I need some quick advice, my Wahoo Roam v1 USB just broke and I need a replacement fast. I like the roam in general and I like the side led and physical buttons though using it for navigating I found it to be frustrating (both reading the screen and the rerouting when missing a turn). Also wahoo can be a pain with compatibility both apps and just mounting. What I mostly use now on my roam is using it to control my kickr and wahoo headwind fans and use it for workouts (prefer that to using a computer or phone), I occasionally navigate mostly using strava to set up routes, I have a garmin varia radar (which will obviously work better with garmin)
So which computer would you recommend? How is the readability of the garmins in direct sunlight, is the 1040 really that much heavier? Supposedly resolutions of the 1040 and 840 screens are identical so is the bigger screen really an advantage? How are outside workouts (sometimes reading here it seems on garmin itās not as good as on wahoo). Will I be able to control my fans and kickr on garmin? I live in a place where it rains a lot, how are the garmin touchscreens in the rain? To me it seems that the roam v2 (and bolt v2) offer very little improvement over the roam v1 and it seems that feature wise wahoo has been at a standstill whereas garmin has improved alot, right? I am one of those persons that occasionally forgets to charge my computer, would the solar panel feature of garmin be sufficient to get me through a ride?
I got an 840 late last year in anticipation of doing Unbound this year and wanted the solar function.
After years outside of the Garmin ecosystem, I remain underwhelmed. Still overly complicated interface (although it has improved) and getting rides to upload automatically after saving them is a fantasy. And the screen is kinda hard to read with my aging eyes (althought he 1040 probably addresses that). I will gie them credit for greatly improving the touchscreen functionality.
IMO, Wahoo units are still hte best UI / interface for their simplicityā¦but the screen on Hammerheads are simply superb. I would steer you in those directions vs. Garminā¦but youāll get plenty of supporters for Garmin weighing in.
It may just be easier to stock with a new Roam and go with what you know.
While the OS/interface look similar, the v2 ROAM has a lot more under the hood. 4GB vs 32GB storage. Multi-band GNSS. USB-C. More screen colours. The v2 units are getting features that arenāt being rolled out to previous units. Summit Freeride (ClimbPro without following a route) is one.
Garmin are without a doubt the feature leader when it comes to bike computers. Thatās an important thing for a lot of people. Sometimes others just want the basics.
I live in the Netherlands, flat as a pancake hereš but good that there are more updates than just a usb-c port, a few gigs of storage and a few more colours in the display. Howās does the bolt v2 compare, am I correct that effective screensize is almost the same as the roam due to smaller bezels?
I sort of want to get one of the big brands because I just want things to work. Sometimes as a wahoo user I already feel neglected due to compatibility issues
If my Bolt v1 magically stopped working, Iād buy a Bolt V2. My understanding is the V2 corrects my 2 complaints with the V1ā¦ USB C and an LED bar visible in direct sunlight.
I do not have experience with the Garmin ecosystem, but, except as noted above, Iāve never found myself wanting anything more with my Wahoo.
Fantasy? I use my 840 about 4-5 times a week, connected to an iPhone. Automatic uploads are reliable for me, only āfailsā say 2-3 times a year? By fail that means turning off my 840 and turning it back on before it will sync.
Eyes what can you sayā¦ Iāve got 60+ year old eyes and can read the screen with or without glasses.
My top concerns:
price
reliable hardware
ability to customize screens while on the bike
ability to display useful training info like target power, target cadence, target-vs-real-time power, etc.
availability of custom widgets and visualizations and info
840 UX is fine, Wahoo better. FWIW our carās nav/entertainment system has a more complicated UX versus my 840. No issues with maps or nav or ClimbPro.
I find the 840 a more compelling overall value. Not a fanboy, itās all about value.
Wahoo still doesnāt support all the advanced power meter data. I forget which ones, but some that my Assioma Duos support Wahoo doesnāt.
Garminās ability to have third party data fields is the thing I get jealous of.
Example 3rd party data fields:
Aerosensor realtime CdA, body position
Xert (and others) realtime Wā (how much anaerobic energy you have available right now, basically how many āmatchesā are left)
Others I have wanted but forgotten about
I really donāt understand why Wā isnāt standard on all cycling computers. It does take some tweaking, but having a rough number is still better than nothing.
If youāre in a rush (you mentioned something to this effect, although Iām not sure why), it will be faster to set up and use a BOLT V2 or ROAM V2. Most computers will do most of the things you want.
I spent two years on Garmin before switching to Hammerhead for a year, then another year on Wahoo. Now Iām back on Garmin (because I wanted specific MTB features like Trailforks maps and the EDGE handlebar remote).
Even with that experience on Garmin, Iām still trying to figure it out - parts of Garmin still really arenāt all that intuitive.
If you do a lot of navigating with maps, the ROAM V2ās larger screen is worth it over the BOLT IMHO (Iāve used both).
Low bar? I guess nobody ever has strange behavior with their smartphones or computers. Nobody ever reboots their smart phone or computer. Nobody has weird bluetooth behavior. Apparently it is only Garmin bike computers syncing rides at the end. The horror
ANT+ Cycling Dynamics. Wahoo partnered with Pioneer a while back to show some advanced metrics from those meters. Looks like thatās now part of the Shimano meters too and also supported. Still yet to see Cycling Dynamics on a Wahoo unit (regardless of how useful or not the data is).
I did years on various Wahoos, recently switched to an Edge 840. It works well once you get it set up, mostly, and is very customizable, more so than Wahoo.
The Garmin UI is still not terribly intuitive to me, and I often feel like it has more going on than I care for. Mid ride I suddenly get notifications about my VO2 max or āfitness score is +4ā whatever that means. Iām sure this can be turned off somewhere but itās an annoying default.
Garmin outdoor workout functionally is terrible IMO. You can set up your own screen, but thereās still no way to quickly pause or advance a workout with one touch, you have to change screens, swipe up, do it, then reverse these steps.
I think if you have interest in the rest of the Garmin ecosystem (watches for sleep/activity tracking, radar and lights) Garmin is handy. Both work well and if you like Wahoo and are in a hurry to replace it, Iād probably get a new Wahoo. Definitely a learning curve with Garmin.
Personally, I prefer Wahooās UI, most notably the zoom feature that allows you to set up a single page and simply change the number of displayed data fields. Sounds silly, but this feature sold me on Wahoo and makes me not want to consider Garmin for the foreseeable future. I also donāt care about touch screens, so even if I were to go with Garmin, Iād likely get a 540 and not an 840.
Some people point to Garmins having more functionality, but even Wahoo has so many fields that are, in practice, completely useless to me (and, I reckon, most others). There is one hardware feature Iād like to have, and that is solar. But in practice, for most riders and rides, thatās just a nice-to-have and not a must-have. Another one is that Garmins apparently record the speeds of cars that overtake you when you have a Varia connected. But other than that the Varia works perfectly on my Bolt v1.
Serious question: how useful are those in practice?
I know that you can look at your torque curves (the āpeanut graphsā), but what actionable information do you actually get from them?
Iāve recently moved from a bolt v1 to a 1040 and the main reason I swapped brands was tracking. My bolt would often just stop reporting to my partner where I was.
As I understand it that was relayed by the app so a roam v2 or bolt v2 would likely still have the same problem. Most of the other features are close enough that Iād have been happy either way but since at lot of the time Iām solo it was important. Something to bear in mind.
