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In Depth Product Reviews
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.
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Read My Sports Gadget Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent GPS watch guide here, and cycling GPS computers here. Plus there are smart trainers here, all in these guides cover almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day-to-day? I also just put together my complete ‘Gear I Use’ equipment list, from swim to bike to run and everything in between (plus a few extra things). And to compliment that, here’s The Girl’s (my wife’s) list. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by!
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Have some fun in the travel section.
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My Photography Gear: The Cameras/Drones/Action Cams I Use Daily
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!
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The Swim/Bike/Run Gear I Use List
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 2024 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.
Hi Ray,
Quick question on the Pioneer review… Are you including an in-depth review of the head unit(s) as well? I am quite intrigued about the sgx 500 and it is hard to find reliable reviews out there…
Thanks!
Yes, I plan to cover the head unit within the review.
I speculate that the SRM’s market share must be in absolute freefall. It will be interesting to see how they respond to these market shifts if they can. I don’t see how they can afford not to bring out a budget model.
Me too I’ll buy it right away, nothing to do with tax it should be the other way around if so, sorry to see a a price policy BF’ing European customers in such a way, until power2max shape up I’ll have to look some where else for a power meter
DC – is there also going to be a price drop for the European market?
For the Power2Max I should have said.
I’ve asked for clarification, hope to hear back soon!
Just received clarification: No change in pricing for Euro folks.
Wait, so in the US it’s US$599 while in the EU its €690 (according to their website) – about US$740?
Rob – I’ve been trying to get my head round this too! The difference in price may be tax???? Shame because with a 20% (or even 10%) Euro cut I’d be ordering one immediately!
My understanding is that euro pricing usually includes VAT, while US pricing does not include sales tax.
Me too I’ll buy it right away, nothing to do with tax it should be the other way around if so, sorry to see a a price policy BF’ing European customers in such a way, until power2max shape up I’ll have to look some where else for a power meter
Sorry to have misplaced my reply the first time.
Euro prices include VAT which varies between countries. U.S. prices do not.
The U.S. significantly more people to sell which generally allows prices to be more competitive.
Additionally trade relations to Asia are much better in America than Europe.
Here in the UK, VAT is at 20%; so importing a US$599 item and paying the VAT would still only be US$718.80. Yet they are charging much more than that to EU customers. Isn’t this a German company? Shouldn’t the goods cost more in the US than the EU?
Also, there aren’t “more people to sell [to]” in the US (population ~320m) compared to the EU (28 members states with a total population of ~500m).
Ray, this whole area would be a great subject for a blog post…
Yeah, it’s something I’ve been meaning to post on for a while. Do you still have to pay VAT from the rest of Europe to the UK (I know the rules within continental Europe, but the UK throws a wrench into things).
As for population – while using general numbers is simple, it’s not correct. There are simply far more American cyclists who would actually buy a power meter than there are European cyclists (by any measure, straight numbers or ratios). There are certainly certain European countries that have higher sports technology adoption rates, but nothing near the US (the UK is close, but the market site is still bigger in the US).
Inversely, there are certain things that do much better in Europe, e-Bikes for example. Whereas in the US I believe there have been 6 sold thus far.
No, as the UK is an EU member state (I know, it’s confusing), even though we don’t use the Euro, you don’t have to pay to ‘import’ from other EU states – it’s supposed to be a single market. In fact, legislation within the EU is gradually making it illegal to charge different prices across the EU. (The mobile network operators, for example, are dragging their feet over international roaming charges, which are being slowly phased out across the union.)
Good points about market adoptions. “I believe there have been 6 sold thus far”. :) How many of those are Al Gore’s? ;)
Thanks for keeping the community informed on all the changes in the power meter market. It has been very helpful, especially since I am unexpectedly in the market for a new power meter.
A quick question on the Pioneer power meter: In your estimation, would the patch type magnets (the type that sticks on chainstay) work on a steel or titanium frame with smaller diameter and rounder chainstays than a carbon frame?
I am thinking of purchasing the Pioneer but not sure how the magnets would work with my titanium frame. Unfortunately, I want to pull the trigger this week due to the very recent demise of my older Powertap so can’t wait until your review in a couple of weeks. I am considering replacing with a new Powertap G3 but the Pioneer system is tempting.
