Bryton Rider 750T GPS Cycle Computer Bundle

The Bryton Rider 750 offers everything that you could want from a GPS unit – colour touchscreen, app integration and on-board navigation, at a price that significantly undercuts its competitors. Even with one or two minor niggles, mainly relating to the user interface, it's difficult to be negative, particularly if your focus is to log riding stats and sync with other platforms; it does this as well as any other premium unit.

The Rider 750 replaces Bryton's 860 as its flagship unit and is available in two package options – the Rider 750E and the Rider 750T.

The 750T, on test here, is the bells and whistles bundle; in addition to the 750E's USB cable, two bike mounts and safety lanyard, you get an ANT+/Bluetooth heart rate monitor, ANT+/Bluetooth cadence sensor, and ANT+/Bluetooth hub speed sensor. Both packages come with the same Bryton Rider 750 head unit.

The no-frills bundle will set you back £249.99, the full package, £299.99.

Unit and mounting

The computer comes with a standard twist-fit bracket and a range of different sized rubber o-rings.

There's a sleek-looking, durable, aluminium, out-front (31.6mm) mount too. The brackets have a firm hold and distinct 'click' when the unit is in place.

The 750 fits in both the old and new Garmin mounts that I own, though it's not a perfect fit – there's no 'click' at the vertical position. The reverse isn't so; the Garmin won't go in the Bryton mount.

The unit itself is a decent size – 92.3 x 49.4mm with a 2.8in touchscreen. It could be a little more compact – the logos at the top and bottom add unnecessary length, in my opinion, which could be an issue if you are mounting it on the stem – but it still looks pretty slick on the bike.

The unit itself weighs just shy of 100g (the whole bundle 182g), slightly heavier than Garmin's Edge 830. Alongside the latter, it looks a bit chunky.

The buttons (two either side) are easy to locate and activate, but the charging port could be better placed, particularly for anyone hoping to charge on the go (endurance bikepackers, perhaps) as it sits under the unit.

It doesn't seem ideal in terms of exposure to the elements either, especially as the port cover on ours, a rubbery tab that slots in place, is already 'curling' at a corner. That said, the Bryton does come with an IPX7 waterproof rating, so should withstand atrocious conditions.

Battery life

Bryton claims an impressive battery life of up to 20 hours; I didn't get that, but like most GPS units, the more functions you use and the more you interact with it, the quicker the battery drains. It's certainly got a decent life with just the basic sensors on the go – HR and cadence, and without navigation. I would get in four two- to three-hour rides and think to charge it, but it wasn't necessary.

Annoyingly, there's no percentage indicator for the amount of life left in the battery. Even when charging, it doesn't show the capacity it's at.

Setting up and sensors

For someone who's been conditioned to a Garmin for several years, the Bryton took some getting used to. It's been worth the effort to discover its full capabilities. Bryton has some great videos on its YouTube channel that I'd point any new owners to.

Setting up the Bryton Active App is a must from the word go – you can do loads from there. At first I found it slightly more intuitive and efficient than using the unit, but over time I've got accustomed to changing settings on the unit; it's simply a matter of familiarity.

All the supplied sensors are easy to pair with the Rider 750, and equally easy to install. The on-screen prompts are great.

The hub-style speed sensor (6g) comes with a flexible rubber band attachment to fit all manner of hubs. The cadence sensor (6g) is slim and comes with a soft rubber backing to stay in place without marking the crankset.

The HR strap isn't the best quality – the actual fabric feels pretty flimsy, and creases and folds, while the plastic clip-on element is rather chunky and cheap looking. Transmission has dropped out on a few occasions when riding, but no worse than any other monitor I've used in the past.

The 750 picks up a signal pretty quickly. It never beat the Garmin 830 when starting up on my driveway, but it was only ever a second or two behind. It uses GPS, Glonass, Galileo, Beidou and QZSS satellite support; you can make your own selection based on your location – a great feature if you are planning to travel with the 750.

I found that under the cover of trees there was frequently a lag in the speed sensor, something that the Garmin 830 didn't suffer from. In general, the processing is a little sluggish.

Touchscreen

There's a lag in the 750's touchscreen which became more obvious when I was testing the Garmin 830 alongside it; it simply doesn't respond instantaneously like the Garmin, or indeed a smartphone.

On occasion, I've had to swipe twice to move screens, and when trying out thick winter gloves with it, it certainly missed swipes. An intended swipe is frequently picked up as a tap, which actually brings up a sensor status screen. (The buttons up the side can be used to cycle through screens too – as well as stop/start/pause, lap/reset, lockscreen...)

Profiles

Once everything is up and running, you can start to tailor the Rider 750 to suit your needs. There are three different bike profiles to name and customise. Each profile can have up to four data pages, plus a map and elevation screen. There are eight different grid arrangements available for data display, with a minimum of two and a maximum of 12 fields; there are in excess of 85 different metrics.

I found two pages for my main road bike, along with the map, sufficient. With six data fields on one screen things weren't too overwhelming and I could easily read all the fields. All of this can be customised directly on the unit or in the app.

GUI

The Graphical User Interface is a unique addition to the unit, and looks seriously smart, though I'd question its usefulness while riding on the road; I like to keep my wits about me and prefer a quick glance at a number rather than an attempt to assimilate a pretty ring of colours. I can see how it would come into its own for indoor training. I haven't tested the unit for indoor training, or indeed synced any kind of power meter – the GUI can be used with speed, power, cadence and HR.

