The star of the annual National Cycling Show in 2009 the new Garmin Edge 500 has been eagerly anticipated. It is much lighter than previous Garmin Edge models and will not provide all the great features and more under the guise of a truly attractive style.

It is packed full of features providing speed, distance, time, calories burnt and altitude with both climb and descent. You don’t have to be a serious road biker or MTB to need the Garmin Edge 500. If like me you want to know how fast you are riding, how much distance you cover in miles/km or simply to make sure that you don’t get lost if you leave the trail, the Garmin Edge 500 is perfect for you.

The more I use the more I like:

It comes it two versions, the flagship coming with a heart rate monitor and speed/distance cadence sensor. The Garmin Edge 500 with the HRM and Cadence is the one to go for especially if you are using your bike to get fitter. The heart rate is the best measure of whether you are improving so will allow you to compare previous rides and HRM data to see whether you need to start peddling faster!

The Speed/Cadence sensor which will track your speed and distance at the wheel. Why do you need this if the Garmin Edge 500 is GPS enabled? Well if you travel through a tunnel, under very thick forests or similar you may lose the signal so this is a good feature to help reduce gaps in your cycling data.

We also loved the AutoPause feature which stops and starts the timer depending on whether you are moving. So lets say you use your bike to cycle to work, well a good measure of whether you are improving would be to check the time it takes you to get to work. But if you are stopping and starting at traffic lights your time will never be a true reflection. With AutoPause you only measure your cycle time which is fantastic and has so many uses even outside the commute. People training for events don’t want stopping and starting to corrupt their training data.

Delightful discovery:

The new Garmin Edge 500 Cycling GPS comes with Courses which we thought was a welcomed addition to the new range. Essentially you can race against previous trips since the Edge 500 will remember where you have been.

Finally the new Garmin Edge 500 GPS is compatible with third party power meters (like iBike, PowerTap, Quark, SRM) allowing serious bikers to measure their power output in watts as you ride.

Garmin Edge 500 Cycling GPS BUY

Garmin Edge 500 with the HRM and Cadence BUY