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Week in Review–May 24th, 2020

WeekInReview22

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:

A new slate of sports tech deals began over the last few days. These are typical deals that Garmin does *every* single year, usually starting about a month out from Father’s Day. Suunto also often jumps in the fray (and others too). Note: All the trainer ones end tomorrow (May 25th).

ProductSale PriceAmazonOther siteSale Notes
Nespresso Vertuo Pop+ Deluxe Kit - 30% off!$125⚡ 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!
10th Gen Apple 10.2" iPad (Wi-Fi, 64GB) - $90 off!$249⚡ 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.
Amazon Echo Dot Kids - 50% off$27Despite being a tech-focused dude, our kids don't actually get much tech in their lives. However, we got these last Christmas 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 $27? 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 Battery Bank (24,000mAh) - 47% off$79⚡I've been using this on my hikes/treks/daily life since lst winter, and have been super happy with it. I can charge drones from it on treks, as well as just a crapton of other devices (wathces/action cams/etc), but it's not too terrible on weight. For day to day life, I use it on planes and such as a laptop battery bank (supports 100w charging). Super happy with it.
Anker PowerCore III 10K Wireless Portable Charger with18W USB-C - 48% off$28I've been using this unit for a long time as a quick grab and go charger. Best as a day-use thing, especially with the wireless charging when my phone gets wet at the beach/pool/etc and needs wireless charging till the charging port dries out.
Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Gen with USB-C) - $100 off$153⚡ 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.
Apple AirTags (4-Pack) - 26% off!$72⚡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 (2nd Gen) - 31% off!
$159
$89These aren't the latest anymore, that's the newer 4th gen units. But if budget is in mind, it's hard to beat these. It's still what my wife uses as her daily driver, including tons of time on the indoor trainer/bike.
Apple Watch SE (2022/2nd gen) - $100 off
$249/$299 (cellular)
$149⚡⚡This matches again the lowest price we've ever seen the Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen) - a very solid deal, especially with the new WatchOS 11 features around Training Load, Vitals, offline mapping, and more.
Apple Watch Series 10 - $80 off
$399/$499 (cellular)
$329
Apple Watch Ultra 2 - $180 off!!!$619⚡ This is by far the lowest price we've seen an Apple Watch Ultra 2, to date. This is an incredibly solid deal, especially with all the new WatchOS11 features that recently arrived. NOTE: YOU NEED TO CHECK THE $80 off coupon next to it (plus the already discounted lower price!).
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Black Titanium - $80 off$719⚡ This is a nice little deal for this unit which just came out.
Balega Comfort Running Socks - 34% off
$15
$14This is the singular piece of apparel that's lasted the longest in my collection - some 15-16 years of buying the same socks. Heck, some of them are probably half that old. EIther way, this be the ones I use. Love them (well, except for hiking and trail running, then I use other stuff that goes higher).
Beats Fit Pro - 25% off$149
Beats Studio Buds - 47% off
$149
$79
Chipolo Card Spot (Apple Find My Network) - 20% off!$27This is virtually identical to an Apple AirTag, and shows up in the exact same spot as your other AirTags within the Apple Find My app. The only difference is that it's the size of a credit card and fits in your wallet. Been using it since it came out a few years back - love it!
DJI Action 4 - $90 off$209While not the latest unit, it's still a pretty good deal at $209.
DJI Air 3 Drone - 20% off all packagesFrom $859This is a good-ish deal. Yet at the same time, the new DJI Air 3S jsut came out and is significantly better, especially for sports tracking. I'd probably pay the extra for it.
DJI Mini 3 Fly More Combo with DJI RC - $200+ off$369
DJI Mini 4 Pro Fly More Combo with DJI RC2 - $300 off!$869This is DJI's most powerful small drone, and the lowest price we've seen to date.
DJI Mini 4K Drone - $60 off$209⚡ ⚡ This is an incredible deal. I actually picked up one of these back a few months ago to test, but I've used it in a boatload of review shots since then. Despite me owning all the DJI drones (seriously), this is by far the best value there is. This also has far better quality than the Neo, though, zero tracking capabilities.
EVOC Bike Travel Bag Pro - $45 off!$755This isn't on sale a lot. But, it's notably the bag I use (as does my wife). Works great, packed in all types of bikes into it over the years.
FORM Smart Swim 2 Goggles - $50 off$199These just came out earlier this year, and this is the lowest price to date. Very solid deal.
FORM Swim 1 Goggles (with heads-up display) - $50 off$129
Favero Assioma Duo/Uno Power Meter Pedals - 20% off!
$459/$719 (single/dual)
⚡ This is a strong deal from Favero, who is offering their Favero Assioma Duo pedals for 20% off. You'll pay the current exchange rate. The exact deal will vary based on which country you're shipping to.
