RT

Trying to tie all cycling metrics together is difficult: Bio-data as well as GPS/time/speed/altitude metrics all reporting in one app.

I use a Polar Wearlink belt (bluetooth) and an Android phone and have tried the following apps:

SportyPal Pro: Best phone interface, most info in-ride, HR belt works with it, data is uploaded for free and the web interface is great. HR add-on is cheap and worth the tiny investment, but this app does not account for indoor training as you must turn on GPS to use it. There's no point in this if you are not moving. SportyPal says they are working on this, but updates are few and far between. EDIT: SportyPal DOES include HR info when uploading from a .gpx taken from another app.

Endomondo Pro: Good web and phone interface, but both lack info I want - heart rate metrics are limited to Avg/Max, but upload is free and there is a minimal social interface if that is what you like. This app is good for indoor activities in the dead of winter if you want to track simple heart rate info and calories. I used it on my commute this morning and it worked just fine.

SportsTracker Live: Best interface for indoor activities as you can choose to see heart rate only data, and the phone interface is the best of all of these. Since I don't mount my phone on my bars (cycling is a back jersey pocket affair), this is not useful outside of the gym, and uploading requires the small investment of the Pro app.

....and last of all, BF's favorite, Strava: This is actually my least favorite of these apps. Aside from the website being poorly laid out, there is minimal info on the phone interface, and the app does not work with my Polar Wearlink belt (which is by no means a little known device). When data is uploaded form a .tcx or .gpx file, heart rate data is not included (yet it is in the file) even though I am a premium member. [STRIKE]Strava also does not work indoors[/STRIKE] Just found that it does, but it still does not work with my HR belt, rendering it moot. This app is essentially Facebook for cyclists, more of a social site. I use it, but I am not sure why.

We all have our preferences, that's why there is vanilla and there is chocolate, but I am still waiting for the app that does it all. So far, it does not exist (and does not have to be free). I just want ALL of my heart rate data (more than avg/max), ability to use indoors and a good web interface.

Anyone see anything I may have missed? Open to suggestions.

wi.flash

My my ride seems to be the best I have seen out of all listed above, but I do not have premium so I am not positive if all of the above will be included. The website is also good besides the app. I can map things out ahead of time to see distances.

WhyFi

FYI, I think that it's a safe bet to say that the majority of the BFers that use Strava aren't using a Strava smartphone app. We're uploading data from dedicated fitness GPS units.

Stop messing around and get a real GPS?

RT

Good point, but I am doing the same thing, essentially. Both Endomondo and SportyPal import HR data from other apps, Strava does not. Why would I pay a premium for this missing functionality? I have opened a ticket with Strava in case I missed something.

Pretty sure the data I am getting is not too far off. I am not that OCD about my numbers, I just want them to cross all activities accurately relative to one another.

FWIW, I got rid of my Edge 500 after using it for a week with my smartphone app as a comparison - the numbers were not significantly different.

svtmike

Other than being all together like you are trying to do now......

RT

What's up, Mike? Not sure what you are saying here.

Again, just trying to find a solution that does not involve an upload of a file I have to export to get the data I want.

svtmike

Just saying you had all your data together like you wanted. Smartphones are cool and capable devices, but they aren't optimized for all applications like a purpose-built device can be. That, and their battery life isn't up to cycling snuff.

The Edge 500 and pretty much any of the GPS web sites will put all of your data together in one place.

RT

This is not true though. Unless I use Garmin connect, I still have to export the data then import it to Strava (unless something has changed, and remember they do not support my HR belt). I have to carry my phone anyway, and this is why I switched. My Edge 500 did not have HR capability, and the HR add-on for these apps is like five dollars. Each app has its high points, but none of them do it all.

I mentioned that this is why there is variety - Garmin+Strava may work well for some, I am merely looking for those who are like me (use their smart phone).

svtmike

Strava, RideWithGPS, and Garmin Connect all upload directly from the Edge 500. It's been that way for quite a while.

I carry my phone too, and I trust it for making calls. But for important stuff like my data the Edge 500 does the job better than any phone could. The primary destination for it is WKO+, though.

WhyFi

Is this a trick question? You pay for it because it's something you value and you haven't found a way to get it for free.



