AlgarveCycling

Going on from what others have written: K2 battery life is low for bike computers, no doubt about it. But it is plenty for most and I think that's the reasoning behind Hammerhead's rationale. I'm happy to trade battery life for the superior res screen. That's the choice they have given us vs Garmin et al.

I do 20-24h training weeks, typically my longest rides are around 6-7 hrs and even at maximum screen res, my K2 has managed with 20%+ left over - hooked up to a PM, Sram electronics etc. I think the K2 from my own experience is good for 10hrs+ if screen res is managed. I'm in the habit of charging my K2 after every ride; the charger is next to my bikes so part of my post-ride routine. I guess if folks want to only remember to do that once a week then they need a Garmin.

I have friends doing a 5 day tour across the country now but they stay in hotels each night and can recharge batteries. The Garmin devices are excellent but their battery life is only an advantage for those doing rides longer than 10-12hrs or tours with no recharging available; that can't be a massive segment of the market. For me, the K2 is good for 300km.

As for the rest, Garmin leads the back-end software for training etc if that's of interest but the devices themselves don't excite me as much as the K2. Hammerhead are upgrading their device 2x a month and have been since launch. Give it another year and and it could well be comfortably ahead of all its competition for everything bar battery life. As it is now, I don't see the 1040 as being much better really and it costs a lot more. It's only real advantage is battery life for those who need the extra.

GhostRider62

The solar feature is almost enough for me to fork over $750 but I'll wait to see what kinds of warts and bugs are inside first. I do rides with my 1030 in battery extend mode and really do not like that because there is information on the screen that I want to see continuously. The additional capacity of the 1040 solar would probably work for me in that regard.

Seattle Forrest

​​​​​​That's annoying. I don't ride longer than 7 hours at a time but don't want to feel like I can't use the thing if I forget to change it once. Obviously you disagree and the screen is more important to you, and it's good we both have these choices. 🙂

For my thinking, though, Garmin could double the battery life and it wouldn't be better, they've taken this advantage as far as it goes and should focus on better screens going forward.

AlgarveCycling

Indeed, although to clarify, my charging it every day doesn't mean it needs to be charged every day. I was just stating my personal habit is such which makes longer battery life moot.

I could let the K2 go for 3-4 days no problem - providing each day was only a 3 hour or so ride, which is often the case. Not a lot of people ride 3 hours or more every day. Most will get a week out of it and a screen that rivals their mobile phone and an Android operating system and hardware that allows for mega software updates.

I'm a Garmin fan, I have a Fenix 6 watch that I use for MTB. I had an Edge but it expired, hence the need for a new computer. I chose Hammerhead because the 1030+ is just too large for my tastes. I dislike its size immensely. Otherwise I would have got one and then sold it for a 1040 later. The 830/840 is more the size I prefer to see in front of me but the K2 is simply better I think, in fact, I see it as a 1040 rival but in a better size for me.

Now that the 1040 is in the wild, I can imagine the folks at Hammerhead are seeing that Garmin have not pulled ahead really and only managed extended battery-life and have been instead been forced into a software upgrade battle with them - hence the news of more regular releases in the future from Garmin, in response to what Hammerhead are doing very well. Good for all of us!

njkayaker

Another benefit to the battery life is not having to replace if/when it degrades.

The Karoo 2 is 60.3mm wide and 100.6mm tall. The 1030 is 58 x 114 mm. It's not much bigger.

AlgarveCycling

It is to me. My training partner has the 1030. He has ordered a 1040. It is an elongated slab I don't like; that extra 14mm is wrong to my eyes on a bike. I see it every day! But hey, that's just my own subjective taste and what I want to see. The beauty of choice is that others like it and can get it.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing the 1040 solar. I think it will be a great piece of kit. I agree with DC Rainmaker's review. However, I was expecting more for some reason - perhaps I have become accustomed to Garmin leading by quite some margin but that clearly isn't the case anymore. Which is also good. We have a greater choice.

fooferdoggie 

the screen area is about the same between the two around 1/16" smaller overall on the Karoo. but the Karoo is pretty easy to read. here is one buy that came up a month or so after I got it the elevation wont auto calibrate after a few rides. p-lus the temp is off though it seems more off then usual its about 5 degrees off. now its 12 to 13 degrees off.

njkayaker

I was just talking about the size. The 1030 isn't much larger than the Karoo.

Anyway, the screen on the Karoo is pretty nice. It's also one reason the battery life isn't as good.

njkayaker

The "I dislike its size immensely" is kind of an extreme response to a small difference. But sure, people should get whatever they want (if it's possible).

The taller aspect ratio has a purpose. For navigation, having more information about what is ahead is usually more useful than having information that is to either side of you. Also, the Garmins have two (optional) "subscreens": the elevation profile (which I don't find that useful) and the the data fields. Using these on a square screen would make the map display too squat (making the look-ahead much worse).

fooferdoggie 

same width about 1/2" taller.

njkayaker

Yes, that's what I indicated (a bit of math required) earlier.

Not many people are going to see that difference as significant. Very few people are going to have an "immense dislike" of the difference.

You also have to consider the actual size. 14 mm isn't much for the larger units but is for small units like the 830. (And Karoo doesn't give you any choice there.)

