Polaris OBark

I'm amazed how polite the drivers are there.

Bald Paul

Most of them are. We have multiple cycling clubs in the Upstate, so drivers are sort of used to seeing cyclists on the road. There are still a few, ummm, "end point of digestive tract" drivers around. Multiple scars on my body from stitches and severe road rash will attest to that.

WhyFi

Keep in mind that you weren't looking for any particular incident. Once you are, sorting through files is going to be more onerous, assuming at least moderate traffic and that you didn't do the reach-around, in the heat of the moment, to tag it. Again, not a big deal with the incentive of a major incident, but making it easy to report/document lesser transgressions would be good.

WhyFi

If you're not already on UpRide.cc, you should look in to it. Report these ****ers, make a trail, and establish a pattern for the sake of the person that does eventually get hit by one of them.

Polaris OBark

The files will have a creation date/time stamp, so if you know the time of the incident (eg from your Garmin that you would be running if you had this), you can fish out the correct file pretty quickly.

Seattle Forrest

That sounds very easy to automate.

Seattle Forrest

If something bad enough happens to want to go to the trouble, I think most people will deal with this immediately when they get home, and then I don't know if it's one file per ride or one per paying car or what, but it shouldn't be like something happened a few weeks ago and you need to watch every recording from this spring to find it?

Polaris OBark

"Siri, find my USC-C cable, the one that actually works, and go get the radar off my bike, bring it in, plug in it and my computer, open the directory SucksToBeYouGarminFanBoi and import the files into the named directory, preserving initial creation dates and times and all metadata. Then call 911."

WhyFi

Yeah, I understand how the time stamps work, but I'm speaking from experience - there isn't always the presence of mind to make mental notes and, even with larger/longer files, it still takes work to hunt stuff down.

They record in chunks - sifting through a lot of smaller files are is more tedious than going through fewer larger files. Ideally, you should be able to choose. I have a huge SD card, so I go with 15 min chunks, which makes finding stuff easier for me. Even so, it's not unusual for me to come home to 20+ files from one ride. Anywho, DCR noted that Garmin recorded in 30 sec clips, which seems ridiculous to me, but someone else (Bald Paul?) mentioned 90 sec, which is better, but still only something I'd select if I had really limited storage.

Polaris OBark

I just ordered the Garmin dash cam, because people keep trying to kill me when I am in my car, too.

Seattle Forrest

Thanks for taking the time to spell that out. I only do still photography so in some ways it's entirely different like finding the file you need. Obviously one of us knows what he's talking about, the other one appreciates the education.

chaadster

As I understand it, locked file recording duration can be set at various intervals using the app, so while riding, that means user triggered clips or incident triggered clips. All other clips, i.e. not locked/unsaved, are 30sec long.

WhyFi

Ick. I mean, I could understand that with limited/non-expandable storage, and sure it "works," but there's just no reason not to have more flexibility and user-friendliness at this point.

znomit

I assume someone (not garmin of course) will make a utility to automagically splice together the absurd number of tiny little movies.
Hopefully they are contiguous.

Bald Paul

If you want to use it as an "Action Cam", it can be set to record continuously. Even my GoPro will break up a long recording into 8 minute segments. Honestly, though, the footage is pretty boring 99.9% of the time. Who wants to watch hours of the top of their rear tire spinning along the road? When I used my GoPro (I still use one facing forward) I would routinely delete all video without even watching it, unless I was looking for a particular incident.
The only 'tiny little movie' I would be interested in would be the one with a close pass, harassment, or (not again!) getting hit.

WhyFi

Cameras of this class aren't new, not even to Garmin, and existing utilities will splice them together to spit out a seamless video, but you still have to filter through all of the files, gather together the desired files, wait for the computer to think, etc. But again, cameras of this class aren't new - it's 2022 - and we're talking about a $400 product; we shouldn't need to make excuses and look to others for put a Band-Aid on the user experience.

In teeny-tiny clips.

People with less boring rides.

PeteHski

Yeah, that's what I would have done too. Wouldn't have messed around trying to use BT with a phone app. So that would be a non-issue then really.

Polaris OBark

I have a mount that attaches to the saddle rails that enables you to attach a GoPro or other action cam, so you can get an arse POV recording to your heart's content.

The small clips actually make sorting through the video easier. Every operating system I use displays movie files in a file browser window with an icon derived from one of the initial frames, so you can visually ID everything in 90 sec (or whatever) time-slices.

It isn't a deficit, it is an asset.

I'm still trying to get python working on my Edge 530. Darn Garmin for limiting the utility of my computer!

WhyFi

With 30 seconds clips, I would regularly go on rides generating 600+ files.

If you see small clips as an asset, that's cool, but others will see it as a detriment. At this time and price point, there's no reason that end users shouldn't be able configure to their own preferences - other manufacturers certainly do.

Polaris OBark

You should get Garmin to hire you as a consultant.

WhyFi

I get that people want to feel good about (prospective) purchases, but you should try not to get emotionally defensive (on behalf of a global corporation, no less) when others point out shortcomings vs competitors.

Polaris OBark

I decided not to purchase it, mainly based on the reviews (and secondarily, the price), even though I was initially enthusiastic, so the feel-good/emotional aspect doesn't apply. I am still on the Gen 1 box-shaped radar (although I did place an order for the $150 sale current light/radar only).

But I try to evaluate things objectively. There are clear limitations to this device, such as battery life, lack of higher resolution and image stabilization, crappy (but optional) ancillary software. Then there are bogus objections, like yours.

By the way, who are the competitors in the camera/radar field? I might have missed a few.

If you don't like the product, there is a very simple solution. Do what I am doing. Don't buy it.

Seattle Forrest

​​​​​​Not unheard of in first generation products.

Two reasons come to mind for this:

1. People complain about Garmin menus. They let people decide how a lot of things work (yay!) and people hate doing it.
2. It takes a ton of time and effort to add choices to the user interface. Devs and testers and cycles of bug fixes and regression. (More options also mean more risk.)

Probably the reason was to hit a launch date.

I'm not saying anything about how the world should be except that people should buy stuff like this from stores with generous return policies, and wait for other people to jump in the water first on v1 products.

Bah Humbug

Given the near-universal reaction, they should have hired almost literally anyone as a consultant.

Seattle Forrest

Garmin has a page where you can sign up for recruiter spam if you want to work for them.