One of my “parting gifts” when I retired was a gift card to a local bike store. Like you, I was deciding whether or not to take the plunge on a dedicated GPS for touring. I decided to see how I got on with just my phone during my tour in Japan.
Like Matt, my iPhone was not a happy camper in the heat. Not only would the battery be in need of charging by lunch even when using Google Maps sparingly, but, the thermal limiter in the phone would prevent charging. I decided to take the plunge on a GPS, once the price was right.
I hung on to that gift card until the Boxing Day sales, and picked up a Wahoo Elemnt Bolt V2.
I’m really not much good with tech gadgets, and only have used it so far for recording day rides. I’ll start cramming before I leave for Japan ( 5 weeks to go!), so, if you and Matt can wait until I return, I’ll be able to give you my thoughts.
Two things I noticed in the first week;
The screen is small. Compared to my iPhone 12 the screen is about half the width and a third the height. There’s not much map showing. I’m OK with this because I would rather enjoy the scenery and just get a cue for turns. I see you are pondering the slightly larger Roam, which will be bigger, but still a lot smaller than a phone.
Wahoo advertised the “updated” USB-C charging on the V2. This is misleading. The plug on the unit is USB-C, but, the only cord I have found to work is the USB to USB-C cord supplied with the unit. None of my USB-C to USB-C cords will charge the unit. In my view this is not an improvement. Most other rechargeable devices I will bring with me charge via Micro USB. Now I need yet another cord just for the GPS. Perhaps Wahoo will receive enough complaints to truly update this before you take the plunge.
Matt asked if you can upload a GPX route for different countries. When I figure out the process of importing files to the Wahoo, I’ll let you know. My tech savvy daughter will be visiting in two weeks. She can help the old man out. The Wahoo app has worldwide maps, so I’m thinking it’s not a problem. Oddly enough, my purchased in Canada unit came pre loaded with USA and Europe, but not Canada! Adding Canada and Japan was an easy job on the app, even for me.
I’ll try to remember to give a quick update during my trip, after I get more proficient at its use, with a more in depth update on my return.