UKC

I was looking for some advice on bike computers. It's for my brother's birthday and his recently died. I'm not a biker so have no idea where to start. Budget is flexible. Happy to keep it cheap if there's a good value option, or happy to go up towards £150 if spending more.

Any advice greatly appreciated!

In reply to iccy:

Garmin Edge 200, thread over, next question ?

In reply to Dark-Cloud:

Or you can get Edge 500s for under £150.

In reply to iccy:

That's fine if he wants the full GPS toy but for normal recording of time, distance, average speed etc. you can't beat a Cateye Velo 7 for around £13 - £15.

In reply to iccy:

Any idea what you are replacing?

In reply to Rigid Raider:

Yep, I have a number of different Sigma one of similar minimal cost and they've all been great. One literally got washed in a washing machine. Rinsed the powder residue out of it, left it to really dry, put the (same) battery back in and it worked like new. Just pick the one with number of functions on it that you want. I really like my newest one which has a thermometer on it - great when bikepacking/touring to see how cold it was over night!

In reply to Dark-Cloud:

Not the 500 then?

In reply to iccy:

One of these
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/garmin-edge-touring-gps-cycle-computer/

I've got the 'Plus' version which adds a connection for a Heart Rate wotsit etc, which I don't use. Maybe I should, but I've got an in-built heart rate monitor of sorts.........

It has proper maps, proper route indications and standard rolling along data. No complaints from me (once you've sorted out the difference in Garmin terminology between all road, road and shite paths, and off-road.

In reply to iccy:

I've got a s/h Garmin Edge 200 from a mate who was upgrading to the Edge touring mainly for logging rides on Strava cos my phone kept running out of battery on long rides. I've kept my old Sigma 16.12 wireless computer on the bike as I find the cadence sensor handy -- they're available new from around £43

In reply to felt:

Yeah the 500 is good, got one myself, but simple bike computer the 200 is good, he didn't mention heart rate etc. so i didn't suggested it

Cateye and Sigma stuff is dead in the water nowadays IMHO, wheel speed sensors are old tech when there are so many GPS units around.

In reply to iccy:

Thanks guys, that's all really helpful. He's just got a v cheap one that he paid about £7 for and we were going to upgrade him.

The Edge 200 seems a great option.

If upgrading then the Touring seems to have really mixed reviews in terms of user-friendlyness. Are there any other options I should be looking at for that sort of thing?

iccy

In reply to iccy:

What about the garmin 20 or 25, the 25 will give basic directions and is nice and compact. Doesn't do maps though.

In reply to Dark-Cloud:

Absolute nonsense. Not every cyclist is obsessed with recording their times and routes. I'd be willing to bet that 90% of bike computers sold are still the old-fashioned simple chip and wheel pickup type.

In reply to Rigid Raider:

Plus my phone in my pocket can do all the GPS stuff. Aren't the old school ones actually more accurate than GPS anyway? Particularly if you have been careful measuring your wheel circumference.

In reply to TobyA:

Yes, my chip and sensor computer measures with absolute accuracy, allowing for a few yards into the pub car park or whatever, when compared afterwards with the route on Bikehike. My cycling buddy has the same tyres and computer and at the end of a ride we are usually within a few hundredths of a mile of each other, probably down to the way we took corners.

In reply to iccy:

200 is great for basics then I would look at the 800 (or 810) if you want maps.

Plenty of other cheaper options though, both of those will just do the job and I know them

In reply to IMA:

Thanks guys. Really helpful. Think I'm going to go with the 200.

In reply to iccy:

Don't think you'll regret it. Bought one for my wife's Xmas present this year. She was non-plussed, despite a long history of 'practical' presents (most notably a sleeping bag one year)...

And despite some of her snobbish cyclist friends saying I was a cheapskate for not buying her an 810 (that would have been completely overkill)

... she loves it now.

In reply to Rigid Raider:

OK granddad calm down........

In reply to TobyA:


I measured mine using the GPS on my 'phone.