Customer Reviews

Cateye CC-TR200DW Double Wireless Cadence Bicycle Computer

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I read about the available computers and needed both the speed and cadence, since I wanted to train for a long distance race. Based on the reviews and opinions, I settled on the CatEye V2.

While I was waiting for the computer to be delivered, I downloaded and read the manuals. One common strain in all the user reviews was the not-so-easy install. I was prepared for this and got some extra nylon ties and mounting tape ready.

Once the computer was in, it was as I expected. The speed sensor and magnet was easy, but getting the cadence magnet set was not easy. The recommended distance between the sensor and the magnet was 5 mm, and there was no way I could get the distance to 5mm. FYI, I have a Trek 7.3FX. Some serious mounting tape later, voila, I have both speed and cadence. Computer set-up took 5 minutes. Rim size and units set up, I took the bike out for a nice long ride.

On a 40 mile trek, I have observed the distance measurement to be pretty accurate. I used the mile markers along the bike trail and found the distance to be off by 0.5 miles over the entire 40 miles. The cadence and speed measurements were accurate too (calculated the average speed using my stop clock and the distance from the mile markers). The wireless transmission was never off, even when I was passing power lines or going over some serious bumps

The buttons are a little hard to press and I had to use my finger nails. The backlight was effective even in daylight (haven't tested it out in the night yet). All in all, a very nice computer. Wish CatEye would have provided an option to download the files to a personal computer.

PS: On the way back, the cadence magnet was knocked off kilter. I guess I have to anchor the magnet more firmly to the crank.

I had the Cateye Strada double wireless, which was a good basic computer. I upgraded to the V2c and was somewhat disappointed for the following reasons:

1) Setup was difficult due to the computer not finding the cadence/speed sensor. After more then an hour of trial and error, which included replacing the batteries, I was able to get the computer to find the sensor by putting the computer a few inches away from the sensor. The documentation indicated that the computer would find the sensor if the two devices were within 5 meters of each other.

2) Some of the cute icons on the measure screen and on the setup screens are super tiny and very hard to read.

3) The 4 main buttons that control operation and setup are very small and hard to press. Would likely be impossible when wearing gloves.

4) After setting up the computer and going for a ride, the max cadence displayed 174, which is not possible. I called Cateye and they verified that this was a bug but that there was no fix. Unfortunately, this was one of the features I was looking when I purchased this computer.

5) During setup of the computer, I entered my total mileage on my bike into the Total Odometer setting. After going for a 25 ride, the computer only incremented the tenths position with my 25 mile ride instead of the whole number miles. I called Cateye and they verified that this was a bug and that I needed to zero out the total mileage on the computer and ride several miles first before updating the Total Odometer with my mileage.

6) Documentation is very poor and website support pages / knowledgebase is not much better. It appears that the documentation is written by technician in China and not reviewed / Quality controlled by technical users / writers.

I have had my Cateye V2C for 10 months now and have just had to send it back for repair because one of the tiny push buttons has quit working and I can no longer change screen. It comes with a two year guarantee so I anticipate repair or replacement with no problem, but this should not happen.

Although the product does everything it says on the box (until the failure mentioned above) I have been disappointed for the following reasons:
- the display is too small - the third row of digits giving time and distance etc. is especially hard to read. Speed and cadence are OK.
- the push buttons are ridiculously small and hard to manipulate
- the cadence/speed transmitter uses up batteries very fast (3 sets now in only 3000 miles) and there is NO warning when it is about to fail: you find out the hard way

On the plus side I found it easy to install and set up and I like the reactivity and decimal point for the speed read-out.

While waiting for the repair I have replaced it with an old Sigma Sport 800 from another bike. This is a wonderfully simple wired computer with a clear screen, large digits and big, easy buttons. The only reasons for keeping the Cateye are the cadence and the fact it takes the speed reading off the rear wheel: great for use with a home trainer.

Given these reasons and the cost I'm not about to change it. I don't know if the competition is better but if you are looking to buy a bike computer in this category I would advise taking a good look around.

I just purchased one of these as they were supposed to be a pretty good unit for cadence, speed etc. I bought it for my new Tri-bike. Right from the start, this product IS NOT TRI BIKE FRIENDLY....

1. None of the components seemed to fit securely
2. The part that holds the sensor (attached to the stem) has some plastic piece of garbage type screw mechanism
that looks like it's going to pop off any second. Which means so is your $100 sensor.
3. The parts that fit on the chain stay and crank are equally poorly designed. So poor that one of those lame
plastic dial pieces popped during installation, rendering the speed mechanism useless. This means, I've just
wasted 1 1/2 weeks waiting for this piece of garbage just so I can go through the whole process of returning it
and buying a new one.

I would not recommend this product if you ride a lot as the whole set up seems frail and unstable!!!! It seems like there are too many weak, plastic pieces that can fail!
I guess cateye's are not made for tri bikes...

I'm going with the Cadence/Speed sensor by Garmin, which works with my 305. Seems a bit more sturdy.

Have a good one!
Ikan

I have owned a Cateye CC-TR200DW for about 6 months.
In that time I've had to perform a sensor ID search 2 to 4 times a month and yesterday the sensor failed completely. After replacing the battery twice, the compute still can't locate the sensor.
Great concept.
Cool features.
But it is too unreliable.

This is a great bike computer and the wireless cadence has been a great addition to my training. The only slight issue is that there is nothing intuitive about making adjustments to the computer or even resetting the computer for a new ride. The instruction manual helps, but in this day and age it's hard to believe that a computer like this could not be more user friendly. This is my reason for given it 4 stars over 5. The good news is that once you get everything programmed and learn how to reset the computer, it's smooth sailing from then on. Happy riding!!

The system was easy enough to set up with one exception: the cadence sensor had difficulty making a good connection between the sensor and the speed sensor/transmitter unit. I believe this is due to the weatherproofing gaskets on it, but it took several hours of poking and prodding to figure this out. Be very careful when tightening in the cadence sensor after positioning and squeeze it in there every few turns of the screw to make sure you get a connection, otherwise you'll be getting only half the computer you paid for.

I received item in a short amount of time. The only thing I had an issue with was I was missing one of the magnets. I had to order from vendors website.