Garmin Edge 305 ??

[BlackTiBob]

Rode with a guy who had the Edge 305 and he loved it.
I didn't get to ask him:

1. does it use a magnet and pick-up to show your speed OR use the GPS function to determine speed?

2. does it have a built in background map with major roads etc or just a blank screen and your trail put down as you go?

3. If anyone uses one, how do you like it?

I have a basic Vetta and was thinking of a Vetta with the cadence and heartrate capability but the Garmin is a possibility.

4. Anyone used the Vetta and the 305? How is the comfort of the heart rate strap on each? Is one more comfortable?
Thanks

[onekgguy]

There have been a few threads here related to the Edge 305. I've used one for over a year and love it. For some people the size is a turn-off for them but if you can get beyond that it may be worth considering. I don't actually find the size to be an issue for me. It's slowly working its way into the pro ranks...Team Milram being one. Here's some of their data (http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/user/team-milram) uploaded from the Edge and stored on Motion Based.

You won't find maps and such but it will track where you've been and show a bread crumb trail of your history. The Virtual Partner feature is a nice way to push yourself. Virtual Partner is where you store a previous course you've ridden and use that data to ride/race against yourself.

It's got some other cool gee-whiz stuff which isn't all that necessary on a ride but interesting to look at regardless. Here's a view (http://kevinandtammy.net/images/ride_photos/edge_climb_profile.jpg) of two miles worth of elevation data.

Probably the most important feature for me is the ability to customize the data fields with up to 8 different fields per page. Arrange them any way you wish.

Kevin g

[Tom]

I've wondered how fast they're really going when I watch it on the tube.

30-40 along the flats.... son of a *****.

I was heartened to see they went down to about 10mph.... climbing 4000 feet. The later hill where they hit 20+ going up? That's the mother of all sons of *****es.

Oh, yeah.. on the subject of Pastrami Sandwiches... I got Karen a Garmin Nuvi 370 GPS with the language card... after looking at all the functions it has I think somebody's dang close to building the Star Trek Tricorder thing... and now I want one of these bike computers for myself.

[malcolm]

I love my 305. Only complaint is the proprietary battery and charge life. Garmin claims 12 hours, I suspect less. I think the size is OK as well as long as it is stem mounted, it looks weird on the bars to me. Mine is used between 3 or 4 bikes and seems to work well just mounted to the stem I only have the cadence sensor (wireless) on one. I find the heart rate strap plenty comfortable . I'll echo the above post the screen provides 7 or 8 data fields all easily read. I've been through numerous computers and the search has ended at least for now with this one. I got it when they first came out and it has been trouble free.

[scooter01]

I trashed my Cat Eye CD3000w for the Edge 305.
I switch it between three bikes now, its great for that, no wires magnets, nothing.

I like the the feature of multiple bikes, I have different data fields selected even though its the same bike. One setting I can see the calories burned, as well as ride time speed, average speed and total distance.
The second bike(settings) I have all my climb data, elevation, and % of grade.
The GPS records data in all of the fields, even if you are not viewing them.


I will say that the REAL battery life is more along 6-8 hours. that would my only complaint.

[onekgguy]

I will say that the REAL battery life is more along 6-8 hours. that would my only complaint.

The battery life can be extended by attaching another battery to the unit. I do that on longer rides. I keep the larger battery in my seat bag and run a thin USB cable to the Edge. I secure it with a couple pieces of tape under the top tube and it's not at all noticeable. When I'm through with the ride I unplug the unit and it shows that it's fully charged. :banana: Not sure if that's an appropriate use of the banana guy but what the hey.

Kevin g

[vaxn8r]

The battery life can be extended by attaching another battery to the unit. I do that on longer rides. I keep the larger battery in my seat bag and run a thin USB cable to the Edge. I secure it with a couple pieces of tape under the top tube and it's not at all noticeable. When I'm through with the ride I unplug the unit and it shows that it's fully charged. :banana: Not sure if that's an appropriate use of the banana guy but what the hey.

