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.