To wrap up today's update in a quick post, here are some quick trivia worth mentioning. Efficient as always. Or at least as efficient as you can get around these parts.
Favero Ashoma Pro MX Availability:
These went from available to unavailable virtually instantly after being announced a little over a month ago. It is now available again. Favero said they are restocking missing parts and making them available for order again. Frankly, this is the easiest update possible. These continue to be a great set of units and I will continue to use them for testing/validation.
A week later, we finally have the final (for real) set of Look MTB SPD & Road KEO pedals. I'm confident that Look has solved all the problems I've had so far. I took my first test drive yesterday and plan to put them through their paces again over the next few weeks.
Polar Vantage V3 update, Grit X2 Pro delivery:
As we outlined when announcing the Polar Grit ). This update, known as the V2.0 update, includes a substantially new heart rate algorithm and specifically includes the following features:
– Added vertical speed, VAM, 3D speed
– Added breadcrumbs whether in route or not
– Added route arrows to show direction
– Added the ability to access the map even outside of training
– Added new watch faces (both analog and digital)
– Improved map rendering speed and route sync speed
– Improved optical HR accuracy
Note that this is in addition to the support for Strava Routes that was rolled out a few weeks ago. This update, technically version 2.0.19, is available to both Polar Vantage V3 owners and Polar Grit X2 Pro owners as of today.
Speaking of which, the Grit X2 Pro starts shipping today after a little delay from Polar. When you get a new watch, you'll be asked to update to software version 2.0.19, which matches Vantage V3 above. I'll base my final review on this version, especially the heart rate algorithm part (I've been testing it for the last month, and only this new V2.0.19 contains some important HR algorithm changes). This is a photo I took last week on a path in the jungle after it rained.
Stay tuned for my final in-depth review sometime next week.
Garmin Fenix 7/Epix Series Beta Firmware:
Last week, Garmin restarted the beta cycle for its latest quarterly update, and it's probably the most tame we've ever seen in terms of new features. Most of these quarterly updates include 20-50 new features each time, but one has “only” around 6 (so about the same as all competitors). That being said, Garmin may also save new features for later and associate them with other product releases. Please note that this is available on *all* Fenix 7/Epix watch variants (Pro/Not-Pro/etc.).
Officially, the “Added Features” list is as follows (plus many other fixes/tweaks/etc.):
– Added the ability to find your lost phone during an activity using GPS.
– Added applied ballistic wind mode (Tactix only).
– Added indoor walking activity.
– Added messenger app.
– Added Recovery Advisor as an option to Morning Report and Glance.
– Added self-assessment to more activity types
ECG is disabled in the initial beta, but will be re-enabled later. Also, as always, Garmin enters the beta cycle at slightly different times for different watches (like the Forerunner 965) and often has slightly different features. Also, in case you're wondering, the “Messenger” app mentioned above is simply the Garmin inReach connected messaging app.
So, thank you for reading!
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