Better known for their indoor trainer range US brand Wahoo have taken what some might say is a brave decision to enter the ultra competitive bike GPS market. Competitive is certainly one word to use to describe the GPS sector. I could also describe the near monopoly status of most riders myself included go to brand Garmin who have left a string of rivals on the canvas, knocked out by the sheer omnipresence of devices like the and Wahoo have launched two devices; the Elemnt that I will review here and the Bolt.
Sized about a third as big again as its little brother the Bolt the Elemnt is perhaps the ideal partner for those of us that want the data but also want to enjoy the ride. The Elemnt has one significant advantage over the straight out of the box as it offers mapped navigation.
Garmin always wanted Connect to be some kind of Strava rival. Wahoo do have an app for the Elemnt but unlike Connect it positively reinforces use of Strava. I created a local loop and within a few seconds of saving it on the laptop it had appeared in the Elemnt app. I had been impressed with how easy it was to set up the Elemnt too. In comparison to a Garmin set up, the Wahoo is faster and far more intuitive.
Connecting just involves a few button presses the three buttons on the base of the unit default to various uses dependent on the display and then holding the device to the HRM or vice versa. Most of the info you could want on a ride is available via the default screen including speed, distance and calories burned. Scrolling through the screens brings up additional data fields and then the mapping. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Elemnt had determined suggested HR and Power training zones and an estimated FTP figure for me after just two rides.
Based on my experience I would say definitely. The Elemnt is quick and easy to set up and the link between the device and the supporting app is not some kind of gimmick to try and provide a point of difference. Pros — ease of set up, intuitive UI, great integration between the app and device. A genuine alternative to Garmin.
