Lezyne GPS - value for money

[DieselnDust]

Greta review thanks!

 

Just remember not to be too hard on TWT as they're the distributor they can't undercut the retailers or the okes may decide to host another meeting with minutes by Fritz.

[Frosty]

Greta review thanks!

 

Just remember not to be too hard on TWT as they're the distributor they can't undercut the retailers or the okes may decide to host another meeting with minutes by Fritz.

There’s no negativity towards TWT, except that I discounted them because of price.

 

I don’t believe a distributor should be both a distributor and retailer, as they can then undercut the retailers - which isn’t fair to the retailer. However, if they want to sell at a higher price, even though it doesn’t make sense, they can do it.

[Frosty]

I have the not-colour Mega XL. Better half the Garmin. The Garmin is beautiful. I am jealous.

 

But the Garminf doesn't connect. Needs a restart. Now update the firmware. Then the app. Oh, it cannot see GPSs when it's cloudy (to be fair, once in a while it does work flawlessly ).

 

The Lezyne: like a tractor ... just keeps going no matter what you throw at it.

I was in two minds between the XL and the C, and they were both priced the same. I’ll have to go back and read up on the XL to find out why I chose the C.

 

I do like that it can be used in portrait and landscape mode.

[NeverNotRolling]

Thanks for the review Frosty. It's always nice to have a local opinion about niche/unpopular products. This is definitely on my radar, I was just concerned that a new one might be introduced as this model is from mid 2018, however I'm not sure how frequent new models come out so it may even be a unwarranted concern.

 

If you've tried it, I'd like to know how's the navigation or turn-by-turn offering on the Mega C on the trails? Both offline and online possibly? Cheers

[DieselnDust]

There’s no negativity towards TWT, except that I discounted them because of price.

 

I don’t believe a distributor should be both a distributor and retailer, as they can then undercut the retailers - which isn’t fair to the retailer. However, if they want to sell at a higher price, even though it doesn’t make sense, they can do it.

 

 

Quite a few distributors are selling some of their portfolio direct to consumer. I believe they do this to set the expected selling price ceiling to ensure that the product isn't priced out of the market.

Its a double edged sword and doesn't always go down well but it does promote competition between the retailers that we benefit. 

Hopefully you'll keep updating this review as you go along. I'd been keen to see what updates they bring and what the reliability could be like.

Garmin always seems to introduce bugs with every update requiring an update to fix the update.....

[Frosty]

Thanks for the review Frosty. It's always nice to have a local opinion about niche/unpopular products. This is definitely on my radar, I was just concerned that a new one might be introduced as this model is from mid 2018, however I'm not sure how frequent new models come out so it may even be a unwarranted concern.

 

If you've tried it, I'd like to know how's the navigation or turn-by-turn offering on the Mega C on the trails? Both offline and online possibly? Cheers

I hope to use the offline routing on Saturday... assuming we actually stick to the planned route. I’m not a fan of using my data, hence me liking the offline option. However, I’ll try it out for the sake of this review.

 

As far as the comment on the 2018 model is concerned... consumer electronics: you buy something today and tomorrow something better comes out.

 

My 310XT was a 2013 model (replaced in 2015 due to a broken side button), and my 735XT is a 2016 model and still working well. The 735XT can do everything I need but isn’t mounted on the stem, and I’ll admit that a bigger screen IS COOL.

[Frosty]

Quite a few distributors are selling some of their portfolio direct to consumer. I believe they do this to set the expected selling price ceiling to ensure that the product isn't priced out of the market.

Its a double edged sword and doesn't always go down well but it does promote competition between the retailers that we benefit.

Hopefully you'll keep updating this review as you go along. I'd been keen to see what updates they bring and what the reliability could be like.

Garmin always seems to introduce bugs with every update requiring an update to fix the update.....

Will try keep the updates coming, as I see them happening.

[Prince Albert Cycles]

The box (screenshot) was wrapped in bubble plastic, so was well protected during transit. Inside the box was the unit, already attached to the bar/stem mount. Below the unit were two different sized o-rings (two per set), the micro-USB cable and the instruction manual, that I have yet to open (I knew just about everything from my online research, which included reading the electronic manual.

The unit had about 60% charge on when I switched on, and showed that my phone’s battery was much lower (23% when I looked). The setup is quite cool, in that everything can be done on the Lezyne Ally v2 app – I’ve created a few mosaic images to keep the number of mages to a minimum, but it’s quite flexible in the number of data screen layouts and the amount of data per page. I went out on Sunday (19^th) with 8 pages per screen – which I have now changed to 6. This is compared to what I was used to on the 310XT showing a max of 4.

I usually run on a Sunday, but decided it would be better to give this unit a test run, and joined my mates for a coffee ride (road). Saturday’s 75Km MTB ride was a casual pace, but my legs felt a little porridge/pap (jelly-like)… probably the blood donation adding to it too. First thing I noticed is that the time was GMT, so it was 04:35 instead of 06:35. I opened the phone app, and it immediately changed to 06:35. I tried to follow the club ride route, but I later found out that I hadn’t downloaded the offline maps for my area, but for another area.

