Garmin Varia radar and 520 battery life

Tom Box

So, I bought the garmin 520 and the Varia radar recently.  I have used the 520 without problems and plenty of battery life.  However, recently took the radar for a spin and noticed my 520 ran out of battery power after about 5 1/2 hours (was doing my camp weekend race rehearsal ride).  Has anyone else used these gadgets in combo and had a similar experience?  Does the Varia really eat up that much battery power?

Gabe Peterson

I just got the Varia and did my first ride with it this weekend. I have the 810. It did seem to burn the battery down faster than usual. I'd estimate it burned the battery down about 50% faster than usual. I'm guessing the cause is the more frequent display changes and the beeps when cars enter the radar zone.

I love the Varia! It made riding on the road much less stressful. I didn't have to turn to look as frequently to see if a car was behind me. Cars would appear on the radar often before I heard them. I could even tell when riders were approaching behind me (the dot moved much slower than cars). It was especially awesome on descents where I can't hear cars due to the wind noise. I'll get out in the middle of the lane to have more maneuverability and tell cars not to pass. Of course, there is always some jackass that comes ripping by. It's pretty startling because I usually don't hear them until they're right on my rear wheel.

Was your 520 fully charged? I'm guessing it normally lasts 12+ hours on a full charge (that's about what I get from the 810). That would be a more than double burn rate.

Mike Westover

With about five hours of use the last two days (Varia radar yesterday, radar + vision today), I had 40-50% left on my 520. 

I'm also liking the radar a lot. It just works and the design is well thought out. In particular, the beeps to let you know a car is approaching, and dots on the head unit to see how many cars and where they are. 

Tom Box

Thanks for the input. Charged it up on Thursday and then used it Friday so unless the garmin drained overnight in the off position I would assume it was fully charged. Admittedly I didn't look at the state of the charge at the start of my ride.

Mike Westover

I checked the battery again during my ride today. In a little over 3 hours, I used 42% of the battery on the 520. That was using Varia Radar, Varia Vision, and Live Tracking.

Gabe Peterson

So I did another ride today with my Varia radar. I started with my 810 fully charged. After a 3 hour ride, it was right at 70%. That's pretty much in line with what I experienced without the radar.

I did update the software on the 810 this week. That may have improved the battery performance. Also, you might want to update the radar unit itself. I couldn't get it to pair with the 810 until I updated the radar unit.

Again, I love the radar! Descending is soooo much better because I don't have to worry about cars creeping up on me.

Coach Patrick

@tim cronk @Gabe Peterson @Tom Box getting pressure on the Varia...does it work well with the 810 or should I get that other varia display??? Thanks!

Gabe Peterson

@Coach Patrick I use it with my 810.  Works great.  Definitely a good investment in your safety.

Satish Punna

I have the varia radar and I just got an 820. On the first screen of the 820 in training mode I use two fields to show respectively the battery level of the 820 and the varia. 

Dawn Cass

I would feel naked and exposed without my Varia and 520 these days :-) However I just swapped out the 520 for an 820. Is there any difference in battery life?

I can get a six hour ride with the 520 and Varia operating and always recharge overnight, to date I haven't lost power.