Garmin 530

How is the 530 back-lighting? It it easy to see in the dark? Does it kill battery life?

I ride at least 50% in the dark now, and it's only going to get darker...
 
one piece crank said:
How is the 530 back-lighting? It it easy to see in the dark? Does it kill battery life?

I ride at least 50% in the dark now, and it's only going to get darker...
Click to expand...

So far, so good. I have it set on adaptive (which obviously uses more power if it's brighter out...) and have still been going 7-8 rides 1-1.5hr rides between charges. Could probably push it a bit more, but I would rather err on the side of caution.
 
Will the 530 h-bar mount accept a GoPro mount on the underside? I've converted my light to a GoPro mount and don't really want to go back to the O-ring mount....

Nevermind. It looks like the GoPro adaptor I currenly have will attach to the Garmin mount!
 
Last edited:
Just as a follow up - I've had my 830 for two months now and its spot on. Battery Life is exceptional, Uploads Easy, No issues with the touch screen. Few hang ups with connecting to my iPhone 11, but since then, its been great.
 
I've been using my phone for the past year and it has it's limitations (although not technological). So I'm presently at the 530 vs 830 point. As I understand it, the primary difference between these two is the touchscreen, and I'm not concerned about price difference. Regardless of which one I buy, I want to avoid wishing I got the other one!
  • Is the absence of buttons on the 830 an issue?
  • Is the 830 touchscreen input better than buttons?
  • Does the remote input (buttons) make the 830 a no-brainer?
 
Last edited:
I haven't had any issue with the touchscreen on my 830, only issue was it froze once and would not come on until I kept the power on button pressed for some 30 secs...but I hear it also happens on 530. The only flaw that I can think of is that it doesn't remind you to pick it up when you leave the house, nor it reminds you to start to actually record the ride...
 
NJLuke said:
Yeah I have the 530 and its become nothing but an annoyance. The buttons are literally impossible to use during riding and oftentimes I accidentally turn it off just because I meant to scroll down.
Click to expand...

I replaced my 820 with a 530 because the touch screen on the 820 was the biggest piece of crap ever. It definitely took awhile to get used to the buttons, but now it's second nature.

shrpshtr325 said:
my biggest gripe was trying to use the maps, scrolling around to see where you were was a royal PITA without the touch screen :/
Click to expand...

Zooming in and out is easy and works well, but moving around is a bit of a pain. Having just spent a few days using maps and trailforks integration quite a bit, I didn't really find myself needing to scroll around though. I just zoomed out and then back in occasionally.
 
JimN said:
I replaced my 820 with a 530 because the touch screen on the 820 was the biggest piece of crap ever. It definitely took awhile to get used to the buttons, but now it's second nature.



Zooming in and out is easy and works well, but moving around is a bit of a pain. Having just spent a few days using maps and trailforks integration quite a bit, I didn't really find myself needing to scroll around though. I just zoomed out and then back in occasionally.
Click to expand...


this is accurate, i find myself wanting to scroll around alot when trying to figure out where to go when just following maps (at least around here)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom