Wahoo ELEMNT ROAM v2 In-Depth Review: Why choose Wahoo over Garmin?

There are numerous brands in the GPS computer market today, but from a macro perspective, the power structure is “Wahoo, Garmin, or none of the above”. And it is clear that Wahoo is gaining market share.
Why is Wahoo being chosen now? I will try to answer this question by using the latest ELEMNT ROAM v2.

text / Tats（@tats_lovecyclist）[PR]

Wahoo vs Garmin

Differences in upbringing

The Wahoo ELEMNT and the Garmin Edge. Although there does not seem to be much difference between the two devices in terms of their purpose of displaying ride status, there is a clear difference in philosophy when comparing them in actual use.
Simply put, Garmin is hardware-driven, while Wahoo is software-driven.

When Garmin was founded in 1989, just as GPS systems were becoming widely available to the public, the company focused on developing products with advanced GPS-based technology. Since then, Garmin has reigned supreme in the industry for many years, offering not only cycle computers but also a wide range of products to meet a variety of needs.

On the other hand, Wahoo was born in 2009, a time when fitness equipment was attracting attention and the term “User Experience” (UX) was widely accepted by the public. The importance of user experience in applications, as well as technology, was becoming increasingly important, and the concept of UX was being used in the design of many products and services.

Chip Hawkins, founder of Wahoo, mentions Garmin’s products in an interview by VELO.

“I hated Garmin’s. I did not like the software interface. Their hardware is nice, but the software was just horrible to use and clunky“

The starting point for the development of the Wahoo ELEMNT began with the belief that a better UX product could be created than Garmin. After several years of work to perfect the product, the ELEMNT, a GPS computer that works seamlessly with smartphones, was born.

Garmin certainly has a confusing menu structure, and the controls are not intuitive, so it takes an awfully long time to get to the settings you need.

Difference in specs

The Wahoo ELEMNT series has two models (Bolt / Roam) on the market.
In contrast, the Garmin Edge series has five models in total (130, 540, 840, 1040, and Explore2), but I will pick up three models (540, 840, and 1040) as competitors of the ELEMNT series for comparison.

Looking at the spec sheet alone, Garmin’s battery life appears to be dominant; Wahoo’s only perceived advantage is price (which may well be a strong enough advantage).
This is probably one of the reasons for Garmin’s dominance in some segments of the market. Riders who are inclined to ride long distances, such as in Brevet, will inevitably choose Garmin.
Garmin also has “Garmin Connect,” which combines all ride-related activities such as ride logging, course creation, and workout creation on one service.

In other words, if you frequently ride long distances of more than 200 km, or if you want to centrally manage your training and lifelog based on Garmin Connect, there is no reason to choose any other brand.

However, only a small number of cyclists do. Many riders ride the “right” distances and may change their riding style at will depending on their gear, route, or the people they ride with. In this case, the “UX” part of the GPS computer is important, as it allows for flexibility in adapting to the rider’s riding style. This is the part that does not appear on the spec sheet.
What kind of user experience does Wahoo, a “software-driven” company, create in this case?

What the new “Ready To Ride” means

ELEMNT’s latest model, the ELEMNT ROAM v2, was released in October 2022. It is one of the top models with the latest specifications, with multi-band GNSS and a new charging port to Type-C.

And from the beginning, Wahoo has offered an experience where all device settings are completed on the smartphone side. It seems to me that Wahoo knows exactly which user experience is better, using the familiar smartphone UI or getting used to the computer’s own UI.

The lead time to change settings in the app and have them reflected in ELEMNT is infinitely short (less than one second), and there is no longer a need to fiddle with the touch screen of a small computer.

Ready To Ride

“Ready To Ride” covers most of the items you want before a ride (but not customizable)

The software was then updated in November 2023 to include a “Ready To Ride” (compatible with both ELEMNT BOLT and ROAM).
After turning on the power, frequently used functions are displayed on the startup screen, allowing immediate access to routes, workouts, and other functions that you want to set up before the ride.

Smooth startup->route selection process.

Changing sensors can also be done from this screen. Pairing used to be a mind-numbing task.

One of the most stressful parts of a GPS computer is wondering where to set it up. On the day of the ride, we want to concentrate on the ride and minimize other operations as much as possible. In order to review settings even in a short period of time, the UI needs to be “intuitive”.

Wahoo’s device-side UI is more flexible because all settings are completed on the smartphone side.
The difference between the two companies may be best visualized as iOS (≒Wahoo) with its intuitive interface and Android (≒Garmin) with its highly customizable interface.

Ready To Ride is a feature that was created based on user feedback, and it is clear that Wahoo continues to update its software to bring a better user experience.

While Garmin users lost their way one after another.

Route setting is just so easy.

Setting up around routes has also become really convenient.
To set up a route, the process often involves:

But with Wahoo everything is seamlessly connected.

