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!
Sports Tech Deals of Note:
Here’s some continuing sports tech deals.
| Product | Sale Price | Amazon | Other site | Sale Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Garmin Bounce LTE Kids Tracker - $30 off | $119 | Amazon | This is the activity tracker that both of our oldest daughters have used for years (age 8 & 9), as well as most of their friends now. They/we all like it. Check out my full in-depth review for all my thoughts. That said, the new Bounce 2 came out two months ago, and while my review isn't out yet, it's a far better product. But, quite a bit more too. The TLDR on that review will be that it's the best kids smartwatch/tracker to date (for both parents and kids), but obviously will cost you $100 more. | |
 | Garmin Edge 540 - $100 off | $249 | Amazon | REI | ⚡At $249, it's pretty much impossible to beat this deal in terms of bike computers. There's no competitive option that beats it on features/battery/etc at this price, or frankly anywhere near it. Sure, it doesn't have a touchscreen, but it's not as bad as it used to be (I did a stint on it this winter for a week or so, and was fine). |
 | Garmin Edge 840 - $100 off | $349 | Amazon | REI | This is Garmin's main mid-range cycling GPS, it's what my wife uses and she's perfectly happy with it. |
 | Garmin Edge 840 Solar - $150 off | $399 | Amazon | REI | ⚡ This is the lowest price we've seen on the Edge 840. |
 | Garmin Enduro 3: $100 off $899 | $749 | Amazon | REI | This is the lowest price we've seen on this to date. The Enduro 3 is simply the Fenix 8 with a MIP/Solar display (but without the scuba or voice calling features). It gets all the Fenix 8 features and updates otherwise. |
 | Garmin Epix Pro - $589 (~$300 off!) $899/$999 | $589 | N/A | REI | ⚡This is a pretty solid deal, especially if you wanted the flashlight and ECG not found on the Epix Gen 2 (which came before the Epix Pro), but don't quite want to spend on the Fenix 8 AMOLED (Epix got renamed to Fenix 8 AMOLED) |
 | Garmin Fenix 8 Series - $250 Off! $999-$1,199 | $849 | Amazon | REI | ⚡ The Fenix 8 keeps getting all the new software features of the Fenix 8 Pro that was launched two months ago. Setting aside that Fenix 8 Pro which gained LTE & Satellite Messaging, this is otherwise the most capable sports watch on the market. Note that the Fenix 8 officially got a price hike to $1,099 in the last month or so, thus the $849 price instead of $749 price. |
 | Garmin Fenix E - $250 off! | $499 | Amazon | As a general rule, the Fenix E is the watch that literally nobody is buying, and makes no sense at higher prices. The hardware is simply the Epix Gen 2 with Fenix stamped on it. That watch is going for $400, though I expect we'll see it down to $300 over Black Friday. However, one *KEY* difference with the Fenix E, is that it includes all of the software features of the newer Fenix 8, whereas the Epix Gen 2 doesn't get all the new software features. Otherwise, save your $200. | |
 | Garmin Forerunner 165 (Base) - $50 off $249/$299 | $199 | Amazon | REI | |
 | Garmin Forerunner 165 Music - $50 off! | $249 | Amazon | REI | |
 | Garmin Forerunner 255/255S Music - $150 off! $349/$399 | $249 | Amazon | ||
 | Garmin Forerunner 265 Series - $150 off! $449 | $299 | Amazon | ⚡ This is (by far) the lowest price on the Forerunner 265, which was recently replaced by the Forerunner 570 (but at nearly twice this price). What's fascinating about this sale price, is it's well beyond the usual sale prices for Garmin for this product. This pricing is 100% an Kansas-themed 'Hello!' to COROS and their just released COROS Pace 4 at $249. | |
 | Garmin Forerunner 55 - $50 off $199 | $149 | Amazon | ||
 | Garmin Forerunner 965 - $150 off $599 | $449 | Amazon | This is the lowest price to date on the Forerunner 965, which is logical given the Forerunner 970 came out this past spring (which essentialy adds a flashlight and some other running metrics/features). | |
 | Garmin Instinct 3 AMOLED - $100 off! $399/$449/$499 | $399 | Amazon | REI | |
 | Garmin Lily 2 - 20% off $249 | $199 | Amazon | The leather version is also on sale as well. | |
 | Garmin Varia RCT715 Camera Radar - $50 off | $349 | Amazon | REI | |
 | Garmin Varia RVR315 Radar - $50 off | $99 | Amazon | REI | This is Garmin's radar without the light, so it's a bit smaller as a result. Same radar tech though, and compatible with Garmin/COROS/Hammerhead/Wahoo bike computers. |
 | Garmin Varia Radar (RTL515) - $50 off | $149 | Amazon | REI | This is Garmin's standalone radar+taillight option, and $149 is pretty much the standard sale-price. Even despite all the new radars out there, this remains the most accurate option on the market. Now, only if Garmin would just re-release it with USB-C. C'Mon Garmin...maybe next year? |
