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…
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.
-
Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
-
5 Easy Steps To The Site
1
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.
2
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!
3
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.
4
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!
5
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.
Ray I wanted to ask you, in your opinion, is the Garmin body battery, sleep and training effect comparable to whoop if you were to wear a F6 Pro or 745/945 24/7?
You did mention Garmin could come up with a whoop style band which I would love but would need a different UI similar to I guess the Whoop Journal.
I think that only the Fenix 6 PRO and in the BETA phase in the 945 is the new Body Battery with the new sleep measurements, you have to have both if no measurement is correct. And of course the Venu 2 has everything updated and the new sensor but it is somewhat limited in functions compared to the others.
I think if because Whoop I read a lot of people upset because the heart rate sensor is very very inaccurate then if your measurements are wrong everything else is wrong. My suggestion is that you look at Polar, it has orthostatic test, training load PRO, recovery pro and nightly recharge are measurements that are designed to see your recovery and performance.
Would be nice if someone with irregular sleep patterns reviewed Garmin’s new sleep tracking to a Fitbit/Whoop.
If Garmin has managed to sort out it’s sleep tracking, this will make choosing other watch brands over Garmin rather difficult.
Yeah, one of these days I’ll get around to comparing Whoop vs Garmin. Darn thing is still on my wrist…
I’m not sure if irregular sleep patterns means non-nightly sleep (like day sleep), insomnia, or toddlers/babies. I can at least check off the last one.
Thanks, Ray, but maybe wait till you review the 955 as I bet that will be a better comparison!!
Hi Ray,
two questions:
Did you ever find a way or talk with Garmin about sending a new road from the phone to the Edge x30 series while an activity is recorded? For me it is not possible, even if the activity is paused. Sometimes you have to change a ride outdoors and reroute to get somewhere fast or without one of the group bonking and I can’t do this. My brothers wahoos are able to do it.
The other one? Do you have a proper (adjustable) torque wrench? Everytime I see those on your Wall o have to shiver. 😬
No, it’s still pretty modal there unfortunately.
But yup, I do have adjustable torque wrenches, I think one is actually on the wayll there, or maybe I couldn’t hang it there.
Almost all of those were mostly from the Vector 1/2 install days, where you had to have a stupid claw adapter to install the pedals, and those wrenches were the ones that worked best logistically with the size/angle.
Excellent stuff, love it!
Ray,
If you were thinking of buying a new bike computer, but didn’t have to, would buy now or wait till this summer?
I’m not sure. On a pure historics standpoint, Garmin is probably a week or two overdue (two year cycle) for their Edge 530/830 units, but historics are kinda out the window these days. Last year they released the Edge 1030 Plus & Edge 130 Plus in mid-June, so perhaps that’s the new April.
(Previously, April releases were tied to Sea Otter.)
Ray,
Thanks. And so the guessing game continues.
Years ago I went from Garmin to Wahoo Bolt because of Garmin software stability. At that point, Wahoo just worked. Since then I got an Edge 1030, Stages L50, and Karoo 2. Right now, Garmin seems stable in general although I probably use only 25% of the features. Stages has a great screen but updates are really slow. The Karoo 2, so far, has been solid. And they are cranking out significant feature improvements probably twice a month. And I haven’t had any issues at all. Wahoo seems to have lost their way based on forum posts that I have read. Things that used to work perfectly are now broken and unreliable (sensor connections). Feature additions are almost non-existent (people have been asking for light control for years and it still isn’t there, radar took forever). I bought a Roam and returned it because it only had enough map memory for one large state in the US. So, because I live and work in two different states it was a non-starter for me. I am surprisingly impressed by the Karoo 2.
I recently purchased a refurbished Fenix 5s. I’ve done three one hour runs and the battery is down to 33% after two days. That’s terrible compared to my trusty 920xt. I saw that “The Girl” used this watch. Is that typical? That wouldn’t last for even a long hike or half Ironman. Trying to decide if it’s a refurbished issue or if that’s just what it is if I want to have HR.
Her’s doesn’t last as long as it used to, but she’s also been wearing it daily now for 4 years.
However, you shouldn’t have those type of issues with a new, or even factory refrub’d Fenix 5S (as I’m pretty sure the battery gets swapped out).
I’d raise the issue with Garmin support to see if perhaps there’s something askew that can be fixed via software.