Viewing 36 posts - 1 through 36 (of 36 total)
  • Phone or GPS device for recording rides. (Strava content)
  • 06awjudd
    Free Member

    Hi all,

    I am well aware there have been some pretty similar threads recently, but having trawled through them, I am still confused and pretty much none the wiser, so thanks for any help!

    I’m looking for a basic GPS recorder, that I can mount to my handlebar or stem (renthal duo – doesn’t exactly look stem friendly! ) , or chuck in my rucksack pocket. I’ll be using it to record rides, and then upload to Strava when I get home and I’d quite like a per second sampling rate (what is the sampling rate of a basic android phone, out of interest?).
    I’d quite like it to have a decent battery life, and cost less than £100, but the cheaper the better.

    So the question is, do I opt for a GPS device such a Garmin (I was looking at the Edge 200, but it only has a 4 second sampling rate), or a cheap android phone like a Motorola Defy Mini, or something else (it would be used as a my normal phone too)?

    Thanks so much for any help!

    Oh yeah, bonus props for answering this : If I ride a strava segment twice in the same ride, which one does it show?

    clubber
    Free Member

    do you need to stem or bar mount it if Strava is your main thing?

    your normal phone (assuming of course that you have a smart phone) in your pocket or camelbak will do the job perfectly well unless you’re a pro.

    06awjudd
    Free Member

    do you need to stem or bar mount it if Strava is your main thing?

    no, I don’t really 🙂

    (assuming of course that you have a smart phone)

    haha, no I have a nokia indestructo brick – it does have snake II though 😉

    06awjudd
    Free Member

    so, this begs the question what cheap smart phone for strava and general use?

    timmys
    Full Member

    Get a second hand Garmin Edge 205 or 305. Per second sampling and the design looks much more at home on a mountain bike than any of the models released since.

    In answer to the two segment question it shows your whole ride so will show both segments (obviously the faster time is the one that will count for the leader board).

    06awjudd
    Free Member

    Get a second hand Garmin Edge 205 or 305. Per second sampling and the design looks much more at home on a mountain bike than any of the models released since.

    So the older Garmin Edge 205, has per second sampling, yet the newer 200 doesn’t……. weird

    timmys
    Full Member

    So the older Garmin Edge 205, has per second sampling, yet the newer 200 doesn’t……. weird

    Yep, they also reduced the navigation capabilities drastically on the newer low end models.

    There is one caveat to the per second sampling – it can only do a max of 3.5hr (due to the space required to store all the points). In real life I’ve found the smart-recording option fine for Strava – certainly better than using a phone. Probably worth using the per second recording if you are dealing with very short segments though.

    iBaa
    Free Member

    Oh yeah, bonus props for answering this : If I ride a strava segment twice in the same ride, which one does it show?

    It will show your whole ride with you completing the segment twice.

    johnnystorm
    Full Member

    Garmin Edge 200 lasts 15+ hours, can display a navigation route, has a peerless mount, is weatherproof, rugged and weighs bugger all. I don’t regret moving over to one from my iphone at all. Personally the sampling rate doesn’t bother me, Strava is just for laughs, right?

    06awjudd
    Free Member

    Strava is just for laughs, right?

    haha…..yeah….haha 😕

    Yeah, a GPS device seems more sensible, because of the battery length, and size. 3.5 hours would almost definitely not be enough, and I do need the per second sampling rate as my local trails are pretty short and twisty, and I want a accurate time, not that I’m competitive or anything 😆

    So Garmin 205 not enough memory
    Garmin 200 not fast enough sampling
    anything else? Something non-Garmin?
    If not, sounds like I will have to cope with a cheap android phone – any recommendations ?(I cannot deal with iPhones, having fixed them for college money,and had a few myself I really cannot stand the bloody things.)

    06awjudd
    Free Member

    It will show your whole ride with you completing the segment twice.

    ah right, thank you

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    Android phone with Oruxmaps, think default is per second sampling but can also be set to that. Only issue with that is it helps drain the battery quicker (saying that, I’ve had 6 hours running Oruxmaps and I had 50% battery left. You then set it to email the .gpx file to Strava once you are done.

    Dedicated gps is also very good, generally better gps ability, but less function I.e. you need to get the track from device to online. Also then relies on another device to cart around.

