I think Bryton is definitely doing a good job positioning itself as a viable option for a bike computer from a quality perspective (we've all seen budget options that are pretty janky). I think the feature set for the price is fair, my worry is that it might be punching a little above it's weight on price in terms of brand perception and market share. Wahoo came in with a bang by coming in with screaming deals and then growing into prices similar to their Garmin equivalents. I don't know if this is quite competitive enough to weigh it against the cheaper 530. Or, even the 830 which is frequently on sale for $350. I would go the extra $50 all day... even the extra $79-$99 at MSRP for the Roam or 830 (something you'll keep for years) it's tough to justify the Bryton price through that lens. I wish it was as simple as features per dollar, letting Bryton hit the market and shine, but that's not how the market works. Garmin and Wahoo have earned the credibility, have more trickle down opportunities, and can do a lot more with your data - all giving additional value to those extra dollars. I'd love to see them come in much more aggressive on price to get these things into people's hands. Once they have the credibility, they can position themselves closer to the "big boys." I'm certainly not trying to dunk on them, I just think if I'm a new cyclist and I am looking to invest in my first quality head unit, and I see my options, I'm saying "Oh, Garmin/Wahoo, all the guys and gals in the local cycling club have those." Or get lost in the thousands of reviews and videos on those better known units that will drive me to a purchasing decision. I understand that they wouldn't want to undervalue their features, but I think this needs to be $250 or less and make that decision to go Garmin/Wahoo a bit harder. They need people to choose them on price and let word of mouth build their brand credibility before they can get enough market share to be competitive. It probably means leaner manufacturing, buying parts on terms, taking a haircut on profit to use more affiliate marketing... all things that are difficult in the Covid era, so much easier said than done... Great review as always!
I agree. $250 would have been a very interesting price point for this device. I think that would have really made people think. It's hard when you're putting this device up against the 530 and the Bolt. What's really interesting is thinking about what's coming next from Garmin at $300ish. (540) Something new from them could really change the marketplace quite quickly. Thanks so much for the thoughtful comment!
I know this is not the point, but I'm not sure Garmin and Wahoo is more popular than Bryton in every country. Garmin sure, but I never heard Wahoo before I started watching english RU-vid channels. I'm from Hungary and the cycling blogs/channels make Garmin and Bryton reviews but no Wahoo. You can buy Wahoo products, but fewer places than Garmin or Bryron. So maybe Brytons main targets are this type of countries not North America or Western Europe
@@Tamas_Torok That's a good point. Wahoo seems to be a very well respected brand here in the US but it's hard to know how brands are perceived elsewhere. Great input Tamás!
Yeah! The Rider 750 is a good device. I think you should hold on to it as long as possible and max out the value you paid for it. The s500 is good but it's more of an iterative advancement so I wouldn't stress too much about it. Thanks Eduardo!
Watched it now. Great review as always. I think having the buttons on the side along with the waterproof is definitely huge. Nothing worse then having to wipe off your screen and then it going crazy because it touch the screen haha
Yes it is! A lot of people are wondering if the 750 is a better purchase for that reason. I don’t mind the slightly smaller screen and I like the overall snappy feeling of this device but that’s just me. Great point! Thank you for watching and taking the extra time to comment. I really appreciate it. 👍
I'll also be very interesting to see what Garmin does next. I wonder if prices are going to go up now that inflation is out of control. We'll see. Thank you for watching and taking the extra time to comment. I really appreciate it. 👍
Glad it was helpful! I'm pretty positive in this review but I do want to be clear that it's still wouldn't be my first choice for a $300 bike computer. Hope you are well Jake!
@@jelle5003 - I would say it depends largely on what type of riding you're doing or if you like to use Strava live segments but the 830 for 319 sounds like a really good deal to me. Thank you for watching and taking the extra time to comment. I really appreciate it. 👍
@@mlegrand thanks for the replay! No strava live segments. So you prefer the older 830 instead of the newer Bryton? Still not figured out after 2 days of research😄
@@jelle5003 - Well, I think it's a tricky decision. They are both great devices. The Garmin has a bit more features overall and is probably a better supported device.
I guess it depends on if you like the faster processor and the extra software features and little things like USB-C over the extra screen real estate. I have them both and I think I'd prefer the new one for an extra $30. Thanks for checking this one out Shay!
I couldn't agree more Shay. It feels like a really misplaced product by Bryton. The smaller screen takes the S500 down a notch versus the 750. You can fit 12 data fields on the 750 and 10 on the S500. Personally, I would have rather Bryton come out with an improved 750 and added all this new functionality in it including the improved processor. Then it really becomes a slam dunk.
@@Rocketrecliner - My gut feeling is that Bryson will release an s800 or something with a bigger screen (and probably bigger price tag). I don’t have any inside information but they did say that this is the first in this series. I still think this a nicer computer than the 750. But that’s just my personal opinion.
