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.
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Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
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5 Easy Steps To The Site
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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.
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.
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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 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.
Tag Archives: O-Synce Remote
O-Synce introduces new Bluetooth Smart accessories/displays, other cool functionality in software for power meter users
Here’s a look at O-Synce new products, and changes that better support power meter users. Read More Here
O-Synce Navi2Coach GPS Cycling Computer In-Depth Review
The Navi2Coach cycling computer may very well be one of the first GPS-enabled bike computers that aims to compete against every aspect of the Garmin Edge 500, from customization of data fields to advanced training metrics. But can this first-time entrant into the market really compete against a player as big as Garmin? And how does it hold up to months of testing? Well, I set out to find out. Back in January a unit arrived on my doorstep and I’ve been banging away on it since (hence why it may look a touch bit ‘loved’ in the photos).
Because I want to be transparent about my reviews – O-Synce sent me the Navi2Coach GPS bicycling computer to try out. Once I’m complete here, I’ll send this back to Germany and then go out and buy my own (to be able to support y’all in the comments section down the road). Simple as that. Sorta like hiking in wilderness trails – leave only footprints. If you find my review useful, you can use any of the Amazon or Clever Training links from this page to help support future reviews.
Lastly, at the end of the day keep in mind I’m just like any other regular triathlete out there. I write these reviews because I’m inherently a curious person with a technology background (my day job), and thus I try and be as complete as I can. But, if I’ve missed something or if you spot something that doesn’t quite jive – just let me know and I’ll be happy to get it all sorted out. Also, because the technology world constantly changes, I try and go back and update these reviews as new features and functionality are added – or if bugs are fixed.
So – with that intro, let’s get into things.
Unboxing:
The unit is displayed inside a see-through box, meaning that you can validate you’ve got the right thing before you tear it open. By the way, this is a good time to note that O-Synce is pronounced “O-Science”. I figure that the pronunciation for Navi2Coach is fairly self-explanatory.
Inside you’ll find the upper level has the unit, and the lower level hides all the mount brackets, cables and other accessories.
Here’s everything all sorted out once you’ve got the box moved out of the way:
And then here’s the parts post plastic baggie kidnapping:
I’ll quickly walk through everything. First is the manual, of particular note is the mount setup. While the whole thing may be obvious after reading this post, I assure you that upon opening it up the first time you’ll be confused. If nothing else, read the manual to figure out the mount.
Then we’ve got the micro-USB cable. Basically the same as most phone chargers these days:
Next up is the battery (yup, it’s both rechargeable and end-user swappable), as well as half of the mount stuff. The other half of the mount stuff came on the unit itself.
A closer look at the battery:
Here’s the unit itself. You’ll notice it came on one of the two provided mounts, sorta pre-assembled.
Flipping it over you can see how the mount would attach to one’s handlebars and provide a fairly stable platform. Additionally, you can see the charging/download port towards the top.
To access/install the battery you’ll simply remove the lower gray section and stick the battery inside from the bottom.
With that, everything is ready to start toying with. I’ll come back to the mount situation in a short bit, after we size things up a bit.
Size Comparisons:
Bike units are a bit more difficult to put on a rolling pin than typical watches are. Mostly because they don’t have watch bands. So, I just nudge them up against it all in a row – roughly from largest to smallest. Sometimes it’s tricky, for example with the O-Synce where it’s taller than the Joule GPS, but skinnier. Otherwise, it’s fairly self-explanatory. In general, it’s smaller than the Garmin Edge 510, but larger than the Edge 500.
Above from left to right: Garmin Edge 810/800, Edge 510, CycleOps Joule GPS, O-Synce Navi2Coach [this review], CycleOps Joule, Garmin Edge 200/500, Timex Cycle Trainer 2.0, Bryton Rider 21, and Magellan Switch Up.