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Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt?
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If you switched from Garmin to Wahoo for your cycling computer, tell me why. What did you like? What do you miss? Regret it? Love it?

I got to see the Bolt when the Wahoo rep came by my bike shop. It is interesting but I'm still on the fence.

Make Inside Out Sports your next online tri shop! http://www.insideoutsports.com/
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I went from an 800 to an Elemnt. My 800 died while my bike was on the car in a rainstorm. Chose the elemnt for "something different" and I got a bit of a deal.

Some thoughts: Wahoo products seem to get better over time. Initial purchases are very beta-test like. It happened with our Gen 1 Kickrs and I feel it happened with my Elemnt. Over time, Wahoo slowly addressed most of my issues with updates.

1. Automatically switching to the segment page when you approached a segment. I missed the start of some 20 min efforts because the Elemnt had switched off my "Interval" page and onto the "Segment" page. So, there I am trying to navigate back to the correct display as I'm starting a super-threshold effort
2. Mapping has improved signficantly
3. You still cannot move the map. I need to zoom out to see further, but then the map looses detail
4. The monochrome display is great for battery life, but causes the product to look cheaper than Garmin screens.

5. On multiple occasions my Elemnt has re-uploaded workouts to TP. Months worth of workouts. Randomly. This is typically only discovered when I look at history CTL / TSS and wonder why I was at (-100) TSS. I then have to go through and delete each of the duplicate workouts. Which is extremely tedious. This fact alone has caused hatred toward my elemnt.

I talk a lot - Give it a listen: http://www.fasttalklabs.com/category/fast-talk
I also give Training Advice via http://www.ForeverEndurance.com

The above poster has eschewed traditional employment and is currently undertaking the ill-conceived task of launching his own hardgoods company. Statements are not made on behalf of nor reflective of anything in any manner... unless they're good, then they count.
http://www.AGNCYINNOVATION.com
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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Never had any of the Edge series devices, but I do on the Elemnt. After owning a bunch of Forerunners for running, the Elemnt is so good that when wahoo releases a running watch I will ditch my 935 in a heartbeat for it.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [marklemcd] [ In reply to ]
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marklemcd wrote:
Never had any of the Edge series devices, but I do on the Elemnt. After owning a bunch of Forerunners for running, the Elemnt is so good that when wahoo releases a running watch I will ditch my 935 in a heartbeat for it.

I’m with you. Use a Bolt, LOVE it.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I am pondering the same thing also and will be interested in seeing what this thread brings.

I am not "unhappy" with my Garmin products but I am so far in bed with them it might be hard to actually make a change (Pedals, Watch, Computer). I currently have 2 x Garmin Edge 810 and I love them and they work fantastic........

BUT Garmin from what I am finding is no longer supporting the unit and my Vector 3 pedals are not giving me all my "dynamics".... that I don't really need, but I don't have and paid for haha!
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [teddygram] [ In reply to ]
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Wahoo doesn't have a web portal like Garmin Connect. I actually like Garmin Connect.

Make Inside Out Sports your next online tri shop! http://www.insideoutsports.com/
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I just switch from the Edge 500 to the Bolt so everything is better but, here are a few positives for me so far:

1. Initial pairing to multiple power meters was super easy.
2. Once paired I no longer have to worry about the head unit finding multiple power meters. I know everything newer than the 500 does this but, it's new to me and I'm loving it!
3. Again, new to me, but the downloading of data via bluetooth has been flawless, quick and easy compared to "plugging in" the 500.
4. Nice aero finish...

The only downside I can think of right now is the orientation of the mount and the clamp. The orientation is 90 degrees different from Garmin. I ride a Factor so they have a their own Black Inc. computer mount which is only set up for Garmin orientation. The Wahoo mount that comes with the unit won't fit my bars for some reason so we had to take a puck and modify my Black Inc mount...just fyi. If the stock mount works then that's another positive as it is super aero. It does fit my TT bike.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I recently acquired a Bolt - for all my years have been a Garmin user - and have to say I think I like it better than the 520. It "feels" a bit cheaper, but the menu navigation and ease of use of the Bolt is abooooout 1000x more intuitive than Garmin.
Last edited by: jkhayc: Apr 13, 18 10:54
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [jkhayc] [ In reply to ]
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The data fields button is cool. I'm one of those who want a color screen though.

