Alaskan
Well-Known Member
Bosch electric bike systems has one of the best reputations in the e-bike universe for reliability, frequency of repairs, mean time between failures. Their equipment is so well regarded that it has become the dominant manufacturer in the mid drive ecosystem. Just as Bosch does not make cars but their components can be found in some of the finest cars made, Bosch does not make bicycles. They make the part that turn a bike into an e-bike.
Bosch offers a variety of Motors, controllers and displays for their ebike systems. This post is about the variety of displays.
Their are five options sometimes chosen by the bike brand. Other times the brand allows the end user to choose.
I offer one man's opinion pro and con, as the owner of three Bosch equipped bikes. I only have long term ownership experience with two of the five options, have ridden one other and can only pass on what I have read about the remaining two.
The choices in order of market introduction are:
Intuvia - All my bikes came equipped with the Intuvia. They are rock solid, boot almost instantly and provide a basic amount of information. Scrolling through the information is relatively simple and easy. An Intuvia is not a cycle computer, there is no gps, no mapping no bluetooth or wifi connectivity with other devices. While intuvia does have a micro USB port, it is there for firmware updates. It does not output sufficient current to provide an meaningful charge to my Android phone.
Nyon units are sold and supported in the EU and UK. Nyon is not sold or supported in North America or (I believe in Australia). I have purchase and installed Nyon displays as an aftermarket upgrade in the United States. While not supported Nyon units are fully functional in the USA. According to my contacts at Bosch North America, installation of a Nyon in the USA has no impact on warranty. The most difficult part of upgrading to a Nyon is installation of the app on ones smart phone (apple or android), but it can be done. Nyon units mount directly on a center handlebar Intuvia mount. Nyon does require a different controller on the left handlebar. The controller is very similar to that of the Intuvia with the addition of a joy stick for navigating through the display and menu options on the screen.
Nyon has wifi connectivity, GPS and bluetooth. It provides rudimentary mapping, adequate but underwhelming. It records detailed ride data (speed, cadence, torque, user power in watts, altitude, distance, heart rate using a chest strap, and turn by turn route details. All that data is quickly uploaded to the Bosch Cloud at https://www.ebike-connect.com/en/index.html a free service from Bosch. Exploration of ones own ride history and control of various features on the Nyon can be accomplished using either the phone app or on the Bosch ebike connect portal. In addition to built in graphic ride screens, one can also define custom ride and fitness screens, choosing what data to display in what location in up to nine different cells. The color display is plainly visible and easy to read in all light conditions.
Early Nyons had 1gig of storage for maps and data. Later ones have 8 gigs. Other than memory capacity there is no other difference. You can plan routes on the Bosch portal, on your phone or on google maps or turn any ride into a route. When doing so on google maps, the directions need to be converted to a gpx file and then uploaded to the portal. When a route is created, it is stored in the cloud. The next time they Nyon is turned on and connected to wifi, the new route(s) are automatically downloaded into the Nyon and are available thereafter.
They Nyon takes about 20 seconds to boot up before you can choose assist levels. This makes quick getaways impossible. I try to remember to turn the Nyon on right away when I get to the bike. By the time I have my helmet and gloves on it is ready to go. My Nyon does notify me of incoming text on my phone and who they are from. A screen pops up that advises me to pull off the road in order to read it on my phone. Hitting any button clears the alert
Purion - Is the most basic of the choices consisting of a small controller/screen on the left handlebar. They are most often found on e-mountain bikes. I have ridden one and find it minimalist and lacking in useful information. They do keep things simple and clean in the cockpit.
Cobi - (Connected Bicylce) is a system that incorporates your smart phone as the display and has no native display of its own. Originally an independent startup product, it was bought by Bosch. While it was introduced into North America, it was quickly taken off the shelves and is now only offered in the EU. Rumor have it that it will be making its way across the pond in the next year or so. I have never ridden a Cobi. While the ability to integrate the e-bike experience into the smart phone experience has some initial appeal to me, there are some issues than make it less than attractive: screen visibility, having my phone carried in such a vulnerable location such that a spill will likely do damage to my phone as well as the bike. The most concerning issue is frequent user reports of loss of bluetooth connectivity during rides resulting in loss of electric assist.
Kiox - Kiox is new for 2019. The little I know about the Kiox is sufficient to make me avoid it. Reports are that it is not a fully functional product and that it has been release before the bugs have been worked out, a circumstance atypical of Bosch. It looks attractive. The port outputs sufficient power to keep a phone charged, it lacks mapping, the display is bright and attractive. From what I can glean some things are easy to read while others appear in fonts too small to read with ease.
It is likely that firmware upgrades will eventually make the Kiox a viable option but for the present it is not ready for prime time. It does require a specific, proprietary fixed angle and length stem with an integrated mount.
