Cateye Vectra Wireless Computer > Reviews > Cat Eye Vectra computer

Author's product rating:   

Advantages:	Simple to use, sturdy and reliable, great value for money
Disadvantages:	A pain to set up

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

It is imperative to know how far you've gone, how long it took and what your fastest speed was and the only way to do this is with a cycle computer. It is a must have bit of kit to ensure that you are actually improving.

Computers can be wired or wireless. Off road it is important to ensure that the amount of things that can get tangled up in hedges, branches etc is kept to an absolute minimum and the only option, therefore, is a wireless computer.

I stumbled across the Cat eye vectra whilst looking through the Evans Cycles site. The selection is vast and the functions, and prices, vary greatly. I only required the basic functions - the amount of calories I burn off, what my heart rate is etc doesn't really bother me.

The Vectra is the most basic wireless computer that Evans sells, however, it has all the functions that I require so I bought one.

As with all my Evans purchases to date the transaction was very easy, smooth and the delivery took a couple of days.

In the box you get the display unit, the sensor, the magnet, cable ties and backing plates and fitting/operation instructions.

The instructions booklet was exceptionally thick and I naturally thoguht that it was going to be a bit of a mission. However, closer inspection highlighted that the instructions were in English, Spanish, German, Chinese, Turkish etc etc. You name the language and I bet that it is on there!

Fitting the computer was an easy task. The sensor was cable tied to the forks, the display unit was cable tied to the stem and the magnet was screwed on to one of the spokes - ensuring that it passed the sensor on the forks. It took 5 minutes.

Setting the computer up to work was a different story altogether. It was extremely fiddly. The magnet has to pass the sensor through a 'sensor zone'. This involves finding the closest spoke to the forks and putting the magnet on this. The magnet height then has to be set to ensure that this zone in passed. The instructions state that the magnet must be no more than 5mm away from the sensor when it passes it. This in incorrect. The magnet has to virtually touch the side of the sensor as it passes it.

Getting the magnet to pass the sensor in the right place took a while. Firstly it was to far away. Then with a bit of adjustment I got the computer working. However, the magnet was rubbing against the side of the sensor. This resulted in a horrible 'tap - tap - tap' noise as I was cycling along. It was a bit like those plastic balls that I used to put on the spokes of my push bike when I was a child - I think they came out of cornflakes!

Anyway, I moved the magnet again so it wasn't touching the snsor and the computrer would not work. I moved the magnet and it rubbed along side the sensor. This working but rubbing and then not working went on for many minutes. It got to the point when I was ready to give up, and then.......... success. It worked and did not touch.

Now it is all set up the computer is an absolutely brilliant piece of kit. The functions include current speed, a clock, a trip and an oddometer. It can be set up to read in kilometres or, if you are a bit of an imperialist like me, miles. The oddometer cannot be re-set so it is possible to keep a cumulative of how far you have travelled on the bike.

The display unit is detachable from the backing plate (which os secured to the stem or handle bars) so it can be removed for safe storage or to stop sticky fingers taking it if you stop and leave your bike anywhere.

With the amount of adjustment required to get the computer working I had concerns that the cable ties would not be man enough to hold the sensor in place or that the magnet would 'swing' round on the spoke. These concerns have never come in to fruition. I can ride through potholes, down green lanes, down fire routes, through forrests and still the computer works. Nothing seems to move the sensor. The rubber backing plate does the job - and also stops the sensor scratching the paint work.

If you are looking for a basic computer with (what I consider to be) the most relevant functions then the Vectra should be considered. Admittedly I did have a bit of fun and games in setting it all up, but I assume that this would have been the case with any wireless computer since they all work on the same principles. Now that it is set up it has been solid, reliable and is fool proof to use. It is a lot of computer for the money and well worth a purchase.