Make Inside Out Sports your next online tri shop! http://www.insideoutsports.com/
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I switched from a Garmin Edge 500 to the Wahoo ELEMNT Bolt.

Pros:
Bluetooth and ANT+ integration
iOS app interface for configuration, ride data, etc.
Zoom feature for more or fewer data fields per page
Turn-by-turn navigation

Cons:
No integration with Garmin Connect (I still use a Garmin watch, so it'd be nice if all my data could be centralized here without manual work)
Screen brightness without backlight isn't great.
Not impressed with the mounting options for TT/tri bike setups

Overall, I'm very happy I made the switch. Admittedly my Garmin was pretty old, so I wasn't accustomed to the more modern mapping features, color display, etc. So I don't really feel like I'm missing anything there. The biggest annoyance from my Garmin was the work required to get it synced with the various devices I have on multiple bikes and wheel sets. With the Wahoo, there's nothing to do. It picks up the different powermeters, speed/cadence sensors, and HR monitors I use with no manual input.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I’ve been in Garmin ecosphere since I got first GPS sports device.

When I was shopping for new bike computer I considered the 820, 520, and Element Bolt.

I ultimately decided on the Bolt. For me the deciding factor was at the time the Bolt had better live tracking integrated. I wanted this feature so my wife could track progress, know when I’d be home, etc.

But overall it’s great. I’ve found it much easier to use than a garmin ever was. B&W screen hasn’t been an issue. Resolution is good enough in small Element screen to follow maps, etc.

I have zero regrets. If they ever make a Tri watch I’ll probably sell my 920 and get one.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I prefer my Bolt over my old 510. The only real ask that I have from Wahoo (and I believe they are working on it) is to support ANT+ lights, specifically controlling the new Cycliq lights/camera.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I switched from the Edge 520 to the Wahoo Element Bolt. Honestly had no reason to switch other than the fact that I love Wahoo products so I wanted to try out the Bolt. I have been using it since January and am really loving it. The battery life has been fantastic. I really like the simplicity of the bolt and the ability to add or reduce from the main page. I create a lot of routes through strava and they sync quickly and easily from my iphone to my bolt. Also the strava segments work great. I have used it with a pioneer and quarq and have had no issues so far with power readings.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I was a long time garmin user from the 500, 510, 520. As a competitive cyclist I had some issues with the 520, in particular battery, navigation, and visibility in poor light conditions. I made the switch to the bolt three weeks ago and I overall think it is a superior product. A few pros and cons:

Pro

Setup- crazy easy and fast
Battery - more than double my 520
Navigation
Visibility - no need forbacklight
Button placement
WiFi upload
Superior trainer control


Con
Double upload of data on occasion
No color if that matters
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [xtrpickels] [ In reply to ]
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xtrpickels wrote:
5. On multiple occasions my Elemnt has re-uploaded workouts to TP. Months worth of workouts. Randomly. This is typically only discovered when I look at history CTL / TSS and wonder why I was at (-100) TSS. I then have to go through and delete each of the duplicate workouts. Which is extremely tedious. This fact alone has caused hatred toward my elemnt.

This has happened to me a couple of times and I can't seem nail down what exactly triggers this. It is a huge pain in the ass to have to sift through weeks of old workouts to spot the duplicates.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I switched from a 520 to a Bolt and I'm basically happy.

Pros:
- Routes automatically sync with Strava and RidewithGPS, which is awesome!
- Route navigation is much better IMO than Garmin's
- Happier with the screen/data field management, which you can do from that app and is very easy. Generally the UI is better than the Garmin's, which I often find kind of counter intuitive.