I have a new Bosch powered bike on order. It was ordered with an Intuvia dispaly which I will replace with a Nyon.
Bosch offers a variety of Motors, controllers and displays for their ebike systems. This post is about the variety of displays.
Their are five options sometimes chosen by the bike brand. Other times the brand allows the end user to choose.
I offer one man's opinion pro and con, as the owner of three Bosch equipped bikes. I only have long term ownership experience with two of the five options, have ridden one other and can only pass on what I have read about the remaining two.
The choices in order of market introduction are:
Intuvia - All my bikes came equipped with the Intuvia. They are rock solid, boot almost instantly and provide a basic amount of information. Scrolling through the information is relatively simple and easy. An Intuvia is not a cycle computer, there is no gps, no mapping no bluetooth or wifi connectivity with other devices. While intuvia does have a micro USB port, it is there for firmware updates. It does not output sufficient current to provide an meaningful charge to my Android phone.
Nyon units are sold and supported in the EU and UK. Nyon is not sold or supported in North America or (I believe in Australia). I have purchase and installed Nyon displays as an aftermarket upgrade in the United States. While not supported Nyon units are fully functional in the USA. According to my contacts at Bosch North America, installation of a Nyon in the USA has no impact on warranty. The most difficult part of upgrading to a Nyon is installation of the app on ones smart phone (apple or android), but it can be done. Nyon units mount directly on a center handlebar Intuvia mount. Nyon does require a different controller on the left handlebar. The controller is very similar to that of the Intuvia with the addition of a joy stick for navigating through the display and menu options on the screen.
Nyon has wifi connectivity, GPS and bluetooth. It provides rudimentary mapping, adequate but underwhelming. It records detailed ride data (speed, cadence, torque, user power in watts, altitude, distance, heart rate using a chest strap, and turn by turn route details. All that data is quickly uploaded to the Bosch Cloud at https://www.ebike-connect.com/en/index.html a free service from Bosch. Exploration of ones own ride history and control of various features on the Nyon can be accomplished using either the phone app or on the Bosch ebike connect portal. In addition to built in graphic ride screens, one can also define custom ride and fitness screens, choosing what data to display in what location in up to nine different cells. The color display is plainly visible and easy to read in all light conditions.
Early Nyons had 1gig of storage for maps and data. Later ones have 8 gigs. Other than memory capacity there is no other difference. You can plan routes on the Bosch portal, on your phone or on google maps or turn any ride into a route. When doing so on google maps, the directions need to be converted to a gpx file and then uploaded to the portal. When a route is created, it is stored in the cloud. The next time they Nyon is turned on and connected to wifi, the new route(s) are automatically downloaded into the Nyon and are available thereafter.
They Nyon takes about 20 seconds to boot up before you can choose assist levels. This makes quick getaways impossible. I try to remember to turn the Nyon on right away when I get to the bike. By the time I have my helmet and gloves on it is ready to go. My Nyon does notify me of incoming text on my phone and who they are from. A screen pops up that advises me to pull off the road in order to read it on my phone. Hitting any button clears the alert
Purion - Is the most basic of the choices consisting of a small controller/screen on the left handlebar. They are most often found on e-mountain bikes. I have ridden one and find it minimalist and lacking in useful information. They do keep things simple and clean in the cockpit.
Cobi - (Connected Bicylce) is a system that incorporates your smart phone as the display and has no native display of its own. Originally an independent startup product, it was bought by Bosch. While it was introduced into North America, it was quickly taken off the shelves and is now only offered in the EU. Rumor have it that it will be making its way across the pond in the next year or so. I have never ridden a Cobi. While the ability to integrate the e-bike experience into the smart phone experience has some initial appeal to me, there are some issues than make it less than attractive: screen visibility, having my phone carried in such a vulnerable location such that a spill will likely do damage to my phone as well as the bike. The most concerning issue is frequent user reports of loss of bluetooth connectivity during rides resulting in loss of electric assist.
Kiox - Kiox is new for 2019. The little I know about the Kiox is sufficient to make me avoid it. Reports are that it is not a fully functional product and that it has been release before the bugs have been worked out, a circumstance atypical of Bosch. It looks attractive. The port outputs sufficient power to keep a phone charged, it lacks mapping, the display is bright and attractive. From what I can glean some things are easy to read while others appear in fonts too small to read with ease.
It is likely that firmware upgrades will eventually make the Kiox a viable option but for the present it is not ready for prime time. It does require a specific, proprietary fixed angle and length stem with an integrated mount.
I have a new Bosch powered bike on order. It was ordered with an Intuvia dispaly which I will replace with a Nyon.
