at any time..
Option 2, lets call this the Map screen.
The Map screen is excellent for GPS information, you have the map in the middle and on the split screen you can see next turn information, the split screen shows type of turn, distance to it and I think lane information. This is the screen you want when following a route.
Now the stupid stuff, remember you have two screens and four windows on the split screen and everything else is in a menu, somewhere.
On the left hand fairing we have four pre-set buttons, non programable.
Button
1 Audio on or off, when you stop the bike audio will be muted and you need to press this again to activate it.
2 Heating menu for grips and seat, when you press this it will take you to the heating menu and you can adjust things, if you press the button again, it reminds you that you are already on the shortcut menu and that's it. You now have to navigate back to whatever main screen you were looking at. If its the Rev screen its menu up, twice. If its the Map screen you can go menu up and across to navigation and then down or you can press button 4.
3. Audio menu, same as above, change track and then start navigating to your preferred/last display.
4. Map screen as above.
How hard would it have been to allow a second press of the button to return to the screen you had on display? I can switch a light on in my kitchen and off with the same button, I don't have to go into the hallway and jump up and down three times to switch it off.
Now look carefully at the two photos above and notice even though they are split screen, the info on them is in different places e.g. gear indicator, user def button, speed. That's because the split screen windows are different sizes. The split screen is bigger on the Rev screen.
So you are coming to a stop and want to make sure you are in neutral, you look down and the "N" has moved.
Which makes me feel that the only way I will be comfortable on the bike will be by keeping it on one of these two screens. Ok, I can adjust and it will probably be the map screen for me, however, note on the map screen there is no Rev counter. So I am running the bike in and would like to keep an eye on the revs.................................
Ok, lets look at the wonder wheel, it behaves differently on these two screens.
On the Rev screen it can rotate through full screen, split screen, split window 1-4 by pushing it left or right.
On the Map screen, if you push it left it unlocks the map and you can zoom in or out on the map using the scroll up or down. If you push it right it take you to a menu and you can skip a waypoint or repeat an instruction etc.
Ok, lets say I am on the Map screen and my route is finished and instead of looking at directions in the split screen I want to see my audio tracks or I want to change the User Def to check range left etc. I have to menu up to the Rev screen (two presses) and change whatever I want and then navigate back to the Map screen or press button 4.
If anyone finds out anything different from the above, I would love to know.
To sum it up, its a bit like playing a piano with your left hand while riding a motorbike at 60+ mph.
I also know I will settle on a screen format that works for me and so will everyone else, but to do so will involve compromise. For example, when your are on the Rev screen you can display a map in the split screen., but when you are on Map screen you loose your rev counter. Why........................................................
I wonder if the BMW Motorrad people talk to the BMW car people, I don't have a BMW car, I have an Audi and it has a Virtual cockpit, pretty sure BMW have something similar.
Look up Audi virtual cockpit.
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You can quickly get back to what you were doing before pressing the presets by holding the up menu button
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That will take you back to the Rev screen, if you want to go to the Map screen you gotta go to navigation and down or press Button 4, AFAIK.
Or do you know a quick way to the Map screen apart from Button 4
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Wireless charging seems to be a bit inconsistent. Road 2.5 hours yesterday with iPhone 12pro in cubby and charging all the way (arrived at lunch with full charge). After riding home noticed that battery level was dropping and when I got home and opened the cubby the yellow light was flashing and iPhone was down to half charge after the 2.5 hour home ride. I suspect that perhaps the iPhone might have moved off the charging pad due to a bumps in the road. Used navigation with turn by with no problems at all on both legs of the ride. I do have an Apple silicone cover on the iPhone but that should not be a factor. The iphone does fit in the cubby. BTW, I always ensure that the green charging light is on before I close cubby.
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A couple general questions:
- Is SiriusXM radio available like on previous RTs?
- Is the Bluetooth audio/music quality better than on previous RTs?
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Can't comment on the XM radio, I don't have a radio on my bike and we don't think we have XM over here.
Regarding Bluetooth, its effectively your phone to your headset, again BMW might get in the way with the radio bit. But for me its phone to headset and its good.
Quality is fine, radio and mp3
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Guys here is my advice having put about 20k miles on TFT R1250 GS/A bikes (currently have a '21 GS).