Fitbit Ace LTE Kids Activity Smartwatch - $60 off$160⚡ This was just announced this summer, and is their first full smartwatch focused on kids activity tracking and gamification. This is the lowest price we've seen to date.
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.
Fitbit Inspire 3 - $30 off$69
Fitbit Sense 2 - $70 off$179
Fitbit Versa 4 - $40 off$119
Garmin Bounce LTE Kids Tracker - $20 off$139This is the activity tracker that both of our oldest daughters use (age 7 & 8), as well as most of their friends now. They/we all like it. Check out my full in-depth review for all my thoughts. The $20 off is about the only sale you'll see.
Garmin Edge 1040 Cycling GPS - $100 off!$499This is a good deal, especially since it's gotten virtually all of the Edge 1050 updates, and then a boatload more. That said, it wouldn't surprise me to see this drop further to $449, as it did this past summer.
Garmin Edge 540 - $100 off$249⚡⚡This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 540 to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well. This is kinda an insane deal for this unit.
Garmin Edge 540 Solar - $100 off$349This 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 840 - $100 off$349⚡⚡This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 840 to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well. This is one of my main units I use daily.
Garmin Edge 840 Solar - $100 off$449This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 840 Solar to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well.
Garmin Edge Explore 2 - $40 off
$299
$269This is a great little unit, though, with the sales on the Edge 540 and 840 series, you might want to look at those instead.
Garmin Enduro 3: ~$50 off!
$899
$851This is the first time we've seen this on sale, and I suspect this is a transient Amazon sale. The Enduro 3 is basically the 'cheaper' Garmin Fenix 8 with a MIP display (but without the scuba or voice calling features).
Garmin Epix Pro Series - 20% off!
$899/$999
$649⚡ This is the lowest price to date for the Garmin Epix Pro series, likely due to the Fenix 8 coming out a few months back (Epix as a brand was merged into the Fenix 8 branding). Still, if you don't care about diving or voice bits, this is an incredible deal.
Garmin Fenix 7 Pro - 31% off (All Variants)
$799+
$549+⚡ This is the lowest price to date for the Garmin Fenix 7 Pro series, likely due to the Fenix 8 coming out a few months back. Still, if you don't care about diving or voice bits, this is an incredible deal.
Garmin Forerunner 165 (Base) - $100 off!
$249/$299
$199⚡ This is the lowest price to date, and argueably one of the best deals this Black Friday in terms of runners watches and bang for the buck.
Garmin Forerunner 165 Music - $50 off!$249This is the first time we've head a meaningful sale on the Forerunner 165, released earlier this year, down to $249 for the Music edition, and $199 for the non-music edition.
Garmin Forerunner 255/255S - $100 off$249This is Garmin's mid-tier running watch, and is a very polished option with good multi-band GPS, and of course, a boatload of running metrics.
Garmin Forerunner 255/255S Music - $100 off!
$349/$399
$299This is Garmin's mid-tier running watch, and is a very polished option with good multi-band GPS, and of course, a boatload of running metrics. This model also includes offline music such as Spotify and Amazon Music.
Garmin Forerunner 265 - $100 off$349This is the first time we've seen the Forerunner 265 on sale, and it's solidly priced right now at $349
Garmin Forerunner 265s - $100 off$349This is the first time we've seen the Forerunner 265 on sale, and it's solidly priced right now at $349
Garmin Forerunner 55 - $50 off
$199
$149This is a good little running watch, though, it also supports plenty of other sport types as well. This is the lowest sale price to date.
Garmin Forerunner 955 - $100ish off!$399⚡ This is 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, so $399 is a strong price, though, it dipped to $319 for Amazon Prime Day.
Garmin Forerunner 965 - $100 off!$499⚡ This is the lowest price we've seen ever on the Forerunner 965, since it's launch. It's still Garmin's top-end Forerunner watch, and I expect it to stay that way for a while. It's one I often use in comparative testing as a reference device.
Garmin HRM-FIT - $15 off
$149
Look, this isn't much of a discount, but it's the first discount we've seen to date...so...better than nothing.
Garmin HRM-PRO Plus - 20% off
$129
$103A solid little deal for this strap, if you're in the Garmin ecosystem and want a dedicated chest strap. This strap is one of the two straps I use constantly for other HR sensor accuracy comparisons (alongside Polar H10)
Garmin Instinct 2 Series - $100 Off$199⚡The Instinct 2 base is from $199, a very solid deal - especially with all the major software updates it's had over the few years since release. The Solar editions are also on sale.
Garmin Instinct 2S & 2S Solar $100 off!$199-$299⚡The Instinct 2 base is from $199, a very solid deal - especially with all the major software updates it's had over the few years since release. The Solar editions are also on sale for $299
Garmin Instinct 2X - $100 off!$349This is a solid deal. Garmin Instinct 2X - $100 off!It's best thought of as an Instinct 2.5, as it has almost enough features to really be more of an Instinct 3 (which doesn't exist at this point).
Garmin Instinct Crossover Solar - $100 off!$399
