Killed my Garmin 800 today.

[mdeth1313]

6 years from the date I placed my order for it. Mile 101, turned the corner and hit a bump - tabs break and it hits the ground. I go back for it and the touch screen doesn't work. Display works, but it won't respond to touch.

That thing has survived rain, snow, single digit temps and this is what kills it. Still had really good battery life.

Oh well, just ordered an 830.

R.I.P.

[rnhood]

I got exactly 6 years out of my 800, then the screen started acting flukey. Called Garmin and they offered a 1000 refurbed as a replacement for $100. I took it and have been very happy. I am on year 3 with the 1000. Hope to get another 3 years then I will likely upgrade.

[climbgdh]

Those Garmin’s are tough and reliable. I’m 10 years in on a 705 Edge which I bought slightly used. My riding friends make fun of me because it’s so outdated. Battery life is still reasonable..... and everything still works perfectly. I did buy a Edge 130 the other day for my gravel rig though. Hopefully it lasts 10 years as well. :) Rain, snow, etc.

[fa63]

Bought mine in 2012; still running strong. Hopefully I didn't jinx it by saying that :-)

[PaMtbRider]

My wife and I are still using Garmin 800 computers that are at least 6 years old. I haven't been able to kill either unit yet but would really like to upgrade to a 530 or 830.

[Spaghetti Legs]

My 800 from 2011 is still going strong. I’ve yet to use up the battery on single day ride. Finished a 75 miler with rest stops recently and still had about 50% battery life left.

My wife is still using the 305 that the 800 replaced. It’s from about 2006.

[C40_guy]

Oh well, just ordered an 830.



I've been using a couple of 800s for years (the 5 bike profile limit was a problem!). Both still working great...

Thinking about upgrading to the 830.

Do you know when Garmin will begin shipping production units?

[R3awak3n]

I've been using a couple of 800s for years (the 5 bike profile limit was a problem!). Both still working great...

Thinking about upgrading to the 830.

Do you know when Garmin will begin shipping production units?

I just got mine throuhg bike tires direct, was on sale this weekend. Says expected to ship 5th of June but I don't believe it.

[AngryScientist]

i wish they would just move away from touchscreen. seems like in less than ideal conditions, i'd just rather have hard buttons when on the bike.

[C40_guy]

I just got mine throuhg bike tires direct, was on sale this weekend. Says expected to ship 5th of June but I don't believe it.

Just checked...REI is quoting arrival date of June 4.

So maybe this is reasonable. :)

[mktng]

used the supplied tether strap. garmin saver :P

[R3awak3n]

i wish they would just move away from touchscreen. seems like in less than ideal conditions, i'd just rather have hard buttons when on the bike.

the 530 is not touch screen. Its pretty much a 830 without touchscreen. I actually like the touchscreen myself and also the other feature which is you can search for destinations, 530 you put a map in and it does its thing, 830 lets you put addresses, ect

[C40_guy]

used the supplied tether strap. garmin saver :P

Didn't know about the tether!

Never had an issue with my 800...but it looks like the 830 comes with the tether strap, and simple to use.

[muz]

I used an 800 for many years before switching to a Wahoo Bolt couple years ago. The hardware was good, but had two annoying bugs: It would lock up randomly on rides over 200 miles, requiring a full factory reset. And it would behave very poorly navigating out-and-back courses (like most Garmins). It worked so well most of the times, it was infuriating when it didn't.

[Alaska Mike]

I never liked my 800, so when the screen shifted right and stopped responding to inputs, I didn't shed a tear and moved on to a 520 (or two). The touch screen was irritating when I needed to clear off rain or sweat drops from the screen. I like buttons. I should probably see if Garmin will offer me a cheap replacement.

I'm just not the target market for navigating GPS units. I like the map, but I never pre-plan routes and program them in. I just figure out a general direction/destination, and then memorize the route. Doesn't always work, and I get lost occasionally, but it leads to some interesting side-trips and discoveries. The mapping function is more of a bail-out option that I rarely resort to.

I really liked my Edge 500s, but they're entering the end-of-life phase. The limited number of sensors available was an issue for me, which the 520 has fixed nicely. 99.9% of the 520s functions I don't use, because all I need are a few metrics like power, heartrate, speed, distance, and time. Still, I may dig into it a little more one day. I just try not to geek out on these things so I can just enjoy the ride. Data is something I play with after the fact.

[mdeth1313]

I got lucky and found a shop w/ 2 garmin 830's in stock. Mine shipped today. Someone else grabbed their last one. I guess there was some good news in all this.

[C40_guy]

I got lucky and found a shop w/ 2 garmin 830's in stock. Mine shipped today. Someone else grabbed their last one. I guess there was some good news in all this.

Firmware version 0.9. :)

No harm in waiting a bit...

[unterhausen]

I used an 800 for many years before switching to a Wahoo Bolt couple years ago. The hardware was good, but had two annoying bugs: It would lock up randomly on rides over 200 miles, requiring a full factory reset. And it would behave very poorly navigating out-and-back courses (like most Garmins). It worked so well most of the times, it was infuriating when it didn't.
I agree with your last sentence. It's obviously a brilliant device that inexplicably fails to work for me more often than it works. I know someone with an 810, and a lot of the issues I have with the 800 were fixed on that. Looks like I'm going to get a 830. I was going to get a Bolt, but someone I know has a unit that overheats at fairly moderate temperatures. Wahoo did not treat her particularly well.