Ride tracking

[PaulSB]

DC Rainmaker is renowned for thoroughly testing devices. He has debunked the 17 hour battery claim and reckons its more like 8-9 hours.

Compare that brand new device to your aging Garmin 810 battery life of 6.5 hours and it would appear to not be particularly superior in comparison @PaulSB?

I am sure that the Wahoo is great kit, but personally can’t see how it is any better than the current Garmin options.

Yes I am aware of DC and once I’ve made a decision to buy - I’ve been umming and aahing for months - I will be reading his views. I am also tempted to go to a Garmin touring.

Friends do claim very long battery life on Wahoos but there’s nothing scientific about their comparisons.

 

[bpsmith]

Yes I am aware of DC and once I’ve made a decision to buy - I’ve been umming and aahing for months - I will be reading his views. I am also tempted to go to a Garmin touring.

Friends do claim very long battery life on Wahoos but there’s nothing scientific about their comparisons.

It s a minefield tbh.

I am more than happy with my Garmin 520, but never used a Wahoo so not going to rubbish it without being able to honestly compare. I think it’s important to read unbiased reviews like DC RM before making such a purchase.

 

[ianrauk]

It s a minefield tbh.

I am more than happy with my Garmin 520, but never used a Wahoo so not going to rubbish it without being able to honestly compare. I think it’s important to read unbiased reviews like DC RM before making such a purchase.

When my Touring works, it works perfectly, when it throws a wobble then it's a pain in the arse.
My main gripe is that when you are following a route with the turn by turn instructions, if you turn off the machine, say for a cafe stop, when you restart to continue the route then the turn by turn instructions don't work. Even after restarting the route. However the route still shows and is still follow-able.
It also has a bit of a learning curve to set the machine up so that it works how YOU want rather then how IT wants.
The battery life is also very good. You get a full days riding out of it easy.

 

[si_c]

I started off using my phone with a handlebar mount. That worked fine for a while, but eventually I moved over to a dedicated GPS bike computer, as I'd rather not use my phone battery too much, just in case. If you can get yourself setup to either charge the phone halfway (yay! cafe stop!) or via a powerbank then it's a perfectly useable way of doing it.

I get around 5 hours of usage out of my GPS device with sensors, recording, bluetooth and routing enabled when it's summer, in winter half that. If I'm doing a longer ride, I carry a power bank around with me, if I disable sensors, the backlight, bluetooth and route by memory then I can get 10 hours. So it's worth remembering that any battery life claims are always made in perfect conditions, minimal recording, no routing and with the backlight turned off.

 

[PaulSB]

@ianrauk can I ask how long a full day’s riding is?

A Garmin 810 is more than capable of throwing up similar or other problems. I’m by no means technically competent but as a consumer I feel Garmin have never adequately engineered their software, bolted on bits to upgrade devices which make some devices overly complicated. In the case of my 810 run it in navigation mode with all other functions off and it’s rock steady. Start turning on all the functions and things start to go wrong with the device doing, as you say, what IT wants.

I know they’re the market leader but feel Garmin missed the opportunity to be the unassailable leader.

 

[ianrauk]

@ianrauk can I ask how long a full day’s riding is?

A Garmin 810 is more than capable of throwing up similar or other problems. I’m by no means technically competent but as a consumer I feel Garmin have never adequately engineered their software, bolted on bits to upgrade devices which make some devices overly complicated. In the case of my 810 run it in navigation mode with all other functions off and it’s rock steady. Start turning on all the functions and things start to go wrong with the device doing, as you say, what IT wants.

I know they’re the market leader but feel Garmin missed the opportunity to be the unassailable leader.

It's lasted over 12 hours with full routing.

And I'm in full agreement with you. Garmin seem to beta test all their models on the paying public and never seem to 100% rectify the problems.

 

[C R]

I am a beginner, riding for up to two hours at a time, and have been using map my ride in my mobile. I don't use it for navigating, just for recording the ride, so don't have so many issues with battery life because the screen is off during the ride. For navigation purposes I study the route beforehand, and use my knowledge of the local roads, occasionally checking the map in map my ride if I am not sure exactly where I am. For longer rides and further afield that may have to change, but the mobile is ok for the time being.

 

[bpsmith]

When my Touring works, it works perfectly, when it throws a wobble then it's a pain in the arse.
My main gripe is that when you are following a route with the turn by turn instructions, if you turn off the machine, say for a cafe stop, when you restart to continue the route then the turn by turn instructions don't work. Even after restarting the route. However the route still shows and is still follow-able.
It also has a bit of a learning curve to set the machine up so that it works how YOU want rather then how IT wants.
The battery life is also very good. You get a full days riding out of it easy.

I don’t use mine for following routes, so not experienced any of what you posted. Interesting to hear how people use their kit though.

 

[ianrauk]

I don’t use mine for following routes, so not experienced any of what you posted. Interesting to hear how people use their kit though.

Then for just recording a ride, they work well.
However for just recording a ride I much prefer my 200 over the Touring. The 200 simply works and works very well every time. It has never failed or thrown a wobbly.

 

[bpsmith]

Then for just recording a ride, they work well.
However for just recording a ride I much prefer my 200 over the Touring. The 200 simply works and works very well every time. It has never failed or thrown a wobbly.

My 520 is perfect in that respect. Plus there’s more screen real estate for various data that I like. Easy to set up the required screens. Some people can’t be arsed to find out how, it seems.

I like the txt message and calls showing in screen too.

 

[stuarttunstall]

THANK YOU all for the advice, I think initially as I am only going out for a couple of hours at a time I will use my mobile and Strava/MapMyRide, then move on when I get to venture further out

 

[Alan O]

I did use my fitbit Surge for a good while, but the battery life in that is fading now and I only get about 2-3 hours so it's only usable for short rides.

Now I'm using an iPhone and Strava, plus a power pack. I currently have a 21000 mAh one, which is way more than I need, so I might get a smaller and lighter one just for one-day use - that one vickster mentioned looks like pretty good value.

I usually carry the phone in my saddle bag, as I only use it for tracking and not for directions. If you do that, here's a tip... A few times when I've got the phone out to check, I've found Strava had paused miles previously and wasn't tracking, and I realised it's probably getting the "Stop" button knocked when I put the phone in the bag. The last time it happened, I started Strava, dropped the phone in the bag, and set off... to later find it had paused after 5 seconds.

So now I always make sure I hit the Home button on the phone to switch Strava to the background where it can't be knocked, and I've not had the problem since.

I also set the phone to "Do not disturb" because I don't want people calling me and disturbing my rides

 

[Lavender Rose]

I always use to use MapMyRide - but now I use Strava

 

[stuarttunstall]

Thank you, think I will use my Samsung S8+ and Strava to start... can always move on to more dedicated items at a later date...

Bike due the 20th was due to there warehouse on the 11th but just checked on the website and it says they now have them, so may get it earlier

 

[Jody]

I was thinking that, but as my Samsung S8+ is all built in I suspect I would need one of those power backup devices like THIS

Depends how long you ride for. My old note 4 would do over 6 hours on strava and still have battery left. My note 8 uses even less battery.You will be surprised how little it uses.