Kevin g
Is the battery a Garmin product? I wasn't aware of that.

No magnets means all you need for different bikes is mounts. If you only care about the data after the ride you can even put it in a jersey pocket. It reads just fine in there.

I'm a numbers guy and I love the data. I don't love the size. OTOH I like that there's no other hardware on my bike.

[Lincoln]

Rode with a guy who had the Edge 305 and he loved it.
I didn't get to ask him:

1. does it use a magnet and pick-up to show your speed OR use the GPS function to determine speed?



Yes.
It can work off of GPS alone or with a wheel magnet. It came with one sensor that mounts on the chainstay for cadence and wheel speed, if you choose. I have that on my main road bike, i just mount it with no sensors on the other bikes. I enjoyed having no computer at all last year but got this as a gift for my birthday so I am giving it a try; it's pretty trick.

[malcolm]

onekgguy, can you explain the extra battery thing a bit? Is this a garmin accessory or something you created? If you built it, how? Thanks, Malcolm

[Bill D]

I do some running, too, so I got the Garmin Forerunner so I can run with it, too. I love it for running because it's a great way to keep track of how far/fast I go. Before I had to rely on retracing routes with Google maps, which was a pain, especially if I was on the road somewhere. I bought it mainly for running and didn't think I would use it much on the bike, but I find that I bring it along on every ride because I like having the extra data at the end of the ride. The Forerunner can't be used with a cadence sensor and the display is smaller, but otherwise I think it functions identically to the Edge.

My only minor complaint is that the GPS-based speed reading is not very immediate. It samples the speed readings and smooths them out a bit, which means that the speed reading on the Garmin lags just a bit and the brief high and low speeds get clipped off. It's not that big a deal really, but the result is a slight regression to the mean that underestimates your highest and lowest speeds unless you maintain those speeds for a while. Again, not a huge deal, but it IS a little different than the immediate and direct speed readings you would get from a fork-mounted magnet.

-bd

[chuckred]

I too find the estimated 12 hour battery life to be about twice reality...

http://www.bradculberson.com/blog/?itemid=107

I got this link from another forum - it's similar to what onekgguy said...

I haven't tried it yet, but think I'm going to - 5-6 hours just doesn't cut it...

[woolly]

The Forerunner can't be used with a cadence sensor and the display is smaller, but otherwise I think it functions identically to the Edge.

-bd

My understanding is that you CAN use the bike cadence sensor with the Forerunner 305. Check out p. 12 of the online owner's manual for the Forerunner 305. Not sure if this is true for the Forerunner 205.

I have an Edge 305, and have recently picked up a Forerunner 305 to track my lame attempts at "running". I haven't tried using it with my two bikes that already have cadence sensors, but I sure hope it works as advertised!

Overall I've been very satisfied with both of these Garmin products.

[Rover-Rich]

Here the external battery device I use:

http://www.adafruit.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=10&products_id=14

Works great and fun to build.

RL

[rdparadise]

I've heard the Edge only tracks where you go. Can you download ride cuesheets and use the edge to follow the cue? If not, what GPS units are best for this function.

Hey, I like the Edge and may eventually get one but I've heard it tracks rather then tells you where to go/went?

Any thoughts?

I currently don't have any computer on my recently built Legend TI/ST, so I plan to do something sometime in the near future.

Bob

[Mud]

on the Edge and Forerunner. Contrary to what was poster earlier the both can work with the cadence unit. Other than size the major difference is that the Edge works off a barometer while the Forerunner uses GPS to determine altitude related info. If you have plans of DLing info into a Computrainer the Edge is the only choice. The Forerunner will not work with the Racermate interface software.

I realize that reviews are based on expectation but many complain of DOA for the cadence unit and some other problems where Garmin support was a little slow on the switch. I have not decided what to do. I have a Suunto Vector which measures the Altitude data but the thing is an absolute PITA so for me and I really don't want to bother. For what it is worth, using altitude functions on the Suunto chews up battery life so I would expect the same from anything that does the same.

