Details can change a lot. Garmin Varia RTL515 bicycle radar - a review

At least small changes can promise a lot. Because how it will be in reality - we will see.

But maybe first, let's start with what equipment.

Mainly because bicycle radar is still a rather uncommon product - although I can't imagine riding on the roads without such an add-on.

The equipment that I recently received for testing is a Garmina product, labeled Varia RTL515. Theoretically, it can be considered the successor of the previously released RTL510 / 511, but in reality it is rather a light refreshment or a plus version.

The basic principle of operation has not changed in any way. We mount the radar on the seat post and connect it wirelessly to the appropriate device, thanks to which we get up-to-date information about whether there are any cars following us, how many there are, as well as how far they are from us and whether they are traveling at a much higher speed than us.

Simple, brilliant, works flawlessly - I can't remember when I last rode without such a gadget. If someone wants to read a little more about the older version - find the review here . And here you will find a description of the cheaper variant that I bought, RTL510.

Now you can go to RTL515.

What's new and why these changes can change a lot?

Perhaps, let's start with what hasn't changed.

• the appearance did not change - were it not for the fact that both devices are signed on the housing, for the rest of my life I would not know if I sent my radar to Garmin, or maybe a test copy
• the mounting method has not changed - all handles from previous models still fit
• the handle attached to the set has not changed - you can see it in the RTL510 and RTL511 review. It's a shame because I'm absolutely not a fan of it. The optional handle, visible in the pictures from this text (unfortunately costs about 90 PLN), is much more stable and reliable. Worth buying.
• the weight has not changed - it is still equal to 71 g
• the waterproof class has not changed - it's still IPX7
• the angle of view of the radar has not changed - it is still 220 degrees
• the dimensions have not changed - it is still 98.6 × 19.7 × 39.6 mm
• the brightness of the backlight has not changed in the previously available modes - it is further from 20 lumens (continuous light), through 29 lumens (night flashing light) to 65 lumens (day flashing light)
• the working time has not changed in two of the three current modes of the press - in continuous light it is 6 hours, similar to night flashing light
• the detection range of the cars behind us has not changed - it is still a maximum of 140 m
• the charging connector has not changed - here is microUSB instead of USB-C. For now, however, I will not complain about it, because my bike computer also has a microUSB. But I'll finally start.

So 90%, and maybe even more, is exactly the same product. So what has changed?

• a new lighting mode appeared - group driving. Brightness of 8 lumens, burning time up to 8 hours
• lighting time in daylight flashing mode - from now it is longer by an hour without having to recharge and amounts to 16 instead of 15 hours
• Most important: Bluetooth option has appeared.

And this is a really significant change.

Why is this so important?

Until now, Garmin's radars were able to communicate with the world only using ANT +, and that meant one thing - we didn't have any profit from the radar itself. Zero, nothing.

So, if we wanted to additionally secure ourselves on the road, we had to add the Garmin bicycle computer to the already high cost of buying Varia radar (they are not cheap either) or a Garmin watch (same case). Ok, bicycle computers were also compatible, among others Wahoo, but it's still an additional expense, especially if someone traveled mainly with the phone and the application and did not feel the need to purchase additional dedicated equipment for route recording. Ok, there was also a dedicated Varia display, but ... you have to jump out of the cash register again.

Now this necessity of putting an extra few or few thousand zlotys on the table disappears. And now we have several options.

The default is the Garmin application called Varia, which does exactly the same as a dedicated Varia display. Why couldn't it be done from the beginning? I do not know. Anyway - it's possible. Connecting the phone with the radar is trivial - we turn on the radar, turn on the Varia application, make sure that we have Bluetooth turned on, we search - and now. Then the connection will always be automatic.

The application itself is visually as simple as possible. At the top we see a colorful belt with a cyclist icon (it's us), which changes color depending on the level of potential threat. Here it is green, because no one behind us - at least at a distance of 140 m - is gone:

It is getting less safe here because there are two cars behind us:

The application - like Garmin bicycle computers - does not provide the exact distances or speed of cars behind us. Such data would rather not be needed and would only reduce readability. We just have information about whether they are far away or close to us, plus general information about the speed - if the lane above turns red and the horizontal straight lines are wavy , be careful. This means that the car is driving behind us at a much higher speed than us.

You won't get lost in the application settings. We can turn on or off sound notifications or vibrations (I don't know what the second is, unless someone carries a phone in his pocket or on a wristband) and that's it.

But what is most important in this case - I did not notice any major differences in the indications between the application and a dedicated receiver in the form of a bicycle computer. So it's not like giving up the purchase of Edge, but wanting to buy radar, whatever we lose - no.

At least not in terms of radar, because of course a bicycle computer has a lot of advantages over a mobile phone - even such that it can go out when the radar detects nothing and in a split second come back to life when anything appears behind us. But let's agree that it is quite obvious and such a list could be drawn much longer.

The Garmin app is not over.

However, here is one problem. Theoretically, third-party applications can use the Varia radar SDK and download all necessary information from it. Ok, that's true. With the fact that so far - at least according to Garmin - there is only one such application. It's so good that I use it quite often. Mainly for route planning, but from what I've checked, it is quite good for recording journeys and navigation.

