karlkras

I'm in tech. It's what i do. It also frustrates the hell out me when it doesn't work.

I recently got the bug to purchase a Wahoo Kickr to get the opportunity to workout indoors with power/hr/etc. all streaming from bluetooth devices to a promising plethora of applications that could make my training more effective, interactive, measurable, etc.

I was upgrading from my whimpy, headless Cycleops Fluid trainer.

You know what I've been doing the past 2 weeks since getting this amazing upgrade? Trying to find something that works consistently properly with it. I'm using an Android phone so that comes with a number of configuration/compatibility challenges. Zwift won't work with my older (c. 2012) laptop with "out of date video drivers", Wahoo Fitness app has had numerous failures... each time having to reinstall, resync, wash rinse repeat.

I've spent less time on the trainer and more time with "customer support" trying to figure out what in gods name is the problem with all of this and purchasing dongles, fiddling with ports, chasing down bluetooth connection issues.
I'm thinking my whimpy, headless Cycleops trainer might have the advantage here.

thanks for listening.

McBTC

On the list of apps, Zwift is among the 16 of 20 that are not Android-compatible. Looks like Wahoo Fitness is among the 4 of 20 that are...

https://www.wahoofitness.com/media/do...ison_Table.pdf

jsk

I'm using CycleOps Virtual Training with my Kickr, works pretty well using an Android tablet. I've found Ant+ to work better than Bluetooth FWIW (Samsung tablets and phones have Ant+ support built in, for other models you may need to purchase an USB Ant+ dongle for this to work).

karlkras

Well, claiming compatibility and execution are two different things. There's a wide variety of Windows drivers and capabilities, but if you support a specific narrow limited range of of the platform, are you really compatible?

DJH8098

Have you tried streaming it with chrome cast? You may have to go out and get a chromecast~$40 but from what I understand it is supposed to stream on it, I think they have an app on it not 100% sure though.

DaveQ24

You have my sympathies. I just wasted an hour trying to set up a new postage meter. NOT my job at all, but no one else seemed to be able to figure it out, so at least I was brave enough to try. However, absolutely NOTHING in the installation guide actually worked as it should have.

Oh well - we can print postage at 46 1/2 cents a time - we'll just keep sticking 46 1/2 postage labels on our mailings until we get to the right amount -- and guess at that because the scale doesn't work yet either!

berner

I have a worrying suspicion many of these devices are are produced by the same people who brought us VCRs. I have an even worst suspicion these same people may find their way into driverless auto production. I know that a few of them have already been messing with the accelerator/electronic programming in my car where the engine suddenly will race to high revs.

Cyclist75354986865

I ended up getting rid of my Kickr and went back to my Kinetic Road Machine. Much simpler, much happier.

berner

Not so fast. I'm not done bad mouthing bad tech and technologists. There is the auto I once owned that developed a hiccup every 4-5 months where the engine would shut down with no warning and would only start after it was towed to the dealer. They never resolved the problem. I eventually traded the car to a friend in exchange for tennis lessons. He asked the auto mechanic department of the local community college to look at it and they found the problem. It seems to me an electronic problem that is unable to be diagnosed is poor engineering.

trainsktg

My Kickr has integrated equally well with the Zwift app using a Windows 7 computer w/ANT+ and an iPad Air w/Bluetooth. I use my Android phone w/Bluetooth to perform the Kickr pre-ride calibration and to issue in-ride commands over WiFi, although the computer/iPad is still needed to run the actual app, as Zwift does not support Android yet.

Keith

Seattle Forrest

Is it worth having a bike when spokes pop and tubes flat? Or are those inconveniences the price we pay for being able to ride bikes?