Heads up! Here’s your massive list of sports tech deals! This includes the Garmin Forerunner 965 for just $499, Garmin Epix for $449, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Black Titanium for $735, the GoPro Hero 12 Black for $299, and plenty more! Go check out the full list here!
I’m DC RAINMAKER…
I swim, bike and run. Then, I come here and write about my adventures. It’s as simple as that. Most of the time. If you’re new around these parts, here’s the long version of my story.
You'll support the site, and get ad-free DCR! Plus, you'll be more awesome. Click above for all the details. Oh, and you can sign-up for the newsletter here!
Here’s how to save!
Wanna save some cash and support the site? These companies help support the site! With Backcountry.com or Competitive Cyclist with either the coupon code DCRAINMAKER for first time users saving 15% on applicable products.
You can also pick-up tons of gear at REI via these links, which is a long-time supporter as well:Alternatively, for everything else on the planet, simply buy your goods from Amazon via the link below and I get a tiny bit back as an Amazon Associate. No cost to you, easy as pie!
You can use the above link for any Amazon country and it (should) automatically redirect to your local Amazon site.Want to compare the features of each product, down to the nitty-gritty? No problem, the product comparison data is constantly updated with new products and new features added to old products!
Wanna create comparison chart graphs just like I do for GPS, heart rate, power meters and more? No problem, here's the platform I use - you can too!
Think my written reviews are deep? You should check out my videos. I take things to a whole new level of interactive depth!
Smart Trainers Buyers Guide: Looking at a smart trainer this winter? I cover all the units to buy (and avoid) for indoor training. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
-
Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
Get all your awesome DC Rainmaker gear here!
FAQ’s
I have built an extensive list of my most frequently asked questions. Below are the most popular.
- Do you have a privacy policy posted?
- Why haven’t you yet released a review for XYZ product you mentioned months ago?
- Will you test our product before release?
- Are you willing to review or test beta products?
- Which trainer should I buy?
- Which GPS watch should I buy?
- I’m headed to Paris – what do you recommend for training or sightseeing?
- I’m headed to Washington DC – what do you recommend for training?
- I’m from out of the country and will be visiting the US, what’s the best triathlon shop in city XYZ?
- What kind of camera do you use?
-
5 Easy Steps To The Site
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.
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!
Have some fun in the travel section.
I travel a fair bit, both for work and for fun. Here’s a bunch of random trip reports and daily trip-logs that I’ve put together and posted. I’ve sorted it all by world geography, in an attempt to make it easy to figure out where I’ve been.
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!
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 2023 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.
I also just started getting turn notifications on my F3 when navigating a course created in Garmin Connect. I assume that also came with the new firmware.
Nope. That’s a change in Garmin Connect support for sending turn notifications to the F3 as part of the course, which has been supported for ages on other devices. The watch itself has supported doing this since it was first released.
Does this also work with the 920XT?
This has been a total pain in the past, having to use this party sites then convert to tcx.
Ray – a summary post about this could go down well?
I’ve just read the Brim Brothers article, it will be intersting to see if the Look (?) sole plate meter suffers the same issue. Perhaps because it looks to fix to the heel as well, and is aimed at their own shoes, it will not suffer the same problems. Although the article did say peddling style had an effect.
I just read it too. Certainly tough for Barry Redmond (as well as the backers), looks like he really tried to make it work. It seems to me though, that given the two pieces at the sole of the foot, the shoe is not solid or fixed, where as the pedal is. Why, then, would you put your strain gauge on the shoe? It really almost seems to be a case of, gee, where else can we put a power meter, just to be different. It also may seem more convenient, but, really, how hard is it to change your pedals?
Yeah, will be interesting to see on Luck. As I noted earlier this fall, I think they’re far away from actual delivery of accuracy product. Albeit that’s without getting to ride it, but just a gut feel.
That said, one tiny (but really important potentially) element that Luck has going for it would be that they control the shoe material, the very piece that Barry couldn’t control. Whether or not that makes a difference in the end for them, I’ve got no idea.
Ray, wondering if you saw this Kickstarter campaign? Caught it on BikeRumor this morning. I know bike computer mounts aren’t incredibly sexy things to talk about, but this one seems interesting.
link to kickstarter.com
Groupon also has the Garmin 230 for $199 or with a HR strap for $249
Ray, I was JUST commenting to a friend this past weekend about “whatever happened to Timex in the GPS market?” It seems like they just completely stopped manufacturing them. Is this true? I always had good luck with their devices.
I’m pretty sure it’s true. I’m not aware of any active production/etc going on. Some folks have also received notice of some sort of service closures planned for certain units, but I haven’t looked into it closely yet.
For next week? Maybe to good to be treu??
link to arofly.com
One other interesting thing that happened last week was that Cyclops Magnus started to ship. I see its now available from Cyclops site and from Amazon.com.
The upgrade to Edge 520 software version 9.10 has bricked my device! Totally unresponsive. Watch out!
Just to report that I managed to reset the Edge 520 and then proceeded with version 9.1 upgrade. I ignore why it got hung in the first time but now the unit is OK again.
Will you be doing a Radar Pace review soon?
I have a unit on the way to me.