Another deal on the Garmin Edge 530 at it's ATL price!
You can stack with the $20 welcome offer on a (for new accounts) to get the price down to $229 (reload page with incognito mode if not prompted).
Garmin Edge 530 GPS Bike Computer 20 hours of battery life, extendable 2.6" color display for clear navigation, Performance metrics like VO2 max, FTP MTB dynamics and Grit/Flow ratings, Varia radar compatibility for safety
6 years..
Daheck is this
Garmin Edge 530 GPS Bike Computer
How is the Varia RL515 price right now? Is it worth it to pick one up with it or wait for a better price?
It looks like ~$210 would be around the right price according to Ozbargain history (including shipping).
I have this model since 2019. It's going strong.
What can this do that a phone or fitness watch cant do?
Not much, but there’s a major advantage in the battery life for longer rides.
Not any extra features, but some people prefer to have a dedicated device.
I should also add it's not recommended to handlebar mount a smartphone, especially the newer ones. apparently the vibrations do some damage to the autofocus and image stabilisation.
"apparently"
Agree, but there is also a lot a phone can do that this can't do. I have an old phone I have been using as a dedicated bike computer for years. I like that I can install the apps I need on it (like ridewithgps, komoot etc), hotspot with my phone if needed, and use all the features on the fly (esp whilst bikepacking) without having to sync with anything.
Main disadvantage is battery life (I carry a small powerbank) and water resistance
Most of the functionality is in the mapping which is a lot better than a tiny watch screen. Battery life is better than most watches but not as good as something like the enduro.
The main difference is this is more of a head unit device that sits on your bike, meaning it also has compatibility with devices like the varia.
When I was looking at mounts etc, some people seemed to cite damage to a phones camera OIS components they’d attributed to fixing a phone firmly to a bike frame. Didn’t seem especially uncommon amongst cyclist that had used a phone. Particularly where there wasn’t sufficient dampening through the bike itself or the mount holding the camera. In a bag, pocket etc is ok, it was just the fixing it to a frame that itself was taking a lot of impact/bumps where there seems to be a concern as everything is then transferred into the phone itself when it’s affixed.
So some people use these because it doesn’t have those camera components that might fail under ongoing excessive pressures.
Battery life was another one for anyone going on all day rides.
From experience:
I've damaged a few Bike Computers when crashing out on my mountain bike, I would never mount my iPhone to my bike.
These days I use a iGPSPORT BSC300, which is equivalent to the Edge 530 but $150. I've already busted the screen on it. Lol.
Dont know abt the phone but the 530 screen is way bigger than a watch (I've been using a Fenix 6 Pro for ages) The Fenix does the job but when using maps, its a wee bit small. Also, the 530 wld be better when used in conjunction with the Varia for the same reason.
Not a very good deal, super old hardware, no touchscreen. It's OK but there are better options out there now for cheaper, for instance:
- iGPSPORT BSC300 if navigation is important
- Coospo CS500 is navigation is less important
Wow never seen that brand. The CS300 is $50 that's worth taking a gamble on for something that claims 40 hours life!
The bsc300 is good value. Will mention that it's not live navigation like a phone with Google maps does, but rather it will give directions based on your preloaded routes.
Agreed, true Google Maps-like rerouting doesn't exist in these devices (nor in the 530 which wants to force you to U-turn).
If you want proper routing, you'll need to get 540 or 840 (for 2x the price).
I tried an iGPSport BiNavi earlier this year and was left pretty underwhelmed by the experience. It's fine, but the Garmins (even an older one like the 530) are a much more refined product.
As said above, blast from the past. Not necessarily necessary any more. Phone batteries are fine, screens are brighter and water resistance is already there.
Phones can't link up with other devices on your bike to feed you information in real time like if you use a power meter, radar, heart rate sensor or your current gear if you have a wireless groupset.
I use the cadence app on my iPhone and get Power, Cadence, HR and radar all to my phone no problems
You do have to be smart and pick sensors that are ANT+ and Bluetooth compatible but honestly that’s most sensors nowadays
Still tempted by a bike computer purely for the battery life and get up and go aspect of things
Appreciate you mentioning cadence. Always looking to see how the development of phone options is progressing. Personally, I'm very much a bike-specific-computer-on-the-bars sort of person, but like to understand what's out there.
Feel free to: potentially destroy your OIS/camera module if said phone is hard mounted to handlebars (without vibration mount); prematurely age said phone battery etc. 30 minute rides I'd agree. 3 hours plus. Yeah, nah.
I used Samsung and iPhones for years on quad lock mounts for regular rides over 70kms as well as commuting. This was on roads and paved paths so I can’t speak for MTB tracks.
On the sensor front, HRT, cadence work with phones. Haven’t had a power meter.
Contributing this as all the feedback really helps people make informed purchases. I often check OZ comments before buying a product, there are always great insights here.
Long time Garmin owner here (currently using the 830). This is a great device, as long as you know the limitations. Highly sought after by weight weenies that don't want a large device on the bars.
Main risk/limitation with buying one of these now is that Garmin will not be issuing further firmware updates. V9.75 was released 3 years ago, and the last beta (9.81) was released over 2 years ago.
Plenty of better units around now, but at a much higher price point.
Great price for what it is. Better than having my phone exposed to the elements on long rides especially in summer in the heat and sun. Features a basic, it’s not touch screen, but once you have it setup it’s super basic to use.
Fair point - the direct summer sun will send your phone into thermal shutdown without too much difficulty if it’s left out.
Anyone know if the $20 off code unique?
Or if you'll get it just by signing up for the newsletter even without the prompt?
I'm not getting any offer/prompt even after trying different browsers/devices.
EDIT: or would anyone have a code they're not using?
Looks like you need the prompt to get the offer.
Just got a welcome email without any code.
took me a while to work out how the prompt works.
Looks like you need to open the website in incognito, then hang around for a while, will trigger the prompt
Yeah i asked a mate to try and it worked for them, so it's something on my end.
Thanks for confirming though.
@toastfacegrillah: my setup was chrome on windows, on incognito, no vpn, and just play around on the website for a while. Maybe other browsers are a bit of a hit and miss ¯_(ツ)_/¯
530 wow, a blast from the past. Is it like 10 years old?