Cons:
Persistent firmware issues:
- the double workout upload problem mentioned above has been happening sporadically for at least a year and hasn't been fixed
- if my power meter drops out, which it does on occasion (briefly) as the battery gets low, the Wahoo will often never get it back without me stopping the file and starting a new one, which is annoying as hell. Even if it does get it back, the average power for that particular interval isn't calculated correctly (even with just a couple seconds of zeros it basically won't calculate average power right).
- it freezes up and has other annoying GPS dropouts etc more than it should. These are just firmware bugs.

I find the Bolt's firmware to be at least as buggy as the Garmin's, and that's saying something. However, I have both and I choose to use the Bolt, so that's saying something too.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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Got one last week, just before leaving on a trainingcamp abroad and I absolutely love it.
As a uni student i was relucant to spend the money, but boy I have not regretted it one bit!

- Navigation is super! Yes it doesn't have rerouting. But let,'s be honest, most devices don't do a very good/fast job at that anyways.
- Screen is so easy to read, even with glaring sun out.
- Data fields are plenty plenty plenty.
- Buttons >>> touchscreen
- No issues with my quarq dzero readings, which i wouldn't expect anyways.
- Elevation graph is pretty darn handy

Overall very happy not to have spent the extra cash on an 820. I've been riding in unknown territory in the spanish mountains, solely relying on the bolt and have never had less worries.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I switched from my old 310xt to the Wahoo BOLT a couple months ago. I haven't found any negatives yet, but here are the things I really like;

1) Pairing with the mobile app couldn't be easier. And I love setting up the device through that user interface, it is so much easier.
2) Route navigation. Main reason I bought it, and with the pairing above and the ability to associate/link your Wahoo account with 3rd party apps it is a piece of cake to put routes onto the thing. I use ridewithgps or komoot and it really couldn't be any easier.
3) Zoom function on main display. This is such a simple thing that you wonder why everybody didn't think of it. As you press the zoom in/out buttons (up and down on side of unit) it knocks a row off the bottom of the main display and enlarges the remaining rows. I order my data fields by most important (to me) at the top to least important at the bottom. For eg, if I'm doing a 10m TT I'll just zoom it right the way in to 3s, 10s and avg power and that is all I'll see. Your summary data fields can be at the bottom if you don't want them in your normal view... for example total ride distance, average speed, elevation.. whatever you like to check now and again, and you just zoom out a bit to see it. Basically you don't really need to scroll pages any more....
4) ... but if you were following a route and did want to scroll pages, there is a nice big button to switch between route view and your main data view.
5) It reminds you to hit "start" when you set off moving. Helpful for idiots like me who often forget.
6) Auto-pause seems very accurate to me, better than my Garmin.
7) Battery life seems excellent, although I haven't stressed this to its limit yet.
8) There is a retaining bolt you can screw in from beneath which will prevent the unit from rotating in its mount no matter what you ride over. This was a nice piece of security for me at Paris-Roubaix the other week.
9) LEDs. I haven't really figured out what these are for yet or had a play with them, but I get an inkling that I will like them if I set a power target for a race.
10) The beep is nice and loud and reminds you that things are happening.
11) Display seems crystal clear in all conditions. There is no issue with viewing angle, which has allowed me to line it up nice and flat in-line with my stem.

I am basically delighted and as per the poster above, as soon as these guys put a strap on their kit I will be getting a new running watch.

Cheers,
Rich.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [ In reply to ]
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Perhaps someone here can tell me. I'm a frustrated Edge 820 user. At its pricepoint it's just a bad product. Really bad. Therefore, I'm considering a Bolt. However, a feature that is really important to me are workouts/intervals.

I see that Wahoo has updated the Bolt. I could live with the TrainingPeaks limitation but do uploaded workouts persist for only a few days on the device?

I have several workouts loaded on my Edge, 10x40/20, 10x60/30, 10x2/1 and so on. I often decide during a ride what I will do. Often I decide late in a ride to work a little bit on my fatigue resistance with some 30/30s. So more spontaneous. I must say after 4 hours it's simply "easier" to do this things with a voice/screen telling you what to do. Is this feasible with a Bolt? Does not seem so flexible.

