by higg » Tue Sep 11, 2007 9:58 am
I've used the edge 305 for the last few months.
Storing downloading on one machine regardless of bike is handy. You can press the start button put it in your pocket and turn it off and download when you get home.
The accompanying software is a bit disappointing from a training log point of view. Sure it gives you a map which is interesting but of no training use. It gives all the normal summary info (dist, time, avg etc.) It does graph the heart rate, speed, profile etc. but puts it all on the same graph and makes up its own scales on the axes so it looks cluttered. It's also a pity you can't get a graph of weekly mileages ovwer a few months. I could do better myself if I could get the raw data and put it into an excel sheet.
Navigation wise you really need to put a lot of effort in before hand to get any benefit. You can plot a route on the net and then upload it to the machine. You can then follow the simple "breadcrumb trail" on the screen. OK as long as you don't have to alter the route for any reason because it doesn't show any other info like roads etc. To give you an idea, on my recent trip across the pryrennes I had the garmin mounted on the stem but most of the time it was covered by my bog-standard map holder.
I have found the speed readout does give spurious instantaneous readings at low speeds in some combinations of valleys and under trees. There is an optional speed and cadence kit which takes the spped directly from a wheel sensor but if you use this you have to disable the GPS part so the unit doesn't get confused.
So you take your choice, both Polar and Garmin take the same readings (although Garmin does have GPS). Polar with no GPS but possibly (I haven't used it) better training software. But then if the route mapping is more important then the Garmin might be your thing.