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Week in Review–Feb 19th, 2017

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The Week in Review is a collection of both all the goodness I’ve written during the past week around the internet, as well as a small pile of links I found interesting – generally endurance sports related. I’ve often wondered what to do with all of the coolness that people write, and while I share a lot of it on Twitter and Facebook, this is a better forum for sending it on to y’all. Most times these different streams don’t overlap, so be on the lookout at all these places for good stuff!

So with that, let’s get into the action!

DCRainmaker.com posts in the past week:

Here’s all the goodness that ended up on the main page of DCRainmaker.com this past week:

Sunday: Week in Review–February 12th, 2017
Tuesday: Apple Watch Series 2 and Nike+ Edition: Sport & Fitness In-Depth Review
Friday: 4iiii Precision Pro Dual Left/Right Power Meter In-Depth Review

DCR Podcast!

Here’s a handful of the topics discussed in this past week’s podcast:

– It’s a 43-minute long episode!
– Posting schedules and posting regularity
– Upcoming products I’m unboxing and how I do photos/videos of them
– Fashion models mid-podcast
– The whole (business) world of unboxing videos online
– The Apple Watch Review
– Getting back someone’s stolen HR strap
– Power meters for single chainrings
– The DCR Analyzer is out!
– We end with about 10 minutes of hilarity from a conversation of ours recorded pre-podcast

Listen to the full podcast here on the Podcast player, or just download the audio file from the same spot.

February Sports Tech Sale Continue:

In case ya missed it a week or so ago (details here), here’s the list of active sports tech deals going on over the next week or so.  One new one found this week is the Polar M450 GPS cycling unit for $129.  That’s a sweet deal!  Apparently, it had flirted sub-$110 a bit over the last few days too.  Just some random Amazon.com thing.

