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Joule 2.0 for $300?

David WilliamsDavid Williams
in General Training Discussions

I saw on Chris Lieto tweeted a deal on a new Joule 2.0 (to be shipped in Jan) for $300.  I am not shopping for a new pm, but am wondering if this is a good deal.  The Cycle Ops sites says it retails for $499.  If this is a great deal I would seriously consider switching to a wireless set up.

Here is the tweet:

chrislieto
  
 CycleOpsPower. Use code CPS-0006D-F8315964. Like them on FB for details http://bit.ly/b0pQdE

Comments

  • steveperxsteveperx
    Yes. That's a pretty good deal. Mine was $500+
  • tgarsontgarson
    I've always had mixed feelings about the Joule, I've always wanted one due to the real time TSS, NP and IF but $500 seemed too outrageous of a price compared to the the competitors from Garmin. I literally just caved and got a Joule after conceding that Garmin will never add TSS, IF, NP but thank god I got it from the ST classifieds for $300 new with HR and Cadence/Speed sensor. I don't feel like I got quite as sweet of deal anymore, but not kicking myself either.
  • David WilliamsDavid Williams

    Is the Joule 2.0 currently out?  Based on the Cycle Ops site ("not shipping until Jan") I assume this is a new version.

  • tgarsontgarson
    Joule 2.0 has been out for a few months now. Not sure what is up with the shipping in January angle. Could be a new hardware revision but I'd be somewhat suprised since the Joule hasn't been out all that long and most of the fixes are to the firmware. I don't think CycleOps is all that big of a company and $500 power meter head units is definitely a niche market if there ever was one, it could be something as simple as they only made so many in their original run and are trying to drum up demand before getting any more off the line.
  • Dave BarrDave Barr
    Is anyone going to bite on this deal and purchase one?
  • Tom GlynnTom Glynn
    I love my Joule. Yeah, it was expensive, but after the first ride, the price is long gone forgotten. Way better than the "little yellow computer". If you get a deal, great, but reports of unhappy owners don't seem to be around that I know of.

    People were very annoyed when they didn't ship originally, but that's the last I've heard about serious complaints.

    tom
  • gschlossnaglegschlossnagle
    Do you not find the lack of a gps annoying/painful?
  • Tom GlynnTom Glynn
    What do you plan to use the gps for? Joule gives you power, speed, distance and other stuff. Mapping may be cool, but I normally follow routes I've done before, so no issues about where I am. If I do get lost, I guess I'd just pull out my iPhone and use Google Maps to find myself and then find my way home.

    The ultimate device for me would fit on my wrist, use gps for swimming and running, power for biking, have a 20 hour battery life and cost $100 image
  • steveperxsteveperx
    @Tom: I've had some minor issues with the Joule. First, on my Windows 7 laptop, I can't do a safe "eject" of the Joule. Also, Power Agent was very buggy until I got some super secret version directly from Saris. The problem now is that my version of Power Agent doesn't connect to the firmware updater. So, I've had to install PA on my XP desktop. After the lates firmware update, I can no longer download from the Joule in Training Peaks.

    Lots of little annoyances, but the display is great, and I LOVE having NP and TSS on the fly.
  • Tom GlynnTom Glynn
    Steve,

    you're right, I had forgotten about some of these issues as they didn't effect me. Problems with Windows 64 bit PCs, and some people were having distance calibration issues. The newest software update seems a little buggy from what I've seen on Google Wattage. There seems to be a lot going on in the background regarding software, so it appears that they are addressing these minor bugs; although probably not fast enough if it effects you personally.

    tom
  • John StarkJohn Stark

    $300?  GET IT!  Period.

    I absolutely LOVE the little bastard!  It is a carrot and a stick in one package!  Nothing worse than seeing you IF drop well into a ride.  And nothing better than seeing you IF increasing well into a ride.  Real-time!   I can't even imagine going back to the original yellow CPU.

    The 64 bit issue is for both Mac and Windows machines and I had the firmware update issue also.  I have had mine for a couple of months now and have never done a firmware update because of that and haven't really stressed about it.  Haven't seen the need to.  Should I? 

    John

     

  • gschlossnaglegschlossnagle
    @Tom: I like it mainly for coordinating elevation changes with intensity changes. I don't use the GPS data at all in real-time, but find it very useful in post-ride analysis.
  • tgarsontgarson
    @George,

    It depends on what (assuming) Garmin product you are coming from, but the Joule has a barometric altimeter which should provide you very accurate elevation data post ride, much more accurate than GPS-derived elevation data. However, the Edge 500 models and higher all have baro-alt as well. The 310xt does not. I do think the Joule should have GPS for how much it costs, you may not use it all of the time but it is certainly nice to be able to review course maps and have navigation cues the few times that you do want them. My temporary solution to this is I simply wear my 310xt on my wrist on rides where I know I'll want to record the route.

    @Tom

    Your dream device description is pretty much a description of the 310xt... in theory. I've owned and trained extensively on a 310xt for the last year and in practice it is a jack of all trades but an ace of none. Well can't quite say that, because I have very little complaints about it's running functionality. Until they find a way to make GPS receivers hyper-sensitive to still hold a signal under water we will never get accurate GPS distance measurement while swimming. Or you can just wear your GPS on your head / under your swim cap. Screen size is and may continue to be a big limiter for wrist-sized devices when it comes to the bike, you simply can't get that much data on screen at any given time. For the 310xt specifically you are of course limited to a very small range of Power specific metrics, you get current power, average power (for ride or lap) or power zone, no smoothed power, no %FTP as with other Garmin devices.

    I haven't had the Joule long enough to come up with a definitive verdict. All and all I like it quite a bit, but I still think the Garmin Edge-series devices would be pretty easily superior if they simply added Dr Coggan's metrics.
  • manconamancona
    @Trevor, I fully agree with you on the garmin devices. I got a Edge 500 back in December when I needed a head unit and the Joule was not available. My intention was to then sell it and get a joule, however the edge 500 has worked prefect ever since and therefore I was not able to justify the $200+ extra to only gain TSS/IF/NP and lose GPS. Sure I don't need the GPS, but it has been nice a few times. The elevation is the more important information, which both provide.

    I'm currious about what you think of the Joule/Cinqo combo after a week or two of use... please let me know. At $300, I could see the Joule being worth it.

    Like you said if garmin would just add TSS/IF/NP then I would not even consider a Joule. I was really hoping the new edge 800 would have this, but it does now.
  • John StarkJohn Stark

    @Trevor, good points. Thanks.  And to add (I may have missed it) is the Joule has a grade% also.  So I think it has everything the Garmin's do sans map.

    When I was resarching new head units the Garmin was top of my list.  I also wasn't sure if I needed NP, TSS, etc but after having it I can't imagine not.  One example, trying to estimate if I am hitting NP during a RR on the original CPU by keeping real-time watts bouncing around 5 to 10 watts above goal NP is no longer a concern.  It is right there, real-time.  And having TSS there as well helps make an decision on the fly so you can make adjustments if you are going exceed  RR goal TSS.  And this is just one example.

    Definitely not a pretty as the Garmin display.  If Garnin had TSS, etc. I would probably jump on it.  But until then . . . .

     

  • John StarkJohn Stark

    And looks like Gleason is now a convert here:  http://endurancenation.us.dnnmax.co...fault.aspx

     

     

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