It takes a while to get used to the TFT and at first I didn't really care for it. Go into your settings and only select the info that you absolutely need for the "menu up" display. I set mine to only show the fuel gauge and fuel range. This way I can easily see what's most important to me with only one button push. Switching to the bike computer display will give you all the other info if you need it.
For music I use an Iphone 11 Pro. I mount it on a ram ball in the middle of the handle bars. I use a wireless charging mount made for motorcycles. It works very well. The GS/A doesn't have the fancy wireless charging cubby so if you want to use your phone for audio and keep it charging it needs to be mounted.
It sounds like the RTs new TFT is essentially a bigger version of the GS/A TFT with map display ability and split screen ability. So on these early RTs without the stereo the music and phone implementation is the same as the smaller TFT. I have figured out a few things to make the music sound great with hearing protection all while being easy to use.
The Bluetooth on my GS works fine but but it doesn't get as loud or sound as good as a direct headset connection to my Iphone. I didn't want to give up the music display and wonder wheel control on my bike so I came up with a solution. I bought a USB BT adapter that I plug into the USB port on my bike. I then pair this USB BT adapter to the bike as "Rider's headset". The sole purpose of this is to trick the bike into thinking a headset is attached so the phone's music is displayed on the TFT and you can skip tracks. I then BT connect my headset directly to my Iphone. I can still hear the TFT navigation prompts when connected directly to the Iphone (this was a pleasant surprise).
When getting on the bike the BT adapter automatically powers on and connects to the bike as does my Iphone. I pull up Pandora and start my playlist. I have to hit the BT connection on the Pandora screen and tell it to connect to my headset instead of the bike's TFT. Not a big deal since my phone is mounted in front of me.
I gave up on trying to get decent sound from my Sena 10r headset. For me it's just impossible to get decent sound from helmet speakers and hear it at speed through earplugs. At highway speeds I would have to max out the volume. Not good for your ears or listening pleasure. So I started experimenting with BT wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation (ANC). I started with my wife's Airpod Pros but at speed they would make a fluttering sound which I assume was air getting through the earpiece seals.
I tried inexpensive headsets like the Tozo NC2s and NC9s and they worked great. However, I wanted the ability to disable the ANC if in heavy traffic or if at a gas station and somebody was trying to talk to me.
I finally tried the Jabra 85t earbuds which have highly customizable ANC that can all be controlled with the Jabra app on my phone. I can choose five levels on ANC, five levels of "hear through" or ANC off.
With ANC at the highest level I can be rolling at 80mph and still hear the music crystal clear at very low volume levels. I can crank the music up very loud if I want but that kind of defeats the purpose. I can also ride with no music and the ANC is still active and very good at muting road, wind and engine noise.
ANC is a game changer for me. Coming off a 400 mile ride the other day in heavy wind I felt good. Last hour of the ride was at 85 plus mph. Without ANC that ride would have left me feeling like I had been hit by a train.
I had assumed that I would not be able to talk on the phone using the 85t earbuds since the microphones are in the earbuds. To my surprise I was able to speak with my wife on the phone going 70mph on the highway. She said I sounded muffled but she could hear what I was saying. I could hear her perfectly.
Now back to the TFT. IMHO BMWs TFT setup is going to have limitations until they embrace Apple Carplay and Android Auto. But the TFT is certainly worth having if you like to listen to music on your bike. Plus it's not like you have a choice if you want a '21 RT.
If I was spending 25k plus on a new RT I would definitely want the stereo for the Sirius option alone. Without the Stereo I likely would mount my phone the same as I do on my GS and not use the phone cubby.
Assuming the stereo setup is similar to the '14 - '20 RTs I would wire in a line level audio adapter and use a separate BT transmitter so I could control the volume to my earbuds with the Wonderwheel. Same thing many of you are currently doing on RT your RT and GTs and which worked perfect on my '18 RT.
It would be nice if BMW embraces Apple Carplay when the new GS comes out in 2023 and new RT most likely in 2024 but I suspect they will stick with this TFT setup for many years to come. I'll continue giving BMW my business until somebody else can compete with the BMW boxer touring experience. Nothing else even comes close IMHO.
