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Week in Review–Feb 19th, 2017

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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!

DCRainmaker.com posts in the past week:

Here’s all the goodness that ended up on the main page of DCRainmaker.com this past week:

Sunday: Week in Review–February 12th, 2017
Tuesday: Apple Watch Series 2 and Nike+ Edition: Sport & Fitness In-Depth Review
Friday: 4iiii Precision Pro Dual Left/Right Power Meter In-Depth Review

DCR Podcast!

Here’s a handful of the topics discussed in this past week’s podcast:

– It’s a 43-minute long episode!
– Posting schedules and posting regularity
– Upcoming products I’m unboxing and how I do photos/videos of them
– Fashion models mid-podcast
– The whole (business) world of unboxing videos online
– The Apple Watch Review
– Getting back someone’s stolen HR strap
– Power meters for single chainrings
– The DCR Analyzer is out!
– We end with about 10 minutes of hilarity from a conversation of ours recorded pre-podcast

Listen to the full podcast here on the Podcast player, or just download the audio file from the same spot.

February Sports Tech Sale Continue:

In case ya missed it a week or so ago (details here), here’s the list of active sports tech deals going on over the next week or so.  One new one found this week is the Polar M450 GPS cycling unit for $129.  That’s a sweet deal!  Apparently, it had flirted sub-$110 a bit over the last few days too.  Just some random Amazon.com thing.

ProductSale PriceAmazonOther siteSale Notes
Apple Watch Series 10 - $50 off
$399/$499 (cellular)
$349
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Black Titanium - $75 off$725This is a nice little deal for this unit which just came out.
Fitbit Ace LTE Kids Activity Smartwatch - 22% off$179This was just announced this summer, and is their first full smartwatch focused on kids activity tracking and gamification.
Fitbit Charge 6 - 38% off!
$159
$99This 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 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 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 Epix Sapphire/Titanium (Gen 2) - $400+ off!$449⚡⚡⚡ This is a crazy super strong deal. Note the Epix received all of the software updates of the Epix Pro. While we saw a slightly better deal at $399 for a day back in October, this is otherwise the lowest price we've seen it sustained at.
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 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 955 - $100ish off!$399This 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 - $50 off!$499This 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 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 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).
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 - $60 OFF!$399This 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!
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 - $60 off!$199This 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!
Tacx Flux 2 Smart Trainer - $200ish off
$899
$499I 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.
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.

And of course, using any of the links above helps support the site.  Enjoy!

YouTube Videos I Published:

Here’s some YouTube goodness that I published this past week:

Stuff that 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.

1) How Science Works – Techniques and Challenges of Doping Control: An interesting look behind the data and science of how dopers get caught, and how labs go about testing.

2) Outdoor Retailer set to leave Salt Lake City: While OR has historically flirted with such temptations in order to get better deals, this seems like a much more permanent thing – in large part because it’s more the key exhibitors rather than the organizer itself.

3) Bike computer meets action cam meets lights: Basically, everything but the kitchen sink.  DCR reader Gunnar asks ‘What do you think?’: So…while their main site is a dearth of information, I did find one YouTube video they shot which actually shows some promise in terms of being more functional than their site lets on.  So that’s good.  It’s an interesting concept for city bikes, though would be too beastly for most race/road bikes.  However, their use of Indiegogo instead of Kickstarter is a huge red flag.

4) The SHEcret Pro: On Australia’s Summer of Cycling. For those not familiar, this is the women’s version of the famed ‘The Secret Pro’ series. Always interesting.

5) Sports Tech Jobs: Notable this week is Saris (of PowerTap/CycleOps) is looking for a few different folks.

6) Garmin Connect ‘Import’ Option Missing? At first, you might think so. But in reality it was just moved to the big “+” icon in the upper right corner.  Hard to know if it was UI cleanup, or designed to break 3rd party apps leveraging it for various uploads.  Either way…at least it’s still there thankfully.  Almost had to pull out my ‘Watch what happens when DCR gets really pissed off!’ card late last week over it.  It’s a feature I often use, because I don’t necessarily link all of my Garmin devices to Garmin Connect automatically (mostly because I hit the max allowable), so this allows me to manually upload files to share on occasion.

7) I’ve got no more items. My ‘Notepad’ list of items for the week was wiped out last night when my computer decided to restart.  And no, I didn’t press save.  Sorry!

Sports Technology Software/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 firmware updates.

CycleOps Magnus Trainer Firmware: This came out a week or two ago, but I forgot about it.

CycleOps Hammer Trainer Firmware: Same as Magnus – definitely worthwhile if you’ve got either

CycleOps/PowerTap Virtual Training App: While I don’t normally include apps here, this is specifically notable because of the changes to displaying PowerTap P1 advanced metrics.

