Garmin 520 vs 820

D.P.

D.P.

D.P.

Caporegime
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
32,653
Was about to buy the 520 as the 1000 was too pricy and too high end for begginer, 800 was old. Now there are 2 820 models and I wonder g what the real.difference would be to the 520.

The higher 820 model as turn by turn navigation and info related to power. The cheaper 820 doesn't have the power info but I think it has turn by turn while the 520.doesn't have either. I.don't have a power meter but can see myself buying 1 next year (potential iron man) do was thinking of stumping up the extra $100 now then having to upgrade and loose more money later.

Any thoughts on 520 vs 820?
 
I have the 520 which doesn't have turn by turn, however I really don't see the need for it, I follow a new route almost every ride and never have any issues following the map.
 
Oh yeah, take a look at the Elemnt! Looks like a great bit of kit, I weighed that up against the 520 and I would've went for it but in the end it came down to taking the cheaper option.
 
Jon33 said:
I have the 520 which doesn't have turn by turn, however I really don't see the need for it, I follow a new route almost every ride and never have any issues following the map.
Click to expand...

Eh? You can do turn by turn on a 520. I do it on the 500 all the time. You have to do the route on the computer beforehand and then copy that on to the garmin once it's set up.
 
It's not proper turn by turn navigation on the 500 devices though is it. You follow a breadcrumb trail - it doesn't prompt you to turn left/right etc...

In terms of the original question.
For me it depends on cost. The new features on the 820 don't seem to be that useful over the 810, so if the price difference between them is high then I would go for the 810.
 
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I'd go for the 810 or the Elemnt personally. 820 doesn't seem worth the price premium.

The 520 and the 820 Explore (or whatever the least good version of the 820 is) require .tcx for navigation rather than .gpx so in theory it's not proper turn-by-turn. However, from what I can tell from other people I've seen with 5xx devices it seems fine.
 
SDK^ said:
It's not proper turn by turn navigation on the 500 devices though is it. You follow a breadcrumb trail - it doesn't prompt you to turn left/right etc...
Click to expand...

It does if you do it right.

1) Create route in ridewithgps
2) Export as tcx file
3) Import into bikehike with turn markers
4) Export as tcx file with 200 foot turn notification
5) Copy tcx file to Newfiles folder on the Garmin

It's been enough to get me all over the show, anyway.
 
Hadn't co sundered the element since I'm fairly embeded in the garmin ecosystem. I also have Tacx vortex trainer that I don't think is controllable from the Element.

Turn. Y turn is not a. Ig give but I'm not sure if the extra power meter options of the 820 would work
 
Vonhelmet said:
It does if you do it right.

1) Create route in ridewithgps
2) Export as tcx file
3) Import into bikehike with turn markers
4) Export as tcx file with 200 foot turn notification
5) Copy tcx file to Newfiles folder on the Garmin

It's been enough to get me all over the show, anyway.
Click to expand...

Oh right, never knew about that, I stand corrected.

So it might do turn by turn but I've still found the purple line that overlays the road is more than enough to be able to follow a route should you wish to go for a 520. But if you can afford the Elemnt I'd certainly give that a try.
 
Slight hijack (sorry - but its slightly related)

The mrs has a Garmin 800 which apparently does turn by turn but she can't get it to work - usually creates routes in strava or garmin connect. Any ideas?
 
Ended up getting the 520. haven't really used it yet but taking some vacation tomorrow to get out on my bike. First thoughts are its really quite small, which I guess is good but I would have though a bigger screen would be nicer to view. There are a lot of buttons all over it because it doesn't have a touch screen.
 
Sorry for the hijack, thought it was easier than a new thread.

Firstly, how are you getting on with the 520 D.P.?

Any one got any thoughts on the 1000 vs the 820?

It's meant to be more or less the same unit, only the 820 is in a smaller form factor; I can't find any info on features the 820 has that the 1000 doesn't other than group ride and emergency contact.

You can get the 1000 with speed, cadence and HR monitor on the river for £340.

The 820 bundle is £390, so I'm wondering what the extra £50 is really worth, considering it's a smaller screen.
 
Great price for the 810. Paid £230 for mine as a bare unit around a year ago. Still quite surprised they've not dropped further as a bare unit price!

Thoughts of the 1000 vs the 820 - the 1000 is a much older unit so not sure how inferior the screen/processor/features are in comparison to the new 820.
 
That's a cracking price for the 810 bundle.

I hadn't realised the 810 did live segments, definitely food for thought.

Roady, I believe (but happy to be corrected) that the 820 is all the same as the 1000, just a in a smaller case.
 
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