Garmin delivers 100-plus-hour battery life with its new solar charging bike computer that has an impressive suite of performance, navigational, and safety features and better-than-ever satellite connectivity.
The Garmin Edge 1040 Solar has a 3.5-inch touch-screen glass face with a solar charging lens that can add up to 42 minutes an hour of additional battery time when biking in the sun.
Multi-band GNSS technology gives the computer accurate GPS positioning in dense urban areas, under deep tree cover, and on tall mountains. And the navigation, performance, safety, and connectivity features are all usable thanks to simpler, more intuitive menus, which have been a frustration for some cyclists in the past.
“Cyclists expect as much from their GPS bike computer as they do themselves,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of global consumer sales. “The Edge 1040 Solar is durable, accurate and ready to go the distance, the pinnacle of GPS bike computers. No matter where you ride or what bike you choose to use, the Edge 1040 Solar is ready for any adventure — from remote gravel trails to epic climbs.”
If you’re using the Edge 1040 Solar to train, it assesses your strengths and weaknesses and offers training programs to help you improve or prepare for a specific course. It displays power targets and stamina checks in real time when you’re riding. It prepopulates custom ride profiles based on your saved data and sensors, all of which you manage with the Garmin Connect app.
The Edge 1040 Solar lets you see how your body holds up in heat and altitude, charting your acclimation and sending notifications when you need to refuel or rehydrate. Mountain bike metrics include jump stats and detailed ride tracking.
High-contrast, ride-type-specific maps use Garmin Connect popularity routing to recommend routes on the road or trail. And the computer syncs with Trailforks, which has trail routes and details for more than 80 countries.
For those who find trying to follow a mountain bike path that often splits on a cycling computer difficult, a user-enabled mode alerts you when a fork is coming.
Incident detection, assistance and LiveTrack are just a few of the Edge 1040 Solar’s Safety and Tracking features. And the new computer has group messaging and tracking so you won’t lose your friends on the road or trail. It syncs with Garmin’s Varia rearview radar, inReach, and more.
Indoor cyclists will appreciate being able to sync workouts from a suite of training apps.
We just got a review unit, and we can’t wait to explore the myriad of features this new Garmin bike computer offers. It will be a massive hit if it’s as good as Garmin’s new Fenix watches.
The Edge 1040 Solar is available now for $750. A non-solar charging version, the Edge 1040, is available now for $600.
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