GPS multisport watches
The latest GPS smartwatches can do everything the top bike computers can do and quite a bit more. They will pair with peripheral sensors such as power meters and almost all, from entry level upwards, have built-in wrist-based optical heart-rate monitors
But their main advantage over bike computers is that because they’re on your wrist 24/7 they can be smarter, tracking your body when you’re off the bike as well as on it, giving you a better picture of your fitness. You get an overall status that Garmin calls Body Battery, which tells you when you need to recover and when you’re ready to train again.
Depending on the model there’s mapping and navigation too.
Another advantage of a watch is that it can track pretty much any sport you do, whether that’s running, swimming, hiking, rowing, skiing or golf.
The only downsides are that, due to their position, smartwatches aren’t as easy to read while you’re cycling; and the screen is quite a lot smaller than that of a bike computer.
Smaller in size they may be, but the outlay can be a lot bigger: the top Garmin watch costs well over £1,000, twice as much as its latest
