I know that it certainly has changed how I go to the bathroom…

I suppose that because the 705 tells me everything I could possibly want to digest whilst riding my bike, I’m not as keen to see a do-everything device on my handlebars – how much of everything can you interact with on a bike before it takes away form the beautiful simplicity of just spinning your pedals ’round and ’round?

Technology advances at an ever-increasing rate so it’s only a matter of time before the device you are envisioning is actually on your handlebars. I’m a simple creature, I suppose, so info is cool and useful up to a point, but most of the time I just want to ride my bike.

…that said, I do really like the fact that I can see what the grade of the hill I’m climbing is, so I guess I share your position but to a lesser degree. The 705 would be made perfect for me if it had more interactive on-the-fly mapping and such when you’re out to explore new terrain. I could go for more of that.

All this is just to say that I agree with you, but I wouldn’t run out and buy one (straight away…).

Exactly my thinking – What’s cool is a lot of what you’re saying (ie. payment via your mobile device, etc.) is already happening in many Asian countries.

It’s exciting to see everything evolving, but it’s crazy to think about what those kids of yours are going to be experiencing when they’re our age ;-)

For the future of bike gandgets: essentially we need to imagine having a small omnipotent god sitting on our handle bars. Not only live map downloads, but real time warnings of trail outages. Virtual competitions against members of a cycling group complete with their shift locations and gear ratios. You name it.

My prediction is that we will also see iPhones (or something similar) also end up being our means of payment. I.e. a credit card chip in the phone you tap like the pay at the pump key chains. Then with your phone now knowing everything you buy it could crosslink your bike maintenance components against miles and conditions ridden. Forecast component need and even look for deals.

Being an iPhone owner, I definitely appreciate the tack you guys are taking on this. The last thing I want is my phone trashed – I guess I need to clarify that I’m not suggesting that the current iPhone is necessarily “the” device. I meant moreso, that the robustness of the iPhone platform can provide interactions *much* richer than that of something like a Garmin.

If we were to assume that an iPhone (or similar device) was at least as resilient as a Garmin (which I don’t think is too big a stretch, since I do recall a time you could throw your flip cell phone across the room with little worry of damage), I think it would offer up an interesting alternative, especially bringing the 3G network into things. Rather than pre-planning everything, downloading it, then heading out, you could weigh multiple options on fly – the iPhone downloading route maps as you go. It could also tie into online communities and sync where you are to “favorite” routes of others that have been uploaded.

I believe that the Garmin actually touches on some of these things (tying into sites like MapMyRide.com helping you to find new routes around you), but wouldn’t it be nice to be able to get on a route, then download extensions or detours live from the road?

Since I don’t have a 705, I can’t speak to it specifically, and didn’t mean for this to be an outright comparison, but I can’t imagine it’s interface has the same type of flexibility that the iPhones API allows for, and it is ‘another’ thing on your handlebars.

While I appreciate devices that do a few things and do them well, I’m merely speculating on the iPhones potential ability to do many things and still do them well. I hope we’re nearing a time like that. That’s a time I’d like to be a part of.

You can take your Garmin and shove it up yer ass ;-P

(Kidding of course… You can buy me a 705 for Xmas ;-)

Something I can for sure comment on is music while you ride. This is something I never do. I used to, and I got nailed by a car because I didn’t here it coming up. Now, no real damage was done so I can chuckle about it, but I think listening to music on the trails is dangerous. On the trails, well,‘okay’, but on the streets and in traffic – you’re just asking for it.

First off, it’s not built for it, ie; it’s a bit delicate. It’s certainly not waterproof. I wouldn’t be comfortable with it strapped to my handlebars. The Garmin, on the other hand, is built for it. It’s lighter, it’s weather resistant, and the battery life is actually really good. Plus the screen isn’t as reflective. I don’t find the user interface complicated at all once you get to know it (and that doesn’t take all that much time). I would constantly be worried about something happening to the iPhone. It’s such a nice piece of design that I’d be paranoid about scratching it or worse, which is bound to happen if you cycle with it enough. Plus, you’d still have to flip through a bunch of screens for the music, phone, nav, and cycle info if on an iPhone. In my opinion a Garmin (or something similar) and an iPod in your pocket would actually be easier. I can see a problem with the earphones if they were attached to a device on your handlebars…

Again, this is just me, but when I’m out for a ride, I’m out for a ride. I don’t want the phone ringing all the time (not like that’s actually the case), so I bring it with me in case I need it and leave it turned off (though that’s not always the case).

The Garmin isn’t a phone or a music player, but personally, I’ve stopped bringing my iPod with me on rides as it tends to block out the rest of the world (traffic, other people/riders, animals, etc), and I’m more in tune with what’s happening with my bike and body without music filling my ears. The Edge 705 does everything bar the music and the phone, and the mapping is easier and more flexible, in my opinion, than the basic googlempas on the iPhone (granted, I haven’t used any other mapping apps, so there could be many that are fantastic). The only thing that would be neat on the garmin would be a satellite view like googlemaps, but do I really need that?

I haven’t tried the power meter, but the heart-rate monitor works well, and it’s dead easy to create and load maps onto it (bikehike.co.uk is wonderful).

Don’t get me wrong, I think the iPhone is brilliant (I steal Myra’s all the time), but for the bike, I think I’m happier with the Edge (so far).

Just my two pence.