On an earlier thread there were complaints about calories burned on the Garmin. Funny, I had the same complaints about my Polar which self destructed some time ago. Some people I know use the Edge and have been quite happy while others use the Polar 725i(?) to get what they want.

[Bill D]

My understanding is that you CAN use the bike cadence sensor with the Forerunner 305. Check out p. 12 of the online owner's manual for the Forerunner 305. Not sure if this is true for the Forerunner 205.

Oh, I'm happy to be corrected on that. I've always seen the cadence unit advertised as an accessory for the Edge and not the Forerunner, but that's great to know that it works with both. Thanks for the info.

[jacknife]

I've only had the edge for a couple weeks but what I like about it is the ability to create a course on toporoute.com then upload it to the edge. Since I travel for work and end up biking in unfamiliar places, having a course to follow on the edge keeps me from getting lost. Works pretty sweet.

[woolly]

I too find the estimated 12 hour battery life to be about twice reality...

http://www.bradculberson.com/blog/?itemid=107

I got this link from another forum - it's similar to what onekgguy said...

I haven't tried it yet, but think I'm going to - 5-6 hours just doesn't cut it...

I've done that version, but this year one of my riding pals decided to upgrade it. Haven't tried it yet, but it looks promising. I think it will be less cumbersome on the bike than the film canister, and could easily be mounted with one of these http://www.m2racer.com/products.php?entry=products&id=13

[onekgguy]

Sorry to take so long in getting back to those who were wondering about the battery I use to charge my Edge while I ride. I got it through USBGeeks (http://www.usbgeek.com/) but I'm not sure they sell it any longer. I think I paid $30 for it. Here's a photo of it. (http://kevinandtammy.net/images/ride_photos/charger.jpg) It weighs a few ounces.

Here's a thread (http://forums.motionbased.com/smf/index.php?topic=5519.0) at the Motion Based forum which discusses compatible battery chargers for use on the ride. It's a lengthy thread and I haven't been through it entirely but I've got to believe you can find answers there.

I notice that when I use mine it sends a 3 second charge to my Edge once per minute. When my ride is through the Edge is fully charged and I've barely made a dent in the amount of juice in the charger.

Kevin g

[onekgguy]

snip...I realize that reviews are based on expectation but many complain of DOA for the cadence unit and some other problems where Garmin support was a little slow on the switch. I have not decided what to do. I have a Suunto Vector which measures the Altitude data but the thing is an absolute PITA so for me and I really don't want to bother. For what it is worth, using altitude functions on the Suunto chews up battery life so I would expect the same from anything that does the same.

On an earlier thread there were complaints about calories burned on the Garmin. Funny, I had the same complaints about my Polar which self destructed some time ago. Some people I know use the Edge and have been quite happy while others use the Polar 725i(?) to get what they want.

It's true that the Edge over-estimates calories burned. I don't use that feature but I've seen the complaints.

One thing to keep in mind when going to the Motion Based forum (http://forums.motionbased.com/smf/index.php) is that a good many of the people there are there to lodge complaints. No doubt there are people who have had more than their fair share of problems but overall I think it's a very small minority of users. I've had my Edge freeze up on me a few times...maybe 3 but that's it. I've probably got close to 12,000 miles on it.

Kevin g

[chuckred]

Just ordered one... $12 + $3 shipping... not worth trying to make one for that price!

[Ray]

From looking at Garmin's site, the differences between the 305 and the 205 are cadence, heart rate, and barometric altimeter. Since none of these are features I'd be likely to use (maybe the barometric altimeter, but it's only sort of better than the GIS altimeter), I'd be more inclined to go with the less expensive 205. I'm guessing that without those three features, the battery life would be better. Does anyone have any experience with these?

Thanks,

-Ray

[shanerpvt]

....they Edge will offer you 2 ways to record info - every second or smart record (or something like that). They every second option Drains the battery on midrange to long rides, but it offers you a more accurate tracking system. I will use it for slow technical mtb trails. I think the smart setting records anytime something changes - speed, direction, heartrate, ect...

all of that being said - Don't think it will last 12hrs, but maybe is will help you get a little more time out of it.

