- I thought about starting one, but am just following the official one on the Z forum.
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No need to re-ride unless you got burned with the Banding ride to start. If you finished the BL ride properly, they may be sending out corrected emails today, from what I read.
Yup, you can do workouts with no issues. The BL info and phenotype is more for general info and final comparison. That all seems in place despite the email snafu.
Guess I donât understand the focus on the word âpromises.â According to DCRainmaker July 2021 review of the JetBlack Volt it had good accuracy:
"Overall, Iâm pretty darn happy with accuracy here. While there were some early firmware reports of very small amounts of drift, I donât see that at all on current firmware, or during any of my testing. Accuracy appears to easily be greater than the claimed +/- 2.5% figure that the company has for their tech specs, and seems to be closer to the +/- 1% variants we see on many higher-end trainers.
As with any trainer, there are some minor quibbles that I discussed above. But I can find those same quirks on a Tacx NEO 2T or a Wahoo KICKR 2020, and donât even get me started on the $2,500-$3,200+ smart bikes that have worse accuracy quirks. So for $850USD all-in, accuracy is really strong here."
A firmware update changed that, as the latest Zwift Hub hands on said this:
âThen, just a few hours ago (yes, today), they sent over an e-mail confirming they found two items that contributed to the accuracy issues I and others were seeing on recent firmware, and believe they have them fixed for the next firmware update. That firmware version isnât yet available to me, but likely will be within the next few days. Once I get that, and go back and put it through its paces over the course of a number of rides, Iâll circle back with a full in-depth review.â
Having worked in the embedded software industry for 30 years, have seen over and over and over and over again that regressions can slip into releases. And then they get fixed.
Power accuracy was working well in 2021, so I guess the promise is they are going to fix it? Why wouldnât they? Are they lazy and want bad reviews? 
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At this point, Z has not delivered a final FW that meets DCRâs bar for rating a âreviewâ and offering a thumbs up on it. Despite the history of the Volt, Z apparently mucked it up recently, so an open question / promise IMO.
No different that Zâs well earned reputation for screwing up some parts of the app with new releases, this seems a similar example in their first trainer. Sure is likely that they can fix the power, but they have to do it, and not mess it up with future releases.
Adding to that, GP Lama mentioned concerns based on issues he had with the Volt that are still not resolved. I have to revisit that review to understanding more.
Anyway, the history of JB is small-ish and Z as a firmware developer are still green (current issue as evidence). I am betting they will get it all sorted, but they arenât theyâre yet.
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Do we actually know that Zwift hired firmware developers, wrote a contract to have JetBlack continue with the hardware but turn over the source code to Zwift? Having written similar contracts over many years, Iâm inclined to believe Zwift had JetBlack modify the firmware. But anything is possible.
I donât think it is even clear (at least to me) what kind of deal there is between Zwift and Jetblack. I assume it is some kind of license to re-brand and re-sell the Volt?
But the deal could be much more involving.
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The way I read the Zwift Insider and DCR articles, it sounds like Zwift has their own FW programmers as well as separate testing group. Minimal details on most of that, so hard to say what really is the case.
The ZwiftInsider one in particular is interesting, where it was stated that firmware is being managed on the Zwift side. All that is required for that statement to be true is that someone at Zwift is managing the work being done by JetBlack, one of JetBlackâs sub-contractors, or another 3rd party. Having a project or program or product manager be responsible for 3rd party development (both hardware and software) is really common in the electronics and software industries. The testing group at Zwift is independent of the firmware.
I have no clue what Zwift is doing, however it is clear they want to grow their subscription business by making it easy for new users to connect a trainer with minimum hassle ($ and time). Zwift doesnât need to own either the hardware or software to do that.
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That was my gut reaction as wellâŚ.the press releases claiming they did the firmware just read like, wellâŚpress releases to me.
Nothing to base this on at all, just how I interpreted what was released.
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Circling back to the firmware issueâŚ.the more I think about it, the odder it seems.
Basically Jet Black is saying âyeah, there are issues with our own firmware, so Zwift decided they need their own. But we are going to keep selling our own trainer with the firmware that Zwift thinks is crap. Please buy our trainer.â
Sure they are betting on a huge volume increase for the hardware by partnering with Zwift, but for all intents and purposes, they just chopped their branded business off at the knees. Which is probably another good indication of how tough the trainer market is right now.
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From Zwiftinsider:
The Hub is clearly based on the Volt, but itâs not the same. Firmware, for one thing, is being managed on Zwiftâs side. Additionally, while the Volt has some frame compatibility issues with certain disc brake bikes, Zwift explained to us that the Hubâs body has been modified to maximize compatibility with framesets.
The wording on âfirmware managed on Zwiftâs sideâ is really vague. But it does sound like they have âforkedâ the original Jetblack. If those changes arenât incorporated back into the original product, I see absolutely no reason why anyone would want to buy that? (Apart from dumping the price, but that would also be undercutting themselves).
Yes, from a tactical perspective they can expect so see more sales driven by this deal. But itâs really hard to see the strategic perspective for them. But youâre right that this could be an indicator of how tough the trainer market is right now. Maybe they think they this can help them buy time?
Unless I missed something, I donât think this is right. Yes, Zwift is doing their own firmware, whether in house or contracted out who knows. Yes, there were some accuracy issues when @dcrainmaker and others tested which did/do NOT exist w/Jet Black branded Volt trainers. Speculation is that Zwift dorked up the original firmware from Jet Black. Lastly, Zwift integrated the firmware update into the Zwift Companion app vs a standalone app for the Zwift Hub. If anything, Jet Black is saying, âThere are no issues w/our firmware, but Zwift hosed their own version of it. So feel free to come buy our problem free Jet Black.â 
RightâŚmy point was what occurred when the agreement was made, not what has happened since then. By agreeing to let Zwift do their own firmware, JB was making at least some concession that something was lacking in their own firmware as far as Zwift was concernedâŚ.hence allowing Zwift to change the firmware.
Whether Zwift mucked it up after then wasnât what I was referring to. Sorry I didnât make that clearer.
At a minimum in Bluetooth/ANT+ the Hub needs to appear as Zwift Hub and not JetBlack Volt. Firmware update required. And support firmware updates via Zwift companion app. Likely requires a firmware update.
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3 posts were merged into an existing topic: Saris H3 Discussion/Issues
The Zwift Hub is supposed to come out here (UK) on Monday. I want one, or a Volt. The Volt currently is more expensive (ÂŁ495) than the Hub is supposed to be (ÂŁ449). (None of those $400 sales sadly)
Question is, is it worth waiting for a price drop? Maybe until black Friday? Anyone good at guessing if either of the two will go on sale?
Iâm pretty sure gplama said there was still an issue with it that required a firmware update to fix.
Three weeks ago. Iâd guess all the reviewers had updates by now, but anything they might want to say is embargoed until it actually goes on sale.
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