The Edge 520 has everything I needed from a GPS at a good price. It has a water resistant build, easy to read and customize display, and compact. For me the deciding factor was having actual buttons (as opposed to a touchscreen) that allows me to use the unit in colder weather with full finger gloves.
The Garmin 520 is a great GPS for my bike. I've been using it for 6 weeks and am still learning some f the features.
I'm more of a casual rider, so I don't take advantage of the advanced features of the product. Having said that, there are some things that really bug me about it.
I primarily use it to upload my data to Ride wGPS. My biggest gripe is that when I'm done riding, uploading my data to the Garmin app via my cellphone rarely works wo rebooting my phone. I tend to use the latest and greatest Android versions (Nexus, Pixel), so that might be part of the problem. But the reboot is hugely annoying.
Lately the computer has been auto-enabling collision detection, and this goes off when I come to a controlled stop. I've since disabled it, but having the sirens go off on my phone at an intersection just irks me.
Finally, the Livetrack does work to notify my family of my rides, but sometimes beginning a ride it doesn't automatically turn on for 10 minutes or so nor does it always shut down cleanly after a ride.
Just updated from the Garmin 500. Great new features worth having. Rock solid performance.
Finally replaced my Garmin 500 with the 520 and love the new features. Rock solid performance.
Still need a wheel sensor in the woods for accurate speed and distance. Horrible set of instructions.
Good
This computer works great. The buttons on the side works well with gloves
The built in speaker is no loud enough
I ride about 150 miles per week. The Garmin has become a very useful tool. Haven't used the mapping capability yet but I like the unit. Does take some time to figure out if you're a newbie to Garmin. Plenty of YouTube videos for assistance though. Like the fact that the unit shows multiple items at once. No playing with buttons to scroll through information while you're riding.
replacing my old 510 which I lost, set up was great, took a little getting used to using the buttons instead of the screen. all was good for 2 months, then started getting crazy reading on temps, cal and elevation, would have 0 climb at end of ride. contacted Garmin, who said it was a bad barometer. since it was less than 6 months old, a new one is on the way. so that's cool...love the features of seeing who is calling or texting, lots of info screens you can set up...if the next one will only last, its a great computer...
Great Garmin Computer. Compact, easy to use, plenty of information recorded without being too much !
Very accurate, all the data you could possibly need or want.
I have used this bike computer for years and I do recommend it.
It looks great too !
I do not like the idea of touch screen so 520 fits me well. My only complaint is the battery life, I wish it could last longer.
I love the battery life and ability to configure data screens, I was very happy to have the turn by turn course feature on my recent ride through the British countryside
I bought because I needed something I could transfer between bikes easily and so needed GPS. To be honest I have done very little to take advantage of much beyond the basics. I haven't even changed the preferences on the screen of what I see when riding. I wish it was easier to hit a button to switch the data saving for which bike I use, but to be honest, I don't care enough to take the time to go into my data to do it manually.
As an avid road cyclist, I purchased the 520 having used a Garmin 500 for three years. I was ready for the smartphone connectivity as it was always inconvenient to have to wait to download the 500 by data cable to a computer. The 520 lives up to it billing with all the features I was seeking . The Live Segment feature is awesome. The feedback from the unit give me exactly what information i was needing to train properly. All I can say is great unit!
The 520 is admittedly compact and lightweight but its interface is unintuitive and opaque. Quite obviously, the Garmin programmers never worked at Apple, for every function however rudimentary requires annoying scrutiny and multiple button pushes. Also, having large hands like Bart Simpson certainly doesn't help!
Replaced my Edge 25 with the 520, good battery life, no issues with GPS.
Replaces my 510 that started giving funky altitude readings. Seems more reliable than my 510, and I don't miss the touchscreen (which seemed like a bad idea for sweaty cyclist fingers anyway). Navigating functions in the 520 does not seem as intuitive as the 510 and boo for the loss of a programmable odometer, especially for multiple bikes. Four stars for that loss of functionality, otherwise 4.5 to 5.
This is a great product, as expected. It pairs nicely with the Garmin Vector 3, Garmin Varia Radar, and my iPhone.
The only complain is that they launched a newer version (520 Plus).
With products like this, the only limitation will be your budget.
