With their new Forerunner 945 LTE Garmin brings text, messaging, tracking and emergency alerts to their watches without requiring a phone.
“We are excited to bring LTE connectivity to the Forerunner line with the introduction of the Forerunner 945 LTE,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of worldwide sales. “For years, athletes have been able to leave their phone at home and still receive performance metrics, listen to music and pay for purchases with their Forerunner. Now, they can also access safety and tracking features right from their watch, making it even easier to work out without a phone and without worry.”
This brings Garmin one step closer to the Apple Watch for phone-free exercise. We’ve said the Forerunner is one of the best bike computers you can own, now it’s that much better. For all the official details from Garmin, please follow the link.
For those of us who ride mountain bike pedals ALL THE TIME, the new Garmin Rally XC200 power meters solve a power problem we’ve had for a while: double-sided SPD power with left and right metrics. Here, look at all the specs that Garmin is so proud about:
Rally power meters have undergone rigorous testing to increase reliability. Featuring a superior design with sensors housed inside, these sleek pedals install like any pedal. And they’re quick to transfer between bikes. . . In addition to total power and cadence, Rally XC200 measures much more. These metrics help you identify your strengths and weaknesses, so you can work to improve. . . Measure power from your left leg versus power from your right leg to get a better look at how symmetrically you’re producing power. . . Track the amount of time you spend in each position, and gauge position effectiveness. . . From road to gravel to cyclocross and much more, keep riding year-round with a transferable spindle that can be installed in the Rally™ RS/Rally RK road pedal body kits (each sold separately).
The pedals are for sale (in limited quantity) on the Garmin site right now and will only set you back $1,199 at the most (or $699 for one side). The pedals come in Shimano SPD, Look KEO, and Shimano SPD SL flavors and the pedals (can be swapped on the spindles). They really have thought of everything. (Pedal tops sold separately.)
Garmin’s Varia rearview radar was a bit of a problem for people who use their phones as their cycling computers, but thanks to Garmin’s new Varia app (and the updated RVR315 and RTL515), those days are over. Now, cyclists can pair the Varia to their phone and roll out — no Garmin head-unit required. And if they use Ride with GPS it will integrate. Sadly, Garmin’s Varia app does not work with Strava. Ouch.
“Our previous generation rearview radar with tail light quickly became a staple for cyclists around the world, providing peace of mind during any ride, day or night,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of worldwide sales. “With the new RVR315, RTL515 and Varia app, we’re bringing those state-of-the-art safety features to even more riders, helping to ease some of the anxiety they can experience when on the road.”
For all the details, including images and prices, please follow the jump, or click here for DC Rainmaker’s complete review.
Each time we want to use our GoPro the battery is dead. This single hurdle has ruined so many of our action capture missions that we’ve pretty much given up on taking a GoPro anywhere. Everyone else, on the other hand, seems to love these action cameras so here’s the latest: the GoPro Hero 8. With each GoPro product launch we hope the company will release a camera we can depend on day in and day out — one with a battery that can survive a couple days in a gear bag before being used. Who knows, maybe the Hero 8 is the one.
Garmin is bringing 4G LTE to the wrist with the all new vívoactive 3 Music – connected by Verizon . This new version of the vívoactive GPS smartwatch gives users a 24-7 connection to text messages, music downloads, and “incident detection” without having a phone along. As if that’s not all, the watch features five day battery life, Garmin Pay, and can be worn swimming or in the shower. Here’s how they’re pitching it:
“The vívoactive 3 Music with 4G LTE connectivity gives you everything you need from your phone – safety features, text messaging and the ability to download and listen to music – now on your watch, so customers can leave their phones behind with confidence,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of global consumer sales. “Designed for customers who lead an active lifestyle, we’re excited to introduce these new safety and communication features to the Verizon-connected vívoactive 3 Music to give added peace of mind on the go, so leaving your phone at home can be a choice instead of a cause for panic.”
We’re kind of hoping they bring this same functionality to the Edge 520. How epic would that be? Fingers crossed. For the official word from Garmin, please follow the jump.
Dirt jumping wizard Brandon Semenuk has joined the Bonx team. What is Bonx? We wondered the same thing. It’s apparently a Bluetooth earpiece that “enables cellular network-based group communication with up to 10 users anywhere in the world.” Kind of like an always-on conference call of rad, apparently.
“I’m so grateful to have this opportunity to work with BONX,” says Semenuk. “To be a part of an innovative outdoor tech brand is awesome. The BONX products will be a valuable asset for my endeavors in both mountain biking and rally. It’s also a great crew, and I’m excited to explore the possibilities with the product.”
For the official word from Bonx, please follow the jump.
The battle for your active wrist heated up a little today as Suunto announced that they’ve added a barometer to their Spartan Sport Wrist HR GPS multisport watch. The Spartan Sport, which competes directly with Garmin’s fenix line of watches, also got a battery life bump. We’d still choose the fenix given the choice, however it’s good to see that Suunto hasn’t given up the fight yet. For cyclists who’ve had enough of Garmin this watch is a good choice. For the official word from Suunto (including all the details) please follow the jump. [click to continue…]
iShoxs, the German manufacturer of seriously burly looking action cam mounts and accessories is brining their products to the USA and will begin shipping product this month (June 2017).
iShoxs high-end mounts are designed to clamp, stick or latch onto all different types of outdoor gear and endure the extreme conditions outdoor athletes can encounter on a daily basis. All iShoxs components and accessories are designed to integrate with one another, allowing users to mount any POV camera in different configurations to create unique perspectives and standout footage.
For the official word from iShoxs, please follow the jump, or click here for their website.
Now, your Garmin GPS cycling watch can to more than just log milage, count steps, and answer your phone. Coupled with Samsung’s SmartThings enabled devices and an app, your Connect IQ compatible Garmin Forerunner 935 could unlock your front door, turn on your lights, even get your coffee started. . . interesting, huh? For more on the app, click the link.
For 2017 Garmin and turned up their team sponsorship and now officially sponsors five world tour teams and four mountain biking teams. Which teams exactly? Here you go: Cannondale-Drapac Pro, Movistar, Astana Pro Team, FDJ Pro Team and Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka. On the mountain bike side they’ve got Trek Factory Racing, CLIF Pro Team, CUBE Action Team, and Scott-SRAM.
“Garmin started sponsoring professional cycling teams nearly a decade ago, and we are excited to continue our commitment to the sport,” said Jon Cassat, Garmin vice president of communications. “As a leader in cycling technology, we are proud to provide the teams with top- of-the-line products – from GPS bike computers to cycling awareness accessories and multisport GPS watches – for training, racing and adventure in between.”
Garmin will be outfitting the teams with Edge cycling computers, Varia radar-equipped tail lights, plus Forerunner and Fenix GPS smartwatches all around. Kind of makes us want to get on a world pro team, you know, for the smart watches. . . right?
For the official word from Garmin, please follow the jump.