Karoo 2

[ddom]

I see that the new Karoo2 has already sold out the first pre-orders....anyone here buying one? Looking to replace my Elemnt which has been brilliant but lacks the routing options and is a little dated in some areas now. The original Karoo was huge, the new one looks much more like it?

[flight147z]

ddom said:

I see that the new Karoo2 has already sold out the first pre-orders....anyone here buying one? Looking to replace my Elemnt which has been brilliant but lacks the routing options and is a little dated in some areas now. The original Karoo was huge, the new one looks much more like it?

I am interested in moving to this too, but I am waiting for the unit to launch and reviews to be available before I make a decision

Currently have an Elemnt Bold and the Karoo 2 looks like a more interesting choice than a Roam, which I don't think is different enough from my Bolt to make the price to upgrade worth it

[ddom]

flight147z said:

I am interested in moving to this too, but I am waiting for the unit to launch and reviews to be available before I make a decision

Currently have an Elemnt Bold and the Karoo 2 looks like a more interesting choice than a Roam, which I don't think is different enough from my Bolt to make the price to upgrade worth it

I almost purchased the ROAM but it is looking a little bit dated now, although an upgrade from ELEMNT with routing. The other option is Garmin, but I have had so many issues with them over the years and whilst their CS is generally good (replacements, support, etc) losing ride data really pisses me off. Bit the bullet and pre-ordered. I think i'm safe as they are offering a refundable deposit and also a 45 day retuns policy. I do love the fact they are offering trade ins on the old unit.

DC Rainmaker review

I'll be turning off the phone integration

[flight147z]

I'm holding off for now as sooner or later Wahoo must be due to announce something new, especially given the Roam is generally considered inferior to the equivalent Garmin's at the same price point

Elemnt - 2016
Bolt - 2017
Roam - 2019

Would be ideal if a new Wahoo is announced before the end of the year to give a little more choice, by the end of the year the detailed Karoo 2 reviews should also be available

[flight147z]

ddom said:

I almost purchased the ROAM but it is looking a little bit dated now, although an upgrade from ELEMNT with routing. The other option is Garmin, but I have had so many issues with them over the years and whilst their CS is generally good (replacements, support, etc) losing ride data really pisses me off. Bit the bullet and pre-ordered. I think i'm safe as they are offering a refundable deposit and also a 45 day retuns policy. I do love the fact they are offering trade ins on the old unit.

DC Rainmaker review

I'll be turning off the phone integration

Did you buy anything in the end? I'm now considering a Karoo 2 again, the new Bolt doesn't look like a good option based on the issues observed in the early reviews

[mooseracer]

I'm also wanting to replace my Garmin 810 and the Karoo appeals - with only the battery life making me think twice.

[flight147z]

mooseracer said:

I'm also wanting to replace my Garmin 810 and the Karoo appeals - with only the battery life making me think twice.

+ The price for me. I rarely do rides longer than 6 hours so in practice I suspect the battery will be fine. The nice thing about the bolt though is that I get over 200 miles between charges so only needs charging every couple of weeks. Roam would provide better battery life but doesn't seem a massive upgrade from the Bolt really and costs only £60 less than the K2

[ddom]

Had mine now for a few months and it has been good. The updates keep coming for it and they do listen to feedback...unlike Garmin

[mooseracer]

It all looks great I have to say.

I just wonder what the battery life would be like for me - di2, power meter, heart rate monitor all connected and navigation in use.

It's not like I regularly do all day epics but my 810 will last in the above configuration for a 200km ride and I'd not want to have to take a battery pack with me for those.

[jonm01]

ISN are using them (Froome etc) so I think it must be ok..

[flight147z]

ddom said:

Had mine now for a few months and it has been good. The updates keep coming for it and they do listen to feedback...unlike Garmin

How are you finding the battery in real world use? Any thoughts on screen visibility v a Wahoo?