(same as other comment) - I would say it depends largely on what type of riding you're doing or if you like to use Strava live segments but the 830 for 319 sounds like a really good deal to me. Thank you for watching and taking the extra time to comment. I really appreciate it. 👍
I have a Ryder 420 and 330 right now. I may go to one of their touchscreens when a get a new Bryton. I haven't had any issues with either Bryton I have.
The touchscreen worked pretty well for me on this device. It was a little hard with gloves on but it eventually worked. This is the first in the S series so could be interesting to see what they do next. Thanks Steve!
I totally thought I was escaping the cold by staying in NC when I retired, but here we are with freezing temps on the regular! I still need to find some good gloves.
How hard would it be finding financial backers for a cycling computer company right now. The pitch "We want to compete with Garmin and Wahoo." The money "and Hammerhead? and a few others?" What kind of market share does Bryton have? What do you think is a realistic goal for sales compared to a Garmin? Economies of scale are such a pain to innovated small companies! Did you use a second rider to the three quarters rear view to then "zoom" into your arms and onto the computer? It is well done and very smoooooth!
Yes, exactly! My buddy Jake did that with a GoPro. He’s good with camera stuff and it’s super nice to have another camera nerd to think up these shots. I think Bryton is actually bigger and more popular in Europe than we’re aware. Maybe even more brand awareness than Wahoo. But to start a new bike computer company might be insanely expensive. 🤷🏻♂️
Great review; thanks! I have an Edge 830, and I couldn't agree more about the need for redundant buttons on touchscreen devices. My friend has a 530, which is the exact same form factor; why can't I have all of the buttons of the 530 so that I have the option of using touch or buttons? In the summer, the touchscreen works brilliantly, but in the fall, I had to buy the Edge Remote to be able to even switch pages, and I lose all ability to control the device until I'm back home.
I don't know. Less borders and as much screen is possible is always preferred. Thank you for watching and taking the extra time to comment. I really appreciate it. 👍
I haven't seen it as an option to show on the ride screen anywhere. You can swipe up to show the home screen and it'll be in the top right corner. Maybe not ideal but it's something.
Which bike computer would you recommend if battery life is your top priority? I have been using a Garmin Edge 800. Interested to see what the battery life is going to be when the Garmin Edge 540 and 840 comes out.
Yeah, it seems like Garmin is overdue for a round of cycling computer updates. I’d guess that battery life would substantially increase in future devices. Seems like their watches are all improving so we’ll see. You could also look at my recent Bryton bike computer video. That might have the longest claimed battery life of any of these devices. What’s your buying time frame? Seems like some of these companies might release stuff before we get too deep into the summer riding season. 🤷🏻♂️
@@mlegrand Thanks, I am open to get a bike computer at the end of this year. Reason battery life is important to me is because I am thinking about doing a double century. I think that now that Garmin Edge 1030 plus has the longest battery. I could be wrong. I heard rumors that Bryton is working on new software for Rider S500. To update the software that allow the computer to follow the route without connecting to the phone. What improvements need to be made to the Bryton S500 for you to recommend it for that price?
@@BCE7454 - I think the biggest thing Bryton needs to work on is testing, reliability and usability. The timing for your bike computer purchase sounds good. I've done a double century a few years back. I used the Garmin Edge 510. I don't remember how much battery life but I don't remember it being an issue.
OK, OK Bryton is a nice computer. Big question of this video. How do you get a camera to follow you on the road, then find its way between your leg and arm and land on the bike stem? Very nice.
How did you find the Power Meter data? I heard Bryton has a problem with sticky watts... Did you find a difference between the data recorded by this S500 and other GPS computers?
I haven’t done a comparison of power data on this device yet. I’ll compare it to a hammerhead Karoo 2 here soon. But you can always trust GPLama when he tests a product and finds a major issue like these ‘sticky watts’
@@mlegrand You showed my hand 😂 I'm not even using a PM at the moment, but seeing as I'm looking for a new device I'd like to get one that would give me the opportunity of using one in the future (my current Bryton 15 doesn't support it). I admit I'd be more inclined to go with the 750 as it has a bigger screen and it doesn't seem like there are too many differences in the overall functionality, aside from a good amount of €...
@@mlegrand I was looking into it as well, but the prices are not that friendly 😅I wouldn't want to spend on something like a single sided crank PM just to have one, so I'm waiting to see if I find some kind of an offer on one with proven reliability that wouldn't force me to swap half my bike in the process, like the Power2Max NGeco with 24mm cranks. That's why I am a bit unsure about the GPS device... The Karoo 2 would obviously be the top choice, but the combo would cost 1000€ and I'm not that used to spending this kind of money.