Garmin Tactix 7 Pro - 20% off$1,049This is the largest discount we've seen to date on the Tactix 7 Pro unit. Note the other Tactix 7 Pro units/variants are also on sale for 20% off too (this link takes you to all of them).
Garmin Varia RCT715 Camera Radar - $100 off$299⚡ This is the lowest price we've seen on this unit ever. While I have some quibbles with it from an app/etc standpoint, it's still the best offering on the market by far for integrated radar + camera + bike light features.
Garmin Varia RVR315 Radar - $50 off$99⚡ 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/Stages/Hammerhead/Wahoo bike computers.
Garmin Varia Radar (RTL515) - $50 off$149This is Garmin's standalone radar+taillight option, and $149 is pretty much the standard sale-price.
Garmin Venu 3 - $100 off!
$449
$349This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Venu 3, which is Garmin's answer to the Apple/Samsung/Google watches.
Garmin Venu 3S - $100 off$349This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Venu 3, which is Garmin's answer to the Apple/Samsung/Google watches. The Venu 3S is simply the smaller edition.
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) - $100 off$299⚡ 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!$299The new Hero 13 just came out, which mostly just adds a bunch of new accessory options. If you don't plan to purchase those accessories, then this is a solid deal.
GoPro Hero 13 Black - $100 OFF!$299⚡ This is the first time we have seen the newly announced GoPro Hero 13 Black on sale, and now even lower for the non-bundled version to $299! That's crazy!
GoPro Hero 13 Black - $60 OFF!$339⚡ This is the first time we have seen the newly announced GoPro Hero 13 Black on sale. Solid deal, this is my daily use action cam! That said, the bundle version listed below this is a better deal, since for $10 more you get a bunch of other things.
GoPro Hero 13 Black Bundle (extra battery/SD card/floaty) - $100 off!$349⚡ This is a very solid deal. It's a Hero 13 Black on discount, but then an extra battery tossed in, then an SD card, and then a floaty.
GoPro Hero 4K - $20 off$179This was just released back in September, and is GoPro's budget option, which includes a full color touchscreen on the back as well.
Google Nest WiFi Pro - 6E (3xPack) - $120 off!$279I've been using the Google Nest WiFi packs for years. And this deal is strong enough that I clicked purchase on this deal to upgrade to the WiFi Pro after a few trusted reviewer friends upgraded as well. The 2x pack is also on sale for 34% off as well, if you don't need three pods.
Google Pixel Watch 3 (41mm) - $70 OFF$279Click to add $70 coupon into the cart. Bringing price down to $279!
Insta360 Ace Pro Action Cam - $50 off$299This is the previous edition, as the Ace Pro 2 just came out a few weeks back, but this is still a very solid camera from a year ago.
Insta360 GO 3S Tiny 4K Action Camera - $60 off!$239This is a great deal for this tiny little thing, which should really be named the Go 4, given how many new features it has (including 4K). It also has all the Insta360 sport integration features with Garmin & Apple, to overlay your Garmin/Apple data automatically on your footage.
Jackery Portable Power Station - $100 off!$169This 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 also use it on trips to Eurobike and elsewhere to keep equipment charged. I've even bought a solar panel to hook up to it (surprisingly effective). Heck, I've even powered a KICKR trainer ride from it!
Lasko High Velocity Pro-Performance Fan - 15% off$54This is one of the most popular indoor trainer fan companies out there, which rivals the Wahoo Headwind fan but cost a fraction of the price. Of course, it lacks ANT+/Bluetooth integration, but realistically if you really want that you can add a smart outlet for $10 to toggle it on/off from your phone if need be. It's one of the ones in my rotation.
Oura Ring Gen 3 - $50 off$249While Oura just released their Gen 4 ring (which I'm currently testing), I'll be frank, there's virutally no real-world difference to Gen 3. About the only notable thing is the battery life difference (which is legit 7 days now, versus real-world 4-5 on Gen3). Otherwise, same-same.
Peloton Bike - 10% off$1,295This 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. Note Peloton has stated/confirmed there will be no 'bigger discounts' on products during this holiday period.
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 Guide - A crapton % off$45Peloton keeps trying to get rid of these - and $45 is hilariously cheap (it started in a bundle for $495, and has slowly worked it's way down from there).
Peloton Tread - $300 off$2,695This 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.
Philips Hue Smart Lighting - 20-65% offI use Philips Hue stuff all over the DCR Cave/Studio for lighting, both obviously colorful stuff in the background of shots, but also just for automation of the lights. Same goes at home. Love it (mainly when it's on sale like now). Starter packs are a good place to begin, and then I love the light strips (such as pictured).
Polar Verity Sense - 15% off
$99
$84I use this as one of my reference devices for heart rate accuracy testing.
