It seemed like a good idea at the time, but now I’m not so sure.
On many of my longer training rides, I like to explore new routes, to keep things fresh. The downside of that approach is that I often have to stop, get my phone out, figure out where I am, and try to memorize my next few turns. It’s a minor inconvenience, but over the course of a ride that may last several hours, it really disrupts your rhythm.
I thought maybe this phone mount would be the end of my problems in that respect, but not so. A series of small issues may result in me shelving the thing entirely, but the jury is still out. First and worst, when I stand in the pedals to climb or sprint, the mount is wide enough that I’m hitting my knees on it. I can get around it by pedaling a little differently, but it’s pretty awkward. Second, while it holds my phone securely, the mount itself is plastic, which means it wobbles enough on bumps that it’s hard to see the screen, let alone use the touch screen interface.
Speaking of seeing the screen, the mount covers the photosensor on the front of the phone, so it thinks its in the dark, and dims the screen accordingly. I can get around that by disabling auto brightness on the phone, but it’s just one more thing to remember to do before the ride starts.
So I’m not quite decided on this thing. It’s effective at holding the phone, but I’m not sure what utility it provides past that. I’ll give it another few rides and adjustments before I say for sure whether it’s useful, or junk.
I’m betting on junk!