Heads up!!! Here’s your massive Cyber Monday sports tech deals list! This includes the Garmin Forerunner 965 for just $499, Garmin Epix for $429, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 for just $619, the GoPro Hero 12 Black for $299, (or Hero 13 bundle for $339!) and plenty more! Go check out the full list of 100+ deals here!
I’m DC RAINMAKER…
I swim, bike and run. Then, I come here and write about my adventures. It’s as simple as that. Most of the time. If you’re new around these parts, here’s the long version of my story.
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You can use the above link for any Amazon country and it (should) automatically redirect to your local Amazon site.Want to compare the features of each product, down to the nitty-gritty? No problem, the product comparison data is constantly updated with new products and new features added to old products!
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Think my written reviews are deep? You should check out my videos. I take things to a whole new level of interactive depth!
Smart Trainers Buyers Guide: Looking at a smart trainer this winter? I cover all the units to buy (and avoid) for indoor training. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
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Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
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FAQ’s
I have built an extensive list of my most frequently asked questions. Below are the most popular.
- Do you have a privacy policy posted?
- Why haven’t you yet released a review for XYZ product you mentioned months ago?
- Will you test our product before release?
- Are you willing to review or test beta products?
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In Depth Product Reviews
You probably stumbled upon here looking for a review of a sports gadget. If you’re trying to decide which unit to buy – check out my in-depth reviews section. Some reviews are over 60 pages long when printed out, with hundreds of photos! I aim to leave no stone unturned.
Read My Sports Gadget Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent GPS watch guide here, and cycling GPS computers here. Plus there are smart trainers here, all in these guides cover almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day-to-day? I also just put together my complete ‘Gear I Use’ equipment list, from swim to bike to run and everything in between (plus a few extra things). And to compliment that, here’s The Girl’s (my wife’s) list. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by!
Have some fun in the travel section.
I travel a fair bit, both for work and for fun. Here’s a bunch of random trip reports and daily trip-logs that I’ve put together and posted. I’ve sorted it all by world geography, in an attempt to make it easy to figure out where I’ve been.
My Photography Gear: The Cameras/Drones/Action Cams I Use Daily
The most common question I receive outside of the “what’s the best GPS watch for me” variant, are photography-esq based. So in efforts to combat the amount of emails I need to sort through on a daily basis, I’ve complied this “My Photography Gear” post for your curious minds (including drones & action cams!)! It’s a nice break from the day-to-day sports-tech talk, and I hope you get something out of it!
The Swim/Bike/Run Gear I Use List
Many readers stumble into my website in search of information on the latest and greatest sports tech products. But at the end of the day, you might just be wondering “What does Ray use when not testing new products?”. So here is the most up to date list of products I like and fit the bill for me and my training needs best! DC Rainmaker 2023 swim, bike, run, and general gear list. But wait, are you a female and feel like these things might not apply to you? If that’s the case (but certainly not saying my choices aren’t good for women), and you just want to see a different gear junkies “picks”, check out The Girl’s Gear Guide too.
new running watch? Uhm…. polar? I don’t think… suunto? Sure not… Garmin? Fenix 3?no… Maybe minor sport brand (tom tom, mio, 4iiii,..,)?
Lol I think if Polar announce new hardware they’ll get lynched after the year they’ve had :)
I’d love to see a Fenix 3 with some of the 920XT features, especially the screen and massive battery life. There are so many things my Fenix 2 does that the 920 can’t I would probably buy the next gen Fenix as well. Weirdly I’d even quite like to see it bigger as sometimes I carry the gpsmap62 while running for the better mapping support while the 920 records the data
Polar already have their new A300 activity & fitness smartwatch on their home page. It doesn’t have GPS, so it’s basically a vivofit with a larger display, a vibration alarm and some Polar-specific features.
I’m going to be so poor in 2015..
link to buy.garmin.com is exactly what I mentioned above, and there is a new Fenix too
Do you think they’ll come out with a Fenix 3? If they do, it probably won’t have the storage, maps, or subscription. Probably just upgraded to touch screen and color but still keeping the round form factor.
The Epix is pretty phenomenal, and for all the things the Fenix does, swim, bike, run, dedicated multisport. I’m supposed to be buying a new bike not looking at new watches.
Wow, just looked at the Garmin site….a new fenix watch (3) and the epix with built in maps. Both look great. Very glad I’ve been living with my old 310xt and didn’t pull the trigger on the 920xt.
You should try to meet Marques Brownlee aka @MKBHD on all social media, but primarily YouTube. I think it would be a great meeting of the minds.
smart kid
Figure he has school during CES
Welcome to Vegas! My home away from home.
Great! Really looking forward to your coverage.
Really hoping there’s a good running watch with the following:
– 3 month+ battery change or recharge cycle
– BT connection to MapMyRun with live stats and next turn directions on watch face
– a clock
– vibrating alarm
– waterproof
– not too ugly
@Ray Maker “I’ll be focusing on ones that exhibit a low level of suck.” This phrasing… made my day! :-D
Woot! Can’t wait to see the goodies. Have fun and thanks in advance!
Do you anticipate any news in regard to a updated edge 810? Or what would you expect the development cycle for the new to be?
Garmin have got themselves in a tricky spot here I think. The 810 already does a huge amount of what the 1000 does, especially after the update last week. Beyond a hardware revamp (smaller, lighter, better screen resolution), I don’t see what they can do to improve the 810 without cannibalising the 1000’s sales (not that that’s necessarily a bad thing from the consumer’s point of view), and even those might push a fair number of people to the (presumably) cheaper ‘820’. Current 1000 owners will expect anything new like live Strava segments to come to them too given they are the top-of-the-line unit (and assuming Strava don’t do this themselves shortly anyway on ConnectIQ). Also if they made a smaller 810, it would kind of snooker the 510, and the one thing Garmin doesn’t seem keen on in bike units is dropping the old outdated ones out of production (thankfully – please keep selling 500’s a bit longer!). I’d almost expect to see an updated 1000 (1010, or is that too clunky?) first, though even that seems a bit too much like new for new’s sake rather than being able to add something groundbreaking that would drive sales. It’ll be interesting to see what Garmin come up with here!
Do you anticipate any news in regard to a updated edge 810? Or what would you expect the development cycle for the new to be?
Garmin has no further announcements for CES.
I don’t think we’ll see an Edge 810 replacement anytime soon. They’ve just done a major firmware update a week or two ago, and there’s nothing out there that’s truly competitive with it.
I will be there trolling the show floor too, hope to run into you Ray!
Will be interesting to see what if anything Garmin has lined up for the Virb 2 (higher res recording?) and the Vivofit line of AT’s (VivoSmart and its 5? day battery life…. humbug!)
Am really happy with the FR620. On release it really surprised me as I didn’t think the FR610 could be improved SO if Garmin want to surprise me again with a FR630 then fire away!
Might possibly be interested in a Fenix 3 depending on feature set and styling.
Will be FIRST in the queue for a Swim 2 with BT! Hint hint Garmin!!!
Also, last but not least credit where credits due I’m sure like me everyone else that reads this blog would like to thank Randy Cantu for his help and input with this first class blog. Cheers!
Since nobody mentioned this yet: Welcome Randy! It’s great to hear you’re able to help this blog and Ray. Lots of us have pondered how in this world Ray is able to keep up his training, renovations, work, private life and what not. I am sure you’re a great guy or else he wouldn’t have picked you!
Thanks Mike. Looking forward to a crazy and jam-packed week.
Indeed, welcome Randy. Hope you have a fun week! And yes it’s interesting to find out just how Ray manages it all!
welcome randy… and more cow bell please
Hoping for some updates on Connect IQ- would make sense for Garmin to release additional devices that support this to fan the fires?!
So the new activity monitors with inbuilt Hr? What’s the go with them? Major issues managing work and cycling and thought this could and an item to look at
On your posts I read swimmers use watch for recording HRM and a strap next to it to sense heart rate. Since we stuck for now with 2.4 Ghz communication… I would be curious if there is more on integration of optical sensors in watches, I personally like the approach in the link below.
link to ablogtowatch.com
Yes, welcome Randy… nice to hear that somebody is helping Ray!
Ciao
Thanks! Should be a great week.
Going to wear an activity tracker for steps walked on the floor? Over / under on distance walked?
Yeah…I would like to see the activity tracker data of a day or week at CES.
I’m headed there later in the week and hope I have enought time to see everything I need/want to see. I for one am interested in pretty much everyone CES has to offer (ie TV’s, audio/video and all things gadgetry) so I’m pretty excited about the trip.
I’ll keep an eye out for you Ray. Hopefully get a chance to say “thanks” for posts/reviews.
I’m wondering if Garmin will have anything new in the ‘outdoor’ range. It’s been a few years since the Etrex 30 – seems like its due an update.
Word on the street is that Sony is coming out with some 4k action cams. Look forward to seeing those.
Nice, looking forward to your (and Randy’s) coverage of the show. I’ll be there all week as well but on booth duty for my company. Looking forward to breaking away and seeing the show floor a bit. Hope to run into you there.
Any DCR events/gatherings during the week? I imagine a decent # of your readers will be at the show.
Yeah, I’d love to be able to do some sort of get together some year. Right now it’s tricky in that my schedule is jam-packed with meetings with industry folks all day…every day. :-/
Small world running into you this evening in HGVC, even if only for a few minutes. Feels like meeting someone famous! Hope you are enjoying the show. If you have interest/time for meeting up for an AM run or a drink after the show it would be great to chat.
Sports drones? Wow, didn’t realize there was that kind of work going on in this area. As someone who has been involved in RC planes for a number of years, this certainly has piqued my curiosity. I haven’t tested the drone waters yet, but I think I could part with some of the fleet to do so.
Hi Ray,
Would love a confirmation of where Recon Jet is. I’ve been waiting for them to push their product out. I’m waiting for real reviews from real people since they have been talking about launching for quite a while now. Thanks Ray! Happy New Year!
Biggest announcement of CES: The Rainmaker Empire grows to three. We already count The Girl, and I have to admit I thought the third would be significantly smaller!
Congrats Ray!
Hi Ray,
I am really curious what you think about the new Inspire 1. (I hope you visit DJI). Unfortunately it is a little bit pricey, but the design and look of this drone is really impressiv. I really think about to buy one, when the price has come down a little bit. They just showed their new camera mount for the Inspire camera. So you would have a stabilized camera on the ground too. Not to bay either. Unfortunately no price available up till now.
Cheers
I think it’s awesome. But, like you, the price is just a deal killer for me.
I played around with the new ground mount today a bit. Cool stuff, but the bummer is that you can’t buy the camera separately (nor do they have a price for the mount), so you have to buy the Inspire.
That said, the rest of the market is plummeting in terms of price and increased functionality – and I wonder if DJI is making the right choices there with increasing in cost. Sure it’s a different line than the Phantom series, but with GoPro on the verge of releasing something – I feel like DJI might be taking their focus off the ball a bit…
Perhaps they change their mind in a few months and you can buy the camera then alone with the ground mount. The problem with the Inspire is, in my opinion, that it is not a fully professional platform, because the camera is not good enough for really professional productions. (Perhaps it will be possible to upgrade the camera in the future). But on the other hand for an amateur like me, it is too expensive. The pros will go with the S1000 or another company. But I love the concept of “transforming” the landing gear. Really cool. Perhaps Garmin
reveals some news on their drone this week.
Thank you for your answer despite your busy week … and much fun on the CES.
Cheers
Sorry, I meant GoPro not Garmin.
For those curious, here ya go…
Garmin announces the Fenix3 Multisport GPS watch. Here’s my hands-on thoughts about the actually stylish looking unit: link to dcra.in
Hands-on with Garmin’s newest (and probably coolest) watch – the Vivoactive GPS Smartwatch, along with the Vivofit2: link to dcra.in
First look at the new Garmin Epix GPS multisport and hiking watch with full color downloadable maps: link to dcra.in
Ray/Randy
Is there any indication from Garmin whether the Garmin Connect app will be coming to Windows Phone?
I would speculate that given Garmin just released a VIRB action cam Windows Phone app, that perhaps that love might spread within the Outdoor/Fitness division…
sony’s smartwatch : link to gigaom.com
recon jet : vaporware ?
can you also investigate the jawbone up3 delay ? what was the purpose of missing an ideal launch window ? software or hardware issue ?
Thx
I wonder if there are any new (or cheaper) power meters… 4iii Precision? New $499 Vectors?
Ray,
His name is “Randy”? Are you sure your new assistant isn’t Jeff Goldblum? Sure looks like him, and I haven’t seen Goldblum in anything lately. Just sayin…
Yeah, I get mistaken for Jeff Goldblum quite frequently, it’s a curse and a blessing. On other days I get mistaken for Chevy Chase.
Randy…Great to see a Georgia boy on the team! ATL resident here doing Augusta 70.3 this year.
Ray/Randy…I can’t wait to see what 4iiii has to say about the Precision power meter & it’s timeline. That’s my most anticipated review of CES.
Drew, I’m in Augusta, but not sure yet if I’m doing the 70.3 again this year, lots of travel and work around that time. But it’s s great race, huge local support, and a downhill swim!
Ray just posted a 4iiii’s PM update earlier today. Check it out.
Hi. Anything to rival the Fenix3 or Epix from the likes of Suunto or TomTom? Would very much like an Ambit4 with things like vibration alert finally added. How about Fenix or Epix with one of those new sticky-on HRM things rather than a strap???
Given the Ambit3 just came out in September (shipping), I don’t think we’ll see anything anytime soon. I think they’re in a pretty rough spot right now competitively.
I wouldn’t expect TomTom to fight in that space. I expect them to continue to focus on the low-mid range.
Looking at any of the devices that track sleep? (withings, beddit, link to sleepace.cn )
Or those that help improve your sleep? (Sleep Shepard (http://sleephat.com), withings, dusk or dawn simulators like holi)
We have sleep carved out for our list tomorrow….