Wahoo’s two new Elemnt bike computers go the distance
Elemnt Roam 3 and Elemnt Bolt 3 have all kinds of cycling in mind
If sunnier skies and warmer weather have encouraged you to blow the dust off your cycling gear, Wahoo’s two new bike computers might be the last bit of encouragement you need to start racking up the miles. The Elemnt Roam 3 and Elemnt Bolt 3 are due to land next month, completing the line-up under the resistance-measuring Elemnt Ace flagship – and Wahoo has a company-first smart bike light in the works too.
The Elemnt Roam should fill the bike computer sweet spot for the majority of riders. It might skip out on the Ace’s wind resistance measurements (which are really aimed at hardcore riders), but has pretty much every other feature you could ask for. The 2.8in colour screen is 22% larger than the Bolt’s, and it supports touch controls as well as physical buttons for navigating Wahoo’s slick Elemnt interface. Pinch, zoom and swipe gestures should all work while you’re wearing gloves, and there’s an anti-glare coating to make visibility that bit better on sunny days.
Route management and navigation have taken a big step up from the previous Roam, with more detailed maps, elevation data, road types and voiced turn-by-turn directions. Loading routes and syncing workouts should be a breeze using the clean Ready to Ride dashboard, and it’ll happily spit your completed rides out to third-party services like Strava. There should be enough juice to last for up to 25 hours of tracking, too.
Elemnt Roam sales kick off on May 6th, with prices set at $450/£400/€450 – a healthy amount less than the flagship Elemnt Ace.
The Elemnt Bolt is the smaller and lighter of the pair, so should find favour with riders wanting to blitz their personal bests every time they hop on their bike. It’s also that bit simpler, so could be the one to plump for if you’re new to serious cycling.
It’s got a 2.3in high-contrast screen, so should be easy to read regardless of conditions, but relies purely on the physical buttons rather than also adding touch controls into the mix. The Elemnt interface is otherwise on par with the rest of the range, with the same “Ready to Ride” dashboard and integration with third-party apps. Wahoo reckons it’ll manage up to 20 hours of tracking between charges.
The Elemnt Bolt will hit retailers on May 6th, for $330/£300/€330.
Wahoo is also gearing up to launch its first ever smart bike light. The Trackr Radar rear light has a built-in accelerometer that gets brighter as you slow down, acting as a brake light, and a radar system that increases the flashing pattern as cars approach you from behind. It then lowers the brightness to save battery when no cars are detected, for up to 20 hours of illumination per charge.
The Trackr Radar pairs with Elemnt head units (or other Bluetooth/ANT+ bike computers), and has a dual mounting system for easy fitment and removal. No word on exactly when this’ll launch, but expect it to cost $200/£180/€200 once it does.
Tom Morgan-Freelander
Deputy Editor 
