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Tempe Sensor - real world use for Garmin Edge

Former Member
Former Member

I see the Tempe sensor is supported in the newest beta for Edge 1040.  I'd always assumed that there would be no need to have a sensor "out of the sun" since my body is taking in sunlight anyway.  Maybe I'm thinking about it wrong.  However I just noticed that sitting in my 73 degree room, the 1040 is currently reading 80 degrees.  

Can anyone that has used a tempe with other devices comment on how useful it would actually be in terms of the Garmin Edge readouts for "adapting" for training, and all that stuff?  If it's useful I don't mind picking one up.  I'm just not sure on the usefulness.

Also - unsure if it would be best to leave the tempe sensor in the sun, or tuck it away under the saddle.

  • about the tempe, it's giving much better temperature than the edge device, that tends to return hotter temperature than reality (in hot weather, read in cold weather that it return lower... but did not tested it yet).

    with the tempe, no surprise, but indeed, put it away from the sun, or heat sources, to ensure proper readout.

    About training improvement related to it, not that sure it worth anything for it, it's just fun to have temperature, and also a good way to check if you are overheating for the effort, or the weather, or to drink more when you notice that it's higher than what you feel, it happens more to me on the bike than when running.

  • I just bought one - I like gadgets. It’ll be cool to know the actual temp better. 

  • I’ve had a couple of Tempe sensors for a few years to connect to a handheld gps (GPSMap 64S) for mountaineering and hillwalking. Main reason was to keep an eye on how cold it was getting and when it was freezing or thawing. When the next 1040 FW goes into production I will have a play with it on the bike and see what data it gives me. Not sure how useful it will be but will be interesting.


    I guess whether you put it under the saddle out of the sun and wind or on the bars in full sunlight depends what you want to measure - ambient only or radiant heat as well. I’ve not looked back at the Tempe manual but I’d guess it says to keep it out of the sun because it will not be designed for the latter.


    On the training side, for acclimation to heat, fairly sure Garmin will keep using local weather reports rather than sensor data. Would be nice to have the option to use the Tempe instead though. Of course you can just go low-tech and keep a note of the temperature you train at and ignore what Garmin is telling you ;-)

  • The heat acclimatization requires humidity as well as temperature, which is why it uses weather data from the phone.

  • Thanks - that makes complete sense.

  • 1040 support for the Tempe does add two additional data fields as the Tempe provides this data.

    24 Hour max temperature

    24 Hour Min temperature

  • I have one for running past 2+ years. I only like it as it is more accurate than my wrist. As far as how it would be on the bike vs the edge personally I see very little difference but still might test it as I have an extra one. 

  • in hot weather, read in cold weather that it return lower... but did not tested it yet

    If the Edge is able to get its electronics colder than the environment it is run in, it is defying the laws of physics. 


    I’ve had a couple of Tempe sensors for a few years to connect to a handheld gps (GPSMap 64S) for mountaineering and hillwalking. Main reason was to keep an eye on how cold it was getting and when it was freezing or thawing.

    I bought mine for my Fenix 2 when the Fenix was released for similar reasons: Temperatur readings in the mountains or while hiking several days in early spring or fall. 

    I will put mine under my saddle now just because it is there and a battery is in there, but im not sure what to make out of this data on normal rides. Im commuting to work with my road bike or riding single day rides. If im bike packing, I do the light version and sleep in hotels.

    If you are bike packing, I think ambient temperature is interesting. Not that much in analysis afterwards, but in the morning when you get out of a sleeping bag and want to now what is expecting you.

    For training purposes, I would recommend using a CORE body temp sensor. I had one for the last year to test it on duty (im a firefighter) and used it also while I was training. I think that data point is much more useful than ambient temperature if we are talking about performance, loss of performance and how hard you can go. At the TdF some riders reached 40° core temp at the finishes, that's heavy stuff for a body.

  • For training purposes, I would recommend using a CORE body temp sensor. I had one for the last year to test it on duty (im a firefighter) and used it also while I was training. I think that data point is much more useful than ambient temperature if we are talking about performance, loss of performance and how hard you can go. At the TdF some riders reached 40° core temp at the finishes, that's heavy stuff for a body

    Totally agree = I bought the Tempe to have better data to use in conjunction with the core. I saw the 40c number (104f) and can scarcely believe it. The highest I have ever seen is 101.5 and I was definitely impaired. And this was after tons of training in the heat on purpose under ventilated and overdressed.

  • I've been using the Tempe Visualizer IQ app for about two years (this app includes the options to write data to the fit file and apply an offset to the reported values), If you want to read the air temperature then the Tempe device needs to be placed in the shade otherwise it will heat up in the sunshine (as does the Garmin Edge). Mine is currently fixed on the underside of the stem using a velcro cable tie. It's exposed to the wind created by the moving bike but is also exposed to radiation from a hot road surface. This is most noticeable when climbing hills but that's also the hottest situation for the cyclist.

    My experience is that the Tempe reports lower (about 2C) temperatures than the reality (probably a fudge to compensate from solar heating). This is most obvious in cold and cloudy conditions. Tempe Visualizer lets me correct that offset.