The Garmin Varia rearview radar is (in Garmin’s own words) the world’s “first cycling radar that warns of vehicles approaching from behind up to 140 metres”. Welcome to the 21st century of cycling gadgets! During this blog post, I will be (briefly) providing an overview of the main features of the Varia radar, my own reasons for purchase and what the benefits of such a light system are.
The Garmin bike cadence sensor is designed to wirelessly measure pedal strokes per minute (cadence). I was intrigued by this measurement as a way to better keep a constant cycling cadence throughout my bike rides. I do like to analyse as much data as possible after my rides, as a way to track my performance, and any potential areas for improvement. Unfortunately, power sensors are still very costly, but with the cadence sensor available for under £30, decided that it would be a great addition for some vital data analysis.
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Being out on my bike after dusk, I knew I needed to invest in a quality head light for my road bike. Enter, the Garmin Varia!
There have been a lot of comparisons drawn between two of the greatest GPS watches that Garmin has made; the 920XT and fenix 3. Both watches essentially share the same core software and features, with some minor differences. However, the major differences in these watches is of course in their aesthetic appeal. The 920XT was launched in October last year (2014) and after Garmin announced the fenix 3 in January 2015, many early adopters of the 920XT were quick to vent their frustration. And rightfully so, as in short, the fenix 3 is probably the superior between these two devices. In this blog post, I’ll be going over some of the similarities and differences between these great watches, which will hopefully help you decide which watch is better suited for your individual training and social needs.
I recently hopped over onto the Garmin bandwagon with the fenix 3 sapphire edition GPS watch last month, and was intrigued by the range of features available on Garmin watches. Since then, I have been wearing the fenix 3 with the link bracelet and it has become something of my daily watch, allowing me to receive notifications from my iPhone, track my activity (steps, calories, sleep, etc), as well as serve as a beautiful time-keeping device. The only issue I had with it was changing the straps every time I wanted to go for a run, which can be up to twice per day. This involves a process of unscrewing the link bracelet and attaching the rubber strap, because let’s face it, no one wants to be running long distances with a metal band weighting ~120 grams. As a result, I decided that the sheer beauty and convenience of the fenix 3 justified it’s price tag, and decided to keep it for: a) my daily watch b) shorter runs c) trail runs and hiking activities (due to the enhanced navigational functions). This compelled me to look to other Garmin watches to use for those daily longer runs, coming across the Garmin 920XT.
The fenix 3 is Garmin’s latest flagship GPS sports watch, boasting an incredible array of features. It is not only a very capable watch for running, cycling, hiking, etc. but also doubles up as a smart watch, providing the user with notifications directly from their smartphone. I am currently waiting for the Apple Watch, which like many others, I patiently preordered on the 10th of April. Unfortunately, my patience has begun to run thin, and there is no sight of me taking delivery of my Apple Watch. Well, not least until May 27th-June 9th, which is my current ‘shipping window’. But I digress.
RUNNING, CYCLING AND TECH REVIEWS 