ProductSale PriceAmazonSale Notes
AmazFit T-Rex 3 - $80 off$199This is a solid deal, especially for a watch that has offline mapping.
Amazfit Active 2 - $20 off$79
Amazon Echo Dot Kids - 47% off$31Despite being a tech-focused dude, our kids don't actually get much tech in their lives. However, we got these two years ago for them in their rooms, to play music. They do lots of other things, but our kids mostly just use it to play music (from Spotify and Apple Music too), and occasionally they ask it questions. It has all the parental controls I want, so it locks it down from bedtime/etc...For $31? Solid deal (The coolest 'nice touch' feature is that if you whisper to it, it'll whisper back...in the owl kids voice it has.)
Anker 737 Power Bank (24,000mAh) with 140W Fast Charging - 30% off$76⚡ This is one of my favorite purchases, especially for long hikes. Basically, I can recharge my phone battery about 8 times. Or, I can recharge smaller drone batteries. Or, in the airports, I can power my laptop off it (super handy when no power ports around). I've since converted most of my tech friends to using/buying one as well.
Apple 11" iPad - (Wi-Fi, 128GB) - $70 off!$279⚡ This is an awesome deal. I use my iPad primarily for TrainerRoad as well as Zwift when not with a larger display. I also occasionally use it for other apps, namely Indievelo, Kinomap, Rouvy, and Peloton. But I pretty much test every smart trainer app on it. For all these cycling apps, the graphics capabilities is really pretty irrelevant, so having the absolute top-end/latest model won't make any difference. I prefer the budget options.
Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Gen with USB-C) - $100 off$149⚡ Both myself and my wife have been using these since last fall, after years of using the Beats Studio Buds...man, these things rock. Sure, they're good for sports, but frankly, I use them on planes, editing, and such more than anything else. In fact, I've been listening to them now for 8 hours as I type away on my flight across the ocean. Only briefly putting them in the case to top-up.
Apple AirTags (4-Pack) - 33% off!$64⚡I make no secret how much I utilize AirTags, mainly, cause they've saved my butt numerous times already. We have them in every suitcase, and every backpack, and every bike bag. They're also hidden in most of our bikes (sometimes two of them). We were able to get our cargo bike back when it disappeared, as well as figure out when all our suitcases went missing during an annual family vacation where they were (for 5 days!), and plan appropriately. Seriously, just get them.
Apple Airpods (4th Gen) - $40 off!$99
Apple Watch Series 10 - $120 off
$399/$499 (cellular)
$279⚡ This is by far the lowest price we've seen to date for the Apple Watch Series 10. Of course, we're probably only 60 days away from an Apple Watch Series 11, but Apple has alreay announced WatchOS 26 last month, which the Series 10 gets all the new features from.
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Black Titanium - $150 off$649⚡ This is the lowest price on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 we've seen to date. It's likely we'll see an Apple Watch Ultra 3 this September, but like the Apple Watch Series 10 above, WatchOS26 has already been announced and all the new features there go to the Ultra 2.
Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds - $70 off!
$249
$179
DJI Action 4 - $90 off$209While prior gen unit (and probably, 2 generations behind in a few weeks), it's still a very strong contender at this price point especially.
DJI Mini 4K Drone - $60 off$239If you're looking to get into flying with a DJI drone, this is a solid place to start. Of course, moreso than that, the days are very limited for how much longer you can actually buy at DJI drone in the US. So, grab them while you can.
DJI NEO - $30 off!$159This is the lowest price on this drone, and is a great option if you want a follow-me drone that's pretty hard to kill, at a price point that's still super reasonable.
Elite Riser - $250 off!$749This appears to basically just be an Uncle Amazon sale, but hey, if you've got an Elite trainer and wanted Rizer, this is a super good deal for US folks!
FORM Smart Swim 2 Goggles - $50 off$229
Fitbit Ace LTE Kids Activity Smartwatch - $100 off$129This is (by far) the lowest price we've seen on this watch to date. This is their first full smartwatch focused on kids activity tracking and gamification.
Fitbit Charge 6 - 38% off!
$159
$99⚡ This is the go-to sale price for the Fitbit Charge 6. It happens often, but it still doesn't take away from the fast that it's argueably the best bang for your buck fitness tracker out there.
Garmin Edge 1040 Cycling GPS - $150 off!$399⚡⚡ This is a very solid deal, and the lowest price we've seen to date on it.
Garmin Edge 540 Solar - $150 off$299⚡⚡This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 540 Solar to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well.
Garmin Edge Explore 2 - $60 off
$299
$237
Garmin Epix Pro Series - $200 off!
$899/$999
$609I believe this is the lowest price we've seen for the Epix Pro series (which has an ECG-capable HR sensor). Note that while some sites might tout $500+ off, in reality, this watch has been floating around $800 recently.
