Review of Cateye HR200DW Double Wireless Heart Rate Bicycle Computer

Cateye HR200DW Double Wireless Heart Rate Bicycle Computer
By: Cateye Average Rating: 1.5 Total Reviews: 2
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Save your money - nice idea, poor execution

On: 2008-05-18

I wanted a combination HRM /computer for my bike and this seemed to fit the bill. It is a waste of money. First, the HRM is completely erratic. I use electrode cream and keep the strap fairly tight with the electrodes positioned properly. When I get a HR signal - it can go from 45 -> 70 -> 150 -> 60 -> 0 all in a few minutes. I thought maybe they had programmed in a random number generator the way it was going. Totally useless. Most often it just cuts out totally and goes to 0 for 15 - 20 minutes for no obvious reason.

The display itself is the other problem. It is VERY dim and impossible to read if you are in shade with sunglasses on. Ive been able to read many other bike displays under the same conditions, but this one seems very dim, with no contrast. It reminds me of how other LCDs look right before the batteries die. Except the batteries I have in it are brand new.

The SLEEP function does not work. It is NOT automatic. You need to manually put it to sleep when you want that. There is a description of how to do this on Cateyes site in the knowledge base. This is ridiculous. Supposedly it goes to sleep if there is absolutely no RF signals in the atmosphere. So I guess if you bike in Antarctica or somewhere desolate like that it might work, but not where most of us ride.

Finally the mounting is clever, but you MUST mount it where Cateye wants you to or forget it. You must mount it to the right of the stem with the unit in front of the handlebars. So if you have aero bars it wont mount properly.

And Cateye has no real tech support. They only accept email, however those are not answered. (Believe me, Ive sent them several). So there is no one to talk to or to try to fix things. Ill NEVER buy Cateye again.

Auto-shutoff doesn't work

On: 2006-12-16

This computer has nice display that will show all of the information Im interested in. However, the sensors are much more prone to interference than the other products Ive used. The heart rate monitor is very sensitive to power lines -- the big lines on the metal towers mess up both this unit and my Polar watch/HRM, but this unit fails in many other places where my Polar has no problems. Also, the sensors hang from the chest strap and get unclipped too easily. The wireless signal from the wheel sensor is also a problem -- there are two places on my normal routes where this computer loses the signal for a while. Ive never had that problem with my other (much cheaper) wireless computer.

A stem mount would have been nice. With my aerobars clipped on to my handlebar, Ive got nowhere to mount my computer properly.

Finally, the biggest frustration is with the auto-shutoff. Like every other computer Ive had, this is supposed to turn itself off after several minutes of inactivity. Unlike every other computer Ive ever had, this one simply wont shut itself off 9 times out of 10. Ive tried taking it off the mount and storing it other places, thinking that maybe theres some source of interference in my garage thats keeping the computer on, but nothing seems to help. Ive resorted to removing the batteries at the end of a ride.