Bike reviews

Garmin Edge 705 Bicycle Computer and GPS Navigator with Heart Rate Monitor and Speed/Cadence Sensor

except that it....

A super training aid. Except, the instructions are vague at best and it is not intuitive to operate. I would have expected that it would come supplied with the detailed city streets map card rather than the base map, it is after all the top of the line for exercise usage and most athletes would prefer to avoid major streets and see the neighborhood streets. All in all a top notch product and worth consideration for those who want to track their training history. Be prepared to spend a fair amount of time learning the nuances of this item. Dave in Albuquerque

Garmin Edge 705 review

I have used my Garmin Edge 705 for a little over a week now. I upgraded from the Edge 305. When I first received my 705, the instructions stated to charge it before using it. The 705 came with a half charge so I didn't think it would take that long to fully charge it. 2 days later it was charged. Garmin Support told me "The expected time of charge is around 3 hours. The problem you see is a software bug. Let the unit run completely down and once you charge it next time it will show the correct information." Since doing this, the charge times are back in line. Using the 705 is very similar to the 305. It uses the same handlebar mounts, heart rate monitor and cadence sensor. The 705 is slightly larger in size and uses a `joy stick' located between the Lap and Start/Stop buttons for navigating the menus. So, those with the 305 should have no problems adjusting to the 705. Mine came with the pre-loaded Navigator maps. Using Garmin's MapSource, you can download waypoints and routes to the 705. The 705 has an auto-routing feature to guide you from waypoint to waypoint. It has three modes to adjust your route from point to point (Car/Motorcycle, Bicycle, and Pedestrian). Using the Bicycle mode, my routes went waaay out of the way and added many unnecessary miles. Even though I told it to avoid unpaved roads, it tried to route me down several. If you miss a turn, it will re-route you back on course. It would be best to use a third party mapping software and download more precise waypoints/routes to the 705. In Car/Motorcycle mode, it looked to route fine. The battery life is very long (about 15 hours)! I left it on overnight and woke up to it still running. My 305 had problems with turning itself off when going over bumps. The 705 has never experienced this problem. The 705 is also faster to lock on to satellites than the 305. Overall, I am satisfied with the 705. It would have received 5 stars if not for trying to route me way off course in Bicycle mode and the initial battery charge issue.

Keyword : mountain+bike