Garmin Epix Sapphire/Titanium (Gen 2) - $400+ off!$469⚡ This continues to be one of the best deals out there. While this watch won't be getting much in the way of big ticket new features, it does continue to get minor software updates - and for the money, has far more software features than any of Garmin's competitors (or for that matter, products like the Instinct 3 AMOLED lineup).
Garmin Fenix 7X Pro Solar - $100-$200 off
$799+
$499⚡ This is the lowest price we've seen to date for the Fenix 7 Pro series, and is a very strong deal!
Garmin Fenix 8 Series - $100 Off!
$999-$1,199
$899While not as good as last month's $200 off, that annual spring sale price won't likely be seen again till Black Friday-ish type sales. Thus, if you want a Fenix 8 for the summer, might as well take the $100 off and put it towards ice cream.
Garmin Forerunner 165 (Base) - $75 off!
$249/$299
$219
Garmin Forerunner 255/255S - $100 off$199This is the lowest price we've ever seen the Forerunner 255 at.
Garmin Forerunner 255/255S Music - $100 off!
$349/$399
$249This is the lowest price on this watch to date (previous low was $299).
Garmin Forerunner 265 Series - $50 off!
$449
$399
Garmin Forerunner 55 - A Few Dollars Off
$199
$169Honestly, I just put this one in there, merely to point out you shoudn't buy it at this price. Buy the FR255 at $30 more, far better watch. This thing should be priced at $129 or something to move units.
Garmin Forerunner 955 - $150 off!$349⚡ This has been one of Garmin's most popular running watches, and it's down to a very strong price. I often use this in my accuracy testing comparisons when validating other watches, due to it's very strong GPS performance. Note this is the base edition without solar. It'd be hard to find any better deal in sports watches today, from any company (given this has full mapping, tons of new features even this week, etc...). I say '$100ish', because it's usually been on forever sale at $499.
Garmin Forerunner 955 Solar: $150 off!
$499/$599
$399See everything I said above on the Forerunner 955 base, except this one also has solar.
Garmin Forerunner 965 - $50 off
$599
$549This had been $499 for much of the spring, so $549 isn't that great of a deal.
Garmin Instinct 2 Series - $75 Off$169⚡I believe $169 is the lowest price we've ever seen for the Instinct 2. Or at least, I have no record of it being sub-$199. Very solid deal for a solid little watch.
Garmin Instinct 2 Solar$266
Garmin Instinct 2S & 2S Solar$217
Garmin Lily 2 - 20% off
$249
$199The leather version is also on sale as well.
Garmin Lily 2 Active - $50 off!
$299
$249
Garmin Venu 3 - $50 off!
$449
$399
Garmin Venu 3S - $50 off$399
Garmin Venu Sq 2 - $100 off
$249/$299 with Music
$149
Garmin Vivoactive 5 - $110 off!
$299
$189This is a great deal for Garmin's little-sibling to the Venu series. It has almost all the same features as the Venu 3, except the voice calling related bits.
Garmin inReach 2 Mini Satellite Communicator (2-way) - $20 off$379This is a pretty small deal for this product. This is my defacto satellite communicator when out of coverage area, and I've used it on a number of major treks over the past two years when well outside of cellular service, both in a 24x7 tracking mode for friends and family, but also there in case of emergency. Would strongly recommend for anyone doing anything in the wilderness.
GoPro Hero 12 Black - $100 off!$279This is the older gen model, and to me, $279 seems a bit high. Get the Hero 13 Black for $50 more and have access to all the new accessories. Or, save yourself $50 and get either the DJI Action 4 (prior gen) or Insta360 Ace Pro 1 (prior gen) models.
GoPro Hero 13 Black - $70 off$329
GoPro Hero 4K - $20 off$199This was released back in September, and is GoPro's budget option, which includes a full color touchscreen on the back as well. It was previously released at $199, but price increases forced it up to $219. Now, it's back on sale for $199.
Google Nest WiFi Pro - 6E (3xPack) - $110 off!$289I've been using the Google Nest WiFi packs for years. And then I converted over to this last fall. Super happy with this three pod pack.
Google Pixel Watch 3 (41mm) - $100 OFF$249
Google Pixel Watch 3 (41mm) - $100 OFF$299
HoverAir X1 Drone Combo - $100 off!$279This has become one of my favorite drones, given it's tiny size (fits in my running shorts pockets) and ease of use. Plus, you can crash the crap out of it (hundreds of times for me and my wife) without any issues. This combo includes an extra battery and fast charger.
HoverAir X1 Pro Drone Combo Kit - $155 off$599This is a solid deal on a solid drone, and one of the two main ones I use when taking videos of myself hiking or running. This includes the two extra batteries as well as the fast charger (so 3 batteries total).
HoverAir X1 ProMax Bundle - $190 off!$765This includes three batteries, the drone, the vast charger, and some extra accessories.
HoverAir X1 ProMax Cycling Bundle - $332 off!$969This includes three batteries, the drone, the vast charger, and some extra accessories, plus the Beacon (handelbar remote)
Hyperice Normatec Elite Leg Recovery System - $100 off$999