Personally, I use RideWithGPS (RWGPS) to create routes.
If you log in to RWGPS with the ELEMNT application, routes created with RWGPS are automatically loaded into the application.
When the ELEMNT ROAM is launched, the route can be selected on the Ready to Ride screen.
In other words, by simply creating a route with RWGPS, the route can be set when ELEMNT Roam is launched.

There is no need to import gpx files every time. If a fellow user shares a route with you via Komoot or RWGPS, you can do the same thing by saving the route (though not via Garmin Connect).
This alone will encourage you to be proactive and draw new routes on your own.

Clarity of navigation can make or break a race.

This was the case at GRINDURO 2023, a gravel race that was held in Japan in October 2023 and was reputed to be grueling in many ways.
After the event, I heard people say that the course directions were very confusing, and that on some of the courses, only the Garmin users got lost, while the Wahoo users ran the correct course.
Both had the route in their GPS computers, so why did this happen?

This has to do with the navigation UI.

As you can see from this screen, Wahoo has lines that show the direction you are going in detail. The Garmin lines, on the other hand, have widely spaced arrows. On a normal road, you may not get lost very often, but on a route like the GRINDURO, where you have to go around the course from various directions, there is a possibility that you will go the wrong way.

The events of this race were an example of how small UI details can change the impact on riders.

Outside of the display, it is also indicated by light and sound at the top of the terminal. Turn-by-turn is very clear. However, I find the sound too loud, so it would be better if the volume could be adjusted.

Wahoo-like UX

Computer mount

Wahoo’s GPS computer mount is an original shape that is not compatible with other brands. However, if you want to use the Garmin mount as it is, you can use the separately sold mount adapter, but it will be awkward because of the height of the adapter.

The included mount is a novel design that creates an aero shape by attaching the main unit. It is designed for use in races.

Display

Screen with clear contrast and high visibility

The display items can be freely customized, and the menu items during setup were easy to understand and not too confusing. Although this is a part that is only touched in the initial stages, it is an important point because we do not want to spend as much time on settings as possible.

The number of items displayed can be changed using the physical buttons on the right side of the unit.

Summit segment (climb detection)

This function, which automatically switches to the screen when a climb point is reached and displays the remaining distance and estimated time, is useful for pace management. It is also good that the screen switches automatically without the need to set a route.

You can filter how much of a climb this screen displays by three levels (All / Medium or higher / Large only), so if you don’t want to be aware of short hills, you can increase the threshold value. Personally, I find medium to medium is just right for the courses I normally ride.

Small / Medium / Large classification is determined by distance and average slope

Battery

Type-C for quick charging is now the standard.

While Garmin has invested quite a bit in batteries, with solar batteries in their latest models, Wahoo has taken a rather easy stance on batteries.
The ELEMNT ROAM is the second generation, but even when it was updated from the first generation, the battery life remained the same from 17 hours. This may have caused cyclists who prefer Brevet to distance themselves from Wahoo, but it is more than sufficient for a full day’s ride.
Personally, I average around 100km with 7-8 hours of riding including breaks, and the battery life is always more than 50% remaining.
I feel that by daring to target only 1-day riders, they are avoiding conflicts with Garmin.

Make the Wahoo experience your own.

While it is difficult to tell the difference between Wahoo and Garmin without comparing the two, the difference in experience between the two is obvious when actually using them.
When we asked Garmin users why they chose Garmin, most of them answered, “Somehow” or “Because everyone around me is using it. In contrast, when Wahoo users were asked the same question, they gave more specific answers such as, “It has a good design and is aerodynamic,” “I don’t need as much information as Garmin,” and “It is easy to set up. The Wahoo users’ preference for Wahoo is based on the functionality and performance they are looking for.

Wahoo’s emphasis on user experience is very relevant to my current situation, where I want to spend more time with my children, and I don’t want to use a GPS computer with an interface that makes pre-ride preparation time a hassle, when I want to save every minute I can.
With its quick smartphone integration, seamless route setup, new Ready To Ride and optimized software, combined with its ease of use and visibility during the ride, I feel that the ELEMENT is the most responsive GPS computer in existence to my needs.

These facts make sense with Wahoo’s current global growth in market share (it has split the GPS computer market share with Garmin in the U.S., and has the top market share in some European countries).

There is a clear reason to choose Wahoo.

Wahoo ELEMNT ROAM v2 (wahoofitness.com)

Author

Tats Shimizu（@tats_lovecyclist） Editor in Chief. Having been riding sports bikes for 10 years. He likes to unravel the trends in the sport bike industry, especially road bikes, from a marketing perspective. At the same time, he has extensive friendships with cycling apparel brands from around the world and proposes various styles through the media. His main bikes are Factor O2 (road) and LS (gravel).

text / Tats（@tats_lovecyclist）