TABLE OF CONTENTS
At a Glance: Quick Ratings
Heart Rate Functions
Fitness / Sport Features
Ease of Use
Battery Life
Where To Get It
A Deep Dive Into The Garmin Edge 25
The Garmin Edge 25 (and Edge 20) compact, functional GPS bike computers replace the Edge 200. The Garmin Edge 20 is pretty much a direct replacement of the 200, but the superior Garmin Edge 25 supports ANT+ accessories (HRM, cadence) and Bluetooth smart connectivity to your phone.
This can be used for data transfer post ride, direct to Garmin Connect APP and also, if you want it, Smart Notifications from your phone (texts, incoming call etc). The Garmin Edge 25 has been reviewed by Tristan Haskins aka CardioCritic
Differences between the two models?
Let me answer that like this… unless you absolutely have a FIXED IN STONE budget, get the Edge 25. The Edge 20 is really not much more than a direct replacement to the Edge 200.
The 20 does NOT have ANT+ connectivity, neither does it have Bluetooth Smart network connection.
What this means to you is that it will NOT support … 1) Heart Rate belts 2) Pedal Cadence sensors 3) Bike Speed sensors (for indoor training) 4) Bluetooth data upload to your smartphone 5) Smart Notifications to the Edge unit from your phone…
Headline Features
Let’s cover the primary features that you will get with the Edge 25. In the list below I have highlighted in orange the features that the Edge 20 does NOT have.
- Speed and Distance
- Simple turn by turn route navigation – following a downloaded COURSE
- 8 hour battery life
- Personal Records – longest ride, highest climb etc
- Targeted Ride options -> Free ride (default), Distance, Calories or Time based.
- Route Recording. Your route is recorded for later analysis or sharing with Strava, MapMyRide etc
- Backlight (top right button)
- Calories burnt
- Barometric Altimeter (more accurate/sensitive than GPS based)
- Standard Garmin Quarter Turn lock
- Comes with 2 x Bike Mounts and multiple silicon fastening bands
- Dual GPS options. GPS (default, regular US system) and GLONASS (Russian system)
- Heart Rate via ANT+ HRM strap
- Cadence via ANT+ optional sensor
- Indoor Speed via optional ANT+ sensor
- Smartphone DOWNLOAD of data via Bluetooth Smart to Garmin Connect APP
- Smartphone NOTIFICATIONS to Edge 25 eg. incoming call, text etc.
Back to the tests …
Let’s go through some of the main screen and features of the Edge 25. We’ll start with the primary screens. The screen below is the primary ON screen. It’s clean and uncluttered. We have battery life top left, GPS satellite strength middle and VERY CONVENIENTLY, time of day top right. You may also notice around the outside of the case the 4 x button decals. They perform the following functions
- Top Left – ON/OFF and Backlight when turned on
- Top Right – GO/STOP and ACTION commands/menu options
- Bottom Left – Go Back / Go Up a level
- Bottom Right – Scroll down through options
From this view, scrolling DOWN with the bottom right will switch between
- RIDE
- COURSE
- HISTORY
- SETTINGS
Ready to Ride
Once you have pressed the Top Right button from the main menu you are presented with 3 different options before you ride. If you know what you’re doing and just want to go for a simple ride, simply select RIDE MODE then press the same button again to get going.
Otherwise, you have the option of selecting various RIDE MODES, setting up HR ALERTS or putting the Edge 25 in to USE INDOORS mode with GPS turned OFF. This would be used if you were on an indoor bike/turbo trainer and wanted to use the unit as a speed, cadence and HR monitor.
Polar’s alternative for consideration
If you are interested in a an alternative to the Garmin Edge 25 then we would ask that you consider the Polar M450. It’s a mid-sized GPS bike computer packed with similar functions as the Edge unit.
In addition to all the standard speed, distance and altitude feedback, like the Edge 25, you also have the option of Heart Rate, Pedal Cadence and a wheel speed sensor (great for rollers / turbo training) PLUS, the M450 can support Power Meters (Bluetooth SMART like Polar Look Keo, PowerTap or Stages Power cranks).
With the M450, reviewed here, you also get a deeper insight into Training Load and Training Benefit from each session plus a built in Fitness Test. It’s all supported by a very competent iOs and Android app, Polar Flow (all data is also uploaded to flow.polar.com web-service)
Ride Options
Most people will probably want to go for a BASIC ride. If that’s the case, just press Top Right and GO RIDE. Otherwise you have the following options
- Follow Course. Assuming you have downloaded a previously ridden course to the memory of the unit, you can follow that same course and be given TURN BY TURN instructions. This is NOT a full autorouting/mapping feature. It just follows a GPX course, telling you when to turn left/right etc. The COURSE must have been downloaded from Garmin Connect website. It can be one of your own, or someone elses. It’s a GREAT FEATURE for riding in new areas and/or sharing rides with friends.