Samsung Galaxy Ring - $50 Amazon Gift Card Included$399Not a straight discount, but Amazon gift card is basically cash for most of us.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 (40 & 44mm) - $100 off!$202⚡ This is a very solid deal for one of Samsung's best watches to date, and also just released this summer.
Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra - $215 off!$434⚡ This is by *FAR* the lowest price we've seen on this brand new watch. This scored very well in my accuracy tests, as well as battery testing.
Samsung Galaxy Watch6 - Just a crapton off$120
Samsung Galaxy Watch6 Classic - $200 off$199I'd probably go with the Samsung Watch 7, unless you *really* want the physical bezel (which admittedly, is a heck of a lot better than the touch bezel on the Watch 7). Either way, this is a very solid price.
Samsung T9 SSD (2-4TB) - up to 40% off$134I use a literal flotilla of these small SSD's for all my photo/video projects until they get moved off to the NAS system (Synology) for longer term storage. I have T5/T7 units, and are picking up a few of the larger T9 ones given the sale prices. Love them, incredibly fast and reliable.
SanDisk 256GB Extreme PRO SD Cards - 51% off$29⚡I use the SanDisk Extreme Pro SD Cards exclusively for all my video/photo shooting on my Panasonic GH5 and Nikon cameras (video and stills), including up to 6K recording with the GH5. I've mostly used 128's, but more and more lately I'm filling up cards faster with higher bitrates, so this sale is gonna have me pickup a bunch of the 256GB ones instead. The 128GB/ 512GB/1TB ones are also on sale too viathe same link. Note that usually I wait till these are about $40-45, so this is a fantastic deal and I'll be filling up.
SanDisk Extreme Pro 256GB MicroSD Card - 18% off!$28I use this card for all of my drones and action cams. Sometimes, also the 512GB version as well.
Scosche RHYTHM+ 2.0 ANT+ & Bluetooth HR Monitor
$79
$39This isn't the newest chicken on the block, but for $39?!?! That's a solid deal for something that's actually pretty darn accurate. Really accurate.
Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Camera w/ 28-70mm Zoom - $400 off$2,298This 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 - $50 off!$399This is the lowest price we've seen on the Suunto Race. That said, keep in mind the Suunto Race S is $349, has the same software and a *MUCH* better optical HR sensor. Though, is a bit smaller and slightly less battery life. Still, great watches.
Suunto Race Titanium - $50 off!$499
Suunto Vertical (Solar edition) - $150 off$549This unit continues to get all the most current updates, and is Suunto's MIP-enabled device with dual-frequency GPS and mapping.
Tacx Flux 2 Smart Trainer - $300ish off
$899
$399I mean, I guess. Really, I don't see why anyone would buy this trainer at any price above $299. With the JetBlack Victory at $399 being more accurate, quiter, including WiFi, including Zwift Cog support (or mechanical cassette), including dual-Bluetooth, including Race Mode, and...one could go on and on.
Tacx NEO 2T Smart Trainer - $200-$300 off
$1,399
$899This is the go-to sales price for the NEO 2T, though has become more frequent over the past year. It's still an incredible trainer, and is the top-end non-moving trainer from Garmin/Tacx.
Therabody Theragun Mini - $50 off!$149My wife uses the Theragun Elite, which is a bit larger than this Mini model, and also includes more tips. But, as noted - people seem happy with all these models.
Therabody Theragun Prime - 36% off$190My wife uses the Theragun Elite, which is relatively similiar to this newer model.
Vacmaster AM201R Fan + Remote/holder (13% off)$69This 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 - 26% off
$279
$208⚡ This price is very solid for this unit, especially if you want a smaller bike computer that's very solid in terms of software stability at this point. I believe this is the lowest price ever.
Wahoo ELEMNT ROAM V2 - 15% off
$399
$339While Wahoo has announced a new bike computer coming December 3rd, this is Wahoo's top-end unit for now. 15% off is pretty much the norm for them.
Wahoo KICKR CORE Zwift One (COG V2) + Play Controllers
$499
$499This package includes the KICKR CORE with the Zwift V2 Cog, but notably now also includes the Zwift Play controllers. Basically, this saves you about $100 or so, and is the first time we've seen them bundle it.
Wahoo KICKR MOVE - $300 off!
$1,599
$999⚡⚡ This is actually a very solid deal, and the first time we've seen this discounted. In fact, frankly, this is the first time in years it feels like Wahoo is actually doing a legit sale on something. Kudos.
Wahoo KICKR ROLLR - $100 off
$599
$499
Wahoo KICKR SNAP - Lowest Price Ever
$499
$199This is lowest we've ever seen the KICKR SNAP priced. While the trend has moved towards wheel-off/direct drive trainers, this is still really solid deal if your budget it tight. That said, if you're in Europe, Decathlon has the D100 on sale for $199 also, and in my testing, I'd go with that almost every time.
Whoop 4.0 with 1-year subscription - 17% off$199This brings down the 1-year price to $17/month, which is the lowest it's been (only way to get that is normally a 24-month membership).
Withings Body Comp WiFI Scale - 25% off$149
Withings Body Smart WiFI Scale - 20% off$79
ZOLEO Satellite Communicator - $50 off$149I have not yet tried the Zoleo unit, though, many of you have and it's super popular.

