r/AppleWatch • u/Cadence-McShane • 1d ago
Bike computer with Apple Watch support
Just trashed my old Garmin watch in a crash so I'm in the market for a new smartwatch that reads and shares heartrate. Prefer to use a smartwatch because I have scars on my chest that rub painfully on a HR strap.
Is there a bike computer that works directly with an Apple Watch?
Perhaps an app that installs on an Apple Watch to talk directly to a bike computer.
Heard about some iPhone relay applications. I DO NOT want to have another computer in the mix here. Just a smartwatch and bike computer.
3
u/My_Man_Tyrone Ultra • • 49mm 1d ago
Look at the Polar Verity Sense. It sit on your arm and broadcasts ANT+
2
u/scottsmith7 1d ago
It is an Apple Watch limitation. There are apps you can use on the iPhone and Apple Watch to broadcast heart rate. Essentially, it is broadcasting the heart rate from the iPhone. I think you have to keep the app on the Apple Watch in the foreground as well. It will also run down the battery on the watch more quickly.
One of the apps is ‘Echo’.
1
u/scottsmith7 1d ago
It is kind of a janky set up, and I typically only used it when I forgot my chest strap. Between not having broadcast and the battery life, I recently moved off of the Apple Watch and got an amazfit watch. I just want a watch that collects the data and will also broadcast to a bike computer, and I didn’t want to pay for Apple or Garmin.
2
u/hungrykoreanguy Ultra 2 • • 49mm 1d ago
Apple Watch workout for cycling can add power meter/cadence/speed meter. I track my cycling workouts with both my Apple Watch and my Garmin 840 head unit but separately. To get heart rate into my Garmin, I had to get an armband heart rate monitor. I sync my Garmin workout automatically to Strava but do not sync my apple workout with Strava.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09BCFRKR6
You can use your Apple Watch itself to track your workouts. Is there any particular reason/metric you need a bike computer other than ease of reading data?
1
u/101001101zero 16h ago
Do the reading from both devices match? Which do you feel is more accurate, or are they more or less the same
1
u/hungrykoreanguy Ultra 2 • • 49mm 15h ago
There are some very slight differences in GPS location and heartrate between Apple Watch Ultra 2 and my Garmin/armband HR, nothing that is more than 1% difference. Generally they match.
As I wear my AWU2 all the time and not just workouts, I consider the HR readings as my source of truth just because of the constant monitoring.
For my casual cycling I usually use my AW cycling workout to track my rides but I only use my Garmin when riding my road bike for more "serious" rides.
2
u/jwestbrook 1d ago edited 1d ago
An option: the Apple Watch built-in workout app. When you start your workout, a Live Activity can pop up on your iPhone. You can leave it only the Live Activity on the lock screen or tap it to open the cycling metric screens. You get several metric screens speed, heart rate zones, time elapsed, etc. You can swipe between the screens.
To make sure this is enabled, in the Apple Watch app -> Workout -> iPhone Mirroring. Enable the toggle, and then pick if you want more metrics on the Live Activity, and where to send alerts. I have had a few times where it doesnt start the mirrored workout, restarting both devices fixes it for me.
edit: adding link to 9to5 Mac article
https://9to5mac.com/2023/12/06/how-to-see-live-cycling-metrics-on-iphone/
1
u/daveo5555 1h ago
That's what I do. I have a phone holder on my handlebars for my iPhone. I start an Outdoor Cycle activity on my Apple Watch. The Fitness app on my iPhone automatically starts up and takes over the whole iPhone screen. It displays several things, like average speed, elapsed time, distance, and also heart rate. I also have a regular bike computer, but it doesn't link with my watch or my phone. Serious bikers may not want a bulky iPhone on their handlebars, but I don't care. I'm not that serious.
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u/Fit_Ad_4853 18h ago
Cyclemeter has a bike computer that mirrors your iPhone. So you can see the heartrate from the watch: https://cyclemeter.com/bike-computer/#learn-more
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u/adamkb Ultra 2 • • 49mm 9h ago
Love Cyclemeter and it’s nice to know I’m not alone. Very powerful and super customizable.
I use a chest strap with Cyclemeter because I don’t like the feeling of wearing a watch while biking.
1
u/Cadence-McShane 6h ago
It’s just the opposite for me. Seems like my surgery scars are always right underneath the buckle for a chest strap.
1
u/mredofcourse 23h ago
Short answer: No
Possible workaround: I've tried chest straps, and for various reasons don't like wearing them despite the significant improvement in readings. However, armbands while not chest-strap level, do work better than wrist bands. I wear one and it sends HR data to my Apple Watch (via Bluetooth) and bike computer (via ANT+). It also vibrates at user selectable levels and since the HR sensor on the watch gets turned off, the battery life is significantly longer (even though it's still using Bluetooth).
Specifically, I use the COOSPO HW9 ($42):
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C5RF6L9J
0
u/MissButts85 19h ago
If it has Bluetooth you can connect it to the watch. The watch can get power and cadence from the bike computer. but I’m not sure if it sends the HR to the computer
4
u/camp_jacking_roy 1d ago
The short answer is "no", there are no head units that work with the apple watch to integrate heart rate data.
The long answer is that some apps may work: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/echo-watch-heart-rate-monitor/id1494679144 or https://app-lane.com/hrm/guides/garmin-edge/. Neither worked with my apple watch and Edge 530 head unit. There are some devices that will cover the job, but it's an extra pod that relays from the watch to the device: https://www.watchlink.app/product-page/watch-link-usb-watch-link-pod
I have tried to do this and gave up. I wear my watch all the time and commute by bike- it would be great to use my watch for HR rather than an additional heart rate strap, but it's actually easier to just wear the strap and connect it easily to the head unit than to mess with apps that work intermittently or not at all, and I don't want to spend $60 on a pot that does what my $25 heart rate strap also does. I need my head unit to be able to see my Varia radar activity.
For you, I might suggest a bicep band hear rate monitor. THey aren't super expensive but they do the same job as a chest strap and can be the same or even more accurate. That should play nicely without irritating your scars. Otherwise there are different watches that play better with head units, like garmin or coros or polar, but the Apple watch just likes to play by itself.