[R2D2]

Might this work as battery extender?
http://www.usbgeek.com/prod_detail.php?prod_id=0652
Also this might be just the thing to shake a wheelsucker:
http://www.usbgeek.com/prod_detail.php?prod_id=0561

[scrooge]

When is the next model supposed to come out? If I'd like to get one of these (which I do), should I hold off a few months (or a year) for significant improvements, or just bite the bullet now?

[Andreas]

From looking at Garmin's site, the differences between the 305 and the 205 are cadence, heart rate, and barometric altimeter. Since none of these are features I'd be likely to use (maybe the barometric altimeter, but it's only sort of better than the GIS altimeter), I'd be more inclined to go with the less expensive 205. I'm guessing that without those three features, the battery life would be better. Does anyone have any experience with these?

Thanks,

-Ray

Have no comparison between the two. Found the 205 cheap for $90 a few weeks ago and have been using it since. Don't need cadence/HR/baro either.

Have used it on a few 8 hr rides. Each time the battery indicator had about 30-40% left. Don't know what settings, whatever the default is. Did a unit software update (5/07 revision) 2 weeks after I got it and that increased altimeter accuracy and seemed to have increased battery life as well.

[Ray]

Have no comparison between the two. Found the 205 cheap for $90 a few weeks ago and have been using it since. Don't need cadence/HR/baro either.

Have used it on a few 8 hr rides. Each time the battery indicator had about 30-40% left. Don't know what settings, whatever the default is. Did a unit software update (5/07 revision) 2 weeks after I got it and that increased altimeter accuracy and seemed to have increased battery life as well.
Thanks for the input - sounds like the 205 does trade off features (that I don't want or need) for battery life (which I rarely need either, but every now and then I might exceed the battery life of the 305 with everything turned on).

Where did you find the 205 for $90?

-Ray

[Andreas]

Where did you find the 205 for $90?

-Ray

Amazon.
$125 on ebay currently.

[vaxn8r]

It's true that the Edge over-estimates calories burned. I don't use that feature but I've seen the complaints....

Calories burned are simply based on speed and rider/bike weight. So if you are using it on a hill climb you'll be disappointed. It does overestimate calories burned but I do think it's consistent so if you use it as a comparison to your own rides you do get a decent measure of how hard you are working (though no more than say comparing average speeds).

[onekgguy]

One other thing...the Edge uses a combination of GPS data and barometric pressure to record elevation data. I believe I read somewhere that it can take up to 45 minutes for it to sync itself with the GPS data but once it does it's quite accurate.

If there aren't many hills in your area, elevation data probably isn't of much interest but for those who do a fair amount of climbing it can be worthwhile to track the amount.

Kevin g

[Dekonick]

How does it do with tree cover? Where I live alot of the roads are covered with old growth hardwood trees. How many satelites does it track? Will it work with a wheel magnet/sensor to help when satelites are not in line of sight?

Curious...

[Louis]

I'm an engineer and love data as much as the next guy, but I have to say, some of you guys are total geeks. I log my rides using the info off my Cateye Micro (at least 10 years old and still going strong) and my Polar HRM, but that's about it. None of this science project stuff like synching up the GPS route with web mapping tools.

Obviously, everybody does whatever turns him or her on, but I figure it's mostly for fun.

Enjoy the techie toys!

Louis
(who has not yet bothered to get a cell phone)

[1centaur]

How does it do with tree cover? Where I live alot of the roads are covered with old growth hardwood trees. How many satelites does it track? Will it work with a wheel magnet/sensor to help when satelites are not in line of sight?

Curious...

Tree cover will make the current speed readout inaccurately slow, but if you are not totally blocked for long periods your average speed at the end of the ride will be correct because it will keep calculating where you were and where you are and figuring the spped it took to get you there given that its stopwatch is running.

It tracks many satellites - when you start it up you can see how many.