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–May 17th, 2020
Monday: Strava Cuts Off Leaderboard for Free Users, Reduces 3rd Party Apps for All, and More
Wednesday: First Look at COROS’s new Structured Workout & Strength Training Features
Friday: Trying Out Zwift’s New Boost Mode Feature in Beta

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!

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) Person mods GTA V to work with smart trainer, and pedals around world: That’s super cool! And it will even export a .FIT file out for upload to Strava or others, and it seems to imply it’s doing road-feel too. Now before someone compares to Zwift, as pointed out in the Reddit comments, GTA V had upwards of 1,000 developers working on it (Zwift has 200-300 employees in total) with a budget of $265 million. Yes, Million.

Also, fun industry tidbit here: The person who did this (Nestor Matas) actually did all the original ANT+ FE-C work at Bkool years before anyone else in the industry did so in their trainers, though he now works for Garmin. Back then though, Bkool was the annual on-stage demo company of FE-C at the ANT+ Symposium – and I even got suckered into being the volunteer cyclist on-stage one year to show it off – I think there’s a picture of both of us on stage somewhere. These days of course it’s baseline functionality in every smart trainer, and is how this mod works.

2) Cervelo co-founder Phil White joins 4iiii as Acting President of Company: This is an interesting one. He’s been a board member for a bit already, so this is a transition within the orbit of the company he’s already familiar with, rather than coming entirely out of left field. The company makes good products of course, but it will be interesting to see if he can boost their profile or market penetration.

3) Dirty Kanzelled race routes: If you were looking at riding the Dirty Kanza and now need a substitute route to keep you busy, this site has piles of awesome routes. Bookmarking it for future reference of simply good routes to scope out (mostly using parts of them).

4) SportTracks shows support for Garmin Varia Radar Traffic Data: Sweet! After I wrote about the Varia radar mapping a week or two ago, SportTracks explained how to use their built-in CIQ data support to do all the overlays and data plotting in a super clean format. Ok Strava, you’re next, right?

