What’s in the box
The Vector is supplied in a rather elegant slipcase, perhaps the least you should expect for your £1,350. Its significance extends beyond the packaging, Garmin claim, and perhaps with some justification. Only a pedal-based system allows the user to tuck a box under his arm and stride purposefully from the shop secure in the knowledge that he will be measuring his power output within minutes of returning home. Unless you’re a skilled wheel builder, purchasing a hub-based system is likely to involve placing an order for a new hoop, while crank-based power meters typically require recalibration by the manufacturer.
The case contains two Garmin-branded composite pedals, made by Exustar and developed with feedback from the Garmin-Sharp squad, who have ridden them sans electronica in the UCI WorldTour. Each is equipped with sealed bearings and a CNC-machined, stainless steel wear plate. The tension of the clip or binding at the rear is Allen-key adjustable. So far, so standard. Replacement pedal bodies will cost £150 a pair. Q factor, a concept known to Garmin as ‘stance’, is fractionally wider than a LOOK Keo pedal, they claim. A set of LOOK Keo-compatible cleats offering six degrees of float is included, and a zero degree option will be sold separately at £16.99 a pair.
Two pedal pods are supplied, each fitted with the necessary C2032 standard, coin-sized battery, one Garmin claims will offer 175 hours of “active cycling operation”. Garmin expect battery usage to be marginally greater in the right-hand “master” pod, which transmits a signal from the left-hand “slave”, as well as its own, to the handlebar-mounted computer. Replacements will be sold at £49.99 each. Updating the firmware requires removal and reinstallation of the battery and placing the pods within a certain distance of a computer running the updater app. They don’t need to be connected to the pedals, removing the need to bring the bike into the house.
Garmin claim a total weight of 213 grams per pedal for a pod-equipped Vector with cleats and hardware. Ours weighed the same.
