Wahoo Elemnt Rival: What can the new multifunction watch for road cyclists do?
Konstantin Rohé
· 18.11.2020
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In calendar year 2020, Wahoo is stepping on the accelerator when it comes to new products - after the series delivery of the stationary Wahoo Kickr Bike, the first own Clothing set for indoor training at the beginning of the year and the launch of the new Smarttrainer Wahoo Kickr v5 The US company is now launching a smartwatch on the market in autumn.
Wahoo's new smartwatch: Elemnt Rival
Presented in the press release as a "multifunction watch for athletes", the Wahoo Element Rival is primarily aimed at existing Wahoo customers and triathletes. Wahoo advertises in particular with the connectivity to other in-house products such as the Elemnt or Elemnt Roam on-board computers and the Wahoo heart rate monitor.
When you get on your bike, the race data is automatically transferred from the watch to the Wahoo bike computer mounted on the handlebars - and then transferred back to the watch when you change into your running shoes or into the water. The training data can also be automatically uploaded to third-party platforms such as TrainingPeaks and Strava via the Wahoo Companion app. The smartwatch can also be connected to ANT+ and Bluetooth sensors and is therefore also able to control the Wahoo KICKR smart trainers.
All features of the Elemnt Rival
The watch tracks all standard running, cycling and swimming metrics and can also record detailed running dynamics parameters in conjunction with the Wahoo heart rate belt. Exciting for training in changing light conditions: The ambient light sensor automatically adjusts the backlight to the ambient light situation. According to the manufacturer, the battery should last 14 days in watch mode and 24 hours in GPS mode. A barometric altimeter, an optical heart rate sensor and live tracking are included, as with the other popular sports watches, is also part of the range of functions.
On the one hand, the simplicity of the watch is in the tradition of Wahoo products that are quick to configure and use, but it also reveals some weaknesses: The Rival can neither play music via Bluetooth nor offer valid GPS routing on maps. Even basic training data that is known from the on-board computer, such as training load or training time, is not available. Wahoo's Planned Workoutscontactless payment or the recording of sleep data are not possible with the Rival.
Technical details of the Wahoo Elemnt Rival
- Cost: 379.99 euros >> e.g. available here
- Weight: 53 grammes
- Resolution: 240×240 pixels
- Diameter: 5.08 cm
- Height: 1.65 cm
- Smartwatch battery life: 14 days
- Battery life GPS/pulse: up to 24 hours
- Water resistance: 5 ATM