Insta360 Ace Pro Action Cam - $50 off$239This is the previous edition, as the Ace Pro 2 just came out last fall. But for this price, it's hard to beat.
Jackery Explorer 300 Portable Power Station - $100 off!$159This is something I use frequently when shooting out and about and I need to re-charge a crapton of drone batteries, action cameras, or just cameras and such. I've also bought solar panel to hook up to it (surprisingly effective) for very off-the-grid locales. Heck, I've even powered a KICKR trainer ride from it!
Nespresso VertuoPlus Coffee and Espresso Machine by De'Longhi Delux Kit - 30% off!$149⚡ Let's be honest: This place runs on Nespresso (or, well, the knock-off pods we buy). But, the machine is Nespresso. Without it, reviews most definitely would not get done (and certainly not on time). This is a pretty sweet deal if you ask me!
Ooni Karu 12 Multi-Fuel Outdoor Pizza Oven - $80 off$319I use the Fyra 12 (with wood pellets), and love it. The Karu 12 is essentialyl the newer version of that, and there's both a gas-only version, and a multi-fuel option (gas or wood). Love it!
Oura Ring 4 - $50 off!$299This is the first time we've seen a deal on the Oura Ring V4.
Peloton Bike - $300 off!$1,083⚡ This is the lowest price I've ever seen this (according to my records). This is still a solid bike, and actually one that I use at home (I have the newer Peloton Bike+ at the office). Both my wife and I use these bikes interchangeably, and while the Bike+ has a bigger screen and better accuracy, there's very little difference in the core Peloton experience. I'd still recommend this model to most people.
Peloton Bike+ is $500 off$1,995This is a solid deal for the Bike+, albeit largely the normal sale/deal price. Both my wife and I use both the Peloton Bike+ and the regular Bike (one at home, one at office) on a weekly basis. We like both. The Bike+ is more accurate than the regular bike, and also has a bigger screen and automatic resistance control. That said, the core Peloton experience isn't any different between the two - it's the same platform there.
Peloton Row - $330 off!$2,964
Peloton Tread - $300 off$2,694This is my main treadmill at home, and I really like it. I've got no complaints about it, and am happy I went with the smaller Peloton Tread versus the bigger unit.
Polar H10 Chest Strap (Dual ANT+/Bluetooth Smart) - 27% off
$89
$76This is a great dual ANT+/Bluetooth Smart (with two Bluetooth Smart connections) chest strap that you'll often find me using as a reference strap in heart rate sensor testing. We only tend to see deals on it around Black Friday, always topping out around 20%.
Polar H9 Chest Strap - $15 off$55If you're looking for a good solid high-quality strap, that does both ANT+ & Bluetooth Smart, for a reasonable price...look no further than the Polar H9
Polar Verity Sense - 15% off
$99
$84I use this as one of my reference devices for heart rate accuracy testing.
SHOKZ OpenRun Headphones - 31% off$89
SHOKZ OpenRun Pro 2 - 31% off!$124
SHOKZ OpenRun Pro 2 Mini - 31% off!$124
SUUNTO Aqua Swimming Open-Ear Bluetooth Headphones - 22% off!$139
Samsung Galaxy Ring - $115 off$284
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 (40 & 44mm) - 50% off$159As with the Samsung Watch Ultra, Samsung is less than 24hrs away from announcing a new version of the Samsung Watch series.
Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra - 50% off$325Look, Samsung is less than a day away from likely announcing a new version (on July 9th), so if you buy now, you might want to wait a few extra hours after delivery to decide if you want to return it. Otherwise, this is Samsung's best watch to date.
SanDisk 1-4TB Extreme PRO Portable External SSD - 30% off$128-$279⚡This is one of the two the high speed drives types I use to store the footage I'm actively video editing. I typically buy the 2TB and 4TB ones, and then eventually offload the footage onto a NAS array when I'm done.
Sennheiser Momentum Sport Earbuds - $60 off$129
Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Camera w/ 28-70mm Zoom - $400 off$2,398This is the main camera I use for still photography and video b-roll. I recently wrote about all the photography gear I use, linked at side here.
Suunto Race - $100 off!
$449/$549
$349⚡ This is a solid deal on this watch, which has offline mapping and continues to get new features. Further, it's the lowest price we've seen to date on it.
Suunto Vertical - $200 off!$399This is, by far, the lowest price we've seen on this watch (which also has offline mapping).
Vacmaster AM201R Fan + Remote/holder (15% off)$67This is another very popular fan that people use for indoor training/cycling, especially due to inclusion of the remote and remote holder to clasp on your handlebars.
Wahoo BOLT V2 - $30 off
$279
$279
Wahoo KICKR Bike V2
$3,999
$2,974⚡ This is one of the lowest prices we've seen the Wahoo KICKR Bike at (ever).
Wahoo KICKR CORE with Zwift Cog+Click ($75 off)
$499
$424
Wahoo KICKR Desk - $30 off$169
Wahoo KICKR MOVE - $190 off
$1,599
$1,104⚡ This is a very solid deal.
Wahoo KICKR ROLLR - $90 off
$599
$509
Withings Body Comp WiFI Scale - 26% off$169
Withings Body Smart WiFI Scale - 31% off$89