Thanks!
I’m honestly not sure there. I didn’t do the install on this one, given the complexity of it. But I’ll poke around a bit and try and get an answer.
I just did two installs today. One on a titanium frame and one on a carbon. The carbon was able to use the patch style magnets on both sides. I was not able to use the patch style magnets on either side of the Ti frame. The stays were too small/rounded for the patch style magnet to work. If the tape that surrounds the magnet on the patch was more flexible it would be fine, but it has a sort of plastic coating that needs to be flat keep from pulling away from the tube.
Is there any expectation/anticipation that Stages will be following suit at some point? I ride Hollowgram cranks and was looking at the Stages Hollowgram as an option along with the 4iiii (waiting for your more in-depth review after their revisions), but the Power2Max seems like a pretty solid option at only $100 more than the Stages.
I think if I were Stages I’d wait a bit longer. The thing is, the P2M’s that are on for $599 are the Classic FSA Gossamers, so basically just one crank type.
Stages meanwhile sells a boatload of crank varieties. Of course, Stages is left only – so you lose the benefits of the full-capture P2M.
But, Stages has plenty of customers today in the queue, and even the rest of the new left-only units out there – none of them beat it on price yet.
Correct – the price point for an equivalent product at p2m is still $900 (for a Hollowgram crankset) versus $800 for the Stages Hollowgram crank which is what I was looking at comparing.
Besides the main difference of p2m measuring total power and approximating L/R distribution and Stages doubling left-leg, are there really any other major differences that would lean you in one direction over another? I noticed that the p2m seems like you have to send to factory for firmware updates whereas the Stages you can update via Bluetooth on a phone, but is that a significant issue?
From a usage standpoint, I’ve narrowed it down to those 2 being the best fit for me.
Power2max seems less attar active now that a Quarq Riken is available in the UK for £799. A rotor 3d P2M is £850 for comparison.
This is all moving so quickly! So for a SRAM 1×11 MTB drivetrain, it seems that there are only three options: a PowerTap G3 hub/wheel, the Quarq XX1 unit, and the new 4iiii Precision. Am I missing any options that anyone knows of?
If you shop around you can now buy Quarq Riken R PM’s for £729.99 (and Quarq Elsa for less than £800), which now makes it a cheaper option than the P2M (approx £680 plus postage, with no cranks arms). I was planning on P2M but that pricing has changed things. Surely P2M have got to respond to these price drops in the UK/Europe?
Thanks for the update! What ever happened to the Power2Max Dura Ace 9000 version? Wasn’t there supposed to be a four bolt version, that was shown on some of the pro bikes? Did they ever release it? Can’t find it on their website…
Now the lowest price of a direct force power meter is pretty close to that of iBike Newton. Curious whether Velocomp will adjust their prices or not.
Just wondering which one would you recommend? A Quarq elsa rs or a pionner power meter in terms of reliability and ease of use?
They’re both solid, so it’s really more about crank compatibility and the like. Also, if you’re not planning on getting the Pioneer head unit, then I wouldn’t focus on all the fancy Pioneer metrics (since they don’t transmit any of that over regular ANT+).
Pros for Pioneer: Lighter, native DA 9000 crank (I am assuming you are using a Shimano 11 sp group based on the two choices), true dual side measurement.
Cons for Pioneer: Relatively new to the game, do not get all of the features without their clunky head unit, cannot update the PM firmware at this time.
Pros for Elsa RS: Quarq has been around a while now, can update the unit, easier compatibility with GXP/BB30 bikes
Cons for Elsa RS: Calculated L/R (not true L/R), ring spacing is slightly different than DA 9000, Heavier than Pioneer, more expensive than Pioneer
Ray…I got the Pioneer power meter last week & on 3 rides so far, I love it. I can’t wait to hear what you have to say about it in your in-depth review.
I did buy the crank only, and I’m running it to my Edge 510 or 920xt for now. I want to pick up one of their head units to take full advantage of all that it can do, but the price tags are super steep. Any word if Clever Training plans to start carrying them? The DCR discount would take a little bit of the sting out of the price.