Hot answers tagged iphone
13
I too contemplated using a smartphone as a bike computer and eventually bought a Garmin Edge 800, which I've been very happy with. Here are the advantages it has:
GPS is better. Compare these two GPS traces from a ride my friend and I did yesterday evening (taken from Strava). This is a 2.5km climb, part wooded and part exposed. The first is my Edge 800 ...
6
I do think that an iPhone and ANT+ makes for a pretty compelling combination. One thing that the dedicated bike GPS hardware has all over a smartphone is battery life.
While you can get better battery life out of a smartphone when logging a ride than most people imagine, it's still not close to the battery life you can get out of dedicated GPS hardware. You ...
6
I use runkeeper app for iphone. The app has an option to pick which type of activity and cycling is an option.
I keep the iphone in my running armband. I didn't want to buy a mount just because of my luck with riding in poor weather and the running band does provide a small amount of protection
The one catch is batter power. On my old 3G I had to turn ...
6
Have you tried "Get there by bike"?
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/get-there-by-bike-interactive/id457288250?mt=8
The few times i tried it i had good results.
Another alternative, but i have not used yet. http://www.bikemapsapp.com/
5
You might want to look at the Biologic ReeCharge by Dahon. It says it hooks up to any standard dynamo hub. The nice thing about this is that it has it's own battery. So the dynamo changes the internal battery and the battery charges your phone/gps/device. This allows you to change while you are resting, as well as provide added protection against sending ...
5
Biologic now makes an iPhone 4 specific mount. I have the 3 version that I use an iPhone 4 in. It's pretty decent, but this looks like they've made some good improvements.
5
A lot of the jogging apps will work well for on the bicycle as well, since most of the data collection is done via the GPS. As for the mounts, I've seen this one used a bit and it looks fairly sturdy. Not sure about the attachment to the bars, though.
I would just be careful with the kind of riding you're doing. An iPhone costs $400 to $600 dollars if ...
4
I got this one: http://www.meritline.com/gps-cellphone-holder-for-bicycle---p-30668.aspx
Its actually one of the cheapest available. It fits adjustable handlebar sizes, tho I don't know the range. The phone grips are foam based and you can get a very snug fit, and it clicks quickly out. I never had an issue with it popping out, it never even looked like it ...
4
Here's one option:
http://h1987995.stratoserver.net/magento/supernova-the-plug-ii-plus-usb-dynamolader.html
SUPERNOVA The Plug II Plus USB power supply
Transforms dynamo AC to exact USB spec. DC 5V, 500 mA
E‐Bike compatible for 12‐ 48V DC with optional cable
Works with Garmin, Ipod&Iphone 3GS & 4G & 4GS
Seems pretty expensive at €159, but ...
3
I use Motion-X as my tracking app and it can certainly import GPX and then navigate from it. It supports some ANT+ (at least HRM).
Additionally the OpenStreetMap wiki has a good list of iOS apps comparing their functionality.
3
I have owned 2 different smartphone mounts (Blackberry, iPhone). Before getting a mount, determine if you have a straight section of your handlebar that's at least an inch long, preferably 1.3 inches or more. Mounts with rigid plastic secured by screws will require that.
Key attributes:
Favor rigid molded plastic mounts secured by screws over the kinds ...
3
If you are in the UK, use CycleStreets. It's a free journey-planning website designed specifically for cycling, so it can route you across off-road cycle tracks and bridges, and it gives you a choice of faster routes for more confident cyclists, and quieter routes if you want to avoid traffic. As well as the main and a mobile website, they have free apps for ...
3
The three main advantages of a dedicated bike computer is battery life, reliability, and visibility.
Only a handful of smartphones I've used can consistently run for 5+ hours with the GPS on. It would really suck to be 30 miles from home with a dead battery. Cycling computers can often run 10+ hours with a GPS.
Some smartphone/app combos have questionable ...
3
As a plus for Smart-Phone apps, they are likely to progress quicker, add features faster, fix bugs faster, and provide more frequent version updates than GPS units.
Another plus for smart-phones is that I'll take my cell phone on a long road ride anyway in case of emergency. Carrying 1 device is easier than 2.
A plus for a GPS unit is that it is probably ...
2
I've tried Runkeeper also but I'm much happier with Runmeter: http://www.abvio.com/runmeter/
It does the same GPS tracking that other apps do, but its interface is the nicest I've seen (especially important when you just want to start riding!). It has nifty data export features, too -- you can get all of your data as a CSV file if you want. Because I'm a ...
2
For what it's worth velcro and rubber are extremely good for this sort of application. I use one of these rubber blocks with velcro straps to attach my LED Lenser to my MTB, it holds really tight and if you position it right there is minimal shake. One day I decided to see how it would handle my iPhone so I could watch/hear endomondo giving me my lap times.
...
2
Although this question is over 1 year old, I thought I'd share a new iPhone mount that I've just come across. Its called the Quad Lock and has a mounting system very similar to the Garmin and Bryton GPS computers (uses a quarter turn mount that attaches to the stem):
http://www.quadlockcase.com/
I don't have one (nor do I have any association with the ...
2
If you have an iPhone or an Android phone there are various free options, some based on OpenStreetMaps, but even Google's own solution is excellent. For google maps you can download areas to store locally (for those areas you know you will have no connectivity) and it is free!
I'm playing a lot of Ingress at the moment, which requires 10 - 20 hour stints ...
2
Having used an iPhone app for over 3 months now, I can definitely say that it has been very helpful. Just make sure the phone is fully charged before the ride so that there's enough charge left, in case you need to use the phone on your way back home.
Some more pointers on who might find a phone app useful
Someone who is primarily interested in shorter ...
1
Smartphones are great on the flexibility side (lots of customizeability, different app options, etc) but tend to have a less trustworthy satellite connection and a poor battery life compared to dedicated GPS devices.
I would suggest you to consider an eTrex or GPSMap62 if they are in your price range.
As for the actual need of embeddable mapping ability of ...
1
There's a new free app called Bikepath Country that has simple point A to point B cycling directions. You can also get suggested rides for any area. It's available on Android and iPhone, so whichever you decide to stay with/go to!
iPhone: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bikepath/id513898258?mt=8
Website with more info: http://www.bikepathcountry.com
1
www.gpxnavigator.com
No there is no voice guidance now, but probably it's a good feature request for the future. The application supports navigating through waypoints, or routes in GPX files. You can have multiple routes in a GPX file. The navigation is basically showing the direction, distance and some other useful information of the next 2 waypoints. Also ...
1
At the other end of the cost spectrum I've just ordered one of these
http://www.wahoofitness.com/Fisica/Wahoo-Fitness-Fisica-Fitness-Sensor-Case.asp
It's trick is to act as an ANT+ sensor, so that your phone can grab HR, speed, cadence and power from sensors.
I'll report back when it's delivered and I've tried it out...
OK its arrived, and its really ...
1
I saw this http://store.apple.com/uk/product/H0807ZM/A in the Apple store yesterday. I didn't buy one, but did play with it. It came with an iPhone 4 insert, looked at least showerproof and plenty sturdy. Would mount on stem or bars, has a headphone pass-through, camera window and the touch screen works.
I think that if you removed the insert you might even ...
1
I personally am eying this one: Biologic Bike Mount
But my cheap interim solution was to screw some holes in my snap case, fit some L joints to it and then just mount it on my camera mount. But it sticks up so high, I could see it just shattering if I were to bail. Lost a bike light that way... would hate to lose an iPhone that way.
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