Yeah, the CEO (Chip?) has been on a PR push recently, showing they are the good guys, and they just got into an issue with PE debt. So not for first time, PE almost ruined a company…but it kills alot of that goodwill when you botch a launch, get users to front you cash-flow when you ship a product you must know yourself is unready…
They should offer these ones at a 50% discount almost like a kickstarter…
And as for brand damage…put it this way if they announce a new Bolt/Roam V3 in March I 100% wouldnt pre order it based on fears it’s like the Ace
Yep, this is my motivation for looking elsewhere. Even if they release a new Bolt/Roam in the spring, I have little faith that it’ll actually be fully cooked for another ~6 months after that. I believe the Ace update map stretches into the second half of 2025, so they clearly know it needs work. Bad look.
So it seems like this addresses several of DC Rainmaker’s annoyances about firmware on launch. It’s a shame for Wahoo that all the negative reviews around launch will live forever online and probably remain at the top of searches forever.
Edit: GPLama says the elevation graph fixes still don’t work for him even after the firmware update. What a cluster-F by Wahoo.
Yeah, for me it adds Strava, but yesterday it failed on routing with the new firmware. Had a route with basically two loops, then a climb (off-loop), then back again for one final loop. Garmin & COROS had no problems with it, Wahoo failed from pressing the start button. Sigh.
I don’t have a cycling computer but would like to buy one and use TR outside in the spring. Watched a lot of reviews but what a “swamp” is that …
Does TR prefers a brand or model?
TR officially supports Garmin, Wahoo and Hammerhead/SRAM head units. Basically, I’d choose your preferred screen size and budget.
Garmin 840 is a solid choice.
Wahoo Bolt and Roam are mature and great. Choose according to screen size.
Hammerhead makes this easy, just pick the latest Karoo.
Feature-wise, all are good and mature. Wahoo makes setup easier and they have a zoom feature I personally love, but other people don’t think is important at all. Garmin makes setup more complex. They have more options, but in all likelihood you won’t need them. My Wahoo Bolt v1 has so many data fields that are useless to me, so take that for what it is worth. Hammerhead is more smartphone-like, something Garmin and Wahoo are just going towards. The only negative of Hammerhead (well, Shimano really) is that it can no longer connect to Di2 drivetrains. Shimano put the kabosh on that when SRAM acquired Hammerhead.
Just throwing out that one man’s “complex” is another’s “way more options”. I kind of think of Wahoo as Apple and Garmin as Samsung if that helps you decide. I absolutely agree that the zoom feature on a Wahoo is awesome, and I really wish Garmin would add it. Both are great computers, it just depends on what you want. DCRainmaker does an amazing job comparing them all on his website.
Go play with some in a bike store. Ask your riding friends if you can see what they’ve done.
Personally, Garmin hasn’t ever been an issue for me and I think the solar charging models are worth the money. The UI is complex in a way I like with different profiles for different ride types. Garmin tends to not ship half baked software. Once it’s setup, you might mess with it every few months.
Or maybe Roam/Bolt are iPhone 5 and Garmin is whatever the current Samsung is……
Long time Bolt user, and I’ve been playing with a friend’s Karoo. The difference in screen quality and overall look/feel of the touchscreen and UI are worlds ahead of the Bolt. I’d find it hard to pay current asking price for a Bolt/Roam right now.
i honestly dont know where this whole “garmin is so complicated” thing is coming from. the newer models X40 series and X50 Series are anything but complicated. the integration with other websites like trainerroad, trainingpeaks, strava works seamless and the setup process is foolsave. there is nothing complicated at all. i would even say the wahoo is more annoying to setup than the garmin, because you need a phone to do it.
And yeah i have both (the roam v2 and the edge 1050). so i dont mindlessly repeat some shit i read on the internet (5 years ago).
In most respects, yes, in some important other ways, I find it is actually reversed. For example, I cannot upgrade the Firmware on my Varia via the app, I have to connect it to my computer via USB cable as if it were 2013. wahoo‘s app is a big selling point.
But clearly, they were behind and are catching up with the Ace. Once the firmware has matured, it seems they are on par with the competition.
Hammerhead was ahead of the other two, though, by offering a bike computer that works more like a smartphone.