AlgarveCycling

Noooooo, not extreme in the slightest because I dislike the size of the 1030 enough to have never purchased one. So, for me, a fan of all things tech who generally buys top-of-the-range of anything, that's immense!

Sure, you may think it is a small difference but given I only just accept the K2 size, the extra is too much. I like the Garmin 530 size ideally. A 1040 solar with 530 dimensions and K2 screen and hardware...mmmm. Overkill but I'd buy it. As it is, I have to compromise so I have the device that gives me the most important things I want.

I care less about navigation information, I've never used it. Even when in a different country, I like to find my own way around and don't follow prescribed routes. DC Rainmaker rates the K2 nav as excellent though so must be good for those who want it.

What I want to see are current watts, 10s watts, NP and max power mainly so I have a screen with just this info for training. I can do 6hrs on the bike with just that profile. In addition to that data I have distance, speed, ave speed and ascent as well on another screen.

The K2 has a pop up elevation screen informing of the climb - it doesn't need nav to come up. This can be useful and a simple flick down hides it. When it comes to data display, the K2 wins hands down. It's screen is very clear. More data on one screen is just not necessary - in fact, to me it is a huge turn off since when doing intervals I really don't want to search for stuff on a congested display.

njkayaker

The predicted upcoming climb stuff on the Karoo is very nice.

Steve B.

Here's 2 screen shots of K2 side by side with a 1030. The data screen is not really any better on K2 then on 1030, IMO. If anything Garmin allows you greater flexibility to configure the data screen to your needs as you can choose 3-4-5-6-7-8-9 or 10 data fields and can make any data field into any data you choose. Hammerhead limits you to certain pre-configured screens they've created (though like Garmin, you can choose whats in a data field). I like 3 large data screens for Speed, Distance and Ride Time, with 4 additional. Karoo does not let me set up a screen that way.

The K2 map is clearly superior in detail, though something nice that Garmin does on a map screen if not navigating is shows you the name of an upcoming street. K2 does not yet do that, though there have been multiple requests on this, with no fix going back a year. So for all that hubhub about Hammerhead updating every 2 weeks, yes they do, but I've not yet found that all those updates actually give me useful features,

Seattle Forrest

​​​​​​I'm curious, why max watts? Does it help you knowing that while you ride?

AlgarveCycling

I'm sort of a sprinter (endurance), so yes. When I'm doing 4x15s or a set of 40/20's I want to see what I'm hitting. I generally hit my best effort on the 2nd or 3rd sprint.

I'm old and slow now but I still like to do full gas sprints and 17.5w/kg is roughly where I'm at nowadays carrying 6kg more than when I was younger - although it's more about holding as close to the max as possible that counts. I manage around 10s on a good day.

AlgarveCycling

It's a lot brighter! I live in a part of the World where we get bright sunshine for over 300 days of the year - a bright, sharp screen is very helpful.

Try configuring fewer data fields, you'll see the numbers get larger and easier to read so not too dissimilar from the Garmin pre-defined fields.

I don't waste a data field with Time when it can appear next to battery level.

A lot of the updates I've found useful - the Climber stuff has been great, for example, but generally, the improvements have been a nice evolution. Apparently Garmin are going to be going down the same route so that's good for competition.

njkayaker

The display of data on the Karoo is kind of awful.

Steve B.

To each his own. My eyesight is not good enough to read the tiny text on the top display bar, thus I put that into a data field.

Steve B.

Garmin generally does not provide OS updates that gives legacy units the new and improved functionality of the new units. There were a number of navigation improvements on the 1030 Plus that were never ported down to the 1030 as example. Business wise there's not point to that, they want you to go spend another $600 on the new unit to get the new features.

Steve B.

It's usable but I actually prefer the Garmin.

njkayaker

The Garmin layout is better.

The rules (lines) clearly separate things and the units reinforce what you are looking at. (The units might also be extra help if you are riding in a place with different units).

I'm surprised how bad the Karoo layout is. "Usable" is a low bar.

Steve B.

When I look at what you are describing, I would agree 100%. This is an area I don't see many users on the HH FB page complaining about so I doubt HH will change anything soon. I had already asked for greater flexibility in the screen displays, they have never responded. There have been complaints of the tiny text on the top data bar, where you see battery life at 87%, you also see ride time there, that the text is unreadable by older riders whose eyesight has declined. I add that to the main data screen.

AlgarveCycling

I prefer not to have the lines but I don't mind having them either, so indifferent really.

It looks to me like the photo's we have seen here thus far are somewhat misleading though. Perhaps certain updates have not been applied.

For example, the K2 does have the same fields choices that Garmin has when choosing data card layouts. You can also have multiple screens, a'la Garmin.

Anyway, these from playing around during my pre-ride breakfast. Also, white background? I prefer black. It is much clearer.

Trsnrtr

My problem with both the Garmins and the K2 is reliability. My wife’s 830 stopped mid ride yesterday. This is the second time in a month. My 1030 froze a couple times, also, before I bought my K2. My K2 was great for 4,000 miles and lost everything mid-ride a month ago, hasn’t since but I. Guessing it will do it again when I least expect it.

My 1030 and K2 are loaded with options but if the software isn’t stable, I might as well go back to the Huret Multito.