What apps do you use while making a tour ?

S

Sunshine2021

Member
Region
Europe
Yesterday I made a tour on my bike and used my iPhone 7 with Mission Control for statistics and komoot for navigation ( after I planned the tour at home). Unfortunately, after about 1.5 hrs my iPhone battery died. I am wondering is there a better setup to use for navigation in combination with bike statistics such as speed, cadence , etc.. What apps do you use ?
 
My old iPhone 7 didn't do well with active GPS as it got older and I would see similar results. My new iPhone 12 Pro Max has a massive battery and it doesn't seem to dent it on even long rides playing music too.

I'd suggest a charge stick if you want to track live with a detailed app, but otherwise finding an app that lets you configure the frequency of waypoints can help the life, but reduce the accuracy of your route. The other big thing is to turn the screen off while tracking and don't use it as a speedo at the same time. The screen is the biggest user of battery (Dimming it can help too), then the GPS.
 
More recent GPS implementations, the ones on newer phones, don't use that much power. Keep in mind an Iphone 7 is now 5 years old, ancient by phone standards. It's battery probably doesn't work anywhere full capacity.

I use a several year old Google Pixel. My bike, a trek Allant 8s, uses the phone as its readout, and has a native app, cobi.bike, that's quirky but usable. In a typical; 2 hour ride, I use about 40% of its power, and the screen is on all the time. The bike has a port to plug in the phone, but I don't bother since the phone's battery lasts long enough.
 
BLEvo, a EUR10 miracle. Works with all Specialized bikes that can run Mission Control. 100x better than MC. And carrying a powerbank really helps.
 
Last edited:
Rincon said:
However I no longer use the iPhone for navigation. It is too fragile and expensive to put on my handlebars. Any minor mishap could be a catastrophe for the phone.
Click to expand...
Right. That's why I put an inexpensive (and lightweight) Samsung smartphone on the bars but keep my S21 Ultra in a deep pocket at my jacket back. (I use the expensive phone for answering calls and taking photos). Mind you, one of the most vital function of the handlebar-smartphone for me is the GPS navigation. Then, monitoring the e-bike (this one has no display: the smartphone is the display).

1619977083002.png
 
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Yes it works with any Specialized (TCU based) e-bike. I use it on Vado 5.0.
I use other apps for GPS navigation. Still, BLEvo records your ride, can export it to Strava and Excel, and makes many many great things for you.

BLEvo Advantages Post
 
Stefan Mikes said:
Yes it works with any Specialized (TCU based) e-bike. I use it on Vado 5.0.
I use other apps for GPS navigation. Still, BLEvo records your ride, can export it to Strava and Excel, and makes many many great things for you.

BLEvo Advantages Post
Click to expand...
Dont forget to mention the Mapy.cz app. That is all I use to find alternatives when I am riding. It found two bike trail routes for me that did not show up on Trailforks or Google maps!
 
I am also thinking about getting a Garmin. I wonder if a used Garmin Edge Touring or Explore will be sufficent … ( I don‘t wont to spend too much money.)
 
I dislike fussy cockpits and extra gadgets, so I use my iPhone exclusively on a quad lock mount over the stem.

Lately, I’ve been running mission control to see power output and instantaneous speed, and rideWithGPS for navigation, mapping/elevation, and elevation profiles of the ride. I like to map out rides on the rideWithGPS website, looking carefully at elevation profiles and their cycling heatmaps. Of course they show up right away in the app on the phone.

Phone battery has no problem lasting much longer than I can ride, 4-5 hours no problem and likely much much longer with screen off, as I do once in a groove or on a known route if I’m not interested in speed and power.
 
mschwett said:
I dislike fussy cockpits and extra gadgets, so I use my iPhone exclusively on a quad lock mount over the stem.

Lately, I’ve been running mission control to see power output and instantaneous speed, and rideWithGPS for navigation, mapping/elevation, and elevation profiles of the ride. I like to map out rides on the rideWithGPS website, looking carefully at elevation profiles and their cycling heatmaps. Of course they show up right away in the app on the phone.

Phone battery has no problem lasting much longer than I can ride, 4-5 hours no problem and likely much much longer with screen off, as I do once in a groove or on a known route if I’m not interested in speed and power.
Click to expand...
Yes, ride with GPS is my favorite route planning app too. It's well designed and though out.
 
The Old Thread Revisited

Say, I got fed up with carrying a smartphone on my Specialized e-bikes, because typically I need to connect a power-bank somewhere on the ride; and rain droplets make the smartphone go banana. So, say, I would like to use Garmin Edge 1030 Plus with Vado and Vado SL. Questions:
  1. Will the 1030+ export my rides to Strava directly?
  2. Will the 1030+ connect to cadence and rider's power meters of my e-bikes?
  3. Will the 1030+ connect to my HR monitor at the same time?
  4. Will be my TCD display affected in any way? Will I be still able to use the TCD along the Garmin?
  5. Can a spare mount for 1030+ be ordered?
If anyone has experience with 1030+ and Specialized Turbo e-bikes, please share your knowledge!
 
Stefan Mikes said:
The Old Thread Revisited

Say, I got fed up with carrying a smartphone on my Specialized e-bikes, because typically I need to connect a power-bank somewhere on the ride; and rain droplets make the smartphone go banana. So, say, I would like to use Garmin Edge 1030 Plus with Vado and Vado SL. Questions:
  1. Will the 1030+ export my rides to Strava directly?
  2. Will the 1030+ connect to cadence and rider's power meters of my e-bikes?
  3. Will the 1030+ connect to my HR monitor at the same time?
  4. Will be my TCD display affected in any way? Will I be still able to use the TCD along the Garmin?
  5. Can a spare mount for 1030+ be ordered?
If anyone has experience with 1030+ and Specialized Turbo e-bikes, please share your knowledge!
Click to expand...
I have the 530 model so I can answer mostly...

  1. Will the 1030+ export my rides to Strava directly? Yes my 530 does so the 1030 will too
  2. Will the 1030+ connect to cadence and rider's power meters of my e-bikes? Through ANT+ it works on my Giant. If your bike has ANT+ you should be good
  3. Will the 1030+ connect to my HR monitor at the same time? Again ANT+ will work, not sure about bluetooth
  4. Will be my TCD display affected in any way? Will I be still able to use the TCD along the Garmin? Not sure, but probably not.
  5. Can a spare mount for 1030+ be ordered? Yes.
 
Thank you, Dave! It looks Specialized uses Garmin compatible mounts on their SL ebikes. By sheer luck, I own three of them 😂
 
The Wahoo Elemnt does have a Pause button so if making a stop along a route it can be stopped and then resumed for the remainder of the route. The 2020 and newer Creo bikes have software modified for compatibility with the Elemnt. I prefer to have my iphone turned off when riding.
 
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