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:
Really just one deal this week – the PowerTap P1 dual-sided pedals are down to $499. This is PowerTap clearancing out these pedals, due to the arrival of their newer PowerTap P2 pedals back in October. The thing is, the P2 pedals frankly don’t bring much to the plate above/beyond the P1 pedals. I probably would have called them PowerTap P1.5 or PowerTap P1 Plus. Just some minor internal weight savings and a bit of a battery life increase.
I see this as probably the power meter deal of the year. Or the last 12 months, or really the power meter deal of anytime recently. However you want to phrase it, it’s a fantastic deal. Note that it’s only till stock disappears. Hard to say exactly. Could be days, maybe a week. Not sure.
2) Google pays Fossil $40 million for smartwatch tech: It’s still a bit fuzzy on what exactly Fossil managed to convince Google to pay $40 million for, but obviously this seems to signal Google’s longer term intentions here to keep WearOS chugging, and these features are apparently going to be offered to the platform at large. Whether or not that saves WearOS (aka Android Wear) is an entirely different question. Note that I could see a scenario where the direction of WearOS is eventually focused on the Fossil-type watches of the world, rather than a more widespread watch platform.
3) How ski/snowboard mode works with your Garmin Fenix 5 Series: Good quick video from Des on this. And in fact, this same tech works on most of Garmin’s barometric altimeter equipped watches. So things like the Vivoactive 3 for example. A good tutorial if you’re headed to the mountains to enjoy the snow.
4) The $20,243 bike crash bill that got rolled back: Fascinatingly painful story, and also definitely something I’m familiar with now that I live overseas if/when we have to visit medical facilities in the US during travel.
6) Garmin quietly rolls out Connect IQ support over LTE connectivity: Certainly with Garmin announcing the Vivoactive 3 Music LTE back at CES, the path is paved for any future watches. And Garmin’s Connect IQ developer notices are often the company’s best indicators of what’s coming down the pipeline. In fact, upcoming watch hints in CIQ announcements have predated almost all watch related announcements since CIQ itself was announced. But don’t assume it always means tomorrow or even next month. Sometimes these are to ensure the pipeline is ready for products 6-9 months down the road.
7) GoPro seems to breath new life into Fusion cameras: Maybe new life is too strong a term, but GoPro did far more than just release a minor firmware update, they also released a press release alongside it – a rare move for GoPro as a company when it comes to mere updates. To me, that probably indicates the Fusion cameras may have a longer lineage than most seem to assume. Of course, it’d be ideal if GoPro made Fusion studio less of a nightmare to use (reliability/stability/speed primarily)…but gotta start somewhere I guess.
8) Fitbit users can share data with the National Institutes of Health: Good to see Fitbit opening more doors here. Of course, behind the scenes they’ve been doing things for years in this arena, but Apple has mostly done a much better PR job when it comes to announcing these sorts of wide user base partnerships.
9) The Performance Bike bankruptcy action details are unreal: As the company sells off various assets, each week ends up reading like some sort of crazy short-story collection. Note: I’m actually quite sad that Performance is in this situation – they were my ‘first bike shop’ when I got into the sport, and I think they serve an important place in getting people onto affordable bikes.
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 and a few other firmware updates.
Hopefully, you found this post useful. The website is really a labor of love, so please consider becoming a DC RAINMAKER Supporter. This gets you an ad-free experience, and access to our (mostly) bi-monthly behind-the-scenes video series of “Shed Talkin’”.
Otherwise, perhaps consider using the below link if shopping on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. It doesn’t cost you anything extra, but your purchases help support this website a lot. It could simply be buying toilet paper, or this pizza oven we use and love.
Indeed, stock gone. A wee bit quicker than I expected. Sorry about that! I had Tweeted out the deal early last week, and it was still there shortly before I published, but it appears someone zapped the last units and they’re gone.
It’s worth noting that although the Edge 130 firmware update to 3.30 is nothing exciting, it follows the recent 3.20 update. This sorted out the elevation issues so I’m no longer riding below sea level all the time!
It was the Christmas sale, extended to end of January. There were others but still some A3 runs and one of the listed features is Movescount. Dunno. Doesn’t seem fair given its uncertain future.
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.
You'll support the site, and get ad-free DCR! Plus, you'll be more awesome. Click above for all the details. Oh, and you can sign-up for the newsletter here!
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.
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!
Wanna create comparison chart graphs just like I do for GPS, heart rate, power meters and more? No problem, here's the platform I use - you can too!
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.
Check out
my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
Get all your awesome DC Rainmaker gear here!
FAQ’s
I have built an extensive list of my most frequently asked questions. Below are the most popular.
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.
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.
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!
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.
Ray
I tried clicking on the P1 deal. It says “Page not found”.
Out of stock?
That would be my guess. Just searching Clever Training you don’t find the pedals. And the manufacturer’s website only has them marked down to $679.
Indeed, stock gone. A wee bit quicker than I expected. Sorry about that! I had Tweeted out the deal early last week, and it was still there shortly before I published, but it appears someone zapped the last units and they’re gone.
It’s worth noting that although the Edge 130 firmware update to 3.30 is nothing exciting, it follows the recent 3.20 update. This sorted out the elevation issues so I’m no longer riding below sea level all the time!
Talking of tech deals, shouldn’t Suunto put a best-before date on the Ambits on their offer page?
Where’s their offer page?
It was the Christmas sale, extended to end of January. There were others but still some A3 runs and one of the listed features is Movescount. Dunno. Doesn’t seem fair given its uncertain future.
FWIW: The Vivoactive 3 firmware update wasn’t minor … it was pretty major because the previous firmware update broke syncing and Connect IQ apps.