Gamin Varia Review

[ridethecliche]

Originally Posted by Likes2ridefar

IMO there is no harm in increased awareness of what is going on around you.

Yes but there's also the very real phenomenon of habituation where it becomes less effective if it's constant.

[fourflys]

Originally Posted by ridethecliche

Yes but there's also the very real phenomenon of habituation where it becomes less effective if it's constant.

I have diminished hearing from 30 yrs in the military anyway (high freq hearing loss, so beeps..), so I don't always hear the beep of the "slower" car warning anyway.. the "fast" car warning usually gets my attention though.. so I've just gotten in the habit of looking down at my Wahoo every so often.. the alert is better(louder) on a quiet country road though for sure.

[Derosid]

I don’t care for the beeping so I turned it off. However, I routinely scan around me while riding, and I include my Karoo2 in the sweep. The display for approaching cars is easy to notice, and I always look at the Karoo when I start to think about turning. So in this respect the Varia doesn’t take away from the solitude of riding, it just provides more information.

[Gsinill]

Does it require a Garmin head unit?

[JMT3]

Originally Posted by fourflys

I have diminished hearing from 30 yrs in the military anyway (high freq hearing loss, so beeps..), so I don't always hear the beep of the "slower" car warning anyway.. the "fast" car warning usually gets my attention though.. so I've just gotten in the habit of looking down at my Wahoo every so often.. the alert is better(louder) on a quiet country road though for sure.

I too suffer from hearing loss and wear hearing aids off the bike. Sometimes I hear the beep since it registers with my ears and sometimes my ears transmit it to my brain without hearing it since something tells me to look down and sure enough there is a car back there and the radar is tracking it when I get the feeling a car is behind me. This happens quite frequently and many times during every ride. I’m sure there is an audible signal I just don’t hear it all the time.

[bpm]

I have a Varia and have for about the last 2 1/2 years. I don't know if I ride any differently with it, but I won't ride without a rear light anyways so having the radar information certainly can't hurt. Once feature of the Varia that I don't think anyone in this thread has mentioned yet is that it will change the flashing pattern of the light when it detects a car, and as the car gets closer to you. That, in my opinion, is one of if not the the best feature of the unit. A light that is solid or flashing in a constant pattern is easier to overlook than one which is more random or which changes.

[Likes2ridefar]

Originally Posted by Gsinill

Does it require a Garmin head unit?

No, it works with a phone app and most popular gps bike head units.

[hooter]

Originally Posted by Gsinill

Does it require a Garmin head unit?

I use it with the Varia app on my iPhone 13. The phone vibrates when a car is coming up behind you and it's a lot more noticable than my Garmin 530. There's no need to constantly be monitoring the screen for cars.

[NHAero]

Originally Posted by novacyclist

I agree with this. I often ride on rural roads and I believe the greatest benefit is on roads that have sparse traffic because I'm often taking up way more room then if I am in an urban area and if it detects something, I will become more aware and move over a bit. As someone else complained earlier, if you are in an urban setting, it can be debated if it's useful because you should always assume there's a car behind you.

Same for me on Martha's Vineyard. I'm riding in the middle of the lane, especially out of tourist season, and it warns me about an upcoming vehicle and I pull right. I'm also a long term user of the Take-A-Look mirror. As I have gotten old and stiff I can't turn my head enough to really see behind me. The Varia beep and flashing LEDS on my Wahoo Elemnt is what clues me in.

I have the original version of both the Elemnt and the Varia and knock on wood they both work fine still!

[djg21]

Originally Posted by NHAero

Same for me on Martha's Vineyard. I'm riding in the middle of the lane, especially out of tourist season, and it warns me about an upcoming vehicle and I pull right. I'm also a long term user of the Take-A-Look mirror. As I have gotten old and stiff I can't turn my head enough to really see behind me. The Varia beep and flashing LEDS on my Wahoo Elemnt is what clues me in.

I have the original version of both the Elemnt and the Varia and knock on wood they both work fine still!

The only time I’ve ever found my Varia less than helpful was when I was in AZ, where I necessarily had to ride long distances on a frontage road running parallel to an interstate. I got excessive numbers of false positives as the cars on the interstate passed. I turned off the tones for that part of the ride. I won’t ride without my Varia. I just picked up an Edge 1050, and the built-in speaker is very helpful, and the alert tones more distinguishable.

And my favorite race ever was the Tour of Martha’s Vineyard. I loved the sprint into Oak Bluffs, directly into a stiff headwind.

[charliedid]

Honest question, do these aids (radars/computers) represent and encourage distracted riding?

[KonaSS]

Originally Posted by charliedid

Honest question, do these aids (radars/computers) represent and encourage distracted riding?

No. Not at all. I would say it lets you focus on the road ahead when needed and tells you when you need to focus on what is happening behind you.

[openwheelracing]

Originally Posted by charliedid

Honest question, do these aids (radars/computers) represent and encourage distracted riding?

In my case, no.

It is a great tool to have for situational awareness. I still ride as if "a car is always behind" me. My head is still turning and checking. I still listen to my surroundings. I still watch debris and road conditions. The only difference is a radar scanning behind me with helpful visual and sound aide. Possibly the best taillight is just icing on the cake. There has been countless times the radar provided information faster and safer.

Does it kill my sperm? That is the potential downside. Okay, yes it is a little bulky. I hope next generation is slimmer and better integrated.

[charliedid]

Originally Posted by KonaSS

No. Not at all. I would say it lets you focus on the road ahead when needed and tells you when you need to focus on what is happening behind you.

Originally Posted by openwheelracing

In my case, no.

It is a great tool to have for situational awareness. I still ride as if "a car is always behind" me. My head is still turning and checking. I still listen to my surroundings. I still watch debris and road conditions. The only difference is a radar scanning behind me with helpful visual and sound aide. Possibly the best taillight is just icing on the cake. There has been countless times the radar provided information faster and safer.

Does it kill my sperm? That is the potential downside. Okay, yes it is a little bulky. I hope next generation is slimmer and better integrated.

So akin to the dashboard of a car, if you will.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Originally Posted by charliedid

So akin to the dashboard of a car, if you will.

No. In fact, it can just be a taillight that beeps when a car approaches and beeps faster if the car is bearing down on you if preferred.