You're not the first person to wish that smartphone-as-GPS was a tidy solution. Unfortunately, there are a number of compromises - accuracy, battery life, size/weight, weather sealing, accessory compatibility, available metrics, etc, etc. You either search around for a combination of shortcomings that you're willing to deal with or you stop fiddling and spend a few bucks on something that's purpose-built for what you're looking to do. I wish that I would have found phone-as-GPS compromises that were tenable for me, but I didn't. By all means, continue your search, and I wish you luck, but my advice stands - be ready to pull the ripcord and spend a few dollars on a known solution.

Seattle Forrest

You need something for mapping the GPS data. The rest is fluff.

RT

Again, your assumptions are off-base. I for one do not wish to pay more than I need to to achieve what little I am asking for. When the Garmin numbers are essentially no different than my smartphone app, what's the point in paying much more for the HR feature? Just so I can upload to Strava?

Allow me to expand on this. I can ride a century with the battery in my phone (extended and rooted) and have plenty of juice left, the GPS is accurate enough when compared to Garmin Edge 500, and the 'few dollars' you speak of are much more than the solutions I seek. I get that true GPS is your solution, but my issue is not as big as you make it sound. I just want to use my app indoors as well as out, export/import correctly (Strava does not do this, again, ticket open), and effectively monitor my progress without paying for another piece of technology and $60 a year for the ability to do so.

Each of the apps I have tried does one of these, but no one does them all. This isn't an attack on the beloved Strava, I am merely pointing out the shortcomings of each app.

I am not trying to be snarky here, but spending more money (a few dollars) is not the answer. It is 'an' answer, and I am seeking answers from people in my position.

svtmike

Also not being snarky, but until another answer is presented, it is 'the' answer. Good luck. The app space moves quickly so maybe even if there isn't another answer now, in a few weeks/months/years there will be.

adriano 

garmin chipsets are way behind the latest mtk technology so everyone with a 500 needs to stop messing around and get a real gps.

adriano 

or stop fronting and enjoy the ride.

HokuLoa

RTDub, as others have said you are trying for an all in one functionality in your smartphone that is unrealistic in a free app (to my knowledge). The free apps are fun little tools but if a pro solution is what you are after then realize that you will need to pay for that convenience. Lots of us use the freebies not because they are total packages but because we can do without the complete OCD data collection. If one actually requires (or thinks they do) all the data then paid options fill that need.

FWIW, I've used lots of apps (both free and paid) and they just do not do everything but I don't expect them to. Imapmy+ was OK and collected more data (HR, PWR, cadence) but DOES require purchasing extra sensors/devices with ANT+. Frankly, I know my cadence and my rough heart rate so these were somewhat superfluous data at an undesirable extra cost. The lacking elevation data was of more interest to me.

AFAIC the dedicated bike computers are the option you are "demanding." The free cycling apps are just a neat tool for those of us who need less, tie in other tech (ie Garmin), or are familiar enough with our bodies in motion to render some data capture personally unnecessary. I mean lets be honest that unless one is racing and trying to eek out marginal gains on an already maxed performance level these little bells and whistles are just fun tools. Besides, none of the free apps I've used are spot on and perfectly useful for a truly micromanaged training regime anyway. If one wants pro, one needs to cough up the money and get a pro solution...

bikerjp

Doesn't ridewithgps.com do all this for free? They have a premium version now but not sure what's included. With the free one, I've uploaded from Google MyTracks on a smartphone (though I didn't have a HRM that worked with the phone but I'm pretty sure MyTracks will work with bluetooth HRM) and from a Garmin unit with HRM.

WhyFi

Wow, you do *not* get it. Yeah, I know that you don't want to pay any more than you have to for what little you're asking for, but the point is... you're unable to do what little you're asking for without paying for it. It doesn't matter that one free app does part of what you want it to do and that another free app does the rest, the important thing is that neither does everything.

Great for you, but you're missing the salient point - !Broken record alert! you're unable to do all that you want for free. You do know what the word "compromise," means, don't you?

And I'm not defending Strava - I don't give two ****s if you use Strava - I'm pointing out that your hardware, in conjunction with free software, doesn't have the capability to do what you what it to do in one shot.

Do you really think that this is a coincidence? Oh, how quaint.

I'm not trying to be snarky here, but you shouldn't be seeking answers from people in your position, you should be seeking answers from people that were in your position.

KoNP

have tried mapmyride? https://www.mapmyride.com/imapmy/wahoo/