Bryton Gardia R300 Radar Light

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Treptay
Posts: 68
Joined: Sun Sep 06, 2020 11:23 am

by Treptay

Treptay wrote:
Sun Feb 05, 2023 9:08 am
gplama wrote:
Wed Feb 01, 2023 11:02 am
I picked one up from All4Cycling. Arrived today. Difficult to test the battery life on the bench with the auto-off. The manual states it won't auto shut off if it's paired to the app or a bike computer.... it still goes to sleep with no movement. It also doesn't return to previous light state. The light defaults to 'off' when waking back up. Not ideal.

The listed FCC ID YDM-DE2201 doesn't pull up anything on the FCC website...
I also bought it from All4Cycling, don't know why they are one of the few that actually sell it.
Well, after your post, I tried it on my table, connected to my wahoo, and it worked for at least 30 min (without turning off), but it was late and I wasn't gonna test it overnight.
Initial testing showed 4-5% battery loss per 20 Minutes (so projected battery life between 6.5-8.3 hours) with highest brightness (constant light).

Did a ride yesterday, about 2-5 degrees celsius outside. The light was turned on, and was in constant light mode (highest brighntess) for about 3 hours and 20 minutes.
After the ride, I opened the app and it showed 64% battery left. That would mean a battery life of about 10 hours, but the manual states 8 hours max in that mode??
I assume a few things happened.
First, every time it detects a car, it goes into flashing mode for a few seconds, that would mean it uses slightly less battery for the light.
Secondly, it maybe is possble that it bumped into my saddle bag and switched the mode to 50% brigthness. ( I doubt it)
Third thing is, the andorid app is kinda a mess. But after the ride it got a firmware update (previous firmware was 0.7.6 or something like that), and I updated it to 0.8.6. Well, after the update, the app showed 71% battery. HOW. I think either the light reports the battery levels bad, or the app showes the wrong ones, but something is off.

I never had a radar light before, so I don't know how the garmin and magene performance.
The bryton detected (what I feel like) all cars behind me, but the distance of detection was mostly around (my approximation) 40 meters. Some were detected at maybe 30 (but I cannot guaraante they didn't pull out of a driveway), and the longest detection was maybe 70-80 meters. The ride had some long road sections, so I don't think that it is able to achieve a detection range of 150 meters - maybe on a truck, but not a car. I also detected a train once, that was on the rails, maybe 15-20 meters to the left of the road (and I drive on the right side), so it can detect objects that are not directly behind you.
After I stopped before my appartment building, I stayed on the side of the road, had a long stretch, tried to point the back of my bike to look perfectly behind. It detected cars at approx 40 meters away, and a tram... at 30 meters. I don't know why it performed so badly on the tram, maybe because the front of it is 50% glass?
I did not have a false positive while riding, except for once when it detected my riding partner behind me. But if I was stationary, it would randomly detect people or something as "cars". Not a big deal for me, since I don't care about the performance while standing still. (That was at a isolated bike path without cars)
I also got the "holy shit something is coming really fast behind you" beep, so that also works.
I did not have a situation where it detected two cars at once, but that would be hard yesterday, since on long staritght roads they would occlude eachother and the traffic amount was kinda low.

Summarised: detects cars further than my hearing range, so it is better than not having a radar light, but detection range doesn't seem to be the best.
Also I have a small bike frame, so it isn't mounted particulary high. It looks like it isn't occluded by the back wheel.
I will try to do a few more rides next week, if the temperatures don't go bellow freezing. If you want anything specific to be tested, please say.
Small update:
I did a few more rides with the light, and it does regurarly pick up cars, that are about 100 meters away, sometimes even further.
On a few occasions, it didn't pick up cars until they were 20 meteres behind me, however I don't know if they poped up after an intersection or not.
My main two gripes are:
-it sometimes looses track of a car mid tracking, seems only to do that if the cars slows down significantly and matches my speed or goes slightly slower than me (makes sense, considering how the radar works)
-the andorid app doesn't report the correct battery percentage.

Also, it seeems that as long as it's detecting cars, it is in "blinking" mode. So it will blink until all cars are clear.

And a remark from my riding buddy : "It's so *f##k* bright" - so much so, that he passed me a few times, just to not look at the light.

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gplama
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by gplama

miOdiO wrote:
Fri Feb 24, 2023 5:53 pm
Any update on this?
Nope... it's all on hold. The R300 isn't what they'll be selling to the rest of the world.... it'll be a slightly different version. I have one. Waiting on updated firmware to continue testing.

by Weenie


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miOdiO
Posts: 29
Joined: Wed Dec 01, 2021 3:54 pm

by miOdiO

Alright I will try to be patient. I think I spotted it in your latest video (SRAM Force one) so let's see :)

cinra
Posts: 4
Joined: Wed Jan 09, 2019 2:07 am

by cinra

Treptay wrote:
Sat Feb 25, 2023 11:00 am
Also, it seeems that as long as it's detecting cars, it is in "blinking" mode. So it will blink until all cars are clear.

And a remark from my riding buddy : "It's so *f##k* bright" - so much so, that he passed me a few times, just to not look at the light.
These 2 are my main concern! haha Glad it wont go off until all cars passed already unlike Magene.

3Pio
Posts: 1581
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2016 7:13 pm

by 3Pio

U use Garmin Varia RTL510 since 2019 and worked really flawless.. But recently i noticed that battery life is not that long anymore (like 7-8 hours in DayFlashLight mode), and beeing curious regarding alternatives i decide to get Gardia R300 from my LBS....

I still did not have any ride with it (preparing to test it now), but this is my first impressions...

Regardin weight on devices, Bryton is lighter for a 2 grams than Garmin, but seatpost holder is a bit heavier for Bryton so overal Garmin system is a bit lighter by 2-3 grams..

I installed Bryton APP on Android, and agree that is not best app i have seen.. Almost mess :) but good enough to update the firmware to most recent version, check battery status or do some initial adjusting of the device (like i guess brake light).. Regarding brake light im still not sure does this adjusting from the app works only if phone/android app is used as display or save the settings in Gardia and are valid even used with something like Garmin device..

Pairing went smoothly with my Edge 530, but after a while got some problems having both Radars connected.. It worked as first without problems but started randomly to show problems with Bryton (disconnecting etc..). So i disabled Garmin Varia Radar from the system, and now working as it should i guess...

One other thing which really piss me off.. If i switch off the Gardia from the Garmin device, light went off and status light is blinking showing that is in ready mode.. But if detect motion approach even i turned off trough Edge, and is not connected to any device anymore, still start to light (solid light)....

Which is a bit negative if i have my bike in living room, and every move put the Gardia in light mode.. After 5 minutes of no motion detected its turning off.. And again.. When something is detected start again to light....


If i turn it off totaly (pressing button for 1 second), no more behaviour like this, but also dont turn on automaticly from the Edge (logical since is not in ready mode but totaly turned off)..

Dont know how to adjust if it's not connected at all to android app or any device to just stay in sleep mode without any light....

And here there is some pictures for the end of this post...
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

3Pio
Posts: 1581
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by 3Pio

Update after first ride i had today...

My ride was 103 km, there was some climbing as well (950m), and most of the ride was on busy roads..

Whole ride was 04 hours 15 min, and the battery was 70% on Bryton app after i got home.. Started with fully recharged Gardia... So this is not bad considering that there was a lot of cars on this ride...

Also used AUTO setting on my Garmin Edge 530, i guess was in Day Flashlight mode or maybe Peloton mode (as my friend was riding behind)...

I realized that distance of car detection is lower compared to my Varia RTL510, but still useful.. I stoped to see when detection is starting and measure that distance.. So it's about 120-170m depend if it's car or truck.. Garmin show cars much earlier, but again this is useful

Regarding detection accuracy it did not miss the car on today ride most of the time or almost whole ride... Also there was detection which was not true.. But again until it worked there was no missed car...

But...

Something really strang heppend.. Exactly on 100km (i just checked after the ride on what km hapened), stopped detecting the cars.. It was connected to my Gardmin, the light was blinking but radar stopped working.. NO car detection at all (which can lead to dangerous situation)..

And i rode until the end of the ride like that and no detection at all.. I dont know if it's coincidence that this happend exactly on 100km or maybe bug need to test further... And if its bug is it bug from the Garmin side or Bryton or both maybe?


It's started detection again when enter home after i restarted device in total and Garmin device as well (next time i'll try one by one instead two at once).

And another bug i realized.. As i mentioned when is in sleep mode (garmin or any device disconnected or turned off), when it detect motion (me entering the room), start solid light.. Which is really annoying.. I remove the Gardia like that, put it on the place where no detection possible, and hoped that that light will turn off after 5 minutes.. But keeped beeing on, so to turn it off i had to switch it off in total...

Anyway im a bit dissapointed at least based on this first day of usage.. I expected better device that it is now... If its had detection similar to Garmin but lower price and bigger battery this will be win.. But unfortunately at least based on this first ride not ideal..

But still considering the price (much lower than Varia here), and hoping that firmware will fix the issues i mentioned maybe is not bad buy... But only if it's cheaper than Varia.. If Varia is similar price no question which one to buy...

I decided to still keep it and give it more chances, and waiting for new firmware...

When i have more rides and experiences, i'll update my finding if they different than this.....

3Pio
Posts: 1581
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2016 7:13 pm

by 3Pio

Today i tried to adjust setitngs in my Edge 530 and switched from Auto lighting mode to Indivudal, and set DayFlashLight trough button on Gardia....

In light settings i can see different options (Day Light, Night Light, etc....), i can select but at the end nothing happening.. All adjusting is trough button device it self.. When my setting was Auto, then this field was gray out totaly... And interesting when i switch different mode trought the button, i can see the change in this field as well (even again i cant select anything in this field that will switch to it)..

When i switched to Individual mode, for a moment i thought i solve the issue i have that light is starting on when it detect moving (at home with computer or phone connection off to the Gardia)... I test it few times nothing happened.. And in the moment i said to my self one issue is fixed this way, happened to turn on again...

What is interesting even i know should be off in 5 minutes of no movement detected, light is on until i switched off manually....