And of course, using any of the links above helps support the site.  Enjoy!

YouTube Videos I Published:

Here’s some YouTube goodness that I published this past week:

Stuff that I found interesting around the interwebs:

Here’s a not-so-small smattering of all the random things that I stumbled on while doing my civic duty to find the end of the Internet.

1) How Science Works – Techniques and Challenges of Doping Control: An interesting look behind the data and science of how dopers get caught, and how labs go about testing.

2) Outdoor Retailer set to leave Salt Lake City: While OR has historically flirted with such temptations in order to get better deals, this seems like a much more permanent thing – in large part because it’s more the key exhibitors rather than the organizer itself.

3) Bike computer meets action cam meets lights: Basically, everything but the kitchen sink.  DCR reader Gunnar asks ‘What do you think?’: So…while their main site is a dearth of information, I did find one YouTube video they shot which actually shows some promise in terms of being more functional than their site lets on.  So that’s good.  It’s an interesting concept for city bikes, though would be too beastly for most race/road bikes.  However, their use of Indiegogo instead of Kickstarter is a huge red flag.

4) The SHEcret Pro: On Australia’s Summer of Cycling. For those not familiar, this is the women’s version of the famed ‘The Secret Pro’ series. Always interesting.

5) Sports Tech Jobs: Notable this week is Saris (of PowerTap/CycleOps) is looking for a few different folks.

6) Garmin Connect ‘Import’ Option Missing? At first, you might think so. But in reality it was just moved to the big “+” icon in the upper right corner.  Hard to know if it was UI cleanup, or designed to break 3rd party apps leveraging it for various uploads.  Either way…at least it’s still there thankfully.  Almost had to pull out my ‘Watch what happens when DCR gets really pissed off!’ card late last week over it.  It’s a feature I often use, because I don’t necessarily link all of my Garmin devices to Garmin Connect automatically (mostly because I hit the max allowable), so this allows me to manually upload files to share on occasion.

7) I’ve got no more items. My ‘Notepad’ list of items for the week was wiped out last night when my computer decided to restart.  And no, I didn’t press save.  Sorry!

Sports Technology Software/Firmware Updates This Week:

Each week I quickly highlight some of the new firmware, app, software and website service updates that I see go out. If you’re a sports technology company and release an update – shoot me a quick note (just one liners are perfect, or Tweet it at me is even better) and I’ll make mention of it here. If I don’t know about it, I won’t be able to post about it. Sound good?  Oh – and if you want to get a head start on things, this page is a great resource for watching Garmin firmware updates.

CycleOps Magnus Trainer Firmware: This came out a week or two ago, but I forgot about it.

CycleOps Hammer Trainer Firmware: Same as Magnus – definitely worthwhile if you’ve got either

CycleOps/PowerTap Virtual Training App: While I don’t normally include apps here, this is specifically notable because of the changes to displaying PowerTap P1 advanced metrics.

Garmin Fenix Chronos BETA firmware update: This continues to include updates for the Fenix5 series into the Garmin Chronos series.  Again, this is a BETA firmware.

Polar Loop 2 Firmware Update: Minor bug fixes and phone compatibility fixes.

Wahoo Fitness ELEMNT Firmware Update: Increase in data fields per page, change in fonts, few other items.

Thanks for reading!

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46 Comments

  1. Sam

    Still using windows I see ;-)

  2. TR

    > when my computer decided to restart.

    Sounds like the lovely new Windows update policies. ?

  3. Timothy F.

    I noticed on the bike computer video they never showed the screen other than a lock bike screen. So I would say its safe to assume at this point all they have is a box with two lights and a horn.

  4. MAGNUS

    I was going crazy trying to figure out how to manually upload a file… I was checking the GC Status page, forums, etc… Took a while but eventually found it in the giant “+” button.

    Also, where’s the gimbal review?

  5. Stephen M.

    Google Sheets/Docs/Slides/Keep!

    Never click save again!

  6. gm

    WRT Garmin, the most frustrating thing is trying to load a course onto a device. The only way I’ve found is to import this as an activity, then save as a course (and then delete the activity, hopefully before it syncs to Strava).