This application is Ride With GPS:

And there is not much to describe here. We run the application, in the settings we perform pairing with Varia (a few seconds, totally trouble-free) and now - we get on the left side of the screen almost the same belt as in Garmin bicycle computers. We also get exactly the same information, warnings (can be turned off in the settings) and we can also decide if the lane with cars should be on the right or left of the screen.

And how does it work in practice? When it comes to the effectiveness of vehicle detection and warning - it is just as good as on dedicated equipment and in a dedicated application. In addition, the developers thought that each warning (car, fast moving car, clean) had a different sound, so you do not have to look at the display every time.

After the initial slip-up with the colors of the RwG side belt, I also managed to adapt it to the standards of Garmin devices (although the page still has instructions for the older version ). Now the markings are normal and green means "clean", gray means "not connected to the radar" and orange means "threat".

Unfortunately, this is the end of compatible applications. Will any of them be released in the future? It would be very nice. Although even this one application is already a lot and probably a big plus just for people who would like to have a radar but do not want to buy the whole set of radar + computer.

What else is worth knowing about Varia RTL515?

With this button you can turn the device on and off, as well as change the lighting modes.

We have key information behind us, so let's throw the rest in one bag:

There are two versions of the new Varia radar variety - RTL515 and RTL516.

And the difference is more or less the same as between RTL510 and RTL511. In the first one, the rear light has several modes of operation (mentioned and mentioned earlier), and additionally it can flash more intensively when the car is detected behind us - so that not only we had the right information, but also the driver had a better chance of noticing us.

RTL516 there is no such thing. In fact, there are no standard modes except standard mode with 20 lm power for 9 hours without charging. Why such a theoretically less functional variant? Because these are the StVZO standards, binding even in Germany.

I bought RTL511 myself, because it was simply noticeably cheaper in its time, but in the official Polish distribution there are rather no such varieties.

If RTL510 worked well for you, RTL515 will work just fine.

Read: Garmin hasn't broken anything here. Nothing improved either, because it wasn't really what. I have been going with 511 for a long time and after changing to 515 I have nothing to complain about. Connecting to Edge Explore is just as easy and fast as it was before. The scope of detection and its effectiveness are still absolutely faultless. I also didn't count any false negatives , i.e. situations when I wasn't warned about the car behind me. You just have to remember that if the cars are driving perfectly behind them, at a short distance, then their number may not quite match, because the radar is not able to count the objects physically.

In contrast, false positives can happen from time to time, but rather in numbers 1 to several dozen or several hundred kilometers rather than regularly. Sometimes it can happen that the radar catches a cyclist riding quickly as a car, but all in all the information is still true - something is going behind us and it is fast, so be careful. And that it has two wheels ...

How exactly does group driving work?

Yes, to dazzle cyclists behind us. Among others it doesn't shine too much, and when it detects something behind us, it doesn't flash furiously, it only does it gently.

Can I combine radar with two devices at the same time?

Theoretically yes. I haven't figured out yet what it can be useful to connect to a phone and a bicycle computer at the same time, but in theory it is possible.

In practice, moreover - I checked. Both devices simultaneously inform about the threat and display relevant information.

Still, it is not equipment for the city (but rather for bike paths and the surrounding area).

And this is the only situation when I turn off the radar - when I know that I will ride on bicycle paths. Varia's wide angle of view means that in the city we will become deaf and crazy from constant warnings that are not justified, because we are driving along the path and the car is driving on a street separated from us.

I don't really have an idea how this could be sensibly solved, so I don't expect it to change in the future. And it certainly has not changed in this model.

And if I don't need light, just the radar itself?

Varia RVR315 is the new product (i.e. with Bluetooth). It's a bit smaller (because it doesn't need space for a light), and it's cheaper. It is a pity that it offers a maximum of 7 hours of work on a single charge - it could use a little better performance in this respect.

And the price.

RVR315, i.e. a model without radar, currently costs less than 700 PLN. We will already pay about PLN 920 for RTL515.

From what I can see, the RTL510 can still be bought for around 860 PLN (probably while it is), the surcharge for the newer model is not so big and if someone stands before choosing RTL510 at this price or RTL515 at the current store price, I recommend you do not hesitate .

However, yes, there is no discussion - this is not cheap equipment. But now you can count on being cheaper by having a bicycle computer basket. You'll probably buy it anyway, but it's always something.

It is still worth having.

Which is quite funny - if I did not get the RTL510 for testing, I would probably never buy my copy. But now, when I bought it, I can't imagine driving without it and to anyone I can (and it makes sense), I recommend it.

Unfortunately, this is one of those products that you just have to taste so that they suddenly ask themselves how we could live without them before.

Is it worth buying? Or replace RTL510?

The answer to this second question is rather simple - well, not so. I am not able to find any logical argument for recommending RTL515 to someone who has RTL510 / 511 and is not damaged in some way. This is largely the same, but with a bonus hour of work in one of the modes and Bluetooth. End. Don't run to the stores.

However, if someone does not have any radar, then first of all - it is worth having, unless of course we often travel on the road. Secondly, and I will write about it for the last time, now you do not have to buy a package. All you need is a Varia radar and a telephone.

So if we felt the need to have a bicycle radar, but we didn't feel the need to have a computer from Garmin (or another, compatible with Varia) - this is our moment.

And that it is not cheap? Never been.

Details can change a lot. Garmin Varia RTL515 bicycle radar - a review