My 530 died and am planning to replace it with a 130 plus.
Mostly for outside TR workouts but also for basic navigation during XCM races + power pacing (thank Best Bike Split).
What valuable feature would I be missing?
Should I put the extra 100.- and stay with the 530?
no TSS and no IF reading on the 130 plus screen during your ride. It’ll show when you upload your training though.
Breadcrumb navigation (just a line) instead of mapping on the 130 - you can’t see if the upcoming turns are at a junction or just a bend in the trail. Might be ok, depending on the terrain you’re racing on.
The 130 also has a smaller battery, but that shouldn’t be a problem for XCM. Looking at the @dcrainmaker comparison tool I can’t see much else (although the maps were enough for me to choose the 530!) https://www.dcrainmaker.com/product-comparison-calculator?type=watch&ids=113528%2C97702#results
Might be worth looking at the Wahoo Bolt if you’re not tied to Garmin?
Awesome feedback and dcr reference. Spot on. Thank you.
Thank you!
mainly maps… if you need maps for navigation, go with the 530, for recording the 130 is great, even the pro’s use the 130 as a minimalistic/small/light cycling computer
I have the 130, and am happy with it. I use it on my mtb and don’t use navigation, so I don’t care that it’s inferior in that way. I like that it’s cheaper, and small. The battery lasts a really long time.
This may not concern everyone, but the screen size. My ageing eyes prefer the larger screen size of the 530 over the 130+ - next time I might even go for the 1030 (1040??).
Of course, screen size may be less of an issue if you are not using the navigation/mapping functionality.
The 130 screen is smaller. But because it’s grayscale, I found it easier to read than the 530/830.
One thing the 130 (or plus) doesn’t have is power alerts. The 130 series supports time-based and distance-based alerts, but not heart-rate or power range alerts (so you can’t set it to beep when you exceed a target power or heart rate). The 530 is the lowest Garmin bike computer that supports those.
I’ve just sold my 130+ and have a 530 enroute.
Primarily for TrailForks integration, native Normalized Power metric, and 50% more battery (I couldn’t reliably get through two rides if I forgot to charge in between).
I only ride XC/XCM riding and racing, any tips for maximising the additional features? Is TrailForks a separate data page visible by scrolling across from my Power etc page? Do I need TrailForks Pro (I think I will to support the TrailForks system, but curious if it affects things/requires login)?
I think Trailforks data is integrated into the map as a layer. So things like trail names and locations display on the map, instead of just roads (remember the Trailforks integration came out when Open Street Maps didn’t have trails).
You can add a map field to one of your screens (or use a map screen and add the data fields you want to it).
I don’t think it requires any login or anything. Separately, you can link your Garmin and Trailforks accounts to sync your rides to Trailforks, but that’s not required for anything AFAIK. Now that I think about it, you probably link Trailforks and Strava - because my integration still works even though I don’t record via Garmin anymore.
It’s been a few years since I set up a Garmin, so I could be wrong. I’m sure someone else will jump in too…
Oh, and it can route you via trails. Was really handy when I rode Kingdom trails a few years back…
Awesome thanks Wake!
I can see this coming in handy 
Went from a 1030 to the 130 plus and now have sold the 130 plus. 130 plus did not properly support the rally pedals. (I had checked with garmin before getting rid of the 1030 and buying the 130 plus and they said it would but it did not have cycling dynamics.) Navigation very basic. Outside workouts worked on it but I did not love it. Battery was decent and nice and small. Sold it as I want usb-c and whatever else the x40 brings. I am thinking I will get the 1040 or the 840 as I like touch screens. But we will see what it brings. If I only had the crank based power meter I may have kept the 130 plus but I paid so much for these pedals.
Right now I am getting by with my phone and my garmin 945.
My 530 is 2.5 years old. Recently did a 7+ hour (elapsed time) ride outside, with navigation and 30% backlighting. Always recording even at stops, so the unit was doing gps, nav, and reading sensors for all 7+ hours. Power meter, heart rate monitor, and Varia RTL515. Battery started at 89% and ended at 45%. Temps mid 50s at start and afternoon in upper 80s and low 90s.
Sounds perfect!
For clarity, it was my 130+ that was proving to not quite be enough. Same reason I couldn’t go for a HH Karoo 2, it was too frustrating to not be sure if I’d get through.
I was thinking of getting the 130 plus, but I’m not sure it supports or displays dual sided Garmin Vector 3 pedals. I want to see left pedal power verses right power, does anyone know what Garmin computers connect to Vector 3 pedals and display that?
Looks like they don’t: Edge 130 Plus - Data Fields
I know vectors are the previous generation… but it does support Rally XC pedals and collect dual sided data to view on Garmin Connect. Can’t speak if it would display that (not something I need to see live so haven’t tried).
Good clarification. I would bet that it collects data from both sides, but only displays total power. I’ll know in a couple of weeks as I have an Edge 130 plus coming, and a set of Favero Assioma dual-sided pedals…
