With a huge feature set including a barometric altimeter, customisable screens, ANT+ compatibility and more, this GPS computer with 128x128 pixel screen looks a bargain. It turns out to be 100 quid well spent: easy to use, with fast satellite acquisition and a useful set of features.
It’s simple to set up, with little need to refer to the comprehensive manual. Pick Sport Mode and you get a speed and distance display, from which the control nipple flips you to five more data screens. You can customise two of them.
When you’ve done with your ride, downloading the route to the included software (PC only) is easy, and you can export in GPX format to upload to route-sharing sites. The software includes a planning tool which can send a route to the device.
The display only gives you a line to follow – no map – but that’s enough to tell you whether you’re on course or not. With ANT+ compatibility, you can use a range of sensors, including Holux’s own, though there’s no provision for a power meter.
Quirky features include an indication of how much carbon dioxide you’d have generated if you had driven. It even calculates Body Mass Index. More usefully, the software can load a selection of images from a ride, display them alongside the map and write GPS information to the images.
Niggles are few. It would be nice if the unit set its own clock and time zone, given that it knows where it is, and the software needs admin privileges to run unless you install it somewhere other than the Program Files folder.
The planning software is fine if you stick to roads, but uses Google Maps routing, and so it can’t handle cyclepaths and trails. The mount does have us slightly worried, too, as its plastic catch doesn’t quite engage with the body unless you press it home.
This article was originally published in Cycling Plus magazine.