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Customer Rating:  
Summary: CHECK YOUR MAGNET ALIGNMENT!
Comment: My condolences to the poor folks who trashed the Schwinn computers. I bought a 12 function unit and got it to work right away ... UNTIL I moved it by a few spokes to balance out a reflector. Then ... it STOPPED WORKING ... TOTALLY. Being an engineer, I scratched my head for a few minutes while analyzing the problem and then laughed. I moved the magnet about 1/4 inch down the spoke and it started working fine again.
The problem is in basic electromagnet physics. If you manage to mount the magnet extremely close to the MIDDLE of the sensor bar, the generated electric pulse will null out and it will look like your unit is dead no matter how close you get the magnet to the sensor. Just move the magnet away from the middle of the sensor bar ... closer to either end ... and your sensor will have excellent sensitivity and you will have a great working little gadget for a miniscule price. This would be a great present for a kid, except that it's better for them to be paying more attention to what they are doing than watching the speedometer.
Only 4 stars because unfortunately the Schwinn people don't support these products, and the web address the give you for the manufacturer is dead. The "wheel factor" table in the manual is only approximate ... measure the circumference of your wheel in millimeters for best accuracy.
Good luck and happy cycling ... thumb your nose at every gas station you pass by!
Art, Carlisle PA
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Value
Comment: This device works great and it's only $9. It has speed which always shows on the screen plus you can display the odometer, a distance meter to the 1/100 of a mile, trip timer, temperature, average speed, maximum speed, calories, or fat calories. It has a couple of other features which display at all times such as whether you are increasing speed or descreasing which seem somewhat worthless sense I pretty much am aware of that anyway. It also shows a plus or minus sign to tell you if you are traveling above or below your average speed which for some reason I like. Additionally you can set it to scan where it will display each item for a few seconds then move on to the next. I like the fact that it pops right off the mounting bracket so I can take it with me to review the data after a long ride.
I did notice that one review mentioned you cannot reset things such as distance, calories, etc. All items are easily cleared. The device has two buttons. The right button allows you to scoll through the functions. The left button when held for about two seconds resets that function to zero. So before each trip or each day I reset distance, calories, average speed, etc. That way you can keep track for trip, a day, a week, or whatever you desire. The device shuts down when you stop so you don't have to worry about shutting it off.
Installation is simple. No tools required, except maybe a pair of pliers to pull the supplied wire ties nice and tight. The only thing that is a bit tricky is that the sensor which mounts on the fork, and the magnet which attaches to a spoke need to be close together. The instructions say 1mm. Thats only about 1/32 of an inch. Mine works at about 1/8 of an inch. You need to slide it up or down the spoke/fork to get the correct clearance. Also be careful when entering the "wheel factor" which is just the circumference of the wheel on centimeters. I would recommend you calculate your own instead of using the chart or at least verify their chart. There are 25.4mm per and inch times the "outside" diameter in inches times pi which is 3.14159. The factors listed are correct but somewhat confusing. This number needs to be right or all the information displayed is wrong.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Inexpensive yet high quality gadget
Comment: If you are looking for an inexpensive way to keep track of your bike mileage, or to see just how fast you're coasting down that big hill, this is the device for you.
Installation wasn't as difficult as some of the commentary for this item described it to be, and this is the first one I've ever installed. As long as you follow the directions, you'll be okay. Make sure you keep the instruction manual, as you will probably need the wheel diameter codes provided on the manual when you replace the battery (all data is lost when the battery goes).
As far as functionality, it has more features than my Specialized Turbo Computer, and is even backlit. This Schwinn computer is installed on my girlfriend's Schwinn MTB, and we tested it by pedaling alongside each other and the readings were exactly the same. It offers a programmable "maintenance reminder" that tells you when you should have your bike serviced (choice of 200, 400, or 600 mile intervals). The air temperature display is a nice touch, but it may suffer from a sort-of "greenhouse effect," as it seemed to display a warmer temp. than actual, but it wasn't too far off. It also offers a "scan" function, so you can see all the functions as you ride, and it powers up when you start rolling and powers down when the bike is idle after five minutes.
As long as you follow all installation and programming instructions to the letter, you will (or should) get lots of use out of it.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Bike Computer
Comment: I like the fact that this bike computer is larger than what I expected. It is self explainatory to put together. The best feature is that the computer turns off when its not being used. It reactivates when detecting motion.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Beyond Satisfied
Comment: This bike computer, for the price, is by far the best on the market. How do I know? Because there is no other bike computer that boasts a name brand company, has as many features, and costs as little as this one! I made sure to read all the reviews on Amazon before I purchased this, and I find it disheartening that I was almost swayed to *not* buy it. Fortunately, I read between the lines of all the negative comments and figured their age and/or grammar explained why they had difficulties with the device.
To start, almost everyone is correct in stating it's difficult to install; honestly, it is! The instructions suggest a 1mm distance between the magnet and the sensor, which basically means: as close as you can get it without the two pieces hitting! To achieve this, the task takes a considerable amount of fiddling, but once you find the right spot on the fork and spoke to where they come closest without hitting, you're golden. I spent about 10 minutes doing this. After the magnet and sensor were on, the setup of the computer was a breeze. It asked for wheel diameter (which is required if you want accurate readings of speed, distance, etc), age, weight, time settings, etc. If you read the instructions, it will explain how to set each of these values.
I want to address a few of the complaints on this page. The first was from a young man who said he was riding 60 mph. Your problem: you didn't set the correct wheel diameter! The instructions provide you a handy chart to tell you what code to type in based on the corresponding diameter. Now, if you don't know what a diameter is, or don't have the intelligence to look it up online, you probably shouldn't be using this computer in the first place. If your wheel is 26" and you set it to 15", yes, you will not have the correct and accurate display of your speed!
I read another review that said he couldn't figure out what buttons to push. Answer: READ THE DIRECTIONS! The directions tell you what to push, for how long, and when. They do this for all displays and all features. If you can't figure that out, I don't know what else to tell you. Honestly, there are 2 buttons, are you that stupid?
I read another review that said distance traveled couldn't be reset, nor could the calories or fat burned. WRONG! Yet again, people fail to actually *read* the instructions, and have the nerve to come online and submit a negative review. There are 7 displays that are shuffled with the *right* button. The *odometer* display does not reset, because it's just that, an odometer. Do you reset your car odometer, too? What you're looking for is the *tripmeter* display. The tripmeter can be reset by holding the *left* button for 2 to 3 seconds. When you reset the tripmeter, you also reset the trip timer, and the average speed value which was set during your previous trip. To reset the calories burned or fat burned, go to that feature display, and hold the left button for 2 to 3 seconds. Simple enough?
In summary: this computer is accurate in all its features if you read the instructions and input the correct wheel diameter. Speed, distance traveled, average speed, trip timer, temperature, and everything else, I have found to be 100% accurate. I checked the speeds against a driver and the temperature against a 3rd party thermostat. Since I've only used this product for a couple weeks, I can't tell you how durable or what's its longevity will be, but if the features and accuracy mean anything, I should be using this computer for a long time.
Quick note to everyone who set this thing up wrong and feels foolish for complaining: if you input the wrong diameter, press both buttons down at the same time for 3 seconds and it will reset the whole device so you can input data from scratch. If your speedometer is reading out "0.0" while you ride, you have the sensor and magnet setup wrong. Try to align the magnet with the arrow next to the "Sensor" text.
The key to having a pleasurable experience with this bike computer is to read the instructions. If you don't feel like reading instructions, don't buy this. If you feel you can bare with the idea of reading a bit and want a great piece of hardware at the lowest price on the market, BUY this device.
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