Magellan

Cyclo 315 GPS Cycling Computer

Like the Portuguese explorer from which its manufacturer takes its name, the Magellan Cyclo 315 GPS Cycling Computer looks to the stars to plot its course. Unlike the original Magellan, the Cyclo 315 isn't exploring uncharted territory and, when it's looking to the stars, it does so to communicate via SiRFstarIII GPS with the satellites. While this may lack some of the romance of navigating by the stars, a sextet, and a stack of hand-drawn charts, the additional benefits of GPS more than outweigh the loss of glamor.

As far as space-age exploration is concerned, the Cyclo 315 features all the same navigational genius of the more expensive 505 with two exceptions: no Bluetooth or smartphone connectivity. Detractors may complain that this means they won't get text, e-mail, and phone call updates on their head unit — to which we say: this is a cycling accessory. Quit worrying about the phone and ride. It does feature ANT+ connectivity, though, so it displays info from any ANT+ power meter, speed/cadence sensor, and heart rate monitor. It'll also pull info from a Di2 setup running with Shimano's D-Fly wireless system.

Like the 505, the Cyclo 315's pre-loaded maps include cycling-specific notations; restaurants, bike shops, and generous shoulders and dedicated lanes are all called-out, keeping you informed of possible coffee stops and pleasant alternatives to gravelly, debris-strewn shoulders on sketchy highways. By creating a rider profile, you can also ensure that you don't find yourself traversing punishing grades on a rest day or hitting dirt or gravel roads on your carbon rims and supple race tires. For off-road riding, it will also ensure that you spend the maximum amount of your ride navigating lines through rock gutters and root lattices instead of traffic furniture.

If you'd rather introduce an element of Magellan-esque adventure to your ride, the Cyclo 315 also shares the 505's Surprise Me feature. Surprise Me automatically generates three prospective routes for you to choose from. Just to make you’re your group is all on the same page, routes can be shared between Cyclo 315 and 505 units by shaking them — a bit comical, sure, but effective at maintaining group coherency and ensuring that everyone arrives at the destination, even if the group splits on a climb.

The Cyclo 315 displays all of this on a bright, 3in screen, and its large buttons make for easy operation in the saddle, even while wearing gloves. It's IPX-7 water resistant, so it's equal to full submersion under a meter of water — more than enough to handle conditions requiring the types of gloves that in turn require those healthy buttons. The unit is packaged with hardware to accommodate multiple mounting options, a USB cord, and an AC power adapter.