Cateye Velo9

The other day I got myself a Cateye Velo 9 cycle computer for my Scultura 200 from Amazon. It's a nice little unit that shows useful data about one's ride on the go. It works in conjunction with a small magnet that is attached to the spoke and a sensor is attached to the fork within 3 cm of the magnet. The sensor is wired to the computer. It can count how many times the wheel has rotated and since you have input the wheel size it can measure the distance covered. And time of course is measured through its internal clock. These two pieces of basic information are then processed to find various derivatives like total distance covered, speed, calories burnt etc. 

There is no GPS involved in this unit. So it cannot capture any location data and show the trip on an online map, like my Forerunner 15 can. But it gives information like total distance covered, elapsed time, speed - current, average and maximum, There is a useful feature in the form of a small arrow that tells whether my current speed is higher than the average speed. 

There are other fancy information like how much calorie one has burnt and the amount of CO2 saved (by not using a car). I have no use for these two though. They just add to the USP of the product. 

Setting tup he unit up on the bike was fairly simple. It came with the necessary zip ties. The unit sits on a small bracket that you tie on the handlebar. Sliding it in and out of it is a slightly iffy. There is a CR 2032 lithium ion battery. Apparently it is supposed to be good for 3 years. 

One sets up the unit with three buttons. There is one big button in the front that is also used to scroll through the screens. There are two very tiny buttons on the back. They are so tiny that you need a pin head to push on them to activate. 

There are essentially three things one needs to set up in the unit before it can be used. First is whether you want the figures in km or miles. Next is the size of the wheel. All the popular options are pre-loaded. One just needs to select the correct option. I chose 700C. If one wants, one can even key in the exact circumference of the wheel. The third item that needs adjustment is the time. I found it rather difficult to understand how to do that. Finally I managed it somehow. But I am not sure I can do it again. 

The internet does not have too many instruction videos. There is one very thorough youtube video but the gentleman uses sign languages, which I do not know. 

One problem with the unit is that there is no system for deleting the existing data. So my average speed will always be an average of all my rides so far. This makes it difficult to monitor progress. One can press an all clear button. But that is more like a factory reset where everything will get erased including the total distance covered. My compromise is to use the Strava. 

Clarification: I learnt later that this is not at all the case. Just long press the switch and all the fields become zero except the odo - which is your total distance travelled since installation. 

This is my review after setting the unit up and going for just one 8 km ride. It worked flawlessly. But units like these should be judged for their value after at least one year's use. It looks and feels robust. Let it prove itself on the road.

The first picture is taken off the internet. The others are mine.