teamfreak16's Full Review: Topeak Panoram Wireless Cycle Computer
A wise old philosopher once asked me this puzzling question - if a cyclist goes on a long ride with no computer on his/her bike, did the ride really happen? Actually, that was a trick question, as I've never really met any wise philosophers, old or otherwise. Unless you can count the numerous idiots I've encountered sitting at the end of various bars, spouting their ideas to anyone within range as being wise, that is. But my point is this - other than a select few who just don't care, we cyclists are very focused on our mileage. We document stats such as ride length, ride time, average speed, top speed, and other wonderful numbers. We even go so far as to build Excel spreadsheets to enter our data into - or even better, we join Bikejournal.com and enter it there, which allows us to compete against riders we've never met before.
I've been using bike computers since I started riding seriously, some twenty years ago. And while I don't consider them to be one-hundred percent accurate (little things like tire pressure can affect their accuracy - it's not uncommon to have a group of cyclists all get close but different readings for the same ride,) I've always felt a bike computer gives me a fairly close idea of how far I ride. My problems with bike computers is that I have always been fairly rough on them, often I had to buy a new one each year - a couple of times, twice in the same year. After years of winding and unwinding the wires down the front fork, I decided to go with a wireless computer. And the one I've decided to stick with so far has been the Topeak Panoram.
Installation
If, by chance, you are unaware of what a bike computer is, it is a small piece of equipment that mounts on your handlebars - basically replacing the big, fat speedometer you might have had on your bicycle as a kid - now you have a compact, digital LCD readout. The computer comes with a sensor, most of which mount on the front fork (although there are rear sensor mounts out there.) The sensor reads a magnet that you attach to your spokes, and sends the data to your computer. The Panoram is no different - it is a front mount computer - Topeak recommends installing the magnet/sensor no more than eighteen inches from the computer. Again, it is a wireless set up - no wire to wrap around your fork and head tube. Just attach the round magnet to the spoke and secure it with a Phillips screwdriver.
Attach the sensor to the fork and make sure it is tight (shims are provided) using the zip lock-style connector. Attach the computer mount to your handlebar with a smaller Phillips screwdriver (again, shims are provided.) Put the CR2032 battery into the computer, snap the unit into the mount, and you are finished installing! Even a guy with a great fear of tools (me) can install the Panoram easily. All that is left to do is set the computer to your wheel size - the computer comes with instructions for two methods. The most accurate method involves measuring a full rotation on your front tire and doing some math. The easier, but less accurate method involves setting your computer to the handy code that corresponds to your tire size. You can also set the clock and maintenance reminders at this time, too.
The cool part (the computer)
One common complaint cyclists have about cycling computers is the display - one or two pieces of data is displayed at one time, and a rider has to scroll through screens to see different information. The Panoram expands the readout field from one piece of data to four. The screen I use the most shows distance on the left, and current speed on the right. In the middle you have ride time on top, and the clock on the bottom. On an old-style computer, one would have to scroll through at least two or three screens to get the same data. Now, all four necessary pieces of info are right there on one screen. If I know I'm riding fifty miles, all I have to do is look down to see how far I've gone, and whether or not I should pick up the pace.
Push the middle button (the right turns on a lamp for night display - The left is used to set and clear info) and you get to the next screen - this still displays your distance on the left, but shows average speed on the right. In the middle, total time is displayed (the ride time automatically stops and starts when you do, the total time keeps rolling.) The clock is still at the bottom of this screen as well.
Third screen shows your odometer on the left, so you know how many miles you have accumulated during the season. Maximum speed is displayed on the right, so you can check how fast you were going as you came screaming down that last hill. In the middle, average ride time is on top, and the clock remains on the bottom.
Earlier, I mentioned settings for lubrication and maintenance. When you set these in the computer, it will flash to remind you when to lube your chain and cables (a small oil can will flash on the left display,) and when to either take the bike in for a check up or do it yourself (a small wrench will flash on the left.) The Panoram allows both mileage and kilometer settings. It also stores the settings for two bikes - as long as you have the wireless set up on each, you can use one computer on two bikes.
So....
I guess you could say I am quite pleased with the Topeak Panoram. I own two of them and about the biggest complaint I've seen about these is the size - yeah, it's kind of long. I just mount it in the middle of my handlebars, though, and we get along fine. Since this is the original model, you can probably find a good deal on it - Topeak has since upgraded the style of the Panoram. At this time, I don't see myself going with anything else at this time - the Topeak has made it through three hard seasons - it's worked fabulously through rain, hail, mud, sunshine and crashes - I'm looking forward to many more years with it. If you are in the market for a cycle computer, it might be worth your while to check out the Topeak Panoram.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.