tcs

Okay, Spanky, the application is a folding bike with 16" wheels.

I tried a basic wired bike computer. The wire didn't begin to be long enough to go from the sensor to the head unit, much less allow for folding.

I got a Xoss G. Well liked until it quit finding GPS satellites after ~7 months.

Wireless? There's an LED headlamp 5cm away, and because of the geometry of the handlebar and the requirements of the fold, it's not going anywhere else.

Oh, and this is on my wife's bike.

Recommendations? Suggestions?

Iride01 

So you do or don't want a GPS?

If you don't, then get a CatEye. If you do want a GPS then get a Garmin, Wahoo or Lezyne.

My LED headlamp is about 2 cm from where my Garmin sits. It's never been an issue. Though I have seen some people blaming the LED instead of the cheap POS gps they bought.

Tourist in MSN

Speed, distance and odometer? Wireless computer, if they still make them. I have a couple by VDO but there were several other good brands a few years ago. Does Sigma make a cheap basic one?

John Valuk

If you just want the capabilities of an old-school cyclocomputer (no GPS, no granular recording of data for later analysis), then you might consider the Bontrager RIDEtime Elite.

That works with ANT+ sensors, so you can get what you want (or not) for speed/distance, cadence, and heart rate. If you just wanted speed/distance, you could use the Garmin Speed Sensor 2 (or some cheaper sensor that works similarly).

Communication with sensors has been fine for mine; no problems with the LED headlight that I am running.

Full disclosure: I have not checked to see if there is a lower limit for the tire circumference on the RIDEtime Elite. I have a spare one on hand, so it would be an easy enough thing for me to check.

tcs

Thank you, John. Yes, unlike the analog signal from a wireless computer, the digital signal from the ANT+ should be impervious to interference from an LED light circuit. I've looked at the Cateye Padrone Digital and its Bluetooth sensors, which seemingly would also answer my wants. Thing is, by the time I buy the Bontrager or Cateye digital computer and sensor, I'm well over the cost of a GPS-based odometer+trip meter+speedometer and most of the way to a Garmin 130+. Yet all my wife wants to know is how far she rode this ride, in total, and maybe how fast she's going.

The Xoss G was perfect...until it wasn't. I'm very reluctant to buy another.

I was hoping someone knew of a basic wired computer with a wire at least twice as long as normal. Maybe there's not one.

Sigh. I miss my Huret Multito.

John Valuk

For me, part of the charm of the RIDEtime Elite is that it really is a lot like an old-school cyclocomputer, but with ANT+ sensors. It has a fairly large LCD display that is sufficient for me to read without wearing "readers" eyeglasses, runs on a coin cell battery that lasts a long time, and can be used day-to-day with very little user interaction. Nothing to charge; nothing to turn on/off. It's configurable enough that, for some users, it can be "everything that they need, and very little that they don't".

I've picked up a couple of the RIDEtime Elites on eBay for lower prices than normal retail. The older RIDEtime (non-Elite) units often go for much less, and might be suitable for your needs. If you got the right deal, and if an off-brand speed sensor worked OK with it, you might be able to come up with a package for a lot less then normal retail pricing of a RIDEtime Elite + Garmin Speed Sensor 2.

Until I decided that I wanted to see cadence information, I was very happy with my CatEye Velo 7. If cable length were the problem, I wouldn't be afraid to cut/splice/heat shrink to extend the cable on one of those.