Garmin Fenix Chronos BETA firmware update: This continues to include updates for the Fenix5 series into the Garmin Chronos series.  Again, this is a BETA firmware.

Polar Loop 2 Firmware Update: Minor bug fixes and phone compatibility fixes.

Wahoo Fitness ELEMNT Firmware Update: Increase in data fields per page, change in fonts, few other items.

Thanks for reading!

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46 Comments

  1. Sam

    Still using windows I see ;-)

  2. TR

    > when my computer decided to restart.

    Sounds like the lovely new Windows update policies. ?

  3. Timothy F.

    I noticed on the bike computer video they never showed the screen other than a lock bike screen. So I would say its safe to assume at this point all they have is a box with two lights and a horn.

  4. MAGNUS

    I was going crazy trying to figure out how to manually upload a file… I was checking the GC Status page, forums, etc… Took a while but eventually found it in the giant “+” button.

    Also, where’s the gimbal review?

  5. Stephen M.

    Google Sheets/Docs/Slides/Keep!

    Never click save again!

  6. gm

    WRT Garmin, the most frustrating thing is trying to load a course onto a device. The only way I’ve found is to import this as an activity, then save as a course (and then delete the activity, hopefully before it syncs to Strava).

    They could’ve added intention actions on Android/iOS to open them in Garmin Connect and then sync to a device, instead – a huge mess.

    • Yup, 110% agree.

      It’s funny that when the Fenix series first came out (what, like 4+ years ago?), I noted at the time that the whole route/course creation process was far too dependent on a desktop computer, you couldn’t just create a Garmin Connect route on the mobile app and push it to the watch.

      Ironically, then they had/released a standalone app to do roughly just that, except…not in Garmin Connect. That app eventually died as opposed to integrating it in.

      And now here we are in 2017 with the new Fenix5 and mind-bogglingly still no way to quickly create a route via mobile phone in Garmin Connect and then transfer it easily to the watch.

    • loshko

      You could use dwatch, – though it’s 3rd party

    • Freek

      When making a course I usually create it on an iPad using the Garmin connect webpage (saving often), then go to the garmin connect app on my phone just to send it to my phone.
      It’s not hard but a little weird. Also that there is no garmin app for the iPad.

  7. Peter

    I had an update come through on Saturday for my Wahoo Elemnt. From what I can see the fonts have changed on the screen with the addition of a symbol above the speed indicating whether the current speed is above or below the average for the ride (not that useful really). Not sure if much else has changed.

    • Ahh, good catch. Looks like the update notification went into my ‘Clutter’ folder. Grrr…

      Details here: link to support.wahoofitness.com

    • Dan Kothlow

      The triangle symbol used to act as a decimal point in the speed field, as part of the data itself. Take a look at some of the marketing screenshots, and you’ll see it in the data field itself. Now it’s moved to the label. IMO, it’s less useful there, I look at data when I’m riding, not labels.

      Also, the full width 4th data field is now gone, with the addition of the 11th data field. Some liked the full width 4th data field, some didn’t. I guess the “didn’t” were more vocal to Wahoo. I think that it was something that made the ELEMNT distinctive, at least visually. Now, it looks more like the others.

      If you want to be different, you have to be different.

    • I honestly just wish I could have a static layout, period.

  8. PeterF

    Is Garmin’s import of Fitbit data working for anyone? It accepts my files (after some editing, ie removing the “body” or “activity” line from the CSV), but the data does not show in the Connect dashboard.

  9. Fabrizio

    Hi Ray, there’s also a Bepro firmware update:
    link to bepro-favero.com

  10. rodrigo link

    Adidas killing miCoach to focus on Runtastic?

  11. Phil

    With Tapiriik I’m not able to synch activities anymore from strava to Garmin Connect… in tapiriik dashboard it says is synched but it’s not in my GC activity page.
    is it so also for someone else? :-(

    thanks

    • vince Cammarata

      Same here. Stuck on TrainerRoad workout, and now the server is offline. Just reupped my yearly subscription. Bummer

    • Yeah, it’s likely due to the Garmin re-positioning of that button that’s killing those apps. They’re likely using that behind the scenes up fake an upload of data to your account. Garmin *really* hates it, but I have zero sympathy for them there. They’ve had years to implement an API for uploading files from other platforms, and keep stalling at every turn for reasons that defy any logic. It’s all about the platform.

      What’s funny about it is that someone thinks it’s bad to allow other devices to upload to their platform. In reality, it’s the best marketing thing ever. Just think about it: What company wouldn’t love to have a ready-made database of all of their competitors customers? In this scenario, when a Wahoo customer (for example) uploads an ELEMNT file to Garmin Connect, it’s telling Garmin that the customer is on the ELEMNT. So why not display subtlety targeted ads about how your product is better than the competition (if it is)? It may also tell Garmin that the customer is on the ELEMTN for cycling, but uses three other Garmin products for running, action cams, and hiking. Maybe there’s a reason for that? Maybe they’d trend the data and see that the customer is spending more or less time with the Garmin product vs their competitor, and maybe they’d proactively try to understand if it’s a meaningful trend.