[davidd]

Battery life on mine is normally between 7-10% per hour with HT, Cadence and phone connected, screen on 25% using navigation and getting lost.

It's a great bit of kit.

[flight147z]

davidd said:

Battery life on mine is normally between 7-10% per hour with HT, Cadence and phone connected, screen on 25% using navigation and getting lost.

It's a great bit of kit.

So 10-14 hours based on that

[ddom]

flight147z said:

How are you finding the battery in real world use? Any thoughts on screen visibility v a Wahoo?

Screen is great, it’s slightly worse than the Wahoo in some shades but it’s much higher quality, colour and scrolls. Better than a Garnin colour screen for sure. They’ve just release a HRM so will be giving that a go. Had a terrible time with Garmin straps and the Wahoo one is badly worn, although still works.

[Harpoon]

ddom said:

Screen is great, it’s slightly worse than the Wahoo in some shades but it’s much higher quality, colour and scrolls. Better than a Garnin colour screen for sure. They’ve just release a HRM so will be giving that a go. Had a terrible time with Garmin straps and the Wahoo one is badly worn, although still works.

If the sensor "pod" of your Wahoo HRM is working, then maybe try one of these replacement straps for £11:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06WLMMG7S/ref...

I purchased mine in February, works fine with my Wahoo HRM pod and it's not drowned due to massive amounts of sweat on the turbo trainer yet!

Back on topic, I've just been looking at the release notes for the Karoo and the Hammerhead dev's are obviously kept busy!

https://www.uk.hammerhead.io/blogs/change-logs

[davidd]

Harpoon said:

Back on topic, I've just been looking at the release notes for the Karoo and the Hammerhead dev's are obviously kept busy!

https://www.uk.hammerhead.io/blogs/change-logs

There has been a release every 2 weeks since I got mine (well apart from once) so that must be 7 or 8 at least. I think there will be some interesting features coming down the line over the next year.

D

[ddom]

Harpoon said:

If the sensor "pod" of your Wahoo HRM is working, then maybe try one of these replacement straps for £11:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06WLMMG7S/ref...

I purchased mine in February, works fine with my Wahoo HRM pod and it's not drowned due to massive amounts of sweat on the turbo trainer yet!

Back on topic, I've just been looking at the release notes for the Karoo and the Hammerhead dev's are obviously kept busy!

https://www.uk.hammerhead.io/blogs/change-logs

Thanks for that, good spot.

Karoo is great, last update was the climber thing, haven’t tried it yet…

[flight147z]

I've just bit the bullet and bought a Karoo 2. I hesitated for a while as for what you get I do think they are extremely expensive (the same applies to all cycle computers) and in reality I also don't think I'll get much more out of it than I get from my current Bolt. It does feel like a close competitor to the Garmin 1030+ so at least it doesn't cost as much as that!

My other main concern is battery life, but it seems that I'll get 7 hours as an absolute minimum and given only 11 of the 812 rides I've logged on Strava were over 7 hours that shouldn't be a problem

Hoping to get £150 for my Bolt to reduce the pain a little...

[flight147z]

Not a positive experience for me unfortunately

Arrived last week, whilst it's a nice product, I have found the screen unusable in bright conditions. I've realised that whilst the Karoo has a lot of "nice to have" features it doesn't get the basics right - having a really clear display that I can see in all conditions and having enough power that you don't need to think about battery life

Mine is going back under the 45 day return policy, think I'll need to stick with Wahoo to get what I want

[mooseracer]

I also bit the bullet and purchased one last week. It seems a decent unit and the navigation (and re-routing) is very good indeed.

My concern pre-purchase was battery life but on Saturday I rode for 95 miles/6 hours with DI2, Power Meter, HR strap all connected and using navigation and at the end of the ride it was reporting 45% battery left.

If it stays at that kind of level with more use then I'm more than happy


Edit: I have bluetooth turned off on mine which probably helps a lot with battery consumption