Just read about this on the DC Rainmaker site [url= http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/07/garmins-varia-radar-lights.html ]http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/07/garmins-varia-radar-lights.html[/url]
I check over my shoulder pretty frequently when road riding plus cars are often loud so it's pretty rare that there'll be a car sitting behind me or approaching that I'm not aware of - but it does happen.
Can't see any drawbacks to this system as an additional safety feature (bar the cost). Integration with Edge computers sounds great. Thoughts?
Looks cool, but a lot of £££ for a rear light.
I've had trucks pass with a foot to spare and not been aware of them until they're there so I can see the appeal of having eyes in the back of my head.
I was overtaken by an electric car last night, surprisingly it wasn't quiet, I guess most car noise these days is the tyres.
What does it actually tell you? It will detect something behind, but can it tell the difference between a cyclist, car, bus etc?
Can it show how fast it is approaching, and how much space they are giving as they pass?
Seems a mirror on the handlebars would be more useful, and be a lot simpler/cheaper.
Yeah but not as cool. Also I've tried a couple of mirrors and I can never get them to stay in place.
I think the head unit is basically a strip of leds light as the vehicle gets closer so will also imply speed.
From the video you can see a blob approaching in a straight line on the screen so it'll show how fast a vehicle is closing but not how much space it's giving you or what it is. A quick check over the shoulder will tell you that though, for me the value in the system is purely in alerting you that there's something there you might not have noticed.
Regarding mirrors - I've no doubt there's a substantial subset of bike riders who would never allow one anywhere near their bike no matter how useful they are! Plus, as noted above, they are not perfect.