Heads up!!! Here’s your massive holiday sports tech deals list! This includes the Garmin Epix for just $419, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 for just $699, the GoPro Hero 12 Black for $249, (or the brand new Hero 13 or $299!) and plenty more! Go check out the full list of 100+ deals here!
I’m DC RAINMAKER…
Here’s how to save!
Wanna save some cash and support the site? These companies help support the site! With Backcountry.com or Competitive Cyclist with either the coupon code DCRAINMAKER for first time users saving 15% on applicable products.
You can also pick-up tons of gear at REI via these links, which is a long-time supporter as well:
Alternatively, for everything else on the planet, simply buy your goods from Amazon via the link below and I get a tiny bit back as an Amazon Associate. No cost to you, easy as pie!
You can use the above link for any Amazon country and it (should) automatically redirect to your local Amazon site.
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5 Easy Steps To The Site
1
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.
2
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!
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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.
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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!
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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.
Still a zero percent chance of the 920 getting audio alerts?
And also still zero percent chance to have Garmin open the power use in running mode…
Fwiw, you can do running power now on Garmin Connect with CIQ apps. Though I agree, I wish they’d just support it straight up ala Suunto.
I’m hoping they add this soon. It would be great to have power as an option in a structured workout. With all the hills around my house both pace and heart rate are useless for any type of interval workout.
Agree, needs full support, without it you can’t have Lap Average Power and 10s Average for running, which makes power near useless during a race / run. Only good for post activity analysis really unless you use the Stryd App, which is not great.
Note that the FR920XT fw update is no longer BETA – that was last week. It is v9.20 proper now… FR920 9.20, at last! ;-)
Hmm, still no new Forerunner 410 updates. Maybe next week.
Well played…
The 410 reference today made me think of this.
Even better played Ray…
“Garmin Epix Firmware Update: Holy balls! Didn’t think that would rise from the dead. Bug fixes.” No, no, it’s still dead. They just opened the coffin and repositioned the corpse a little. (Of the bugs fixed, I was affected by none. None of the bugs I care about were fixed.) Epix is listed as “discontinued” at buy.garmin.com.
Actually, I’ve wondered if their lawyers told them that they could get in trouble with a device they only supported for six months, but not for one they supported for almost 2 years. The last update prior to this surprise was in November 2015.
It really must have bombed sales-figures wise. It has all the potential the fenix 3 had and then some, but in such an ugly casket. The few stores here that still carry it are reducing it a lot now.
Interesting point about the legal advice, but with so few customers would they actually bother? It’s a surprise move though. Maybe since they’re working on the F5 they see or found bugs / stuff that they can also apply to the forgotten epix…
I think one has to keep in mind that ‘Support’ doesn’t mean firmware updates. It simply means if you call/e-mail/whatever, that they’ll still assist you in some manner.
Good point, going by that standard I’d give Garmin the benefit of the doubt. They still exchange damaged/broken computers/watches after 4+ year for refurbished ones. For a fee (if it’s outside regular warranty), but you get a working device.
Thanks for the clarification.
PS I still think Epix has gotten the raw end of the deal.
But you must have been surprised by the 3.40 update, too? Some month ago you told us, garmin told you, that there will be no more updates for the epix.,.
Absolutely was surprised by it. I believe I also gave them a hard time back in the fall in one of the Connect IQ posts about it and missing on a picture.
Though, sometimes things are cause and effect…
Maybe something to calm down worries of future 5x buyers, that 5x could be handled like epix ( so more a marketing thing as customer satisfaction…).
Has Gamin recently said anything about a potential google fit integration? Fit`s APi v2 is supposed to launch tomorrow with Android wear 2.0 and allows for way more logging of data. Would be nice to finally use it in conjunction with Garmin connect.
PowerPod: “Additionally, it adds in algorithms to do real-time CdA.” Any more info on this? E.g. how close they are? Transmitting data on ANT, so we can hook up our selves with CIQ? Would you need to pair with another power meter?
Any updates on the 2/1 relaunch of the Karma Drone? Was anything changed besides the battery latch?
Nothing else changed. No software updates, nothing. Just the latch.
I haven’t got the point of the chasing triathlon… The winner of the 5 stage triathlon from previous day is getting a time advantage for swimming on a next day.
It makes sense in Biathlon, where the shooting and penalty laps can easily mix up the sequence…
Apropo, chasing! Sydney police must have super runners among policeman. Imagine them chasing me for not wearing a helmet…
Evidently this is now shipping. Lots of skepticism as to whether this works or its accuracy though. Would love to see a true review comparing to a known-entity power meter.
link to aroflybike.com
Yup, they said a few weeks ago they sent me one….but it hasn’t shown up yet as of this morning anyway. I’ll ping them and see where it is, or if they have a tracking number.
Ok, got a tracking number. Shipped out yesterday, says it’ll take till the 16th to get to my US forwarding box, and then depending on timing and what else I have to ship over, it could be anywhere from a few days to a week or so.
I suspect it might arrive earlier than the 16th as it’s not going very far. If it gets in by Monday, I’ll be shipping stuff over that day. So we’ll see.
Cool. At least it didn’t turn out to be vaporware.
With GoPro announcing there will be a new GoPro in 2017, the real question is will the newest model include optical stablization like the Sony and several smartphones, or will GoPro instead opt to exclude that feature to continue to push the sales of their gimbal??
Or is it invalid to think that optical stablization would reduce the need for a gimbal?
I’d agree, that’s the real question. And I honestly have no idea on the optical stabilization.
My bet is that they:
A) Use the Ambarella chip that came out Jan 2016 (yes, over a year ago) to do 4K60 – that seems obvious, especially with others now doing it.
B) Match other Garmin features, like BT pairing of audio devices for mics
C) Go with a configuration to get the 4K ‘linear’, as opposed to fish-eye (making it more competitive with DJI which is ‘flat’)
D) Focus just a crapton on software, that’s really their pain point right now – at least competing with Garmin.