The Surge Of Demand For Affordable Cycling Power Meters

If you are reading this then you probably have understanding of the benefits of training with power measurement. A power meter is not one of those gadgets that promise improvement but end up forgotten in the closet.
It can be one of the most effective training tools you can get besides your bike.
The trend about power meter training getting bigger and bigger is being confirmed by recent moves by the majors of the sports measurement gear like Garmin and Polar.
Garmin acquired bike power meter-maker MetriGear, adding power data technology to its GPS cycling line.
Polar and Look are working on a pedal-based power meter built around Look s Keo platform and made to communicate with Polar cycling computers.
Both of the newcomers would weigh less than 100 grams and would be priced within $1,000-$2,000 USD Garmin (Metrigear) Vector is expected to be close to $1,000 USD, whereas Look s power meter price would be between $1,800 and $2,000 USD without the Polar computer head.
The most affordable cycling power meter offering the best value for money at this point seems to be Velocomps iBike. It is top product iAero is priced at $659 USD and offers powerful wind measurement features none of its competitors does.
They have recently launched a new product called iDash, which transforms an ordinary iPhone or iPod into a cycling computer indicating not only power but also having a GPS, elevation, heart rate and the ability to place and receive calls and email your power data while on the go. And that is on top of the all of the usual cycling computer features like speed, trip distance, calories, lap timer etc. The iBike software is downloadable free of charge at the Apple Store.
In the past,iBike products have been sold mainly in their home market, the United States, but according to Velocomp s CEO John Hamann, the interest for Velocomp s products is growing rapidly in other places.
For instance in Europe, worlds biggest cycling power meter market, iBikes authorized dealer IncreaseYourCyclingPower.com, now successfully markets iBike power meters to customers in Europe. Sales are growing in other regions too.
It is very likely that the generalization of power meters as an indispensable tool to improve riders fitness and cycling performance become the biggest trend in amateur cycling over the next few years. I expect that power meters will progressively replace traditional cardio meters as the training tool no serious cyclist will ever leave home without.
The potential is huge but companies willing to become the leaders of tomorrow should circumvent the traditional disadvantages of current power meters: high cost, extra weight, inflexibility, and complex operating procedures.
At this stage, power meters like MetriGear Vector Garmin (expected to arrive in stores in February or March 2011) and Velocomp iBike seem to offer the best value. I believe that on the longer term, cycling power meter will experience the same trend as music or telecom equipment which has been gradually virtualized to become more and more software instead of hardware dependent.
As being the only viable software based power meter, iBike brand products have significant advantage since they have been on the market since 2005 and their accuracy is now very close to SRM and Powertap units. iBike customers can also get most recent features and improvements through software and firmware upgrades at no extra costs.
Another advantage of iBike power meters is their excellent customer service in the US. In Europe their dealer IncreaseYourCyclingPower.com offers support in French and English. Spanish and Italian customer service support is expected to be added as the business grows. IncreaseYourCyclingPower.com website has French, Spanish and Italian versions of its site. Having all relevant documentation translated in key European languages is critical for iBike success in Europe since some non-English speaking customers have been complaining in the past about user and software manuals in English only.
products have significant advantage since they have been on the market since 2005 and their accuracy is now very close to SRM and Powertap units. iBike customers can also get most recent features and improvements through software and firmware upgrades at no extra costs.

Another advantage of iBike power meters is their excellent customer service in the US. In Europe their dealer IncreaseYourCyclingPower.com offers support in French and English. Spanish and Italian customer service support is expected to be added as the business grows. IncreaseYourCyclingPower.com website has French, Spanish and Italian versions of its site. Having all relevant documentation translated in key European languages is critical for iBikes success in Europe since some non-English speaking customers have been complaining in the past about user and software manuals in English only.