Garmin Edge 605 GPS

Price Paid:  $340.00 at Amazon

Favorite Ride:
DVBC Brandywine Century

Bike Setup:
Multiple bikes

Summary:
I moved up from a 205, which was a nice computer, but not much more (during the ride - it was still nice to be able to map your ride AFTERwards to see where you'd been). This thing rocks. I got the 605 because I don't care about cadence or heart rate or power and the lesser grade and elevation sensor doesn't much matter because that information you can get more accurately after the ride regardless.

I know the areas I ride in pretty well, but I've already used this to pull down rides in less familiar areas from Bikely, MMR, and Ridewithgps.com. Being able to venture into an unknown area with confidence about your directions and with a dynamic map on board in case you need to improvise is a great thing. I'm looking forward to using it when I travel with a bike and take advantage of other folks expertise about the roads in their areas. Garmin's software isn't great, but there are so many routing software options on the web, it doesn't matter.

Strengths:
Perfect navigational tool and all I'd ever want in a bike computer as well.

Weaknesses:
Garmin software isn't much. You do need to buy the maps separately, but that's OK - that way you can buy different countries/continents when you travel. I'd imagine this thing will work as well in France or Italy as here at home.

Similar Products Used:
Garmin edge 205