I’ve been refraining from posting this myself.
The internet is a heck of a thing.
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- Computers use barometric pressure to calculate elevation change, which is far more accurate than GPS (phone)
- Computers generally have a much faster refresh rate for GPS, giving much more accurate tracking. Which can be important for KOM chasers. Phone GPS is typically optimized for driving directions. Just notice how long it takes your phone to notice that you missed your freeway exit etc.
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I started my cycling journey with my iPhone and a quad lock.
I changed the quad lock case when I changed my phone.
Changeover to a Wahoo Element Bolt early in 2019 was a revelation.
Benefits I personally found were:
- Easier to connect
- Better more consistent connection to HRM
- Better more consistent connection to Stages PM
- No dropouts (phone dropped out regularly)
- Longer battery life
- Better route direction from Wahoo than Strava App
- Smaller and less obtrusive on the handlebars
- Easier to read the screen
- Easier to operate in the rain / with gloves on
- More robust
Also no need for my expensive phone to be out front where it was vulnerable
Just my personal experiences - I wouldn’t want to go back to using my phone
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Well this thread certainly aged well😅
I took the plunge and bought a wahoo element bolt months ago and I absolutely love the thing.
Looking back at my original post I think my points stand up pretty fair to be honest.
Sorry if my reasoning amounted to ‘the dumbest thread on this forum’ 
Now if you’ll excuse me, me and my family are gonna gather round my phone and watch Netflix of an evening 
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I didnt need really want or need a cycling computer.
But then i got a huge deal on a pair of vector 2 pedals that i couldnt pass on.
Problem is after getting them and researching, initial proper angle calibration required a cycling computer and besides, my vivoactive HR can’t process power data.
So luckily through the grapevine i got an awesome deal on a 810 unit… i know theyre old…but it works perfect.
I gotta say i prefer it to my watch for that purpose, clear numbers, more space for more data… different configs that are easily swappable (all things i could do on the smaller screen but in a more complicated way)
annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd i’ll be able to do TR workouts outdoors next year and i love maps because often times i dont plan ahead
I’m not trying to be facetious but dropping $400+ on a bike computer to protect a $400 phone in case I crash it… 
Fair enough for the link, I’ll have a look and happy to take this convo there
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I can still call for a ride if I kill my bike computer (especially in a crash)… not so much if I kill my phone 
Reach and function of a phone far exceeds a computer when you get beyond cycling use.
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side note: don’t keep ur phone in cargo bibs screen side out if you are going to crash
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There are plenty of sub-$400 bike computer options…hell, plenty of sub-$300 options.
I’m not familiar with Samsung / Android phone pricing, but I can’t think of an iPhone that costs $400.
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How much does a 6 or 7 cost? I bought my 8 for $399 a year ago from T-Mobile. Currently, a brand new XR is $499!
Not to mention that most phones, with the exception of the newest top end models, aren’t particularly waterproof and your warranty is gone at the merest hint of moisture in your phone.
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Well, you are kinda making a stronger case for a bike computer now…since $500 is $100 more than $400…and we already established that you don’t have to spend $400 on a bike computer.
But the iPhone SE is, in fact, $400. But I also think we all know that this is not representative the vast majority of iPhones are sold.
For me, it comes down to the simple fact that I don’t want something that big on my HB. I also hate touch screens when I am riding. But if it works for you, have at it…nothing wrong with it.
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I was using a Sony Ericsson Xperia Active Sport with ipbike for about two years before switching to a Garmin 520. It’s around $100 refurbished and the app was $8. The app can do basically everything Garmin can do except live tracking but is far more customizable. I started the setup using my HTC One M7 but my sweat killed the phones digitizer (mostly indoors workouts). The HTC was advertised to be waterproof but it’s not. The Active is. I had to root the HTC and run Ant+ enabler app ($10) so I can get the Ant+ radio working. No need for the Sony.
I switched to the 520 because of battery life, map tiles, and sweat again. The Sony was good just over 3 hours. It uses OSM for Map tile coverage and I had to download them before hand but it’s not a big deal as I normally ride around the same area and they are save on the phone. I just had to remember to view/run through the route for new coverage areas. The biggest reason I switched was the touch screen. If you don’t sweat, it’s not an issue but for me I couldn’t flip between screens and many time it was just flipping out when sweat drips on it. There was no automatic upload of ride files so I had to pull it off the phone.
It wasn’t a bad solution but I just got tired of the limitation. My 520 was rock solid for four years but the battery is showing it’s age. The 530 replace is just superb. I got both for under $300 each when I purchased them new. The HTC was around $700 so it wasn’t that much of a bargain given the damage it sustained after less than six months of limited use. I tried to save a few bucks but in the end it costed me more.
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The joke’s on me, I actually bought an Element. My original point was for the amount of money I dropped (or that others drop or are willing to), it’s such an underwhelming package… it’s supposed to do one thing and one thing only and… it doesn’t do it that well.
It’s buggy, it’s inaccurate, it’s always 2-3 seconds late (both in the reading of the gradient and when it comes to directions - which makes me believe that speed, power and distance are also off), it doesn’t offer turn-by-turn navigation unless you pay for a third party premium service - so what does it actually do? I typically ride laps in Central Park (so not exactly a poor GPS area) and it tells me that I’m in a starred Strava segment… five seconds later. Or it tells me it’s flat when it’s def ramping up, or it’s 9% uphill when I’m already descending.
Essentially it’s an inaccurate, buggy, laggy but crisp reading of supposed speed, distance, gradient, power and coordinates…
My 2 cents
OK, so a few points…
The Elemnt is more than a few years old now, so it’s feature set is not the most up to date. I rarely use navigation, but I seem to recall I had turn by turn on my Elemnt…but I also used Ride With GPS to load the routes. Dunno if I had premium at the time.
My experience with Wahoo computers is overwhelmingly positive…to the point that I won’t touch a Garmin head unit anymore. Yeah, the gradient may lag a bit but I don’t know if any computer has exact on-the-spot gradient readings. But I also view gradient readings as a nice-to-have, not essential function. Does a phone provide accurate gradient readings? I have no idea…
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I bought a 520 when the 520+ came out and the 520 was discontinued. Really cheap. There isn’t a phone out there that can offer an always-on, sunlight-readable display with anything close to that battery life. And operate in rain. And that’s not counting form factor or crash resistance. At any price. Let alone at the clearance price I got my Garmin.
You can drive screws in wood with a hammer. In some conditions. That doesn’t mean it’s the right tool.
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This is not true.
Because it doesn’t really do its own navigation, whether you get turn by turn depends on the route data source. Ride With GPS routes get turn by turn, regardless of whether you have the paid subscription or not.
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First time seeing this topic. I’m not convinced by the original post. My iphone would cost $500 to replace. Plus quad locks are ugly.
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This is tricky. GPS samples come in at one a second. You can make guesses based on recent history and have less reliable but faster information about where you are, or you can be more conservative. Elemnt lags a few seconds, but that’s not real surprising for something only measured once a second. (Your phone does this too, and uses recent velocity and where roads are to make it appear more accurate.)
Somewhere surrounded by tall buildings isn’t a great place to receive signals that require line of sight to many places in the sky.
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