The colour screen is pretty vibrant, but even on full brightness the contrast doesn't match that on the Garmin 830. That said, I had no trouble reading it. Riding in bright sunlight definitely makes it harder to read, though not impossible – I could still see what I wanted to, including the map.

I didn't warm to the auto-pause icon. While very visible, it obscures the screen – it was annoying if I wanted to read the map while static, for example. I'd prefer something more akin to the amber frame that the Garmin 830 uses.

Apps

As I mentioned, having the Bryton Active App is vital. Once installed, you can link to mainstream third party apps. Once the app is up and running, transferring data to and from the device is quick and seamless. When rides have been downloaded, you can access all the data and relevant graphics in the app without issue, no manuals needed. I'd say in-app data collation and summary is first rate.

If you don't want to use the Bryton Active App (for ride analysis), you can link TrainingPeaks, Strava and/or Komoot. Syncing rides with these third party apps happens the instant they are uploaded to the Bryton Active App.

The app has never crashed on me and I never had issues with (full) data not syncing to TrainingPeaks, Strava or Komoot. The only omission is that the unit doesn't entertain Strava Live segments in the same way as a Garmin or Wahoo do.

Navigation

I actually had to load a map onto the 750, from the Bryton website – there were plenty of other countries, but no UK map. The Bryton website has full, easy-to-follow instructions and I had a map on there in less than 10 minutes.

While the map is clear enough, the graphics look pretty outdated, especially in comparison to the Garmin 830.

It's worth noting that the map will not colour a trail of the roads that you have been on, in either free-riding or navigation modes. I use a GPS mapping screen a lot when touring – being able to see where I've ridden has been pretty vital on some tours, so not having a record of where I've come from on the screen at any given time is a real negative of the 750 for me.

I contacted Bryton about this; I was struggling to believe that there isn't a setting to change it. The prompt response was: 'This is not something that is currently offered but this is being looked into and developed. We expect (all going well) this to be released in an update by the end of the year.'

You can plan routes in the app (think waypoint plotting), or import them from the linked apps to upload to the unit. All of this is pretty intuitive and works as well as it does with the Garmin 830.

If you are following a planned route and happen to stray off course, the unit doesn't re-route you.

> GPS cycle route planning made easy – how to plan and follow a bike route

A unique feature to the 750 is the voice-activated navigation. I've found it pretty reliable, credit to the unit – I'm a northerner; it's picked up some tricky place names like 'Miserden' and 'Bishop's Cleeve'. I can't say that it always took me to destinations via roads I'd have opted for myself, but it would get me there. Equally, it has taken me on some lanes I didn't even know existed, so it's not always going for the most direct route. These were destinations close by and the processing time wasn't too lengthy – a minute at most. Out of interest, I asked it to take me to York from my home in Gloucestershire, and within 10 seconds it had a 273km route plotted – impressive. No, I haven't followed it, yet.

For any kind of on-board navigation – voice or a typed-in destination (via the unit or app) – the app needs to be active (with an internet connection); if it's not, you'll keep getting a pop-up reminder. The unit will re-route with this kind of unplanned navigation (provided the app remains active), and I was impressed by the speed at which it did this if I'd wandered off-course.

There’s more, if you want it...

Bryton claims that the 750 will connect not only to smart trainers (via ANT+ FE-C for power control of your trainer and upload of virtual rides), but that it also supports electronic gear-shifting systems 'including Shimano's Di2, SRAM's eTap and Campagnolo's EPS. Gear information, such as gear ratio, gear combo and even battery life (such as on the ESS), are displayed immediately on the Rider 750.'

There's even more: 'It incorporates Shimano Steps and ANT+ LEV e-bike support for compatible brands to display various e-bike data, including assist mode, assist level shifting mode, E-Bike battery, travel range and rear gear position.'

> 13 of the best cycling GPS units – get ride data and bike satnav from £50

I have it on good authority that it connects to the Garmin Varia Radar System too. I haven't tested any of these features myself but, based on the linking and syncing performance that I have, I'd have faith in its capabilities and reliability.

Just like some of the upper end Garmin and Wahoo devices, using Bluetooth Smart wireless technology, the Rider 750 can receive phone call, text and email notifications.

Value

The 750T Bundle is very modestly priced at £299.99. By comparison, the equivalent bundle with the Garmin Edge 830 has an RRP of £429.99. Wahoo's Elemnt Roam doesn't come with sensors, so its £299.99 price tag can only be fairly compared with the Rider 750E, which has an RRP of £249.99. Take out the sensors from the Garmin 830 bundle and you'll pay £349.99. In short, Bryton isn't being beaten on price.

Conclusion

Even considering all of the niggles that I've mentioned, the Bryton Rider 750 is a one hell of a package for the price. I struggled with the lack of processing oomph and outdated mapping, but this won't be at the top of everyone's priority list. Integration with the Bryton Active App and all third party apps has been, in my experience, flawless. Throw in all of the pairing opportunities with sensors, systems and smart trainers for under £300, and it's easy to see why many riders will happily overlook the unrefined mapping and slightly less power processing.

Verdict

Thoroughly impressive unit and app at a price that might outweigh the slow processing and unrefined map graphics