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I have a Wahoo Elemnt Roam which I use for following routes. This is usually fine but if I do a longish route it eats the battery which will not last for a full day. It is fine if I am just using it to record a ride but the act of following a track seems to be really battery thirsty. How do people charge things on the move? Anybody got any experience of using a powerbank on the move whilst still navigating? What about dynamo hubs?
Thinking about doing some multi-day rides ie Cairngorm Loop or some of the HT550 and wondered how people deal with this issue.
I have nothing to add on your question but I am really interested in your username as I grew up there.
All depends where the charge port is and where on the bike it is mounted. I'm thinking of getting a small Anker battery pack for my Edge Explore so I can charge at a lunch stop when doing Pennine Bridleway. I have bigger Anker packs but too big.
Used to live there too between The Crook and Rumbling Bridge. Left about 8 years ago.
One thing you can do to reduce battery life is switch the back-light off (from settings on the App on your phone) - at least, you can with the Element Bolt, which I have.
I use a battery pack if on an overnighter, think its an Anker one, about the size of a phone, carries enough charge for at least 2 full phone recharges. If needing to charge on the move, just pop the charger in a frame bag/toptube bag and run a short lead.
It doesn't help with your Wahoo but for longer trips I use a Garmin Oregon. It runs off AAs. If I use rechargeable AAs I can also recharge them in the unit. It'll also run off an external power supply (pack or dynamo).
I lived round the back Crook but left ages ago - over 20 years.
I use a small powerbank with a short lead from a top tube bag if it's a long day out and I'm navigating (Edge Explore).
I have done this with a Garmin, I came prepared to ride with the power bank zip tied to the stem and wrapped in a plastic bag. However in the end, because it charged much faster than it was being depleted, I was able to top it up during stops and that worked pretty well, I didn't have to worry about my power bank or the USB port getting wet and muddy.
It's of no help to the OP but many Garmin devices have charging contacts on the out-in-front mount, and you can fit their dedicated battery underneath the mount that adds loads of extra capacity. However, I tend to run my lights under there so it might cause an issue for that.
Older GPS units didn't used to like being plugged in as they 'thought' they were connected to a computer..so you had to buy odd cables that JUST had the power parts..no data..
Modern ones can just be plugged in and charged in use - dynamo, battery pack etc...
However, you'll prob need a 90 degree plug on your cable so it fits, if it's an out-front mount..
DrP
hardtailonly
One thing you can do to reduce battery life is switch the back-light off
This is what I was going to suggest. On my V1 Elemnt Bolt you can do it from the settings menu, with a short power button press. It cycles through ON, 20s, OFF. Makes quite a difference having it set to off, or 20s - which only activates the backlight for (you guessed it) 20s when a button is pressed.
I would have thought a quick top-up from a powerbank when you stop would do the job, or depending on the mount type you use you can probably strap a small powerbank to the top-tube and plug it in while riding. You can get nice short cables to avoid mess and/or snags with branches.
I will try the power saving tip and also try rigging up a power bank to provide charge as and when needed.
yep and also Cannondale do an adapter so you can use those contacts with (I think) any USB battery, as some of their high-end bikes come with an integrated battery now so you can power multiple devices (front/rear lights, radar, GPS unit) from the single battery mounted into the downtube!It’s of no help to the OP but many Garmin devices have charging contacts on the out-in-front mount, and you can fit their dedicated battery underneath the mount that adds loads of extra capacity.
You can also get water resistant/weatherproof power banks which may help.
If you’re close to changing, the 1040 Garmin has insane battery life. An 11.5h day out at Dirty Reiver with auto brightness and navigation running all day used about 23% 🤣
Otherwise I used to run a battery cable from a top tube bag 👍🏻
I used my roam following a route last week around 12 hours a day and it still had 30% battery left. I run my phone in aeroplane mode so it's not connected by Bluetooth.
If I'm worried about battery life, I quickly charge it when I stop for dinner.
Friend had a new roam but the battery died quickly. I think his settings were wrong and it was trying to download maps and got stuck in a loop. Factory reset seems to have fixed this.
Is there a power saving mode? On my Garmin Edge 530 in the settings it can be set to go to sleep and only power up the screen when there is a change of direction coming up - its fairly reliable although not 100%, not that its 100% reliable when fully powered... Does make a massive difference to battery consumption though..
I find my Garmin runs out pretty quick when following a route, simple solution seems to be switch away from the map screen when I'm on a long section without any turns (although it does still mostly pop up turn by turn instructions).
@bassmandan - what Garmin? I get around 12-16 hours from my Edge 530 whether following a route or not.
I charge my ELEMNT Bolt v2 on the go. Charges incredibly quick. You don’t need a large power bank as the battery is pretty small.
The standard out front mount makes the charge port difficult to access though. I use a different mount so don’t have this problem.