Anyone ever try Chinese bike computers?
Magene is like the Garmin of China and most of their products seem like a generation or two behind but I’m tempted to try one next time because I’m tired of sending Garmin $300-400 every 4-5 years.
$43 - ant+, gps, no mapping - kind of like my old Garmin
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806909675537.html
$56 to get navigation
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806683727410.html
$129 for color, touchscreen, and turn by turn routing
I’d have a look at @dcrainmaker or @gpl 's site to see if they are reviewed but my gut instinct says no. I am maybe biased though by folk sending off for super duper watches as a kid only to receive a bog standard one which didn’t do anything special!
It is compatible with my watch, but kinda worthless without a large enough screen to display relative distance.
I feel like I don’t use half of the features that come with my Garmin 530 (basic data screens and a few sensors and trainer control). I tried mapping twice with the 530 and mapping kind of sucks IMO on a bike computer because you don’t ride a bike like you drive a car. My 530 tried to route me on 55mph roads because it couldn’t figure out bike trails nor how a cyclist might take slower, less busy roads.
I just bought a Magene speed sensor or use with rollers and it was $10 for two on ebay. Works perfectly. I can’t imagine that the $40 Garmin speed sensor does anything different.
The only thing really tying me to Garmin is that I consider Garmin connect to be my master repository of cycling data. TP, and WKO5 are my secondaries and Strava is my 3rd. I’m guessing that even Magene files could be put in TP or Garmin Connect in some fashion.
Trace Velo reviews a bunch of stuff from AliExpress, including computers:
(I haven’t check those personally)
They seem to have improved the navigation when I have had to use the auto route gen in GC or my 1030. It was terrible for routing you down a unrideable road or down a stupidly fast or busy one. I do use my 1030 a bit like a car sat nav but usually on a pre generated route in RWGPS, sometimes I go off route on purpose and it usually routes me back by suitable roads. My 130+ is just an ant +/ gps recording unit for training and racing.
Hopefully not a 1040
This guy likes the $130 Magene:
It as the same issue as my 530 mapping - not knowing about bike trails. If I were in the market I’d be very tempted because $130 versus $450+ for a Garmin 840 is such a huge difference.
Do you know if you can adjust the alert for a car? I have a Fenix 6X that I tried using with my Varia, but couldn’t hear or feel the alert when cars were coming. I can totally feel the alert when I get a text message, but not an approaching car. For this reason I stick with my 530
I had to turn sounds on for “during activities” mode to hear the alerts. I don’t know if it’s possible to customize it more than that.
Man, I REALLY want to have the eyes some of you have. I can barely read the small print on my 1030+.
Do you need glasses? I’ve worn prescription glasses since high school. I’ve got progressive lenses in my sunglasses. The prescription is out of date but I can see the 840 screen just fine. But I must be lucky because I can read my 840 on the bike without sunglasses, and read the menu at a restaurant without glasses.
Yeah, I wear two different lenses one for far and one for near (it’s called “monovision”), so it’s always a challenge. Especially on the “interval goal” field that’s so tiny. I definitely can’t read the workout menu “next step, pause, resume, etc.” tiny print.
On that note, I wish it was possible to adjust the text size in those units.
Do you need one? No.
Why do I use an Edge 1030? It’s bigger, it has a solid mount. It can be accessories, silicone case, leash, it has more memory, It seems easier to maneuver the menus, I can charge it and keep it clean while still wearing my watch. I can also still be an Apple Watch victim too. There are other features that the Edge does that might not work on a watch. Most of which I would never use. (There were people that had iPhones on their bars, and they look like they can take flight!)
But the big screen makes everything look, well: ‘BIG’.
