Garmin 500

[ukalipt]

here's my review so far.

BROUGHT:
wiggle.co.uk - gold member price $300.67 shipped to the door
inside the box:
1 x device
2 x mounts
12 x rubber band mounts which have 2 different lengths and sizes for different
handle bar widths [i think 12 or so - heaps basically]
1 x usb cord - generic pin usb 2 i believe [like i need just one more of them!]
1 x power charger with mult-plug adaptors NOTE: NO AUSTRALIAN PLUG
this is due to being purchased from the UK, so it has UK, US and other plug fittings though.
1 x CD rom with software and manual.

POWER CHARGER & POWER ETC:
The supplied power charger is a usb 2 pin fit. luckily my blackberry mobile
uses the exact same pin fitting and power amp watts thing etc so i can use it.
no major issue even if i didn't have that because it is plugged into a computer
using usb, this also acts as a charger.
i haven't done test as to which one charges quicker, i am sure someone here
would know the amp/watts/electricity stuff from a usb out of a computer in relation
to the actual in power socket charger.

in the real world. basically by the time i have remember to unplug it from the
computer usb after uploading the activity its charged 100% and ready to go.
suggest time of 18hrs battery life. way over what i would need in normal
circumstances and have had no concern of running out of battery yet

SIZE:
pretty much perfect. it is about 30-50% bigger than most normal cycle computers
but i found it to be a great size and was a little bit surprised at how small it actually
is when taken out of the bag.
see pics but note: my MTB stem is an unusually short length 90mm.

MOUNTING:
too simple. couple of rubber bands wrapped around bars. job done
the device is just a 90 twist lock mechanism into the mount that is stable and
you feel comfortable it won't drop out at anytime.
[still haven't dropped the bike with it mounted yet so no TRUE test]
on the roadie - i have cockpit issues with the handlebar mounted ayups.
so it is difficult to press the func. buttons on the ayup mounted side.
to combat this i will need to remount the holder completely over the bar tape.
i have tried with it half on the tape, half on the metal bars and its seems to slip
move towards and off the bar tape.
on the MTB - no issues as i have it on the stem.

BUTTONS:
four in total - two either side in the middle. you do need to press them firmly for
them to work no major issue, but as above you need space around them to press.

DISPLAY:
mono - dot matrix style
depends on how you customise the function set up [see below] but can be huge.
it can be a little difficult to read on a sunny day. does have a back light button
that works great for night. contrast and brightness can be customised in the settings.

FUNCTIONS:
basically a shit load as this thing does everything.. more than you would ever need.
it has 3 pages to view. a button press will scroll from current page to the next page
or you can set the unit up to auto scroll with various speeds - slow - medium - fast.
currently i use manual scroll not auto. you can also turn a page off if you want i.e.
there will only be two pages of data.
on each of these pages you can customise the amount of data fields anywhere from
1 field to 8. with 8 it is 2 cols wide by 4 rows deep.
1 field digits are huge
8 fields digits are at size in pic below were you have two in a row
each field is customisable as well to one of 42 yes FOURTY BLOODY TWO!
data fields. i won't go through all obviously but to give an example:
avg speed, current speed, cadence, cadence avg, cadence lap, elevation, grade,
GPS accuracy, HR [heart rate], HR %MAX, HR Lap %MAX, HR Graph, power,
power 30s avg, temp ..... it just doesn't stop.

after my limited use i have it customised to different rides.
PAGE 1:- for general riding
speed, avg speed, distance, time of day
PAGE 2:- shit that doesn't matter but is so cool to know
temp, grade, time [riding time], total ascent, total decent, GPS accuracy
PAGE 3:- racing page!!!
Laps, lap time, avg lap speed etc.

thats the beauty, being able to set the pages up for specific riding.

it has the functionality to change bikes. you just add a bike to it i.e. nickname etc
and then change that before you start riding. three bikes i think from memory.

you can do so much more with it but i haven't got it all completely sorted yet.
one thing i did see:
training/ghost ride - record a ride. then when you do the same ride it will show
you in a kind of gaming type display with a line and two dots where your position
is now as to the last time you did that ride i.e. are you riding faster today?

PAIRING WITH ANT+ TECH:
its simple. some devices are Ant+ wifi kinda like things. cycleops powertap metres.
i probably will never get one but i would like too [n+1]

HRM - you just buy a garmin one and it will pair/sync about $65. i do
plan on getting one

CADENCE - again as above and about same price - i could/may get one

GARMIN CONNECT:
to top it all off it connects to http://connect.garmin.com so simply it is a benchmark
for me when it comes to usability [which is my day time job]. i didn't even have to
think to get it to pair, link, upload, install, download etc
the connect website is so simple and again - has so much shit going on i am blow
away - last week at the TDU i rode for 10:01:05 and a Distance 249.20 km.

WHY IS IT GOOD:
just to know shit, if you are a techhead/numbers junky and if you are training.
things like looking at these two activities and comparing.
the recent WSMTB 4hr
distance: 51.80km
time: 3:52:51
avg speed: 13.3
then a ride i did in adelaide
distance: 51.82km
time: 1:56:02
avg speed: 26.8

SO PROS:
• Small
• looks pretty good
• multi super dooper functionality & customisation
• easy online connectivity
• pairing with Ant+ - HRM - Cadence ect. all on one device
• essential training partner
• twist off, then place on other bike and ride off. no wires etc etc etc.
• connects with satellites pretty darn quickly [95% of the time]
•*splits/lap times - used smartly they rock. i now record my ride to work
on the M4 where there is no lights etc to stop me as a lap. then when i
enter the urban jungle with lights, turns, roundabouts etc as a second lap

CONS:
• screen can be difficult to read in sun
• you do need space around the device to press buttons with ease
• displays grade whilst on the road, can't seem to find that data once you have
uploaded it to the connect website
• unsure if temperature reading is correct [i could be just paranoid but it did say one
day in adelaide it was 45º... maybe it was a reading like track temperature. either way - it was bloody hot that day!!!!]
• avg speed incorrect - unlike when you use a cycle computer that has a sensor. when the wheel stops
turning the device will stop recording riding time and therefore give a more correct avg speed.
with the 500 as an example i have to wait at the lights for 2 minutes it still sees me as moving
so it thinks that last km took 2min longer than it really did.
there is an "auto stop function when bike is stationary" feature but it beeped everytime
you stopped which annoyed me. i will do further testing but i may have to have this turned
on to get a more accurate avg speed
• it won't make you a better rider

MY RATING
4.5 out of 5 stars

IMAGES:
back lit


5 function fields on:


hopefully a better indication of size: