TrojanHorse

Another good reason not to "upgrade" my garmin I guess. WTH.

njkayaker

Does the Karoo have a user-replaceable battery?

The Garmin Edge 1000 has a user-replaceable* battery.

I don't know about the 1030 (it might be too new).

https://www.newpower99.com/category_s/273.htm

* None of the "user-replaceable batteries" on the Edges are exactly simple to replace.

pesty

Having had to re-solder the USB port on my 510, couldn’t be that hard.

Steve B.

If the battery crapped on my 1000 I would figure out how to replace it.

I would not be replacing the unit, it works well

Seattle Forrest

I had my Edge 800 for most of a decade and the battery was still plenty acceptable. I think this isn't something to worry about in bike computers these days.

DrIsotope

My 520 is around 2 years old, and has dropped from ~15 hours of battery life when new to ~7.5 hours now. But it's also been charged at least 250 times. It's just what lithium batteries do. Even with the backlight switched off, I have to charge it every 2-3 rides. Time of ownership is not necessarily a telling metric-- my wife's Garmin 500 still has fantastic battery life, and we've had it for over 3 years... but it also logs about 1,200 miles a year, less than 100 hours of use per year.

njkayaker

It's more-or-less on the order of soldering. Which is more than what most people would generally consider as being "user replaceable".

I'd like to see people replace batteries rather than buy new units. So, I'm not trying to discourage that.

The website I linked-to has videos.

TrojanHorse

I had to replace my edge 800 battery after about 3 years. Actually, I got a refurb unit from Garmin (for $29, thanks) when the little dog ears broke off, so I really have no idea how old or used the battery was, but it wouldn't last 6 hours for a century. Replacing it was very straight forward (and cheap!) and it's been rock solid ever since.

DrIsotope

I gotta say...

Q: Is Karoo still on track to begin shipping to customers by the end of this month, as you described previously?

A: Yes. All the information we have on the table says we’ll be able to ship Karoo to USA customers in 3–10 days, and no more than a few days after this for EU shipments and other international destinations. So, while we may push right up to the end of the month, we are still within our previously projected shipping windows.

Calendar math says I damn well better get an email within the next 4 days. I'm literally charging my Garmin 8-9 times a month now, and every charge takes a little bit off of the capacity.

Seattle Forrest

Maybe I just didn't notice, I don't know.

BrazAd

I was interested when I first saw the Karoo advertising last summer. I bought a Wahoo Bolt in July - search ended.


It amuses me that they continue to e/mail me and hype "shipping SOON!", as they've been saying that for almost a year now. Ummmm, no thanks.

Gary

pesty

Not sure when you ordered, but I received my "we're confirming your shipping address because we're about to ship" email. I haven't actually received my "here's your tracking number" email, but hopefully that will be soon. I ordered sometime around late April or early May. I just don't know how long I'm going to give them to fix their broke ass **** before I return it and put that money into a Garmin 820.

DrIsotope

Finally got my "shipping is imminent" notification, and just read the latest blog update from the guys at Hammerhead. It seems like they've been ready to ship for months now, but the regulatory process has just killed them at every turn. I have little worry about the hardware or software-- I just think they were not at all prepared for the regulatory hoops they would have to jump through to get the device into the hands of the public.

All I know is I have all of my fingers crossed in hope-- because I really, really, really do not want to have to EVER buy another Garmin. My 520 did it's automatic download after yesterday's ride and bricked itself. Had to do a forced reset, and at the time of this typing, I don't even know if it will boot up on it's own. Extra fingers crossed for that.

Steve B.

Curious as to why it's configured to allow this. You can turn off WiFi and refuse to update via the Connect mobile. I never update my 1000 unless it's USB connected to the PC and using Garmin Express. Never had issues that way.

TakingMyTime

Has anyone heard from them? I just got off their website and I see nothing about shipping schedules.

DrIsotope

The Latest Word on Karoo

Seattle Forrest

For what it’s worth, a lot of stores (REI, Backcountry, etc) have generous return policies and will give you your money back if something like this happens. I’ve had better luck with Garmins than you have, but I’d still only ever buy one at REI because I might legitimately not be satisfied with how it actually works in the real world.

Obviously this isn't available from these stores. Just an FYI.

TakingMyTime

I will admit that I have worked with Chinese imports and exports and that this market, and its regulations can sometimes change on the whim of an export or import agency. The trick is having someone in that country who is in the import/export business that you can rely upon to address and resolve problems as they arise.

This does not look good.

JohnJ80

This is not a big deal. I’ve been through this many times in my (former) business. There is a
Very unpredictable vein that runs through state bureaucrats. Hammerhead’s mistake was in not sandbagging enough in their marketing communications on dates. This stuff happens, it’s normal and not a catastrophe.

J.

TakingMyTime

I just got the email from them yesterday stating that they have finally received legal approval to begin shipping and that they are starting within a couple of days. They say the US orders will be the first to go out.

pesty

Yea, and I saw something on the DC Rainmaker thread that there was another software update on Friday, or this Friday.... really hoping they can sort out some of these issues with missing, or yet to be delivered functionality within a month of getting it as I won't be waiting till the last minute to try to return it if they don't.

Munk69

Anyone receive their unit yet? Looks like they were going to start shipping last week (really). I cancelled my order a couple months ago and went with a Garmin 820. I am still curious how people like it though.

zymphad

Yeah Wahoo better watch out, I can't buy it or pre-order.

But yeah, like the marketing for it, I'm interested.

Racing Dan

Does it run normal android app?

pesty

No. I t's a closed OS, will only run apps that are approved by Hammerhead. They've talked about having their own App Store at some point.

I got mine in the mail today. First impression... this thing is huge, and heavy. Twice the size of my 810 and about 3 times the weight. Worst case, might be good for self defense. You could probably bust out a car window with it from 20 feet.

Data field selection is... limited. We'll see how quickly that expands. But page setup looks to be easier than my 810.

Setup is pretty easy though. Very Apple like.

Haven't paired any sensors or taken it for a ride yet.

I'm sure I'll post more here and there as I get around to it.