After a 2.5 hour ride, the unit is still above 50% charge, so I’m hoping the advertised 32 hours is really true. I was on 1s recording on my Garmin (both the 735XT and the 310XT) to preserve battery life on the longer rides. On the Lezyne, I’ve turned the adaptive recording off, for now, and I’ll see how much if affects the battery, and file size.A few things I like:

The screen that shows the metrics in different colours - makes for easier identifying when riding:

 

• Power (orange);
• Cadence (blue);
• HR (red);
• Speed (green);
• Elevation (brown);
• Other (white or black)

The background can be white or black. I’m undecided about the background colour, and will continue testing until I find the optimal BG colour. After three rides, a light/white background is better.

The difference in size from what I was using as a head unit, to now.

It shows the battery level on devices that transmit it, eg. The unit itself, my phone, power meter. For some reason, the Garmin HRM-Tri strap doesn’t transmit the battery level. This was quite frustrating when I first tried to pair the strap… I had used it earlier on my MTB ride, so was hoping it wasn’t a compatibility issue between Lezyne and Garmin. But then I checked the 735XT, and it also didn’t pair. After a quick battery change, everything paired nicely, including the Powertap speed/cadence sensor used on my “indoor” bike’s setup.A few things I dislike:

The button layout will need some getting used to. Garmin has two buttons dedicated for up/down, whereas the Lezyne shared buttons for menu/up and start/lap/down and power/left, menu/right. Sounds confusing, and is, but like most things, it just needs a few rides to get use to it. I've pressed the lap function more times that I can remember (bottom right).

The in-ride notifications don’t disappear after a short period of time, eg. I have a drink reminder every 20 minutes. I physically have to press the return button to clear it, or when a WhatsApp/SMS message pops up on the screen (if I forgot to turn off my mobile data).

I currently only have one step/bar mount, and these are unique to Lezyne. As I have n+1 bikes, I need to order a few for my other bikes, or get the out-front mount that I can then move across from bike to bike. The bike shops I mentioned above didn’t have stock, so I didn’t want to order until I had seen the unit working, and I was happy. I am happy, extremely happy, and look forward to using the route maps on some of my upcoming “explorer” rides.

Based on my purchase from Evobikes, and my less than ideal dealing with Bike Addict, would I use them again, and/or recommend them?

• Evobikes = Yes;
• Bike Addict = Probably not;
• Two Wheels Trading = undecided.

I have 2 out front mounts for the Lezyne ordered by mistake . Let's discuss a win/win .

Arno zero833959038 whatsapp

[shaper]

https://road.cc/content/review/lezyne-mega-c-gps-smart-loaded-275681

[Super Sywurm]

I have 2 out front mounts for the Lezyne ordered by mistake . Let's discuss a win/win .

Arno zero833959038 whatsapp

Whatsapp sent

[Frosty]

I have 2 out front mounts for the Lezyne ordered by mistake . Let's discuss a win/win .

Arno zero833959038 whatsapp

Thanks. Will send message shortly.

[Malut]

I know Dominic at www.summitbikes.co.za sells this unit and HR strap combo. Good price, last time I checked. Bought mine from another shop but bought my outfront mount from him. Happy with my unit 2 years going without issues.

[NeverNotRolling]

I hope to use the offline routing on Saturday... assuming we actually stick to the planned route. I’m not a fan of using my data, hence me liking the offline option. However, I’ll try it out for the sake of this review.

 

As far as the comment on the 2018 model is concerned... consumer electronics: you buy something today and tomorrow something better comes out.

 

My 310XT was a 2013 model (replaced in 2015 due to a broken side button), and my 735XT is a 2016 model and still working well. The 735XT can do everything I need but isn’t mounted on the stem, and I’ll admit that a bigger screen IS COOL.

 

I'm in the same boat as you pretty much. I currently use my Forerunner with optical HR which is perfect for post ride analytics (im not a data junkie, I just ride my bike). But wouldn't mind a mid-level gps computer as it's a little safer than checking the watch during a ride. And I'd like to use it for new trails on weekend getaways.

 

I believe turn-by-turn/wrong turn is better when online versus offline. So if you test both options that would be great.

[Pure Savage]

I have a lame but apparently important question: Does discovery give you points when you upload ride?

 

Or is there a way to make discovery think its from a garmin etc.

[babse]

Cool review frosty...

 

Wil definitely look at other options when my current 520 gives in.

Garmin has worked for me but battery life when paired with stages, HR and Bluetooth is fairly poor and the unit is not as long lasting/hard wearing as you'd expect (on my 2nd 520 and had 2 510s)and they getting damn expensive now.

 

Will definitely look at this as a like replacement.

[DieselnDust]

I have a lame but apparently important question: Does discovery give you points when you upload ride?

 

Or is there a way to make discovery think its from a garmin etc.

 

Discovery is only interested in your heart rate data.

Suggest you get a cheap Garmin or other compatible fitness monitor for Discovery and get the GPS bike computer you want.