    They could’ve added intention actions on Android/iOS to open them in Garmin Connect and then sync to a device, instead – a huge mess.

    • Yup, 110% agree.

      It’s funny that when the Fenix series first came out (what, like 4+ years ago?), I noted at the time that the whole route/course creation process was far too dependent on a desktop computer, you couldn’t just create a Garmin Connect route on the mobile app and push it to the watch.

      Ironically, then they had/released a standalone app to do roughly just that, except…not in Garmin Connect. That app eventually died as opposed to integrating it in.

      And now here we are in 2017 with the new Fenix5 and mind-bogglingly still no way to quickly create a route via mobile phone in Garmin Connect and then transfer it easily to the watch.

    • loshko

      You could use dwatch, – though it’s 3rd party

    • Freek

      When making a course I usually create it on an iPad using the Garmin connect webpage (saving often), then go to the garmin connect app on my phone just to send it to my phone.
      It’s not hard but a little weird. Also that there is no garmin app for the iPad.

  7. Peter

    I had an update come through on Saturday for my Wahoo Elemnt. From what I can see the fonts have changed on the screen with the addition of a symbol above the speed indicating whether the current speed is above or below the average for the ride (not that useful really). Not sure if much else has changed.

    • Ahh, good catch. Looks like the update notification went into my ‘Clutter’ folder. Grrr…

      Details here: link to support.wahoofitness.com

    • Dan Kothlow

      The triangle symbol used to act as a decimal point in the speed field, as part of the data itself. Take a look at some of the marketing screenshots, and you’ll see it in the data field itself. Now it’s moved to the label. IMO, it’s less useful there, I look at data when I’m riding, not labels.

      Also, the full width 4th data field is now gone, with the addition of the 11th data field. Some liked the full width 4th data field, some didn’t. I guess the “didn’t” were more vocal to Wahoo. I think that it was something that made the ELEMNT distinctive, at least visually. Now, it looks more like the others.

      If you want to be different, you have to be different.

    • I honestly just wish I could have a static layout, period.

  8. PeterF

    Is Garmin’s import of Fitbit data working for anyone? It accepts my files (after some editing, ie removing the “body” or “activity” line from the CSV), but the data does not show in the Connect dashboard.

  9. Fabrizio

    Hi Ray, there’s also a Bepro firmware update:
    link to bepro-favero.com

  10. rodrigo link

    Adidas killing miCoach to focus on Runtastic?

  11. Phil

    With Tapiriik I’m not able to synch activities anymore from strava to Garmin Connect… in tapiriik dashboard it says is synched but it’s not in my GC activity page.
    is it so also for someone else? :-(

    thanks

    • vince Cammarata

      Same here. Stuck on TrainerRoad workout, and now the server is offline. Just reupped my yearly subscription. Bummer

    • Yeah, it’s likely due to the Garmin re-positioning of that button that’s killing those apps. They’re likely using that behind the scenes up fake an upload of data to your account. Garmin *really* hates it, but I have zero sympathy for them there. They’ve had years to implement an API for uploading files from other platforms, and keep stalling at every turn for reasons that defy any logic. It’s all about the platform.

      What’s funny about it is that someone thinks it’s bad to allow other devices to upload to their platform. In reality, it’s the best marketing thing ever. Just think about it: What company wouldn’t love to have a ready-made database of all of their competitors customers? In this scenario, when a Wahoo customer (for example) uploads an ELEMNT file to Garmin Connect, it’s telling Garmin that the customer is on the ELEMNT. So why not display subtlety targeted ads about how your product is better than the competition (if it is)? It may also tell Garmin that the customer is on the ELEMTN for cycling, but uses three other Garmin products for running, action cams, and hiking. Maybe there’s a reason for that? Maybe they’d trend the data and see that the customer is spending more or less time with the Garmin product vs their competitor, and maybe they’d proactively try to understand if it’s a meaningful trend.

      The ‘cost’ of hosting those files is laughable, because the numbers are just so small. It’s likely a few bucks in storage costs at most at the end of the month (in total). But heck, let’s for fun pretend it was something totally fake and unreal like $30K a month for all customers (it’s not, really, it’s not). That’s nothing for a company of Garmin’s size to spend on marketing or an ad buy. By enabling data uploads for competitors, they not only get to ensure the right audience sees the ‘ads’ (or promos or whatever you want to call them), but heck, they know all sorts of useful information about that customer.