 | Garmin Varia Vue Front Light/Camera - $50 | $499 | Amazon | REI | This is the first time this product has been on sale, since launching last spring. I'd argue it could have used a $100 off sale...but hey...they don't consult me. |
 | Garmin Venu 3 - $100 off! $449 | $349 | Amazon | The Venu 4 came out in September, though with a massive price jump. | |
 | Garmin Venu X1 - $200 off! | $599 | Amazon | REI | ⚡ This is the lowest price we've seen on the newest product in the entire Garmin Holiday 2025 sale lineup. This is basically a blend of a Forerunner 970, Venu 4, and Fenix 8...but super thin. It's argueably one of the best deals here at $599, though, Garmin is still clearly trying to figure out the right pricing to drive purchases. |
 | Garmin Vivoactive 5 - $100 off! $299 | $199 | Amazon | ||
 | Garmin Vivoactive 6 - $50 off! $299 | $249 | Amazon | ⚡ This is the first time we've seen the Vivoactive 6 on sale, which is essentially a Venu 4, but without the voice/calling/ECG features (and a few other tidbits). It's probably one of the best deals in Garmin's lineup (sale or otherwise). | |
 | Garmin inReach 2 Mini Satellite Communicator (2-way) - $150 off | $249 | Amazon | REI | ⚡ This is the lowest price we've ever seen for this. 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. |
 | Garmin inReach Messenger Plus - $100 off! | $349 | Amazon | REI | This came out last fall, and is the second time this has been discounted, but now to the lowest price to date. The key difference with the new Plus model is that it adds the ability to send photos and voice messenges via satellite. I've used it a bit, and it's pretty cool because it makes it a lot faster to just say something rather than type it out, but the $499 price seemed excessive. $399 makes it slightly more palatable. |
 | Tacx NEO 3M - 25% off! $1,999 | $1,499 | Amazon | ⚡ This is the lowest price we've seen to date on the Tacx NEO 3M, and finally takes it down to a semi-logical price (compared to it's competitors). This is a good buy, and obviously, given it's only a year old, I definitely don't expectany sort of new version of this anytime soon (the last NEO series unit was about 5 years between versions). |
DCRAINMAKER.COM Posts in the Past Week:
Here’s all the goodness that ended up on the main page this past week:
Sunday: Week in Review–March 1st, 2020
Monday: Tidbits and Tech From a Week Skiing in the Alps
Wednesday: Strava Brings Back Chronological Ordering, Adds Athlete Favoriting
Friday: Saris MP1 Nfinity Motion Platform In-Depth Review
YouTube Videos This Past Week:
Here’s what hit the tubes over on the You of Tube, definitely don’t forget to subscribe there to get notified of videos the second they hit!
FIT FILE Podcast This Week:
![FIT-File-Logo-WorkingWide_thumb_thum[2]](https://media.dcrainmaker.com/images/2019/08/FIT-File-Logo-WorkingWide_thumb_thum2.jpg "FIT-File-Logo-WorkingWide_thumb_thum[2]"){kind=logo}
Episode 101 is out!
– Strava App Updates… higher frequency!
– Saris MP1 Reviews from DCR & Lama
– Oreka Review
– Continued Coronavirus fall-out on sports tech/events
– Ray’s new mountain bike
– Whoop testing update
Listen here, or four options for where to find the podcast:
A) iTunes: If you’ve got an Apple device, we’re there!
B) Google Play Music: Yup, we’re here too (and on Google Podcasts app)
C) Spotify: Of course we’re on Spotify now – you can even cache it on your wearable too!
D) RSS Feed: Follow along using the direct RSS feed
Stuff 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 (and in this case, some of these are from the past few weeks…as my backlog is a bit longer):
1) Pro cycling teams start to compete on Zwift instead of outdoors: We’re gonna see a lot more of this soon. I suspect a lot of it will be more ‘exhibition’ style events, which is fine. It’s better than nothing at all at this point.
2) The AirPods holder for an Apple Watch band: I’d agree with The Verge, at first I couldn’t decide whether it’s incredibly dumb or incredibly brilliant. But then I realized this will be sitting on the edge of your wrist, at the roundest part of the band. So I’m going with incredibly dumb.
3) Man uses fitness app to record ride, house on route gets burglarized, he becomes suspect: This whole thing is a complete cluster. However, it wasn’t actually the fitness data that got him in trouble, but general Google location tracking data that a warrant was served for. Ironically, it was his fitness data that saved him here. Primarily because it was this very same data that went on to show he wasn’t the suspect. How on earth did it get this far?