5) Emergency Autoland puts Garmin on bleeding edge of autonomous flying: This has nothing to do with sports tech, but it’s all about tech and aviation (and you know, I love aviation). Anyway, it’s a super fascinating look at Garmin’s new AutoLand system for emergencies of mostly smaller aircraft (single-pilot focused). Sure, the tech is interesting, but it’s actually more about the certification here. The idea that if you start with the assumption of all lives being lost in an emergency, and work backwards to find a tech solution that could most likely save everyone with low-risk, it’s astounding. This piece is 6 months old, but notable because the system finally received certification this week. Also – it’s relevant here because people might say ‘I’d never trust Garmin software for life-saving functions’. Ignoring the fact that if you’ve flown on an airplane you probably already have; the key difference here is that this system was a *decade* in the making. Your watch? Probably a 6-12 month product cycle. Different markets, different QA thresholds.

6) GoPro announces new Zeus Mini LED Light: It’s cool, but, it’s actually been out for months. The Zeus mini is simply re-packaging of the GoPro Light Mod with the new GoPro Magnetic Swivel Clip. In fact, you can see it used exactly that way in my review of the light mod. That swivel clip is awesome, btw.

7) 15-year old girl pedals 1,200 kilometers carrying dad on her bike: Well then, I guess that Dirty Kanza make-up ride you were planning doesn’t sound so impressive now, does it?

8) RideWithGPS adds Garmin Course AutoSync (API) Support: After Strava and Komoot rolled it out last week, RideWithGPS joins them. As noted, I suspect we’ll see plenty of companies quickly add support for this. It’s a no-brainer.

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.

Garmin Edge 530/830/1030 Firmware Update: Huge feature update sweep with lots of indoor focused features, and a boatload of other ones (plus bug fixes). Here’s the 530 link and 1030 links.

Garmin Fenix 5 Series BETA Firmware Update: Bug fixes.

Garmin Instinct BETA Firmware Update: Minor bug fixes.

Garmin Venu Firmware Update: Mostly a collection of random tweaks, but few minor new features like added stress to watch data field.

Hammerhead Karoo Firmware Update: A pile of bug fixes, as well as a handful of new minor features like automatic wheel circumference.

Wahoo ELEMNT/BOLT/ROAM Firmware Update: Appears to be a re-release of the previous firmware update. So likely fixing some underlying bug.

Thanks for reading!

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28 Comments

  1. PeterF

    The “15-year old girl pedals 1,200 kilometers carrying dad on her bike” link goes to “Venu SW 4.60 is now live” on the Garmin forum. Not nearly as interesting ;-)

  2. JimC

    The one thing I hate about your weekly posts is that the offers are always US based. Aren’t there any other areas that get offers? (And I appreciate I’m complaining about a free resource, such is human nature ?)

    • Honestly, it doesn’t oft happen in Europe. But the reason is actually simple: In Europe, the whole concept of MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) is illegal. Which is when manufacturers specify the price a retailer can sell it for, and will cut off that retailer if they advertise lower than that price.

      In the US, that’s the norm for virtually every product out there. However, with Europe (and most other countries) laws against it, the penalties are massive if a company even hints to a retailer than they shouldn’t lower prices (there are however ways manufs get around this, but it’s harder). So as a results, in Europe pretty much everything is always on-sale.

      All that said, sometimes there are retailer-specific deals, like one I shared on Friday: link to twitter.com

    • JimC

      Thanks for the explanation. And I must admit I’m tickled by the fact that socialist Europe enforces a free market, while capitalist USA doesn’t ?

    • Haha…neither system around pricing is ideal. Both have their pros and cons, and both positively and negatively impact consumers in different ways. And positively and negatively impact retailers in different ways. And positively and negatively impact manufs in different ways.

      I’m sure I could write an entire post about it (and seeing it from both the consumer and retailer/manuf side, on both sides of the Atlantic now), but I doubt they’d want to hear my ramblings there.

    • Scott Buchanan

      You seriously think that (illegal) price fixing isn’t happening here in the UK???

      Have a wander around all the well known online retailers and notice how uniform the pricing is around rrp.
      As one small local retailer told me any stockist that steps out of line will get a nudge from a sales rep. Then they find that they can’t get stock ending with the retailers official stockist status being supuriously removed.

      There’s more than one way to skin a cat!

