When we first got the latest gadget in Wahoo’s bike/phone integration arsenal we admit we were a little cynical – but there’s no doubt that it does what it does pretty well.
That thing is simple: it takes data collected from your phone’s GPS bike app (such as Wahoo’s own or Cyclemeter) and displays it on a small handlebar-mounted ‘computer’ so you can keep your phone safely in a back pocket. You can use your phone to set up the multiple display options and button actions for each sequentially toggled screen and it’ll even control music if you’re using headphones.
Once we’d got the wheel/cadence, heart rate and RFLKT all talking to the phone – which took a frustratingly long time – it worked consistently well, and speed data is a lot more accurate than the Wahoo Fitness GPS on its own. You can customise the number of cells and backlight, and mount it in front of the bar or on the stem.
The huge amount of data can be uploaded to whatever ride autopsy site you prefer too. While it can’t record or download it, the RFLKT will still display speed and heart data even if the phone is off/dead. That’s a good job, because the low-energy Bluetooth connection still drains your phone battery quickly if it’s talking to both bike sensors, heart rate and the RFLKT – which means day-ride recording is out.
Once you add in the price of a separately sold heart-rate belt and a cadence sensor, the bundle price is similar to ‘self-contained’ GPS computers that don’t need to riff off your phone and suck its battery dry in a few hours either. If it’s what you want, though, then it does do the job well for shorter rides.
This article was originally published in Cycling Plus magazine, available on Apple Newsstand and Zinio.