Garmin 705

I've now had my fancy new Garmin Edge 705 super-deluxe cycling GPS for a few months and have discovered most if it strengths and weaknesses. Overall it rates 8/10. It does everything you could want. It does so many things that the UI is a little complicated and that is its weakness.

It is too easy to forget to start the timer after turning the unit on. Why not have it start automatically? I occasionally forget to reset it before starting a ride so that two rides run together. Minor annoyances sure, but either one renders the current ride's data inaccurate.

I found a pretty good site for creating maps and loading them into the unit. Bike Route Toaster is free and had worked really well so far.

I use RubiTrack as download data and track rides and mileage.

A couple of notes about setting up the Edge 705.

* Menu | Settings | Data Recording | Zero averaging : should be set OFF for cadence to average correctly.

* It's easy to forget the start the timer. If the 705 doesn't display the current grade - the timer isn't running.