    • Oh, I’m not saying it doesn’t happen – it’s just that they can’t be as overt about it. In the US, it’s written into contracts and the retaliation terms are also clear cut. For GoPro & Garmin for example, it’s 6-month product turn-offs if a product is a single penny too low.

      Typically in the UK (moreso than the rest of the EU, however you want to define that), they seem to be a bit more clear about it. They’ll often simply cut off stock, rather than actually saying anything – as you noted.

      It’s historically been much harder for companies to pull that off in mainland EU over the years (hence why, for example, we see so many cycling discounters coming from Germany especially).

  3. Heinrich Hurtz

    It’s impossible for me, having worked my entire career in product development (commercial equipment and instruments), to understand how the Garmin sports division is part of the same company as the marine and aviation divisions. I’ve used all three, starting with a basic handheld aviation unit back around ’91-92. Frankly, I can’t understand the development process at the sports division at all, in any context.

  4. CowSqueezer

    When is that whoop strap review coming! I’ve been putting off my purchase/rental until I see your exhaustive review :)

  5. Larry

    FWIW – a friend had the Wahoo Snap on backorder with REI for about a month and they sent her a cancellation notice without any explanation. She called REI and they told her they didn’t expect more to become available. She then called Wahoo who confirmed.

    • So typically speaking Wahoo has a semi-pecular policy that they’ll cancel any pre-orders/backorders if the date from the manuf slips beyond 30 days. This often bites folks for pre-orders of Garmin watches, where they get a random cancellation e-mail.

      We also see it a ton with both Wahoo & Tacx trainers at REI, since in most cases they’re not getting weekly shipments, but likely a monthly drop.

      I haven’t heard anything about Wahoo cancelling the SNAP lineup, so my guess is this is just a case of REI doesn’t have a date for when they’ll get the next order from Wahoo (or they haven’t placed another, etc…). I know for example that CT was expected to get another shipment next week…err, this week now.

  6. Ryan

    If I use one of the links to a trainer at REI but buy the Fenix 6 do you still get the affiliate sale? I have a rather large dividend this year ?

  7. Andras

    regarding garmin edge530 firmware update
    I am sad that virtual activities will loose the live track option.
    I think it was cool to share where the others should have imagined while I was training indoors.
    And I was hoping for a multiplayer option from Garmin…
    As it was able to place us on virtual maps, hence in a group as well, it wouldn’t have been complicated to connect groups to compete against each other, within Garmin ecosystem.

    Ray, is there any chance that Garmin will enable livetrack to be switched on meanwhile doing indoor training?

    • Unless I’m reading it wrong, it simply says ‘Automatically’, not that it’s going away. Meaning, if indoors and yours settings are configured to automatically do a livetrack each time, it won’t do that automatically anymore.

  8. Miles

    That GTA 5 mod looks amazing! Chris Pritchard posted a video of him doing a free ride, and it looked so much fun. It seems to require a Windows operating system, so as an Apple Mac owner, I will have to nab my son’s Windows laptop!

  9. Andrew

    Formula E driver Daniel Abt disqualified and fined for cheating with a ring-in during virtual race.

    link to abc.net.au

  10. Chris

    RWGPS link Goes to an error page.

  11. Richard Geraghty

    Your newsletter no longer reaches me, so I am re-subscribing. Many thanks for all your great stuff!

  12. Ray SEPHTON

    Excuse my ignorance, if in Garmin Express once Edge 530 is connected to PC via USB and sync is done but Express says no Update is available ( for 5.50) does that mean it has not been rolled out in my part of the world (South Africa )ye,t or is there some trick to getting it. Thanks

    • Correct.

      However, at the links in the Garmin Forum, you can simply download the update file (it’s a .GCD file, just put it in the ‘Garmin’ folder on your Edge), and you’ll be off and cookin!

    • GH

      thank you Ray. For some reason my 830 is not updating automatically either.

  13. Brian

    Hey Ray — being a fellow aviation fan, I highly recommend checking out the posts from Admiral Cloudberg on Reddit (link to reddit.com). He does a weekly analysis of a certain commercial aviation incident/accident. I’m always amazed at the multiple factors that go into a plane crash and how disaster (or near disaster) could’ve been averted if any one thing hadn’t occurred. The redundancy that goes into the workings of airplanes is fascinating. The near crash of Air Canada Flight 759 is a great one to start with: link to medium.com