XPLOVA X5 EVO
£379.99
Auto record will automatically capture the fastest part of a ride or the hardest climb
WEIGHT 121.6g SIZE 108mm x 62mm x 23mm SCREEN SIZE 39mmx65mm SCREEN TYPE Colour 240 x 400 IN THE BOX Out-front mount, micro USB cable (Speed, cadence, HRM sensors available separately) WATERPROOF IPX7 MEMORY 8gb BATTERY LIFE (CLAIMED) 12 hours
Set-up with the Evo is simple: download the companion apps (Xplova) Connect and Video (it has a built-in camera) to your phone then pair the app to the X5 unit. Setting up personal data is all through the unit itself, which again is simple thanks to the easy-to-use menus. Connecting sensors means opening the menu and doing a ‘search all’. Sensor connections can be applied to a bike type, so our test rigs of SRAM Axs, eTap and GRX Di2 all had separate channels.
This is an Androidbased unit and its interface is smartphone/ tablet like. Xplova Connect is a breeze. With the route planner element you highlight the pencil on the map screen using OpenStreetMaps and then plot points along the route you want to take. Strava and Training Peaks seamlessly connected, too.
The hardware itself is decent with a Garmin-compatible quarter-turn fitting and both bar and out-front mounts.
Clever video options are included and it’ll record around an hour’s constant riding. Time-lapse is a photo mode taking a snap anywhere between two seconds and one minute. With auto record you set the parameters for it to start recording, be that power, speed, cadence, heart rate, gradient +/- so if you want to capture the fastest part of a ride or the hardest climb then it’ll do it automatically. The loop mode will please commuters as it records 10 x two-minute clips before overwriting the first on a constant loop.
Signal pickup was fast, between 31 and 36 seconds. Route directions are good though overly ‘wordy’ and they come late, almost when on a junction/turn. We like the smart ‘signal’ function where you can highlight parts of a ride.
The individual screens are well presented with icons for routes, bike settings, training plans and workouts and access to the video/stills camera.
The map is particularly good with three options to either centre your position, scroll around the map, or zoom in and out. You can orientate the map to work in your direction of travel, or to always present north upwards. The screen is clear and with auto-brightness adjustment it's clearly visible.
Battery life is on average around seven hours from a charge when running with all sensors (HRM, power, gears) attached and riding to a GPX route and recording a few minutes of video per ride.
In all, it’s a capable unit and, with a few glitches ironed out, it’d be hard to beat.
WE SAY...
With its unique functions, this t is a standout o GPSunit i