Which lead to new issue i had today.. As soon as i start the ride, i know yesterday i finish the ride with 70% battery left on the app, i got message Radar Battery Low... I finished today ride (2 hours, 60 kms) and when i get back home i checked that there is 31% battery left..

Probably light switched on last night or maybe in sleep mode the battery is discharging so next time i'll to dont forget to switch off the radar trought the button...

A lot of bugs in their software.. I lot... At least on today ride it worked until end of the ride.. What i noticed there is no orange detection of cars on the Garmin.. Just Red and Green...

Few times today i got like 3 cars (dots ) behing.. When first car passed me, i realized that there is no other cars behing or just one maximum.. So few times show ghost car which was not there.. At least every real car got detected....

I really hope that Bryton will fix all this issues with firmware and maybe they should fix it first then to put it on the market.. But it is what it is.. Anyway it's better to dont have radar at all, but not even close to Garmin.. But if price difference is good enought still can be usefull....(if u dont get frustrated with all this bugs)

Treptay
Posts: 68
Joined: Sun Sep 06, 2020 11:23 am

by Treptay

https://www.brytonsport.com/#/GardiaR300L
Now the finally added the light as the Gardia R300L on their website.
They claim up to 190m detection range ( I think beforehand was 140m), but the rest seems to be the same.
There are a few reviews popping up on youtube about the new model. I wonder what the REAL differences are (maybe a different sensor?)
DC Rainmaker review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXUkiR-NkxY

mag
Posts: 616
Joined: Thu Mar 16, 2017 12:23 pm

by mag

Written review also here https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2023/03/bry ... cling.html
Based that review and experiences from other users in this thread, Garmin Varia still appears to be the best option as its car detection is pretty much rock solid.

And it's interesting that while GPLama noted that a slightly different device is supposed to be sold worldwide, this one appears to be the same as the one already sold in Italy and few other countries.

Treptay
Posts: 68
Joined: Sun Sep 06, 2020 11:23 am

by Treptay

mag wrote:
Thu Mar 23, 2023 5:14 pm
Written review also here https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2023/03/bry ... cling.html
Based that review and experiences from other users in this thread, Garmin Varia still appears to be the best option as its car detection is pretty much rock solid.

And it's interesting that while GPLama noted that a slightly different device is supposed to be sold worldwide, this one appears to be the same as the one already sold in Italy and few other countries.
I am watching GPLamas day 2 of Taipei bike show, and according to him the 300L version is the "long" version (extended detection range). Also according to him, they released a new firmware today (but I didn't get a prompt for the firmware update on the 300 version in the app???). I am looking forward to his review.

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gplama
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by gplama

Yes, the L is for 'long', apparently. The "Italian market only" R300 has 140m on the box. The R300L has 190m max detection range on the box. Some reviews are calling the R300L the R300 which is a little misleading.

Anyhow. This release has been messy. Bryton knew it wasn't ready. They chose to launch it. It's now on them to claw back the consumer confidence that has been murdered in the reviews that went up yesterday.

I'm currently in Taipei and have been handed a R300L with a newer firmware than what has been reviewed. I'm not sure it has been pushed to all units within their app. I'll test it within the next week.
Last edited by gplama on Sun Mar 26, 2023 12:04 am, edited 1 time in total.

otnemem
Posts: 398
Joined: Fri Jun 28, 2019 7:55 am

by otnemem

I'm still not seeing any good reasons to save a few bucks on these vs the original. If it's all about counting your monies, get a radarless light.

3Pio
Posts: 1581
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2016 7:13 pm

by 3Pio

Im seeing the announcement that there is new firmware for Gardia R300 which actually make it usefull and not dangerous like until now. But at my case is still stucked on 0.8.6 version and no update at all. Can someone explain reason for this?

When i purchased mine after few rides realized is not useful and even dangerous so decided to keep it, but put on shelf while waiting for new firmware... Now when finally is new firmware which correct most of the issues, im a bit dissapointed why my device dont receive that new update....

So any clarification for this? I just send an email to Bryton so hope they'll reply as well about this...

Treptay
Posts: 68
Joined: Sun Sep 06, 2020 11:23 am

by Treptay

3Pio wrote:
Sun Jul 16, 2023 3:45 pm
Im seeing the announcement that there is new firmware for Gardia R300 which actually make it usefull and not dangerous like until now. But at my case is still stucked on 0.8.6 version and no update at all. Can someone explain reason for this?

When i purchased mine after few rides realized is not useful and even dangerous so decided to keep it, but put on shelf while waiting for new firmware... Now when finally is new firmware which correct most of the issues, im a bit dissapointed why my device dont receive that new update....

So any clarification for this? I just send an email to Bryton so hope they'll reply as well about this...
I also have the non L version of the R300, and I am also stuck on te old firmware.
Worst case is, they abandoned the R300 completely and are only focusing on the L version...

by Weenie


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BigBoyND
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by BigBoyND

GPLama review makes me confident enough in the 300L. It's too bad the update isn't being pushed to the 300. Have you contacted them? Maybe rollout is later for previous models (like Android updates)

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