Actually, does the Bolt feature audio announcements for planned workouts?
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [lanierb] [ In reply to ]
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lanierb wrote:
- if my power meter drops out, which it does on occasion (briefly) as the battery gets low, the Wahoo will often never get it back without me stopping the file and starting a new one, which is annoying as hell. Even if it does get it back, the average power for that particular interval isn't calculated correctly (even with just a couple seconds of zeros it basically won't calculate average power right).

Related question: when it auto-pauses and stays still for some time will it then find the powermeter (as before T1 for example)? I am having a really hard time getting my Edge 510 to work for sprint races. In all my recent races something went wrong and I had no power data (would be nice for post processing). Bad luck with both auto-pause on or off and Vector 2 pedals or a P2M NG.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [marcofoils] [ In reply to ]
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marcofoils wrote:
lanierb wrote:

- if my power meter drops out, which it does on occasion (briefly) as the battery gets low, the Wahoo will often never get it back without me stopping the file and starting a new one, which is annoying as hell. Even if it does get it back, the average power for that particular interval isn't calculated correctly (even with just a couple seconds of zeros it basically won't calculate average power right).


Related question: when it auto-pauses and stays still for some time will it then find the powermeter (as before T1 for example)? I am having a really hard time getting my Edge 510 to work for sprint races. In all my recent races something went wrong and I had no power data (would be nice for post processing). Bad luck with both auto-pause on or off and Vector 2 pedals or a P2M NG.
It *should*, BUT if you stop long enough that the power meter goes into idle and stops sending messages, then sometimes the Bolt doesn't ever pick it up again until you stop and restart the file. This is exactly the bug I was mentioning. It pisses me off and I've been reporting it to them since last summer. You would notice it immediately, though, and could stop and restart the Bolt and then combine the files in fittools afterward, which is only a minor hassle.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [lanierb] [ In reply to ]
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lanierb wrote:
marcofoils wrote:
lanierb wrote:

- if my power meter drops out, which it does on occasion (briefly) as the battery gets low, the Wahoo will often never get it back without me stopping the file and starting a new one, which is annoying as hell. Even if it does get it back, the average power for that particular interval isn't calculated correctly (even with just a couple seconds of zeros it basically won't calculate average power right).


Related question: when it auto-pauses and stays still for some time will it then find the powermeter (as before T1 for example)? I am having a really hard time getting my Edge 510 to work for sprint races. In all my recent races something went wrong and I had no power data (would be nice for post processing). Bad luck with both auto-pause on or off and Vector 2 pedals or a P2M NG.

It *should*, BUT if you stop long enough that the power meter goes into idle and stops sending messages, then sometimes the Bolt doesn't ever pick it up again until you stop and restart the file. This is exactly the bug I was mentioning. It pisses me off and I've been reporting it to them since last summer. You would notice it immediately, though, and could stop and restart the Bolt and then combine the files in fittools afterward, which is only a minor hassle.

A lot of times in the middle of a ride I'll stop for extended periods (30+ minutes)...more than enough time for my Quarq to go to sleep. Whether it's a stop for coffee/breakfast, or heading to the LBS at the end of a ride before heading home. My Bolt has always picked up power from my Quarq right away. I must have had this type of situation at least 100 times since getting the Bolt...never an issue for me.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [BryanD] [ In reply to ]
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I'm curious to know your reasons for switching from Garmin. I haven't used an Edge, I switched from an old 910xt to the original larger Elemnt, which has the same functionality in a larger form factor. There were some bad interface aspects to the 910, but it is an older unit. My main problem with it was that about once every 1-2 months it would eat a workout and that's just unacceptable.

There are a lot of things I like about the Elemnt but I'm actually considering going back to Garmin. The best thing about it is that in a year and a half I've never lost a workout. I hear of people losing workouts on Edges and that's definitely a major concern. Also, in general the usability is pretty good and the companion app makes configuration easy.

