Hands down the best watch vs. bike computer comparison video I've found on KZfaq. Excellent work, you Bruce Campbell-looking treasure of a man, you.

To anyone considering an edge 530/830 Garmin is likely launching it's replacements on April 11th. I'd hold off on buying as the old ones will be on sale

Yep, I got the Fenix 7 Solar for the reason that you mentioned- I mountain bike, but also do other sports. Hiking, biking, golf, whatever it is, the Fenix can track it!

While the 1030 and up Garmin models do way more than I would ever use, they still have the largest/brightest screen, (particularly 1040) which my eyes appreciate. Never enjoyed using a phone as a bike GPS/computer...huge battery suck, phone overheats on a warm day when riding in direct sunlight.

Great video! Currently using 530 Edge and Instinct Solar and pair that to the 530 for HR monitor. Also use the Instinct for hiking, swimming and other activities. Thought about going with 830 but decided to try the buttons out since I read the touch screen can act up with wet fingers or not respond with gloves.

Such a good review,so good i bought a fenix 7 solar with the mount 👍

Regardless of the type of mount, I recommend using the tether for any of the Garmin Edge units.

Wow. I'm wearing that watch right now! Never thought of mounting my phone. Will try that for sure.

Clint, Could you make a video on how to set heart rate zones in our Garmin units? Should we use Max, resting, etc? Lots of conflicting information out there.

Liked my 830 a lot - but got the 1040 to have more screen space with larger numbers and map for my weak eyes. For data and directions 830 does everything you need. All else you get with the upgrade to the 1040 is really just "nice to haves". But the screen rules!

I have the 530. Currently looking to get into a Garmin wearable and ditch my Apple Watch.

Fenix 6x here and have the same bar mount. Sweet stuff.

Great info. I use the audio setup via earbuds. I have it set for HR,speed & power. Not many know feature. One of the best features. I also use it in the gym for timed intervals. Just adjust time.

Use my phone with Strava and then my Garmin watch. Works for me. I have considered one of the other Garmin devices.

I agree with you on the touchscreen. The buttons on the side can be a pain. I would recommend spending the extra money on the touchscreen. Get the speed sensor as well!

This is a great summary! I have the Vivio wearable mainly for runs and pool swims and also the 530 which fits in between the somewhat narrow aero bars of my tri-bike.

I ride really rough trails and prefer the Edge 130 for my Mtn bikes. I have the 530 on my gravel. My wearable is a Polar Vantage V2. I like the sleep and recovery tracking the most

I have the 830 and epix 2. I’ve been using both for mountain biking. Love the watch and it’s probably my favorite.

Very informative. I only ride road and use the 830 with a Varia, plenty for my needs. Won't get on a bike without the Varia.

Thanks for the info. I’ve never had anything but my phone and wanting to get a Garmin something. Helps further my research. 👍🏻

great as usual,thanks

Good stuff Clint. I use the KOM cycling watch mount with my Fenix 5 and pair it to the Garmin chest strap HR monitor.

I like the K-Edge mount that supports the Edge AND the Varia head light. I use the 830, but the touch display can go whack in damp conditions. So I often lock the screen while riding. I use my Apple Watch as the HR sensor for the Edge. Garmin offers so many watches that it is overwhelming.

Thanks very much, love these types of comparisons, incredibly useful!

Clint - why are you still using that crummy mount with rubber bands. Get a k-edge cuter cap mount. It makes your bike look balanced. The unit is somewhat protected by the handlebars. Then use a tether to your handlebars so it does not get lost by falling off your bike

I have the 830 and Vivoactive 3 which suits my mountain biking and general exercise

Ya know, as I’m still jumping around, and getting my self fully settled, last fall I tried a 1030, and the main reason for it was having a map showing where I was, on a trail and that’s about it, beyond just recording for later and tracking with Strava. Well that was a huge let down. Fast forward to this winter, in November I broke a couple ribs(riding a DH race course above my capabilities), and that had such an effect on my endurance, that I decided to grab a smart trainer, and it has improved my endurance immensely, and has gotten me watching heart rate ect… Well now comes in the fenix 6s, imo far better scenario all and all vs a garmin computer, sorry with all the available tech out there, ie smart phone capabilities vs cycling computer, for the money the garmin computers are not with it in any way. So now with the watch, and a cheap import computer, I can see speed, distance, and heart rate(watch broadcasting to the computer), and I feel that’s a lot better way to go. Now a fun question for ya, yesterday I monitored my smart trainer, via my watch and ant+, while actually controlling the trainer with mywhoosh(from a pc). The heart rate was the same but man distance of the ride, speed were all kinds of wild, like almost half vs what mywhoosh was showing. So that’s the best one to figure out, and no way that I know of to “calibrate” wheel size ect. If you have any insight on that that would be really cool.

