http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Topic: Cycle computer recommendation? en Sat, 16 May 2026 20:26:55 +0000 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180&page=2#post-316063 Sun, 20 Oct 2019 10:42:36 +0000 Arellcat 316063@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Mine does the opposite: I can't get it to do a completely hard reset. It gives a permanent low battery warning when it goes to sleep, and even leaving the battery out for an hour and then replacing with a new battery doesn't cure it!</p> <p>Cateye computers from the early 2000s were the highwater mark for reliability. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180&page=2#post-316062 Sun, 20 Oct 2019 10:33:06 +0000 duncans 316062@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Changed the battery in the VDO M2...and it lost all settings.</p> <p>Damn, I'm still looking for a speedo that meets such simple needs. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180&page=2#post-197504 Mon, 31 Aug 2015 13:39:04 +0000 wingpig 197504@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I've brought the box and receipt and everything in with me today, though. I'm only returning mine as more-hassle-than-it's-worth-for-the-benefit, anyway. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180&page=2#post-197496 Mon, 31 Aug 2015 12:44:29 +0000 CycleCommute.CC 197496@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Definitely worth updating the software on it before discounting it as useless. I have a different garmin model and it is awesome and it finds gps lock in seconds. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180&page=2#post-197484 Mon, 31 Aug 2015 10:55:39 +0000 wingpig 197484@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@Baldcyclist I did, to retrieve the test traces, then to delete them when their removal appeared to not be a part of the factory reset process. Garmin Express was offering me an update but the only feature described as being improved by it was unconnected to the whole basic see-satellites thing.<br /> At the moment the inconvenience of having to sit still whilst it connects then press buttons when it thinks it's connected (stopping, saving the partial trace and repeating to start a new one after every few miles) is too great. I'd either pay a bit more for the convenience of a watch-based thing (no handlebar-space requirements, always exposed to the sky, one-button launch) or somewhat more again for the usefulness of something with a proper screen and mapping. Or just get a dynamo-to-USB thing and a phone mount - I rarely get a chance to go out for big phone-sapping rides but have a wee external battery thing; my phone in my pocket was fine for logging my commute this morning. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180&page=2#post-197477 Mon, 31 Aug 2015 10:24:52 +0000 Baldcyclist 197477@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@wingpig Have you connected it to a computer, it may be running an old OS. Could have been sitting in a warehouse for years... </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197461 Mon, 31 Aug 2015 08:16:39 +0000 wingpig 197461@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Traces from my phone in my pocket are as close to the actual routes taken as those sampled from the Edge 200. The cheating thing is known, as witnessed any time I've switched on phone-navigation in a moving car without particularly holding the phone up near a window. It's also acquired a position on a moving bike from a pocket without sitting still for five minutes first. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197457 Sun, 30 Aug 2015 23:05:24 +0000 Snowy 197457@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Wingpig, if that was an out-of-the box start then it can take anything up to 15 minutes in theory, but I've not seen any stationary acquisitions over 5 mins in Edinburgh. (Even using a Forerunner 405 or 310 which are famously dreadful at acquisition.)</p> <p>A new GPS device or one that's been off for a long time has to download an almanac of current satellite data from one of the satellites it can see. If it loses that connection (eg you moved behind a building) then it has to switch download to another satellite; this causes significant delays. If you are moving faster than walking speed in a city, it may never complete this process. Best to stand still. </p> <p>It then downloads detailed temporary (ephemeris) data which lets it actually calculate your position. This happens fast, say 30 secs, and if you use the GPS every day this is often all you need to wait for.</p> <p>If a GPS has a clear view of half the sky then it should never lose a lock.</p> <p>Mobile phones ironically have the edge here (no pun intended) because essentially they cheat - they use wifi lookup and mobile cell info to speed up the location calculation while the GPS wakes up. However, shoving the phone in a pocket for the ride can harm GPS reception so your trace might look a bit odd. Oh, and they don't have the battery to track a long ride. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197353 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 16:34:52 +0000 Ed1 197353@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>"Ed1 does it do turn by turn directions and upload your training logs to strava for you?"</p> <p>Oh yes does everything -) </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197352 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 16:25:43 +0000 ARobComp 197352@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Ed1 does it do turn by turn directions and upload your training logs to strava for you? </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197349 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 16:02:04 +0000 condor2378 197349@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I have a Forerunner 910xt which I use for triathlon or when I'm running. I switch it on as I'm getting ready and leave it outside while I get changed. It's locked on (usually) in the 5 minutes it takes to get outside, but I admit that it's not quick. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197345 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 15:44:46 +0000 Ed1 197345@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I have the £6 one from halfords so I can leave it on my bike when parked. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197340 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 15:27:35 +0000 deckard112 197340@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>My 200 is temperamental and always has been. Most of the time it picks it up immediately but on occasion I've had to reboot it as other here have suggested. In all other aspects thought it's bullet proof given the treatment it's had dispensed from me! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197335 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 15:11:16 +0000 SRD 197335@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I got a garmin forerunner over the summer. Usually picked up a fix within 30 sec or so while I was in canada. Definitely been struggling to get one here. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197330 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 14:53:28 +0000 amir 197330@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Best format (at least for the Edge 500) is TCX. This format also allows you to add turn prompts (e.g. on bikehike).</p> <p>Create a TCX file then connect the gps to the PC and copy the file to the NEW FILES (or similar) subfolder within the Garmin folder. This make take a short while. Once loaded turn the device on - it takes a while for GPS to make sense of the file. Then the course will be available under the training function.</p> <p>Warning - very large files (e.g 10 MB) may cause problems! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197329 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 14:39:30 +0000 Stickman 197329@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I usually switch mine on as I take the bike out of the shed. By the time I've locked up and wheeled the bike to the gate it's locked on. </p> <p>Occasionally it doesn't lock on, but switch off/on fixes it. </p> <p>+1 for the route advice. The Garmin software isn't intuitive. A pdf of the instruction book is on the Garmin website. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197328 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 14:35:24 +0000 wingpig 197328@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>The instruction book doesn't state a format, but just says to use Garmin Connect for uploading courses.</p> <p>It managed 3.6 miles of continuous GPS lock over six miles of lunch-trundling, but only after losing acquisition a couple of hundred yards after sitting waiting for three minutes for it to establish its position. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197323 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 14:17:19 +0000 ARobComp 197323@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I use the old "off and on again" technique to get it to lock usually. Most of the time it's failed to lock on has been because i've switched it on in the depth of the office. </p> <p>Does anyone know the best format to upload a route onto the edge 200 ? </p> <p>I've tried a couple but think I might be doing it wrong. Also cant remember where I put the instruction book. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197300 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 11:12:41 +0000 earthowned 197300@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I find it helps if you turn it on in the last place you turned it off. It seems to retain information of the satellites it last locked on to (I don't know if this is true or not?). By doing this it normally doesn't take more than 20 secs to get a lock. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197297 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 10:57:33 +0000 wingpig 197297@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I was stationary, outside and away from any nearby tall buildings for two minutes waiting for it to connect before I gave up and went two miles.<br /> As a convenient, portable-between-any-bike-without-requiring-a-sensor-on-the-wheel device it's off to a bad start and will be back in Aldi's stockroom on Monday unless it wakes up. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197287 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 10:20:47 +0000 amir 197287@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>It's best to be still and outside when acquiring signal. If you're moving it just gets confused. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-197282 Fri, 28 Aug 2015 10:05:05 +0000 wingpig 197282@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Hmmm. What would Garmin Edge 200 users consider a reasonable time for one to Acquire Position? I'm thinking that for it to be still Acquiring by the time I've ridden a couple of miles is a bit much. It then seemed to Acquire straight away when I set back off after a quick shop but then spent the next three miles having Lost GPS. I though the point of dedicated GPS thingbies was that they were supposed to be good at catching GPS signals? </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-196060 Sun, 16 Aug 2015 20:36:22 +0000 ARobComp 196060@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Just picked up a 200 for my new CX bike today in the Aldi in Gorgi. The guy said they've a few left. £50 - best price I could find online was £70 so I'm well chuffed! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-193909 Fri, 24 Jul 2015 13:51:05 +0000 deckard112 193909@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@wingpig Dunfermline, plenty left. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-193904 Fri, 24 Jul 2015 12:26:58 +0000 condor2378 193904@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@wingpig The one in Gorgy had them when I was in on Tuesday. They're in the glass cabinet at the swinging barriers as you enter from the carpark at the rear. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-193886 Fri, 24 Jul 2015 10:09:19 +0000 earthowned 193886@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Another Edge 200 user here and for that Aldi price you cannot really beat it. I keep it on the bike all week and then plug it in at the weekend and upload data/charge. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-193874 Fri, 24 Jul 2015 07:55:15 +0000 wingpig 193874@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@deckard112 Hmm. Which particular Aldi have you seen them still in? </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-193852 Thu, 23 Jul 2015 14:28:19 +0000 deckard112 193852@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@Dave not sure if it was missed but Edge 200 for £50 at Aldi (don't know if they deliver in fairness but for £25 I'll do it! ;) )</p> <p>I usually just hook mine up to my pc/laptop every night so it's continually charged. I've had it for 3 years now and it's 'travelled' thousands of miles in all sorts of extreme conditions. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-193851 Thu, 23 Jul 2015 14:25:18 +0000 duncans 193851@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>VDO M2 seems to fit the bill precisely! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=15180#post-193849 Thu, 23 Jul 2015 14:14:30 +0000 Dave 193849@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>You can get an Edge 200 for £75 delivered. Although it's GPS based the screen looks (and works) very similarly to a "normal" bike computer - you just get to upload and preserve the rides afterwards.</p> <p>In fairness you will need to charge it every 12 or so hours' riding which could be annoying (although it will practically have charged up by the time you've plugged it in to sync with Strava etc).</p> <p>My wife has been riding with one for a few years and likes it a lot as a pseudo-basic computer. </p>