MetriGear bought by Garmin

Betaware for years. ANT+ will need a complete rehash. It won't be cheap either.

Maybe the Polar/Look will not seem quite so bad then

Pokerface wrote:

I could be wrong - but that article seemed to indicate that the product already WAS Any+ compatible (if Vector is the name of the product).

It may not take as long to bring to market if that is the case.

That wasn't the point I was trying to make.

1) It's Garmin - they send out betaware with regular monotony - be worried.

2) Vector has the ability to analyse very much more data than currently ANT+ standard allows them to analyse so that means they will a) either ignore the extra datastreams - bad decision b) they try to change the ANT+ standard to allow them to the ability to push through all the data required - what impact on battery life and data loss c) they leave ANT+ as it is and build proprietery computers that can handle the data via non ANT+ data broadcasts - Look/Polar got shredded in some quarters for proposing something similiar however give me a Polar computer any day before a Garmin computer. At least they do what they are meant to do. Garmin rarely do. Requiring numerous firmware updates which are no simply feature enhancements but to correct fundamental errors.

None of that is to say that I wouldn't go Garmin if the price was right however I still haven't gone Garmin yet preferring the rather basic powertap lyc and Polar CS600x combo so that says what confidence I have in them as a company to deliver worthwhile products. I realise I am in a very big minority here but that's the great thing about choice

doyler78 wrote:

None of that is to say that I wouldn't go Garmin if the price was right however I still haven't gone Garmin yet preferring the rather basic powertap lyc and Polar CS600x combo so that says what confidence I have in them as a company to deliver worthwhile products. I realise I am in a very big minority here but that's the great thing about choice

I went to Garmin over the LYC. The power data is the same and I get the added benefit of the additional info that the Garmin provides.

What exactly is it that you think is wrong with the Garmin as compared to the LYC?

OK - so this is based merely on things you have read and not personal experience? Fair enough.

I have a 500 - and have not seen these problems. Maybe I got lucky or maybe a lot of the bugs have been worked out. (I often take both the Garmin and lyc out on the same ride to compare data).


Have you considered the Joule?

I have a 705 and have had zero probs whatsoever. Data from LYC and 705 when checked is exactly the same... :?

+1 for garmin 705, works well, reliable, absolutely no problems with this unit, have read about some owners that have problems but considering how many are sold it seems to be a small enough percentage
lots of good reviews out there too, so hardly a leap of faith
maybe some people hold more stock with bad reviews rather than the positive, but any product will have its knockers
try finding a hotel to stay in without a bad review !!!

doyler78 wrote:

swaman - reality check. 705 went out as betaware. If you used power and a 705 when it came out then it was pathetic. Things may have improved signfiicantly since however when I was looking at seriously it was when it was released and that informed all my decisions since. That's what happens you release crud you have some that find it very hard to trust you.

If you don't understand any of that suggest a look at the 705 firmware history - it makes depressing reading.

I'm with doyler here. The 705 has been littered with firmware issues. I have lost rides or the data collected has been screwy or the device has just totally corrupted all the files. On top of that, there 'smart recording' function is the spawn of satan.

The flimsy plastic mount is awful. I am on my second one and it is on its way out. Bad design imho. I ride over pretty poor quality roads in the surrey hills and the vibrations are too much for it.

Having said all that, it collects a stack load of data (but not temperature which I really miss from my polar) and downloading files is a snap since it is just a USB drive. I don't know of any other head unit that is as feature rich and widely supported.

I've had the Garmin 500 since the start of the year and have generally been pleased with it.

However, i'm now into my 3rd week of a Powertap wheel rental and the unit has decided to longer communicate with the PC, so i can't upload any data. No idea why, it just stopped working. It still works fine as a recording device.

Garmin support have asked me to return it and expect a 14 day turnaround.

Now i wish i had a LYC :!:

I had an interesting chat with one of the Garmin guys at the cycle show yesterday.

I told him I'm after some sort of power measurement through this winter and appreciate this isn't likely to be ready by Christmas and should I look at renting or buying a powertap in the interim. i.e. is Metrigear going to be out soon enough that just renting is worthwhile.

To be fair the guy had a lot of sympathy and really didn't want to fob me off, but has obviously been told not to make promises Garmin can't keep. Reading between the lines I think they're hoping for a spring launch but it's obviously a very complex product and they're not prepared to let anyone down, so don't hold your breath.

He was very frank that Garmin had done their homework in making sure the product does what it says it does, but that they need to be diligent to make sure the levels of accuracy are maintained in a mass-produced item. I think they appreciate that the average buyer of a powermeter is even more sophisticated than the average buyer of a 705 and won't accept a 'beta' type product. I'd expect to see it on some pro bikes before it appears on the market.

They also said that to get the best out of it you really need to look at an 800 as the head unit. It seems they've already thought about the amount of data metrigear produces, and that the firmware upgrades to the 705 probably won't keep up with this. If you just want the same sort of readings you can already get from a Powertap then a 705 is fine, but the finer data of left/right power and all the rest that Metrigear will give you will probably need an 800.

I had a play with the 800 on the stand and it looks nice, but not enough to convince me to make the switch just yet. If you don't have a 705 already I'd definitely go for the 800 though. It sounds like the 705's days are numbered. Not surprising as it was the first product of this sort.

The other thing I saw was the basecamp software for route planning which is already available as a free download. Looks very nice, there's a new 3D view which gives a great impression of the ground covered by your route.

Hope that helps anyone who is hanging on or about to buy any of these products? I think I'm going to try to get a cheap powertap and flog it on Ebay when metrigear comes out.

Hmm... Interesting!

Whichever it is, I'll have to factor a new bike fit in to the cost if I decide to get some...

Didn't Look team up with Polar for their power-pedal system?

And isn't ANT+ compatible, so you have to then buy a Polar head unit which from memory costs about £400.

doyler78 wrote:

The SRM is still considered to be the gold standard of all powermeters yet even it's best models cannot come within the margin of error the powertaps (no matter how cheap).

There can be a difference between actual accuracy and claimed accuracy.

For example, the zero offset displayed on an SRM is nearly 10 times more sensitive than the torque zero check displayed on the Powertap, so the precision of slope calibration checks is already at a different level.

But provided they are operating properly, they are both very good meters, reliable and sufficiently accurate and repeatable for all tasks. SRM does also provide a greater temporal resolution which enables a few things that other meters cannot.

They are also more robust that Powertaps.

I agree on the ANT+ thing - what matters most with a power meter is the quality of the data - everything else is a feature.