Things that are disappointing to me about the E:
You can't scroll the maps, which wouldn't be that big a deal if the maps were higher resolution. However, when you zoom out on the map you lose all the secondary roads and it only shows main roads, so it can be almost impossible to use the map in a useful manner once it's zoomed out. This appears to be a hardware limitation due to the low resolution of the B&W screen. (I believe the Bolt screen shows the same info as the original E, just on a smaller screen size, so technically higher resolution, but the same limitation when zooming out.) Also, the maps do not show street names.

The E lacks activity profiles. I like to have different data displayed depending on if I'm using navigation or not, or if I'm on my MTB vs. road bike. To do this I've got to go into the companion app and turn data pages on and off (which isn't too bad) or fiddle with individual fields (which is a PITA). Plus I sometimes remember that I want to change the display just as I'm starting to ride and I have to pull out my phone and fiddle with the companion app, so I usually don't bother.

The beep is useless on my E; luckily I believe this has been fixed on the Bolt. Plus annoying bugs, such as the data zoom feature jumps 11 - 9 - 7 - 4 - 3 - 2 fields, which is illogical; the missing 5 field layout is one I like for some purposes.

The Connect IQ feature gives the Garmin allows much more customization than the Wahoo, such as allowing custom fields such as W' balance and custom layouts, etc.

But I'd have to say, I'd like to hear from Edge owners as to if they're losing data as that's a show stopper for me.
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [tttiltheend] [ In reply to ]
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I have been using the Edge 1000 for 3 years, riding about 11k miles per year and I have never lost any workout or data. Zero.

It can be a little quirky at times when using maps however, once you use maps a while these quirks become entirely manageable.

It’s an solid unit and I have never heard comments about losing workouts. But I can only speak for the Edge 1000. Yet I have riding friends with the 510 and 820 and never heard them complain either.

Garmin software typically is buggy on the first release. Once mature it seems to work fine. The Edge units provide a full complement of performance data, and you get normalized power using the Industry standard sum of squares formula (Training Peaks), not some off the wall estimation.
Last edited by: NealH: Apr 21, 18 7:46
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Re: Anyone switch from Garmin Edge to Wahoo Bolt? [tttiltheend] [ In reply to ]
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I'm a long time Edge user (500, 510, 1000, and now 1030), and even though these devices have at times had a reputation for being buggy, my experience has always been good. The 1000 in particular was really good for me. A few quirks with maps/routing but otherwise very reliable. Never lots a workout.And I was impressed with the fact that Garmin kept the Edge 1000 up to date as new features were released on the lower-range devices, even though the 1000 had been out for a few years. The Connect IQ stuff is pretty cool, I even wrote some of my own custom data fields.

Then I got the Edge 1030. It has been an absolute disaster. I get the impression some of this comes from a new chipset that uses both BT and BTLE connections to the phone for different functionality, switching between the two as needed. Basically, any of the "connected" feature that use phone integration are buggy as hell. LiveTrack rarely works, sometimes ride sync doesn't work or takes forever. The device also freezes sometimes, requiring a reset. Not the end of the world if it happens during a ride since you can resume the activity after rebooting (annoying, admittedly). But I've had several instances where the 1030 got hung up just after completing a ride (presumably due to BT sync/upload). When this happens, the FIT file gets corrupted and you lose the entire activity. Only way I've found to completely avoid this is to disable bluetooth (which disables a lot of the features you're paying extra for on a flagship device).

Garmin has been absolutely useless in addressing the issues with the 1030, several of the firmware updates introduced new bugs without fixing any existing issues.

Bottom line I definitely don't recommend the 1030, it has no new features over the 1000 (at least, none that actually work). The incident detection is a joke, a controlled stop will set it off if you slow too quickly, and disabling the alert is a PITA. The only thing the 1030 has going for it over the 1000 is a bigger/better screen.

I don't think the 520/820 have had similar problems, at least AFAIK. Most of the feedback I've heard from users of those devices has been good.
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