What functions should I be looking for in a computer?

Iain C

I want a computer for my road bike but there are a bewildering number available at all budgets.

I've read some of the other posts and the Cateye Strada looks good, but I'm just wondering what I should really be looking for in a computer.

OK so of course I want a speedo and trip, but I'm torn about cadence. I prefer wireless which clearly is not available for cadence. I intend to use the bike primarily for fitness and leisure riding...so I guess will I actually get more out of the bike if I go for some of these more advanced features or not?

People seem to be talking about cadence and other things helping you stay "in the groove" but in my uneducated mind it seems similar to saying "you can't really get a sports car in the groove without a rev counter" which is clearly not right...although I guess there are some spinning out/red line similarities.

I guess really I was hoping to spend about £25-£35 for one, but then I don't want to be in the position two months down the line when I suddenly have more of an understanding about how a computer can help me with my riding and fitness and I wish I'd gone for something better...

madturkey

Cadence is nice but I don't reckon it's a must have. Probably down to how scientific and serious you want to be. Just like with a rev counter, you can probably "feel" when cadence is too high or low when you really put your mind to it.

I was given my non-cadence computer as a gift so I make do. If I'd bought my own I'd probably have got cadence, but only because I like gadgets.

julietp

http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCEqProd ... spid=33891

We have the specialized comps in the link above on our Trek road bikes and they are great however they ARE wireless although have an option for wired cadence. I've never felt cadence is hugely important and I know that I vary mine to maintain the speed I want - it depends whether or not you think it is important to your riding - a lot of people do but I don't.

julietp

Further to my previous post - we bought the specialized comps for £29.99 from our LBS.

MIsterGoof

I believe that most bike computers are much the same in that they offer
CURRENT SPEED
AVG SPEED
DISTANCE
ODOMETER - tota dist since time began
CURRENT TIME
Current speed compared to avg speed

so the real difference is wired / wirless and how good the look

I like VDO computers because they also have an easy access to an independant STOPWATCH. This allows me to see how slowly I climb some of my regualr hills , very useful

The VDO range offer WIRELESS CADENCE that you can buy as an extra if you so desire at a later date

the C1 - 4DS range woud site your needs
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Brands.aspx?BrandID=190

plus if you wanted the WIRLESS CADENCE the just get this

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=7296

I've got the C4 DS without the cadence, but am considering it

howiejmidlands

J have the Garmin 705.

Not just a computer but also GPS.

About £300 with cadence and HR kit, and all wireless.

It does give me loads of data such as HR, speed, max speed, cadence, average cadence, elevation, gradient, pace, etc. All can be downloaded into Garmin Centre to review later.
I am really impressed with it, but it is on the high end of the price band.

Suppose it depends on how much you can spend, and what you want the data for.

musto_skiff

Hi Iain

I think cadance is quite handy for a newbie as it takes a while to develop the feel.

Also - if your training it's perhaps easy to drift off your sweet spot.

I have a Shimano Flight Deck which I like as it also shows the gear combos; again quite handy for a newbie who dosn't want to cross chain and dosn't want to keep looking down at the block.

Also having the buttons on the hoods is nice.

It also has cadance which is calculated which again I like as it lets me know when it's worth to start pedaling on a decent; if the cadance shows 135 then I just cruise a bit more ...

Iain C

Thanks for the advice guys, much appreciated. I'm 6 months back into biking after a very long gap was I was dead keen when I was younger so I know if I'm slipping into "grind" mode and tend to do something about it.

Howie I have a Garmin eTrex Vista HCX so if I really want all that kind of info I could always use that, I have a bar clamp on my MTB so I could always get one for the roadie, but I really just want something small with speed/trip info.

Juliet...ta for linky, I like that, and I can always add cadence later if I need it!

Rick...bike is a Giant TCR Alliance 0 so it's SRAM rival equipped so flightdeck is a no no, although it's pretty cool. But I'm well past chain crossing level! Funny, when I posted the rev counter analogy above I was thinking about sailing...you'd get this. I was doing the RTIR at the weekend, we were rotating on the helm, and the yotties were getting all agitated if they could not see the AWI for a few seconds if someone was grinding in front of it...and apparently the windex was too hard to see! As a skiffie I did not look at it once...head out the boat works for me! Let the technology enhance your experience, not dictate it...

MattHybrid

I've just gone for a VDO C3. Seems like a very reasonable price, cheers for the link! Been looking to get a computer for ages, time to bite the bullet.
I'm currently using my Nokia N95 8GB with Sports Tracker, but want something which doesn't need to be setup each time before use. Who needs to spend hundreds on a Garmin!

redvee

musto_skiff wrote:

It also has cadance which is calculated which again I like as it lets me know when it's worth to start pedaling on a decent; if the cadance shows 135 then I just cruise a bit more ...

Flightdeck cadence isn't measure from the crank, it is measured on road speed/gear combo at the time so not a true reading. You could be freewheeling downhill at 30 mph and still have a cadence reading.

JesseD

Polar CS200CAD !!!

I have one of these and I think it brill, you can mount ot on the stem so leaves the bars free from clutter, it has all the usual functions as well as heart rate (beeps when you go out of your zones), cadence great for ensuring your are in the desired brackets (e.g spinning or grinding the gears) and Calories burnt (great if you need to lose weight).

They cost about £90-£100 but are well worth the money, also Polar Customer service is great.

Alex_Simmons/RST

JesseD wrote:

Polar CS200CAD !!!

I have one of these and I think it brill, you can mount ot on the stem so leaves the bars free from clutter, it has all the usual functions as well as heart rate (beeps when you go out of your zones), cadence great for ensuring your are in the desired brackets (e.g spinning or grinding the gears) and Calories burnt (great if you need to lose weight).

They cost about £90-£100 but are well worth the money, also Polar Customer service is great.

Energy output functions on any cyclocomputer other than a (calibrated) power meter are at best a rough guess and at worst wildly inaccurate. If you are using such a non-power meter unit to guage dietary caloric needs then you will be sadly led up a garden path.

DaveyL

I'd bet it's not too far out, given the amount of money it costs vs a PM. Mine is usually in rough agreement with the old 12 kcal per hour per kg body weight that's often bandied around for reasonably intensive rides (~18 mph on the flat).

DaveyL

PS calorie counting apart, the CS200 is excellent, and when I got mine a few months ago, fitnessmegastore.co.uk where throwing in the cadence sensor for free.

choppertron

I have a Blackburn Delphi 4 I really like it, £25, it can display Cadence, Time, Current Speed and Distance all at the same time on one screen. (you can choose Max Speed, Avg Cadence or Lap instead of Distance).

It comes with two mounts one with the wired cadence which if you decide you don't want you can use the mount without cadence.

My friend has the Delphi 3, which is wired cadence and wired speed, the wired speed comes from the back wheel so it was his preference for use on the Turbo Trainer (something to keep in mind if you use one).

One thing I have noticed is in wet conditions the wireless doesn't suffer from having wet contacts although it may lose cadence readings, the wired version seems to lose both.

From my experience I recommend it, especially for £25

kr1s

I have the strada - its great - easy to use, especially from the cockpit, large display, gives you :
speed
time
distance
average
odometer

wont dissapoint
its also designed for the roadie so the fork attatchment is a perfect fit and the headunit looks good

wilderbeest

I have tesco's own....7 quid!!! been running fine for a month now

robmanic1

I've got the Tessies one with cadence on my roady, it's been spot-on so far.