- Time. This lets you set a target TIME to be riding for and gives feedback throughout to ensure you reach your TIMED objective
- Distance. Similarly, this allows you to set a DISTANCE based goal, eg. 30 miles
- Calories. Ditto
Training Page Views while Riding
One of the attractions of the Edge 25 is it’s simplicity. This is highlighted in what you see when you are riding. You have 2 or 3 training pages to view. The Edge 20 only has 2 as it does NOT have heart rate. The third page view on the Edge 25 is Heart Rate Actual and Heart Rate Zone (1 to 5)
Training Page 1 (below) is split in to 3 segments. Training Page 2 (below, below) is split in to just 2 segments. The user has the ability of selecting that data is important to them. The options for the display segments are:
- Time
- Distance
- Speed
- Avg Speed
- Calories
- Cadence
- Total Ascent
- Elevation
The Edge 25 has a THIRD VIEW which is dedicated to heart rate (forgot to take a picture, sorry) but you can see it in the video review.
Top Alternatives
Next Model UP
The next model up is the Garmin Edge 520. The 520 adds Strava segments, colour display, longer life battery and touch screen control.Garmin Edge 520 Review – advanced performance monitoring and power meter support
Next Model DOWN
The model below would have to be the legacy Edge 200.
Alternatives?
The best alternative to the Garmin Edge 25 is the Polar M460. The Polar M460 replaced the brilliant M450 with the addition of LIVE Strava Segments. The Garmin is a brilliant unit but the M460 is worth the extra £50/$70 investment
- Polar M460 Review – a worthy alternative to the Edge 25 with similar functionality and Strava segment support
You want more?
So, you’re still here. We’ve looked at what the Edge 20 and Edge 25 do and what they don’t do. We’ve looked at how to set them up and go for a ride. What we’ve not looked at is POST SESSION review data.
If you’re looking for more capabilities, check out the garmin edge 1030 review here!
Historical Data Review
Remember, the beauty of these new Garmin Edge units is that they effortlessly download training data to Garmin Connect via Bluetooth. However, if you want to review your data on the unit, you get a pretty good summary there too…
That’s me done…. please watch the VIDEO and PLEASE click on the links below to Amazon or Wiggle to support us for future reviews.
Technical Specification
| Physical dimensions | 1.6” x 1.6” x 0.7” (4.0 x 4.2 x 1.7 cm) |
| Display size, WxH | 0.9” x 0.9” (2.3 x 2.3 cm) |
| Display resolution, WxH | 128 x 160 pixels |
| Weight | 0.9 oz (25 g) |
| Battery | rechargeable lithium-ion |
| Battery life | up to 8 hours |
| Water rating | IPX7 |
| GPS-enabled | YES |
| GLONASS | YES |
| High-sensitivity receiver | YES |
| Smart notifications (displays email, text and other alerts when paired with your compatible phone) | YES (not Edge 20) |
Maps & Memory |
|
| Waypoints/favorites/locations | 0 |
| Routes | 0 |
| History | up to 10 rides |
Cycling Features |
|
| Bike speed/cadence sensor | |
Performance Features |
|
| Heart rate monitor | Yes (optional) {not 20} |
| Virtual Partner® (train against a digital person) | Yes (within a course) |
| Courses (compete against previous activities) | Yes |
| Auto Pause® (pauses and resumes timer based on speed) | Yes |
| Auto Lap® (automatically starts a new lap) | Yes |
| Auto Scroll (cycles through data pages during workout) | Yes |
| Time/distance alert (triggers alarm when you reach goal) | Yes |
| Customizable screen(s) | Yes |
Garmin Connect™ |
|
| Garmin Connect™ compatible (online community where you analyze, categorize and share data) | |
| Automatic sync (automatically transfers data to your computer) {not Edge 20} | |
Additional |
|
| Additional |
|
Review Summary
The Garmin Edge 25 is the perfect blend of size, functionality, battery life and techie features. We have really enjoyed testing it and we HIGHLY RECOMMEND it to anyone looking for a sensibly priced GPS bike computer that does pretty much everything you’ll need when out riding.
Remember, it does NOT support MAPPING/AUTOROUTING and it does NOT support POWER meters. Apart from that, it does everything most cyclists will need for daily training and it’s supported by the very competent Garmin Connect APP.
I have awarded the Garmin Edge 25 a solid rating of 4.5/5 stars
