Garmin Edge 130 and Edge 130 Plus compared
The new Edge 130 Plus compared to the previous Edge 130
With the introduction of the expected Edge 130 Plus you are probably wondering whether to save some money and buy the Edge 130 or “go big” with the new Plus edition. In this post I go into the key differences and to help you decide. I will also link you to the latest prices and more content.
First glance at Edge 130 Plus
Well, at first glance there isn’t much to say, as the exterior of the device hasn’t changed a bit. I actually thought for a moment that Garmin used the exact same image on their website. So you won’t see it until you flip the device over:
All the internals are the same too, no CPU or memory bump has been reported, but there are 2 minor differences. The first is the battery life, the new 130 Plus has a lower expectancy of 12 hours (compared to ‘up to 15 hours’). From what I gathered this is purely a ‘spec’ without any real difference, because the Egde 130 rarely made it to the claimed 15 hours so to prevent any disappointments. The other difference is the addition of an accelerometer which is used for Incident Detection, more on that later.
Routes and Workouts
The new Edge 130 Plus supports structured workouts from Garmin Connect or external parties like TrainingPeaks (and the likes) so you can use a training plan and stick to it. And on the route element, the Edge 130 Plus has capacity to store 30 routes where the ‘old’ Edge 130 was limited to 15.
Smart trainer control
Right off the bat I have to say this feature is to be added in firmware update soon. Garmin adds a lot of features with firmware so I’m pretty sure they’ll make up on this promise. Smart trainer control allows you to set the resistance in your smart trainer manually or automatically when you are doing a workout, route or reliving a previous ride.
Have a look at this video of the Edge 520 where this feature is explained:
Live track
The Live Track feature on Garmin has been around since at least 2014 when I started this blog and hasn’t changed much over the past six years. But in the latest update the people you share your ride with get a bit more information on what you’re doing. Where you are and if you’re doing a route, what your intended route is. This does require you to bring your phone though, which I recommend anyway for those glamour shots on Instagram.
Climb Pro
The Climb Pro feature has been seen before on the Edge 530, 830 and 1030 and now also on the 130 Plus. While slightly different on the Edge 130 due to it’s limitations in screen (small and black and white), it still gives you decent information. From the garmin website:
Once a course is created and on a compatible device, the ClimbPro feature takes the course and detects the climb sections. Additional details include:
Garmin support
– Each climb segment becomes much clearer during the current or upcoming climb segments.
– Information about climbs can also be accessed in the course summary.
– Awareness of total elevation remaining, distance and grade throughout the course allows for monitoring your intensity level.
– The data provided is based on the course profile and distance of the climbs.
Incident Detection
With the added accelerometer, the Edge 130 Plus is now able to detect if you are doing something unexpected. A move (or fall) causing high G forces and a sudden stop. As this usually means that you’ve crashed. The Edge 130 will detect these circumstances and alerts the contacts that you’ve set with an alert message. The alert will also contain and a link to see where you are, live tracking style. If you crash and are OK you will have a window of 30 seconds to cancel this. Very useful if you’re a solo rider!
MTB Dynamics
Again a feature we know from the 530, 830 and 1030 and because of the added accelerometer, the Edge 130 Plus will now harvest this information for you too when you select the Mountainbike Activity Profile. It consists of three types of data: Jump Metrics, Grit and Flow.
Jump Metrics includes jump count, jump distance, hangtime, and jump speed and the locations of the jumps. A Jump Score will be show in Garmin Connect.
Grit measures the overall difficulty of a mountain bike ride based on factors such as the speed of the ascent, descent and the angle of turns throughout the ride.
Flow measures how well you maintain speed during your mountain bike ride based on factors such as ascent, descent, and the angle of turns throughout the ride.
Prices & Bundles
Both Edge 130 computers come in bundles or the ‘device only’ option. This is neat when you already have a bunch of sensors (which btw the Edge 130 Plus can import from a previous Garmin device!).
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At writing these prices are:
The Garmin Edge 130 prices
More images, videos, reviews and prices on my productwatch.
| US $ | UK £ | All of EU € | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Device Only | $170 at Amazon | £126.99 at Wiggle | €150.19 at Wiggle |
| MTB Bundle | n/a | £167.99 at Wiggle | €195.21 at Wiggle |
| Sensor Bundle | $235 at Amazon | £150.99 at Wiggle | €172.84 at Wiggle |
The Garmin Edge 130 Plus Prices
More images, videos, reviews and prices on my productwatch.
| US $ | UK £ | All of EU € | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Device Only | $199.99 at Amazon | £169.90 at Wiggle | €199 at Wiggle |
| MTB Bundle | n/a | £216 at Wiggle | €250 at Wiggle |
| Sensor Bundle | $249.99 at Amazon | £219.90 at Wiggle | €249.99 at Wiggle |
Disappointed they didn’t address the main issues with the 130 which are battery life (I’ve never had more than 7-8 hours grim mine, and much less in very cold temperatures), and the very unreliable turn-by-turn navigation. If they’d fixed/improved those it would be a great product
Perhaps more of a question marginally germane to the topic:
Is either of these two units compatible with old Garmin GSC10 speed/cadence sensor? I have been using it with Garmin Forerunner 305 on my bike, but I don’t have a direct way to get data to Strava and Garmin Connect (have to connect 305 to my computer etc.) Will either one of these units work? Thanks.
I would believe so. It’s an ANT+ sensor and Edge 130 (Plus) supports ANT+.
Most of my Garmins – always had after year of use – problems with Barometer. Feels to me the weakest point.