Ok all you other roadies and closet roadies, i am looking for a computer for the road bike as I am not liking using my CSx60, to bulky. I do not need GPS but I do want your standard cycling functions, HR and perhaps an altimeter although the alt is not a deal maker or breaker. I have narrowed it down to a few, read reviews on them and now see what you all have to say and preferences. Here are the ones I am looking at so far trying to keep the $$ around 200 and below, other suggestions welcomed; 1) Cateye V3 2)Mavic Wintech HR 3)Polar CS300 4)VDO Z2 5)Garmin Edge500 - dont need the GPS as I already have a good GPS if I need to use one
Garmin 305. I have used a Polar 725x but give the nod to Garmin because of the direct USB connection. Polar uses an infrared sensor (extra cost) that must be held precisely on the watch while the data is transferred. Any glitch and the transfer must be restarted. Looking at Polar's web page one can't tell what interface the CS300 uses.
VDO MC 1.0 http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1028433_-1_400023_400007_400023 You can get them at Nashbar too for a bit cheaper I think. I have these on all my bikes. Biggest feature for me? Altitude gain and NO heart rate monitor. If you don't care how much you've climbed then I suggest a basic model. Buy from Performance so when it breaks down you can return it. Unless your bike shop takes returns.
I have a Polar S625X that I am going to sell. PM me if you are interested. I actually lost the S1 foot pod, so instead of buying a new foot pod I bought a newer Polar HRM. I do have a cadence sensor and 2 speed sensors for the S625X. I also with throw in the infrared sensor and a mount to strap the watch onto your handlebars!
And your battery will last for 10 miles, if that. Why 305 over a 500? I'm in the market for a computer as well.
The 305 has navigation but not the 500. Not even waypoints are in the 500. Garmin made the 500 as a less-expensive power meter interface that can't compete with the 705. The 500 is pitched as made for "performance cyclists" i.e. road riders with power meters. If you need to navigate off-road forget it.
16ish miles in Hurkey Creek, 4 hours 11 minutes of on-time, and while it definitely needed a charge afterwards, my Droid recorded as long as it could get a GPS signal. :?: This is with the HTC Eris btw... not exactly famous for it's long life battery. I did a half-century, from Yorba Regional to Tom's Farm and back, & had my Droid running mytracks for 2.5, maybe 3 hours, no problem. Hit airplane mode to cut down on GPS interference and improve battery life - you can let mytracks download the map later and it'll still track your ride. Too bad I mistakenly thought mytracks stored the ride data on the SD card (it doesn't and a factory reset will definitely nuke your saved rides). Just for shits & giggles, I hit record just before flying out from OAK to SNA - it can't really give you GPS waypoints once the bird gets flying full-speed but I got some interesting stats (nope we didn't crash): Created by My Tracks on Android. Total Distance: 721.26 km (448.2 mi) Total Time: 1:26:45 Moving Time: 1:13:11 Average Speed: 529.65 km/h (329.1 mi/h) Average Moving Speed: 591.33 km/h (367.4 mi/h) Max Speed: 617.49 km/h (383.7 mi/h) Min Elevation: -33 m (-108 ft) Max Elevation: 2401 m (7878 ft) Elevation Gain: 3171 m (10405 ft) Max Grade: 34 % Min Grade: -51 % Recorded: Thu Jun 17 09:55:31 PDT 2010 Activity type: flying -51% to 30% grades?? :bang:
You can't rely on elevation at all so grades are off too. GPS alone is inaccurate for elevation. GPS with barometric altimeter is even worse in a pressurized cabin. :lol:
If you do not need GPS look at Sigma ROX 8.0 and 9.0. Triple wireless cadence, speed, and HR, with altimeter. 8.0 and 9.0 are the same, except 9.0 comes with bigger memory and data logging for analysis on PC. I only use GPS for navigating new areas and finding my way. I find GPS relatively inaccurate for cycling-scale units of measure.
The Garmin 305 is out of my price range and I really dislike buying "refurbished" electronics and since I do not need GPS I did not even consider it. The 500 is right at the very limit of what I would spend. Plus as Abui mentioned, this computer will be strictly on the roadie, no dirt miles at all. iPhone/Droid/SmartPhone ... I do not use ANYTHING like those. No need for them. The VDO is nice but altitude is just a bonus, HR is the main purpose, then the standard cycling functions and that is why I liked the Z2 over the 1.0 Thanks for the offer Chris but I would prefer not to use a watch type even though one of the ones listed is a watch style. The SigmaROX looks just about right in terms of features and price, not sure why I did not see it before. Any problems at all with the transition from sensor to unit when riding in groups or near high power lines?
I thought the same, I didn't want something to grand or busy after recently having my Ciclosport HAC die after many years of service. I wanted something really simple but had good, useable features. Then I needed a GPS unit for work so I bought the Edge 705(primarily for work of course) and now I am all about the Garmin with the bells and whistles especially when you use their website and import your rides into Google Earth.
I had the Garmin 305 and it was great... I did upgrade to the 705 because of 2 reasons.. 1 the screen is bigger so it is easier to see... 2 the full GPS map feature is nice.. I don't use the GPS much but it has saved me and the group i have been riding with more than once... Plus most 705's already come with the cadence sensor...
Yeah I knew the elevation was waaay off since we were cruising at 30,000 feet... I'm curious if it was close on the moving speed and total distance though.
I ride mostly solo and I haven't seen anything go wrong with my unit wherever I've been, so I don't have a good answer for you on that. The three wireless components are "coded" though, so there should be some interference resistance. edit - also, the Sigma 2209 MHR also has mostly the same functions and is a lot cheaper, but I went with the Rox because it can display more info on the screen at once.
Since you asked about bike computers and not what GPS to get I'd suggest the Cateye V3. All the cool kids are now running this and it's not ridiculous in pricing