4) How technology is changing the sports bra: Super detailed piece from Outside Magazine that looks at the significant shifts in the design and production in just the last few years.
5) Sea Otter Cancelled/Postponed: Bummer, was looking forward to heading out there for this. Sounds like it might get postponed till sometime this fall, though realistically from a product launch standpoint that wouldn’t be super-appealing to me (since companies wouldn’t shift product launches from next April to October). However, I could see a scenario where some US companies might shift a product launch or two from Eurobike (first week of September) to Sea Otter if it was only 3-5 weeks later (as they often did for Interbike in the past).
6) Roundup of the shoes worn at the US Olympic Trials last weekend: This is about as close as we’ll get to gadget tech for an event like that. Maybe in some alternate universe Strava (with their newfound CEO) will allow us to pull device reports again (which, side note, is good for Strava publicity). That’d be super interesting to see what the pros and almost pros are choosing.
Sports Tech Device 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.
[Things be pretty slow in the sports tech world right now. Part of that is seasonality, but a very real part of that is COVID-19]
Garmin Fenix 5 & Fenix 5 Plus series BETA Firmware Updates: Minor bug fixes
Garmin Fenix 6 Series, MARQ Series BETA Firmware Updates: Minor bug fixes
Garmin Edge 520 Plus, 820, and 820 Explorer BETA Firmware Update: Two bug fixes, one for maps, one for radar.
Garmin Edge 530/830/1030 BETA Firmware Update: Bug fix for radar disconnects (same as above).
—
With that – have a great week ahead!
Am I misreading something or did that guy pay a lawyer thousands of dollars to defend a case that hadn’t been brought against him? Looks to me as though the police wouldn’t have even brought a case in the first place if he’d just done nothing.
Regardless of how dumb that guy was, I completely disagree with Google having that information, let alone the police (mis)using it the way they did. Google only object because the police are asking for the data for free, but literally any other interested party could buy that data with no objection from Google.
In the US, while there’s some validity if you know you’re 100% innocent and can easily demonstrate that, in not hiring a lawyer, there’s also a lot of validity in hiring one.
Given the situation spiraled from a police department not doing their jobs to begin with, I’d probably side with the dude as well in that you’ve got a scenario where someone is mounting a shoddy case against you, getting a lawyer to quickly dismantle that is a wise move.
Unfortunately, that’s the reality of the US system.
I know it’s a tomarto/tomayto thing, but I still get hung-up about “burglarized” rather than just plain old “burgled”
Nothing in that article suggested the police were building a case against him though. They requested some information, sure, but there could have been 200 people in that request who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
If the US system is so broken that you have to prove your innocence before there’s even a charge then I’m not surprised at all that you live in Netherlands now! Couple that with the lack of a GDPR equivalent and that adds up to big issues in the US going forwards with data mining potentially completely replacing justice.
Ha ha…me too Neil!
I also hate “going forward”, and “awesome” every sentence for things that wouldn’t invoke the slightest amount of awe!
My partner tells me I’m turning into Victor Meldrew.
Ohhh, pure idiots!
“McCoy worried that going straight to police would lead to his arrest.”
So the solution is to hide at your parents’ house, especially when you are innocent.
“I was using an app to see how many miles I rode my bike and now it was putting me at the scene of the crime. And I was the lead suspect.”
Nope, idiot. If you would have stopped riding your bike and do a robbery, it would affect the riding time, average speed and location data where you left the bike.
“I didn’t realize that by having location services on that Google was also keeping a log of where I was going,”
Five years old kids are smarter than you!
Folks, if you execute a crime, make sure that your GPS device is enabled…
I’m curious as to whether you bother installing any BETA firmware updates or do you always wait for the public edition to be released?
I’m not sure whether a beta is worth installing (to test/resolve an issue) for the simple fact Garmin doesn’t date the change log.
I also notice the breadcrumb links on the change log pages don’t work (404 errors). Weird.
I usually install betas if it fixes something that’s an issue for me, or if it’s got a boatload of new features I want to dig into.
Otherwise, I don’t tend to bother – merely because I don’t feel like connecting a cable.
I’d love to see Garmin adopt an approach like Wahoo for betas whereby you can enroll from your phone (if you have the right password anyway), and then the device pulls the betas automatically via WiFi just like any other firmware update. This would allow Garmin to get a wider public group, because it would lower the barrier to install. A simple warning message each time someone installs a beta release would easily nullify and concerns around someone ending up on a bum build.
Yet another GPS push update to my 530. I really wish it asked if I want the update so I can delay it for later. It always seems to update during a time when I want good race/ride data.
Two items:
1. Is the upgrade from Garmin Descent MK1 to Felix 6 worth it?
2. Do you have a review of Whoop?