Great info

Thanks Clint

Hi Clint, thanks for the video. I own a 955 abd love it. I do running and cycling and I am looking for a bike mount. The quick fit bike mount is not compatible with the spring loaded bars on the 955. do you know of any solution? Garmin does an other universal watch mount, but it is bery bulky and awfull

Not in to the smart watch craze nor do I need 1,001 and metrics tracked. I have an older TomTom watch to track ride and heartrate, then upload to Strava. Battery life lasts four to five 1.5 hour mountain bike rides. If I'm on a longer ride or exploring, it is usually with a friend who is "guiding".

I worry about crash survivability for mtn biking. Have you ever crashed and how did the garmin do?

Great video and very informative :) One question about the watch. I believe you track your daily activities as well as sleep. Do you use the fenix for it? Or do you swap between the vivo and the fenix? I currently use a whoop and would like to switch to a gramin watch for various reasons. But for sleep I prefer something smaller. That's why I was wondering about the feel of that chonker :D Thx

Difference in maps? GARMIN says the Fenix has maps downloaded and epix does not. What does this mean in usage? Any other differences not generally shown or known? When using the maps is the fenix better due to the screen staying on vs the epix always turning off while trying to figure out what you want to do? Thank you.

can you though get more datafileds on 1030? Is it not more than 10 fields? Same on 830. On 930 they're just smaller

I am the freak that rides with both Fenix 7x and Edge 830 on my handlebar. If I have to choose, I prefer an Edge 100%. I've forgotten the edge and ran with only the 7x - it is not pleasant experience. My setup is to have the map on the watch, with distance to the next cue point. The map is zoomed out a bit. I rarely change it, eventually to the elevation profile. When climbing, I switch the Edge830 to the data fields - HR, Cadence, 3s/10s/30s power. When the climb ends, I switch the Edge to map mode - more detailed (zoomed in) than the 7x so I don't get lost. I also prepare my tracks, adding cue points for the turns and path forks. The watch's Stamina feature is not working for me, it goes to 0% before the middle of the races I participate in. Sometimes as early as 1/4 of the race! The Edge is too spammy - the stupid useless virtual partner, some internal navigation that I can't switch off, constantly trying to reroute me, the lap screen that hides my data for too long, etc.

Very helpful

I had lots of problems with the different periods in the training pages being selected and rearranged by raindrops on my old edge 1000. Had them replaced multiple times because if this. In the end I got sick if it interrupting intervals (I was racing back then so was training loads and taking it seriously) so farming ended up sealing it for a 1030 which I sold and bought a 520plus which is great. But now I want something for maps when trail/Xcode riding in areas I’m unfamiliar with. Can any of these new ones be used for finding and it creating trail rides? Can they show a “heat map” so I can see where locals ride most?

I´m still concerned if I want a computer or a wearable from garmin. I would mostly use it for the naviagation aspect. Is the screen big enough if you are on a unknwon trail and need to find your way around ? The only concern with an 830 computeer is that I might damage it when crashing when i shredd down the hill.

I just bought garmin 265 it’s not staying connected to the phone. Do you have any ideas why?

Can Garmin watch show candence & HR on data screen when in connect to candence & HR Sensor ?

So you're ruling out the gps units like 67i - but they're for broader use without the group specifik and competition specifik stuff that most mtb'ers do not use. It can do the same, cadence, speed, route etc. Why?

How do you get heart rate when not wearing watch?

Clint my key requirement is that i can visually see the route i planned while mountain biking (lots of shaky stuff) and know when an upcoming turn is coming on planned trailfork routes. What would you recommend for that. I’m a huge apple watch fan so the garmin watch would need to support my ask very well for me to switch to it.

Garmin Edge 530 for road biking

Just upgraded from a 520 to the 540 but not liking it so far. My biggest pain point (besides the hard to press buttons and non-intuitive interface) is that the 540 does not automatically power down after disconnecting from the charging cable. With my 520, once I removed it from charging it gave me a 15-second auto power off countdown and then turned itself off. With the 540 lacking this Auto Power Down feature requires me to perform an additional 3-clicks of hard to press buttons to power it down. WHY? This is so annoying. From what I've discovered online, this feature was removed starting with the 530 and users were pissed off then. Now it's carried forward to the 540. Why would Garmin not include an auto power down feature after charging? If I take a turned OFF device and plug it to charge (which it then turns on) and then its completely charged and removed from the charger, it should return to its OFF state. That is only LOGICAL. I can see how lacking this feature its possible to forget to power it down manually and then wake up the next day with a dead device that remained on all night.

I have the FR645 (MTB), and the Edge 530 (Gravel, Road). I use them just as you have described. I sometimes record the ride on both devices and compare, then delete one. My FR645 doesn't measure elevation as good as it once did. Not sure why. Also, do you think that the HR monitor on the wearables are decent enough to effectively track the data?

Can the watch be paired to a heart monitor chest strap?

I just use the phone.