The speed sensor/cadence on the wheel is an option that is supposed to take over when satellite reception is lost. In my opinion it does the switchover too slowly, so if you have patchy trees (as I do) you still get the slow current speed readouts so frequently it makes the speed sensor useless. If you go through tunnels it probably makes sense. However, getting one of those sensors/pick-ups for each bike adds a lot to the cost. I move the 305 among all 10 of my bikes and don't bother with another computer or the speed sensor anymore. I live with the slow currnet speed readouts in less than optimal reception conditions. I love the 305. It has long/lat so I can call my wife to come get me using her GPS and I don't have to memorize the street directions turn by turn. I bought her a GPS that can use long/lat - not all car GPS units do.

[Ray]

I'm an engineer and love data as much as the next guy, but I have to say, some of you guys are total geeks. I log my rides using the info off my Cateye Micro (at least 10 years old and still going strong) and my Polar HRM, but that's about it. None of this science project stuff like synching up the GPS route with web mapping tools.

Obviously, everybody does whatever turns him or her on, but I figure it's mostly for fun.

Enjoy the techie toys!

Louis
(who has not yet bothered to get a cell phone)
Its funny what each person likes. I personally don't WANT to know my average speed, top speed, calories burned, heart rate, watts, etc. But the 205 is of interest to me. I'd really like to be able to get lost with a bit more confidence of finding my way back and to map where I'd been after the ride. Seeing more of the area I'm in and figuring out where I've ridden is much more appealing to me than knowing my own personal lame performance numbers.

Some people have performance-lust on the bike. Some of us have more of a wander-lust. I guess we pick our tech toys accordingly.

-Ray

[scrooge]

I've heard the Edge only tracks where you go. Can you download ride cuesheets and use the edge to follow the cue? If not, what GPS units are best for this function.

Hey, I like the Edge and may eventually get one but I've heard it tracks rather then tells you where to go/went?

Any thoughts?

I currently don't have any computer on my recently built Legend TI/ST, so I plan to do something sometime in the near future.

Bob

I'd like someone to clarify an answer to this if possible...My understanding (from what's been written) is that you CAN load ride cues in (at least to the Edge, to the forerunner too?) but that the primary purpose is to track where you've been and there really aren't maps with available roads.
Okay, I don't have much understanding...so again, can you upload routes or not?

[Bud]

I'd like someone to clarify an answer to this if possible...My understanding (from what's been written) is that you CAN load ride cues in (at least to the Edge, to the forerunner too?) but that the primary purpose is to track where you've been and there really aren't maps with available roads.
Okay, I don't have much understanding...so again, can you upload routes or not?

Though I don't have one, the Garmin website says the Edge and Forerunner can take up to 50 routes. I like this feature on my Foretrex, as I can create routes online (gmaps, or other places or even from my own waypoints), create a .gpx file, and upload it to the unit so I can follow while hiking or riding.

[onekgguy]

I'd like someone to clarify an answer to this if possible...My understanding (from what's been written) is that you CAN load ride cues in (at least to the Edge, to the forerunner too?) but that the primary purpose is to track where you've been and there really aren't maps with available roads.
Okay, I don't have much understanding...so again, can you upload routes or not?

Scrooge,

I don't use this feature but there are threads on the MB forum which address this sort of thing. Here's a rather lengthy one (http://forums.motionbased.com/smf/index.php?topic=2088.0) which should help to answer your question with respect to uploading courses.

Kevin g

[Lincoln]

Its funny what each person likes. I personally don't WANT to know my average speed, top speed, calories burned, heart rate, watts, etc. But the 205 is of interest to me. I'd really like to be able to get lost with a bit more confidence of finding my way back and to map where I'd been after the ride. Seeing more of the area I'm in and figuring out where I've ridden is much more appealing to me than knowing my own personal lame performance numbers.

Some people have performance-lust on the bike. Some of us have more of a wander-lust. I guess we pick our tech toys accordingly.

-Ray

Ray, I also was more interested in the mapping aspect. I almost traded in the edge for one of the mapping handheld models (iirc they make a bike mount for at least some of them): Garmin link (https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=145)