My Cousin actually I am trying to get her onto TrainerRoad. I am an Android person and not sure the best way for her to proceed as far as how to get everything paired up best. Would like a forward looking setup option as well as older tried and true methods. This will be a Virtual power match setup on a dumb trainer running off of a speed sensor.
Current equipment:
Garmin Fenix 5s HR Watch
dumb Trainer
IphoneX
Ant+ speed and cadence sensor from Garmin (is bluetooth a better route to take)?
Questions I have are is adapters and an Ant+ dongle or Bluetooth with a newer speed sensor the best route to take?
Can the Fenix5s HR broadcast feature be used on TrainerRoad app with Ant+ dongle? Or is that for compatible Garmin devices only?
Or would it be best to use a laptop and Ant+ Usb adapter because either setup will have issues?
I’ve done both setups and find the bluetooth only setup a much better experience. Pickup the Wahoo Bluetooth speed + cadence + Tickr HR combo and enjoy(these also broadcast Ant+ for her to connect to her Fenix when riding outside)
You can also buy the Wahoo Ant+ dongle plus Lightning to 30 pin adapter, but they are getting harder to find and are a bit finicky. Most cases also interfere with it, so you have to remove the case to plug it in.
But with that you can turn on broadcast on the Fenix and have the iphone pickup the heart rate.
Recommend going with Viiia HR monitor, will allow ANT+ bridge to connect to Iphone, or go with CABLE, and use virtual power. I currently use an older laptop with USB ANT+ dongle (permanent setup) , plus tried both Viiia HR and CABLE and they work. I would stick with current ANT+ gear since they will work with most Head units. No need to get 2 sets of sensors.