      Sigh…it’s an argument I have every time I chat with them in person.

    • Eli

      Seems like there isn’t much effort in general to use the data or everyone uploading to figure things out besides some of the stuff strava does.

    • Eli

      Thinking the algorithms that golden cheetah, training peaks, etc use the figure out fatigue from wattage

  12. Reed

    I am curious why you think that the use of indiegogo is a red flag?

  13. Todd

    I also noticed that the Garmin Import had moved.

    Is there somewhere that Garmin announces these kinds of changes, or do they just leave us to figure it out? It is interesting how much new information I get about exercise tech from DCR rather than the companies that produce the product.

    • No announcement method I’m aware of. They have a Garmin blog, but it’s rarely used for stuff like this. More just random PR announcements and occasional Garmin Connect IQ stuff.

      I found out the hard way when it disappeared. Then I got increda-angry. Then I did some digging on the Garmin Forums and found said solution. Then I was happy again.

    • Todd

      I wasn’t angry, just confused. I found it by accident before reading your blog, but find it interesting how much better you are at distribution of news of their changes than they are.

    • Chris

      Big thanks for the hint…. I nearly got crazy finding the Upload-Button !!!

  14. Lee

    Hi ray. When is the definitive review of the tom tom runner 3 coming out. Waiting on your review befor I take the plunge and buy one

    • Working on it!

      Overall, it’s a nice little unit. Though basically it’s just a Spark 1 with a few minor tweaks, so if you generally like the look of that review, then this will likely check the boxes. Since that initial review though there has been changes/adds like the daily RHR readings.

  15. Alex

    There was a firmware update for the KICKR released on 3rd Feb 2017 which I can’t see listed anywhere in your week in review posts.

    I applied it to my Gen 1 KICKR and found that it no longer broadcast power/cadence information on ANT+ or BLE. I had to roll the firmware back to 1.4.26 to get it working again. Not sure if you know anything about what happened there? Should this only be applied to Gen 2?

    • This one? link to support.wahoofitness.com

      It should definitely be Gen1. I haven’t heard anyone else note that issue. Maybe try applying it again – and then fully restart the unit if you didn’t (power off)?

      Good catch on missing that one. I had some of the Wahoo firmware alerts end up in the wrong e-mail folder, so missed them unfortunately.

    • Alex

      Yes. That’s the one.

      Interesting. I certainly did restart it (pulled power out). And then tried to find it again using the Wahoo utility app on my phone and then ANT+ on my laptop with TrainerRoad.

      I guess I’ll try it again at some point and see if I have better luck!

  16. Scott

    As for deals, I’m seeing the Powertap GS hub at $299 on their site. Is that a fire sale or what? Being discontinued, or nobody wants straight pull spokes?

    • It’s been that way quite some time.

      Basically there’s a few reasons:

      A) You’ve got the cost to thread it onto a wheel, which will cost you at least $100-$150 at most LBS
      B) It doesn’t support the new G3 BLE or dual ANT+/BLE caps, so also a bit limiting there.

      Still, ignoring those issues – if you can get it threaded cheaply, it’s a fantastic deal if you’re on ANT+ (i.e. Garmin).

    • Scott

      yeah, I seen now that it’s been a few months. The specs say it is dual ANT+ & BT smart and I figured it would be good-to-go for connecting w/ my Polar V800, so I assumed it would work. Am I wrong/ in for a nasty surprise?
      no better way to pass the time when the snow flies than to lace up some wheels!

    • Huh. Weird, I wasn’t aware of them making a dual capable GS. I’d want to double-check that with them.

  17. Eli

    New trainer on kickstart? link to kickstarter.com
    (or maybe I missed your post)
    But something seems wrong with the design as the flywheel is tiny and other things seem off

  18. Phil A

    You should give Onenote a try for your notepad docs. It syncs to OneDrive and can be used across all your devices (Windows/Android/Apple), so that no matter where you are you can add something to it.

    • Oh – I love Onenote (after all I worked for Microsoft for more than a dozen years). For me, I like Notepad as it’s the great equalizer of things like fonts/text size/etc… It’s also instant.