    I’ve been gps’ing with a phone for about 4 years now…but I’ve gone to a dedicated unit as it seems to be more accurate (the lines are more squiggly) and if I am out all day/night, my phone has a better chance of still having a charge in it.

    06awjudd
    Free Member

    and if I am out all day/night, my phone has a better chance of still having a charge in it.

    Wow, surprising. I’ll have a look at a few phones then, I like the idea of Oruxmaps, because you can create routes etc. on it I think?!

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    I don’t Strav, but I do use my iPhone to record routes on Endomondo and use ViewRanger or BikeHub for navigation.

    My experience is that smartphones are perfectly fine for most use.

    Yes they are not (all) rugged or waterproof, but my case is, and it mounts on my bars and leaves the phone usable.

    Yes the battery won’t last for long rides (e.g. 5 hours+) – especially if you leave the screen on – but I just add an external battery for that.

    Yes the tracking isn’t always perfect (especially altitude as there is no barometer) but it is good enough.

    On the flipside some benefits are:
    – large variety of apps and mapping available;
    – connectivity (providing live tracking en-route and instant upload when you finish without faffing about transferring files);
    – lighter! (assuming you’d be taking your phone with you anyway even if you had a separate GPS)

    06awjudd
    Free Member

    I don’t Strav, but I do use my iPhone to record routes on Endomondo and use ViewRanger or BikeHub for navigation.

    Yeah, I think it would be more practical, and cheaper to get a cheap smartphone.
    Looking at a Nokia Lumia 510 – anybody used this? or something better in a similar price range?

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    Phone is a completely viable solution for this…to be honest, I reckon it is a better solution than a dedicated GPS. The only real drawback I can see with it is the battery life can be killed if you do live tracking or use the proprietary apps (Strava/Endomondo, etc. they all seem to suck the battery). If the phone is in a sealed bag or case then it can withstand the wet…

    Oruxmaps can be used to create maps (best doing it via wifi though!)…it can do a huge wealth of stuff, but I have it set to track my ride, screen is switched off (which also helps saves battery) and I generally don’t refer to it until I finish the ride…I accept this will definitely help conserve battery power.

    dannybgoode
    Full Member

    Does it need a display – I have one of these as back up

    http://www.maplin.co.uk/gps-travel-tracker-227620 (showing out of stock but they have others similar).

    Having done a bit of research it looks like it may speak to Stava (records in .gpx).

    I don’t use Strava though so can’t be sure.

    Cheers

    Danny B

    mrmo
    Free Member

    i have an iphone 4s, went out for a bimble a couple of weeks back, the phone recorded 9hours on strava, which would have been ok if the ride wasn’t 9:30 hours long!

    HoratioHufnagel
    Free Member

    I’ve tried the phone thing and didn’t get on with it, personally, i’d just get one of these…
    http://www.handtec.co.uk/garmin-edge-200.html

    spev
    Full Member

    I’ve got one of these http://www.holux-uk.co.uk/holux-gpsport-260.php?it=215
    Its got an altimter and can record at 1 second intervals
    Its got some quirks but it means my phone battery lasts much longer

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    the phone recorded 9hours on strava, which would have been ok if the ride wasn’t 9:30 hours long!

    Set to only record moving time? Or do you mean it just ran out of battery?
    9 hours is a long time to expect a phone to last for. Add a little battery pack and it’ll do at least twice that.

    bartimaeus
    Free Member

    I have an iGotU 120 – I think you can still get them and they were about £40. It’s a logger – one button for ON and OFF, a couple of lights to let you know its on and found satellites…. and that’s it.

    Turn it on 2 mins before you leave – check its found a lock then stick it in your pack and go. When you get home connect to a computer via PC – use the downloadable @Trip to get your ride, export to GPX and upload to Strava.

    It’s a quality GPS (better than a phone) and you can adjust the logging – mine is set to a fix a second when above 10kph and once every 3 seconds when slower… and on Saturday it logged a >12 hour epic on the SDW, so the battery lasts at least 12 hours from full.

    EDIT: can only see them on eBay now

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    When you get home connect to a computer via PC – use the downloadable @Trip to get your ride, export to GPX and upload to Strava.

