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Actual battery life, without active navigation?

Thinking hard about buying an Edge Explore, as I'm looking for a bicycle computer primarily for touring on roads. The main features I want are (a) logging GPS tracks of my rides, (b) standard bicycle computer functions (speed, distance - ideally several counters, to use per trip/day/segment, cadence, time), and (c) following a predetermined route with minimal interaction (more on that below). After reading several reviews, it seems the Edge Explore would fit the bill nicely. But I want to do multi-day tours, without access to electricity for recharging regularly. I'm fine carrying an extra powerbank for recharging, but ideally I'd need the Edge Explore to last for an entire day (so I can recharge it at night). This is where I hit a snag: seems this forum, and a bunch of other places online, is full of people who give the actual running time on a single full charge as far less than 12 hours, seems like 4-6 hours is pretty common. And as I dig deeper, it seems like some of you only get those 4-6 hours if you do a bunch of settings tweaks to reduce power consumption.

The latest firmware 5.30, which is quite recent, claims to have improved power management.

Can anyone share real-life battery life info, preferable running the latest firmware?

I want 12 hours of operation on a full charge (a bit less is okay if I can charge while riding - is that possible?). But I don't need "turn by turn" navigation for my entire ride. Usually I know where I'm headed, and just want to double-check that I'm still on the correct course once every hour or so. Or if the intended route is blocked, then to come up with an alternative - a rare event. Is there a particular combination of settings on the Edge Explore that would let me do that, and would that increase battery life compared to full active "turn by turn" navigation?

I also want to see the display all the time, without needing to press or tap anything: this is so that I can see my speed, cadence and distance traveled, at a glance. I see a lot of comments about reducing brightness to save battery power. I think that refers to a backlight brightness. Can the display be seen in daylight with the backlight off, i.e. at 0%? I.e. do you only need the backlight when it starts getting dark out?

Do you know the capacity of the battery in the Edge Explore? In Wh or in mAh (assuming 5V), for example? I'd like to estimate how many recharges I could do from e.g. a 10000 mAh powerbank.

Thanks for any advice you can give.

If you think I should be looking at a different device to meet my needs, please let me know too.

I've considered using a conventional bike computer (no GPS) for its always on screen and long battery life, together with my phone kept in a pocket so that I can check my progress and position on a map from time to time as needed. Running an app on my phone that logs my progress all day would, however, likely drain my phone battery too rapidly. So I might carry a third (!) device, an AA-powered eTrex or similar, to just log my track in the background. Obviously the Edge Explore sounds like an attractive alternative that would combine all of those needs in one device ... if it will last all day.

  • Hi, I have my Edge Explore from it's introduction in 2018 an never have experienced battery issues like many people seem to have who own more recent models. The claims are about software issues, but my impression is that hardware (i.e. battery quality) plays a role too.

    In short: I take breadcrumbs of my rides, without TBT or other active navigation support like Off Course warnings and with the screen background light at 70%, all time ON and with the map visible (not data-screen).
    Last summer and automn, with firmware 5.20, the battery usage was 10 - 11 % per hour (many rides).
    From Dec-16 when firmware 5.30 was released (and installed on my Explore) the battery usage did not change significantly (3 rides). One was 10.0% p.h., one was 12.7% p.h., but partly with TBT active and one was 11,6% p.h.. Maybe an interesting observation which more people have, is temperature dependency of the battery consumption, which is explainable (Property of Li-ion batteries / physics). For the 3 rides mentioned above, the outside temperatures were 10.0, 3.9 and 6.3 degrees Celcius respectively. So, the slightly higher consumtion at 6,3 degrees, compared to that at 10.0 degrees may be reasonably explainable from the temperatures. However, n=3 so statistically not very solid.

    My assumption is that riding 10 - 12 hours without recharging will remain an utopy. Maybe an outdoor model with replacable batteries will suit you more?

  • Wow, thank you for this very helpful information. If I understand your description correctly, you see about 10-13% of battery used up per hour, suggesting (very roughly) you might be able to run for 7.5-10 hours on a full charge with your typical settings? It makes sense to me that the battery will not last as long at low temperatures - by analogy with how my phone misbehaves in the winter.

    Do you find the 70% background light level to be a typical brightness needed for daytime use? Do you use any connected sensors, like speed or cadence? 

    The Edge 1030 has an optional external battery back, that charges through the pins, after a small modification to the aero mounting bracket. I am curious whether it is possible to charge / top up the Edge Explore while riding, using e.g. a powerbank. Is the USB port accessible while the Explore is mounted? 

    You mention an "outdoor model" might suit be better - I'm not so familiar with those. Would you mind mentioning an example, so that I can look into that further? I've seen another brand, Bryton, with longer claimed battery life (e.g. 30 hours), and some users have confirmed such durations, but so far I don't think any of those match the Edge Explore quite as well in terms of features I'd like to have.

    Thank you, and happy riding to you.

  • Do you find the 70% background light level to be a typical brightness needed for daytime use?

    Actually, backlight is not needed at all during day time. The transflective lcd display is very well visible in daylight without any backlight. I keep backlight off, and enable it only if I plan to ride after sunset, or when using indoors in a poorly lit room.

    Is the USB port accessible while the Explore is mounted? 

    The charging port is about an inch below the mounting point, so depending on the type of mount and position on the bike it might or might not be accessible.

  • And just to chime in about battery life, I get 8-9 hours with turn-by-turn navigation, and some sensors connected (cadence sensor, varia radar).

  • Do you find the 70% background light level to be a typical brightness needed for daytime use? Do you use any connected sensors, like speed or cadence? 

    I'm monitoring battery consumption for a long time already. At start I choose 70% backlight to be sure to have the screen readable under all (daylight) circumstances. To keep data comparable I have not changed this setting afterwards.
    I agree that 70% is not needed all the time. The more sun, the less backlight you need. In sunny conditions 30 - 40% may be enough, but personal preference is also there...

    Do you use any connected sensors, like speed or cadence? 

    Yes, the given consumption data are inclusive the GSC10 Speed/cadence and Garmin Ant+ Heart Rate monitor (softstrap).

    You mention an "outdoor model" might suit be better - I'm not so familiar with those. Would you mind mentioning an example, so that I can look into that further?

    For me the same being not familiar with the Outdoor models, but you could take a look at Garmin Etrex Touch, Oregon or GPSMAP66 series. The Etrex Touch looks very attractive to me, but maybe you want a bigger screen?

  • Is the USB port accessible while the Explore is mounted? 

    With the optional original Garmin Outfront mount the USB charging port is accessible (have one in my drawer). I use a third-party outfront mount "Hide My Bell" and with this mount the USB port is not free. With the standard O-ring-fixed mount it depends on the shape of the handle bar. Standard round handlebar may keep the USB port free just enough, but on my Aero-shaped handlebar it is not.