      The ‘cost’ of hosting those files is laughable, because the numbers are just so small. It’s likely a few bucks in storage costs at most at the end of the month (in total). But heck, let’s for fun pretend it was something totally fake and unreal like $30K a month for all customers (it’s not, really, it’s not). That’s nothing for a company of Garmin’s size to spend on marketing or an ad buy. By enabling data uploads for competitors, they not only get to ensure the right audience sees the ‘ads’ (or promos or whatever you want to call them), but heck, they know all sorts of useful information about that customer.

      Sigh…it’s an argument I have every time I chat with them in person.

    • Eli

      Seems like there isn’t much effort in general to use the data or everyone uploading to figure things out besides some of the stuff strava does.

    • Eli

      Thinking the algorithms that golden cheetah, training peaks, etc use the figure out fatigue from wattage

  12. Reed

    I am curious why you think that the use of indiegogo is a red flag?

  13. Todd

    I also noticed that the Garmin Import had moved.

    Is there somewhere that Garmin announces these kinds of changes, or do they just leave us to figure it out? It is interesting how much new information I get about exercise tech from DCR rather than the companies that produce the product.

    • No announcement method I’m aware of. They have a Garmin blog, but it’s rarely used for stuff like this. More just random PR announcements and occasional Garmin Connect IQ stuff.

      I found out the hard way when it disappeared. Then I got increda-angry. Then I did some digging on the Garmin Forums and found said solution. Then I was happy again.

    • Todd

      I wasn’t angry, just confused. I found it by accident before reading your blog, but find it interesting how much better you are at distribution of news of their changes than they are.

    • Chris

      Big thanks for the hint…. I nearly got crazy finding the Upload-Button !!!

  14. Lee

    Hi ray. When is the definitive review of the tom tom runner 3 coming out. Waiting on your review befor I take the plunge and buy one

    • Working on it!

      Overall, it’s a nice little unit. Though basically it’s just a Spark 1 with a few minor tweaks, so if you generally like the look of that review, then this will likely check the boxes. Since that initial review though there has been changes/adds like the daily RHR readings.

  15. Alex

    There was a firmware update for the KICKR released on 3rd Feb 2017 which I can’t see listed anywhere in your week in review posts.

    I applied it to my Gen 1 KICKR and found that it no longer broadcast power/cadence information on ANT+ or BLE. I had to roll the firmware back to 1.4.26 to get it working again. Not sure if you know anything about what happened there? Should this only be applied to Gen 2?

    • This one? link to support.wahoofitness.com

      It should definitely be Gen1. I haven’t heard anyone else note that issue. Maybe try applying it again – and then fully restart the unit if you didn’t (power off)?

      Good catch on missing that one. I had some of the Wahoo firmware alerts end up in the wrong e-mail folder, so missed them unfortunately.

    • Alex

      Yes. That’s the one.

      Interesting. I certainly did restart it (pulled power out). And then tried to find it again using the Wahoo utility app on my phone and then ANT+ on my laptop with TrainerRoad.

      I guess I’ll try it again at some point and see if I have better luck!

  16. Scott

    As for deals, I’m seeing the Powertap GS hub at $299 on their site. Is that a fire sale or what? Being discontinued, or nobody wants straight pull spokes?

    • It’s been that way quite some time.

      Basically there’s a few reasons:

      A) You’ve got the cost to thread it onto a wheel, which will cost you at least $100-$150 at most LBS
      B) It doesn’t support the new G3 BLE or dual ANT+/BLE caps, so also a bit limiting there.

      Still, ignoring those issues – if you can get it threaded cheaply, it’s a fantastic deal if you’re on ANT+ (i.e. Garmin).

    • Scott

      yeah, I seen now that it’s been a few months. The specs say it is dual ANT+ & BT smart and I figured it would be good-to-go for connecting w/ my Polar V800, so I assumed it would work. Am I wrong/ in for a nasty surprise?
      no better way to pass the time when the snow flies than to lace up some wheels!

    • Huh. Weird, I wasn’t aware of them making a dual capable GS. I’d want to double-check that with them.

  17. Eli

    New trainer on kickstart? link to kickstarter.com
    (or maybe I missed your post)
    But something seems wrong with the design as the flywheel is tiny and other things seem off

  18. Phil A

    You should give Onenote a try for your notepad docs. It syncs to OneDrive and can be used across all your devices (Windows/Android/Apple), so that no matter where you are you can add something to it.

    • Oh – I love Onenote (after all I worked for Microsoft for more than a dozen years). For me, I like Notepad as it’s the great equalizer of things like fonts/text size/etc… It’s also instant.