    That’s the main reason I like the smartphone solution: that becomes “when you get home press stop then go get a cup of tea, because the app has already uploaded the track for you”

    chiefgrooveguru
    Full Member

    Yeah, a GPS device seems more sensible, because of the battery length, and size. 3.5 hours would almost definitely not be enough, and I do need the per second sampling rate as my local trails are pretty short and twisty, and I want a accurate time, not that I’m competitive or anything

    I’ve tried my Garmin on per second (which is too short for most of my rides) and smart sampling. Little advantage to the former – smart sampling on a Garmin is way more accurate than a smartphone app. Tomorrow I’m thinking of running Garmin and iPhone in parallel and seeing how they compare. Incidentally, I’ve been replacing quite a few local segments with more accurate ones – best done using GPS records from slow (more points sampled) muddy winter rides when there’s less leaf cover overhead (better GPS tracking).

    lightman
    Free Member

    You should have a look at the Bryton Rider range, <some second hand ones on ebay.
    I managed somehow to get a second hand Rider 50 for £75 🙂
    You download your ride to the Bryton site and then save the TCX file (from your ride) onto you computer and then you upload it to Strava.

    Im happy enough with mine and it is really straight forward to use.

    Bryton web site.

    DickBarton
    Full Member

    I’m now using a Bryton Rider 35 with hrm…the hrm is far more accurate than my bluetooth hrm and smartphone were. ic you don’t need hrm then smartphone is grand. the Rider 50 does mapping but I don’t need that (getting ‘lost’ is part of ghe game!)…

    paulosoxo
    Free Member

    GrahamS

    What external battery pack do you use?

    paulosoxo
    Free Member

    Hello!?!

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    paul: I’ve got two but they are nothing particularly special – just simple external packs that charge from mini-USB and provide power on USB.

    I have two:

    this Kensington one which came with a little bag, charger + adapters for different EU plugs. No idea what capacity it is.

    And an Anycan PowerBank which, according to the label on the back, is 3000mAh, 88g, and L100 w59 x H10mm.
    This one in fact:

    [video]http://youtube.com/watch?v=lIirkyt3sGw[/video]

    But I’ve had both of them for years so there are probably better, lighter, higher capacity options out there now.
    In fact these ones sometimes bring up the “Device Not Compatible with iPhone” warning, but they still seem to work fine.

    Have a browse on Amazon, there are tons available. I recommend one with a plain full size USB output – that way you can use it to power anything that can run off USB.

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    (Apologies for the tardy response by the way: I’m on paternity leave so not quite spending so much time on here at the mo 🙂 )

    paulosoxo
    Free Member

    No problem, cheers and congratulations.

    andytherocketeer
    Full Member

    Tend to use eTrex and smartphone.

    eTrex has microSD card, shed load of maps, and basically records *everything*. Has 1 GPX file for every day I’ve ever used the device.

    That’s the main reason I like the smartphone solution: that becomes “when you get home press stop then go get a cup of tea, because the app has already uploaded the track for you”

    ^^is the only reason I bother with an app.
    But, lock takes longer, track is flakier. Sometimes it’s acceptable, other times it’s not. If endomondo or whatever comes up looking OK, I leave it. If not the GPX from Garmin goes online instead (but with a tiny amount of editing to remove the first few data points – eg when it was getting lock).

    edit: oh and eTrex takes AA batteries, so no external charger pack faff, and can get a week’s holiday away on 2 pairs and still have enough left for a couple of rides when back home.

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    Good GPS lock usually takes around 30 seconds on my phone. Can’t say I’m too bothered.
    Tracks seem pretty accurate when it is bar-mounted.

    My regular 18km commute is always within a couple of hundred metres, which seems reasonable and it produced a very similar track to my mates Garmin on a 70 mile ride. The altitude/ascent/descent is complete bollocks though – presumably because it lacks a proper altimeter/barometer thingy – so if that is important then you’re better with a dedicated unit.

    grum
    Free Member

    My iPhone 4S battery lasts for ages when using the GPS if I switch everything else off (Bluetooth, wifi, 3G).

    Went up Helvellyn recently an used it for navigation plus tracked the ride on MM – still had about 80% battery left at the end of the ride.

    duffmiver
    Free Member

    i got a bt 747 logger off ebay for £40. logs 5 times a second, lasts about 5 rides on a charge and is very sensitive – i can get a lock inside my house

    darrenm
    Free Member

    Those new cateye stealths may be worth a look as well.

    Has anyone got one yet?

Viewing 36 posts - 1 through 36 (of 36 total)

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