It takes a while to get used to the TFT and at first I didn't really care for it. Go into your settings and only select the info that you absolutely need for the "menu up" display. I set mine to only show the fuel gauge and fuel range. This way I can easily see what's most important to me with only one button push. Switching to the bike computer display will give you all the other info if you need it.
For music I use an Iphone 11 Pro. I mount it on a ram ball in the middle of the handle bars. I use a wireless charging mount made for motorcycles. It works very well. The GS/A doesn't have the fancy wireless charging cubby so if you want to use your phone for audio and keep it charging it needs to be mounted.
It sounds like the RTs new TFT is essentially a bigger version of the GS/A TFT with map display ability and split screen ability. So on these early RTs without the stereo the music and phone implementation is the same as the smaller TFT. I have figured out a few things to make the music sound great with hearing protection all while being easy to use.
The Bluetooth on my GS works fine but but it doesn't get as loud or sound as good as a direct headset connection to my Iphone. I didn't want to give up the music display and wonder wheel control on my bike so I came up with a solution. I bought a USB BT adapter that I plug into the USB port on my bike. I then pair this USB BT adapter to the bike as "Rider's headset". The sole purpose of this is to trick the bike into thinking a headset is attached so the phone's music is displayed on the TFT and you can skip tracks. I then BT connect my headset directly to my Iphone. I can still hear the TFT navigation prompts when connected directly to the Iphone (this was a pleasant surprise).
When getting on the bike the BT adapter automatically powers on and connects to the bike as does my Iphone. I pull up Pandora and start my playlist. I have to hit the BT connection on the Pandora screen and tell it to connect to my headset instead of the bike's TFT. Not a big deal since my phone is mounted in front of me.
I gave up on trying to get decent sound from my Sena 10r headset. For me it's just impossible to get decent sound from helmet speakers and hear it at speed through earplugs. At highway speeds I would have to max out the volume. Not good for your ears or listening pleasure. So I started experimenting with BT wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation (ANC). I started with my wife's Airpod Pros but at speed they would make a fluttering sound which I assume was air getting through the earpiece seals.
I tried inexpensive headsets like the Tozo NC2s and NC9s and they worked great. However, I wanted the ability to disable the ANC if in heavy traffic or if at a gas station and somebody was trying to talk to me.
I finally tried the Jabra 85t earbuds which have highly customizable ANC that can all be controlled with the Jabra app on my phone. I can choose five levels on ANC, five levels of "hear through" or ANC off.
With ANC at the highest level I can be rolling at 80mph and still hear the music crystal clear at very low volume levels. I can crank the music up very loud if I want but that kind of defeats the purpose. I can also ride with no music and the ANC is still active and very good at muting road, wind and engine noise.
ANC is a game changer for me. Coming off a 400 mile ride the other day in heavy wind I felt good. Last hour of the ride was at 85 plus mph. Without ANC that ride would have left me feeling like I had been hit by a train.
I had assumed that I would not be able to talk on the phone using the 85t earbuds since the microphones are in the earbuds. To my surprise I was able to speak with my wife on the phone going 70mph on the highway. She said I sounded muffled but she could hear what I was saying. I could hear her perfectly.
Now back to the TFT. IMHO BMWs TFT setup is going to have limitations until they embrace Apple Carplay and Android Auto. But the TFT is certainly worth having if you like to listen to music on your bike. Plus it's not like you have a choice if you want a '21 RT.
If I was spending 25k plus on a new RT I would definitely want the stereo for the Sirius option alone. Without the Stereo I likely would mount my phone the same as I do on my GS and not use the phone cubby.
Assuming the stereo setup is similar to the '14 - '20 RTs I would wire in a line level audio adapter and use a separate BT transmitter so I could control the volume to my earbuds with the Wonderwheel. Same thing many of you are currently doing on RT your RT and GTs and which worked perfect on my '18 RT.
It would be nice if BMW embraces Apple Carplay when the new GS comes out in 2023 and new RT most likely in 2024 but I suspect they will stick with this TFT setup for many years to come. I'll continue giving BMW my business until somebody else can compete with the BMW boxer touring experience. Nothing else even comes close IMHO.
