The prob and potential solution to helmet coms.

[Sierra1]

. . . . My units still work great, but their batteries are getting weaker. . . .

So, I have the 20S and it gets used and hour a day, 5-6 days a week. And my battery lasts about 3 weeks before I charge it. That pretty much matches what they advertise of 13hrs battery life. And my units are 7 years old. I also found that the 30K only lasts 8hrs in mesh mode. I ass-sume that mesh mode will eat a battery quicker. Solo riding might give more battery life. I charge mine when it quits on me or right before I think it's gonna quit on me. Lithium batteries don't like being "topped off" and it will shorten battery life over time.

Regardless, new 30K batteries are only $30 on Amazon; cheaper elsewhere. If you like the system, a new battery is the way to go. I also found plenty of vids online to show how to replace the battery.

After hearing my kid's Cardo, and the poor customer service others are receiving, I'm sticking with SENA. My 2 cents.

 

[Fennellg]

Good advise. Have found the batteries for about 15. Success is a 50 50 proposition. Will make sure the mesh is off.

 

[Madhatter]

I have the cardopack talk bold , been a great unit for me . speakers sound great and most people cant tell I'm on a bike when calling me on the phone .... so my experience has mostly been positive .... now having sold everything or given away everything motorcycle related I have kept all my gear . helmet with Cardo jacket gloves pants etc. just incase I buy a bike again in the future . hopefully the cardopacktalk will still be good . and if I never ride again or get to that understanding that I won't be riding .... may have to gift a few things down the road ,so to speak .

 

[mybackhurts]

 

[dvd]

dvd
just a few thoughts..
-having just (this afternoon) activated/paired my new Garmin xt2, Sena 50S, Garmin Tread and Explorer software and Sena app, and i am happy to report that after hours of fiddling, downloading and charging, along with various helpful you tube vids, the Tread app/software etc. to my smartphone is all synced. Whew!
-now as for the aforementioned radios i think that is a great idea but the road noise/squelch would be extremely difficult to contend with, and talking over each other could be an issue.
- I originally went for a Sena because of my new BDR riding buddy. He says he enjoys listening to music while out on the road. Now hopefully we can have a word or two along our future rides.
- Also the ride lead and sweep of a group i ride with use the Sena to coordinate during my bi-monthly biker group rides. So i figure i'd buy in and heres' hoping it all works out after so much time and expense.
- before my purchase of the Garmin xt2 i contacted the tech support through computer ( maybe AI ) and got pretty good response and guidance about various products and their capabilities. So as for Garmin i'd say they are solid. The xt2 software is somewhat compatible with Google my maps and can be integrated with trips and datapoints. Learning curve here.
- finally i appreciate all the experience and wisdom issued here, this group and it's forum are invaluable!

 

[POG]

Been there and have wasted copious amounts of time pairing Cardo and Sena. Did it, but it's not easy and drops. Got my riding buddy to upgrade so we are on Cardo. I have pack talk bold and use the app on my phone. With both using cardo, I find the increase in apparent safety because of communicating intent, conditions, etc. to be huge.

As good as they are, there is a lot of room for improvement, but adding another device (radio) is not appealing to me..

Sent from my SM-S918U using Tapatalk

 

[RCinNC]

If you're just riding with one other person, one workaround solution to the crappy range and connectivity issues is to just pair your comm unit with your smart phone, and simply call each other. You can vastly increase the distance between you and your riding buddy and still be able to communicate, and you don't lose each other when you get out of line of sight. If you have hands free operation with your comm unit, it makes it a lot easier. I've done that several times with another rider, and it's a lot better than the 100 foot range you actually have between comm units.

The downside is that it only works with one other rider; not really a downside for me, since the most I ever ride with is one other guy. You're also dependent on cell phone coverage in the area you're riding, so communication may be in and out. That can be a pain if you're in an area with sketchy coverage, but dropping a call once in a while can be an improvement over spending half the ride saying "huh, what did you say???" while the conversation sounds more like a radio signal that CETI intercepted from outer space.