Cannondale Synapse LTD RLE with SmartSense Review: Fair Warning

I was Ride the synapse for a week before it happens. I was approaching a stop light when, suddenly, a terrible red alert from Garmin’s SmartSense system চিহ্ন a sign that you must take immediate protective action. I don’t live in a very dense city, and I don’t ride bikes on high trafficking roads. I found myself confronted with the fact that I might not see small flashing lights in my handlebars.

Luckily, I was pedaling fast enough that it was possible for me to pull immediately. I scanned around me. Nothing. It was interesting, because in the last hour, multiple cars failed to give me adequate clearance when they passed me. SmartSense’s Varia radar detector failed to alert me to the real threat, and instead my heart rate rose to a non-existent level.

I can see why anyone would think that a technology like SmartSense would work. After all, radar and other safety systems will already be part of the common and future autonomous vehicles in the public market. But while I really enjoyed riding Synapse, I can turn off SmartSense for now. Protecting yourself from the car while riding a bike is much more complicated than a little pinging warning.

Carbon fiber classic

The 2022 Carbon Fiber Synapse is the latest version of Cannondale’s popular road bike. The LTD RLE I tested is the $ 7,000 version, which has a high-end $ 9,000 version and a low-end $ 2,400 version on both ends of the line.

Synapse does not have LTD RLE (LTD RLE means limited-edition, including radar and lighting) Fancy Smaller upgrades, like the carbon headset to absorb more bumps, but it’s still a very nice bike. It has a carbon frame and carbon rims; I have a versatile, gravel-specific (GRX) gearing system that I like, since the terrain near my home in Portland is very variable.

A few years ago, Cannondale introduced the proportional response মূলত basically, the company conducted an extensive study to identify the true center of gravity for each rider based on their gender, height, and weight, then adjusting the frame to create a pedaling and braking experience. Uniforms I’ve never really done road biking before, and now I realize it could be because the bikes I rode probably didn’t fit. It was my first experience with proportional feedback, and it was incredibly comfortable, but it certainly didn’t hurt to climb into a shock-absorbing frame with smooth electronic shimano shifters.

SmartSense closes a small battery pack that clips into the bike’s down tube. You turn the Cannondale wheel sensor and connect your bike to the Cannondale app, then control SmartSense from the app. If you drive your bike home, I recommend doing so Before You load up. I put it behind my Honda Element, and it beeps and pings constantly as I locate the car through my rear window.