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Unfortunately you can only display one of those two items on the normal display!
I like the new TFT but also hope for some updates.
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Correct but you can whittle out having to scroll through stuff that isn't important while rolling down the road. TFT on the GS is the same even though it has plenty of room to display more info. On the GS it's under "status line content" in the setting menu. I'm guessing it's the same on the RT. I have no patience to hit the menu button five or more times just to get to the fuel gauge.
I hate to be negative but I wouldn't hold your breath for updates. The TFT on the GS/A hasn't seen significant changes since it's inception in 2018. The updates that have been released were to fix Sena/Cardo headset connection issues. And many dealers would fight you on the update since it takes hours to complete.
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I was referring to having the bike stream the audio to the headset, and not the phone to the headset. That’s where you’ll see (hear) if there’s any improvement in Bluetooth quality.
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If it's like the GS it sounds light years better than the '20 and older RTs but not as good as good as an Iphone directly to headset. Also the GS TFT BT cuts the max volume down compared to an Iphone direct to headset. That's why I connect my headset directly to my Iphone and use the BT receiver to trick the bike into thinking a headset is connected.
So my connections are:
Iphone to TFT as mobile device
BT receiver to TFT as "Riders headset"
Helmet headset (BT earbuds for me) direct to Iphone
Music shows up on TFT and can be paused and skipped with Wonderwheel. When I shut off the bike I can still play music in my earbuds and/or turn on the "hear through" mode so I can talk to people without taking off my helmet. Plus if my '21 GS starts dropping the BT connection like it would periodically on my 2019 GSA I don't lose my music, phone or radar alerts.
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I have had mine now since Saturday. There is a learning curve and reading the entire manual (Yeah men don't normally do this) helps. What everyone is sharing is very useful too. Phone compartment from manual:6.37 in x 3.07 in x 0.34 in (162 mm x 78 mm x 8.8 mm). Hook latch and release in there that holds the phone are what determines size range to the left. My Galaxy Note 20 Ultra doesn't fit and the Motorrad Connected App with map mode really drains the battery. So used Dremel tool (hate that with a new bike) and cut off the latch and release. Phone fits now and wireless charger works! Contacted BMW Corporate about radio option and the next day got a reply that they had forwarded it to BMW USA. That afternoon call from someone at USA office and learned this: US bikes right now have no radio or sound system package (cables, speakers, and things for radio) due to worldwide shortage of chips and Tech. He had no comment when I said everyone but US bikes have it as standard. So if you want the radio later when they are available forget it unless you order a bike for now. There is an Update Bulletin out about this with more details (he couldn't share it with me but read it while on the phone) that your dealer should have. As a consolation prize for us Yankees the dealer is supposed to offer 2 BMW Motorcycle Comm units for your helmets at no cost. Got my salesman looking into this now.
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Congrats on the new bike. Those comms units are BMW branded Sena SMH10r models and cost $199 each. You will not be able to talk with other Sena users unless they have a BMW branded one. You and your passenger will be able to speak with each other assuming they are using the other SMH10r. Good news is the Wonderwheel will control the volume on the Rider's headset with the BMW branded Sena.
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I have one of them in a Schuberth E1. My dealer gave it to me at cost to evaluate it for him. The Wonderwheel volume control is great. The speakers use a different connector than other Senas so if you want to upgrade the speakers you will have to cut and splice. The speakers are smaller than my Sena 10r speakers but actually sound better even though they don't get as loud. It's a good headset if you don't need your music loud. If Sena pushes new firmware to their headsets to incorporate the BMW volume control profile that I have heard BMW released then there would be no reason to use the BMW headset. However, I suspect Sena will use it to market new models. Who knows.
The Connected App has no interaction with the headsets. The BMW branded headsets pair to the TFT just like any other Bluetooth headset. Only difference is you will see a volume bar on the TFT when you scroll the wheel and it will control the 10 levels of volume on the headset. Same as if you were pushing the volume buttons on your headset.
I have a writeup on Advrider about this headset:
New BWM Bluetooth set based on Sena SMH10r: anyone have one?
Was at my dealer for a major part of today getting my TFT updated but that's not what I want to discuss. The had the new BMW BT headset that looks...
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