Which GPS..?

vitesse169

Hello all.... I'm dragging myself into the 21st C and need your thoughts/knowledge on GPS. I've narrowed it down to a Garmin Edge 520 or a Wahoo Elemnt Bolt. Both 'appear' to do the same thing for about the same money. I'm less worried about the maps but other info I want is HRM zone setting to calculate time in the relevant zone, Distance, gradient, altitude etc. The Garmin has a few too many poor reviews whereas the Wahoo has much fewer. Please help me decide with your working knowledge of these. I used to be indecisive but now I'm not so sure. Thanks for your replies........

RedClip

I don't have any user experience of Wahoo, I don't like the look of the unit or display.
I've had a Garmin 520 Plus. Everything worked fine with it, but I found it very slow in loading or calculating a route.
So I bought a Garmin 830.

I would recommend going for the Garmin 530, instead of the 520, just for the speed of the processor.

It's likely that there will be discounts around Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
From memory, the 520 Plus from Amazon UK was £150 during BF/CM.

ibr17xvii

Had a Wahoo Bolt for 2 1/2 years, it does everything I need & it just works.

Couldn't recommend it highly enough.

ballysmate

Is it Redvee on here who has a Bolt for sale.?
Tempted myself but can't justify it to myself never mind the EPO.

Edit. Redvision

phil485

similarly not used any of the wahoo products. As a family we have 2 x 800's, 1x 810, 1x 500 and a 1000.

All seem to work fairly reliably and only the 500 is really slow loading.

As is always the case, people are quick to comment when something doesn't work but less inclined to praise.

Garmin probably still has a bigger market share so expect more complaints.

I think both units are good and probably comes down to choosing the one you like most from a look and feel.

topsey_turvey

I've been using various Garmin units for over 30 years. Never had a problem with any if them. They all work well and have never let me down.

On the bike I have a 520. The 530 has a supposedly faster processor, but at a premium price. If I'm riding in unknown territory and need mapping I use an eTrex 30 simply because this gives far better Turn by Turn than any bike computer. And I can keep my ride data permanently on display. No bike computer allows that.

Garmin all the way for me. And if you have a problem they have excellent telephone assistance.

N0bodyOfTheGoat

I'm back thinking about the Lezyne Mega XL, for the offline routing over the Y10 Enhanced Super GPS I've had for ~3.5 years.

redvision

ballysmate said:

Is it Redvee on here who has a Bolt for sale.?
Tempted myself but can't justify it to myself never mind the EPO.

Edit. Redvision

Yep, it's me.

https://forum.bikeradar.com/discussion/13113982/garmin-and-wahoo#latest

OP it's the stealth version and literally only used a handful of times, so in excellent condition.
Drop me a pm if you are interested.

spatt77

Hi, I've had 3 Garmins and had problems with all of them, I've got a wahoo now and ZERO problems, I`ve never had to deal with wahoo customer service but I have dealt with Garmin and to say they were poor would be a understatement.

wongataa

I have had several Garmin units (cycling, car, & hiking) and haven't had any particular issues with any of them.

elbowloh

My Edge 800 was terrible. Always seemingly losing rides (some really big ones).
However, i did replace it with an 820 and that's been faultless. Can't comment on Wahoo.

Ruffy44

I have the Garmin 530 and its worked faultlessly since new so far - 7 months. Worth bearing in mind that it has 33% longer battery life than the 520 (~20hrs rather than 15), amongst other useful improvements - eg. ClimbPro, Find my Garmin etc.

darrell1967

I’ve got a 520 that is almost 3 years old and apart from it freezing up twice it’s been faultless. I use it everyday in all weathers.

paulbox

I’ve had Garmin 500, 810 & now a 1030 Plus.

All have been used rain, shine & snow; the 500 I bought shortly after they were released and it still works. I did kill the 810 eventually but Garmin customer service were great. It was about 6 years old, so well out of warranty, but they gave me 50% off a replacement unit, hence the 1030. The 1030 is absolutely amazing, I love it.

mobile_rab-01

Still using an 8-year old Edge 800. A proper GPS transformed cycling for me, being able to explore new long routes without a jersey pocket stuffed full of soggy bits of paper map made me much more adventurous. I don’t really use the training functions, so when the Garmin finally dies I may just stick with getting a decent bike mount for my phone. I already used phone/GPS for hillwalking and with data/web turned off (GPS only) the battery lasts for days.

davep1

No experience of Wahoo, but have used Garmin Forerunner watches for years. About a year ago, I got a Giant Neostrack, mainly because it was about 60% of the equivalent 520/Wahoo, and because of its 33+ hour battery life. It's nice to have one device you don't have to charge every day! (I think it is a rebranded Bryton unit).

One function I like of the Garmins and Neostrack is you can plan workouts. You set up a bunch of time intervals, and you can specify hr or power targets for each interval. So I can do interval sessions out on the road; I know weather and gradient can make these less than optimal but I figure it is a little bit better than just smashing myself for half an hour.

Wahoo units you can set up on an app on your phone; the Giant you have to do everything on the unit itself, which is a pain the first time, scrolling through the alphabet and numerals, entering each one, scrolling to the next.

DC Rainmaker does very in depth reviews of all the units available, I'm sure if you have a look there you'll get definitive answers.