Submitted by
theo999
a Cross Country Rider
from dundee, il
Date Reviewed: September 22, 2009
Strengths: i have three of the original trek sensor bike computers made in 1992. these are the ones with a single large line of data on the display. ancient ! however, it is very easy to read in all conditions. they are as accurate as my modern cateye and appear to resist rain. (the box claims they're waterproof) the function buttons don't accidentally activate.
Weaknesses: well, the warranty expired 15 years ago... bummer. and , they don't made them anymore. in fact, trek seems to have forgotten they made them at all as modern tech support was totally clueless. good thing i still have the impossible to find manuals :-)
Bottom Line:
get these 'puters if you're lucky enough to find them. someday, your less-than-perfect eyes will appreciate the gorgeous displays. i am happy to share electronic copies of the manual if anyone wants one. here are some excerpts:
for inputting wheel size codes for accurate speed readouts, do this: input factor by pushing the right key until ODO appears on the readout. Press the left key for two seconds. left key will now select digit to input and the right key will advance to the desired digit. press left key when input is complete.
Similar Products Used: none, really. except my strada cateye.
Bike Setup: i have three bikes in my stable. two 1995 F700 c-dales and a 2007 F5 c-dale. the f700s are feather-light as mountain bikes, weighing about 24 pounds each.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
ts8169
a Cross Country Rider
from Newburyport, MA, USA
Date Reviewed: April 6, 2009
Strengths: Tells the time well
Weaknesses: Worked for about 20 miles, Difficult to navigate menu's
Bottom Line:
I recieved this product, or comperable Trek computer product (Incite 6i - 2005), as a gift. So I ditched the old computer for this model with more rugged looking hardware. Given my first computer lasted 8 years and thousands of trail miles, I thought this would be my last computer with it's brand name and heavy duty wiring. Turned out to be junk. Got it up to about 20 miles on the road, then it gave out. Even with a fresh battery and 1-hour of adjucting the magnet and sensor, it will not connect. I believe there's a flaw in the wiring, but it tells the time great. This is the first and LAST Trek product I will ever own. What a waste.
Submitted by
Neal Bayless
a Racer
from Boardman, OH, USA
Date Reviewed: August 14, 2005
Bottom Line:
Great for the money. Symplistic to use. Very durable. While clearing it out on my last ride at 23mph I pushed it off its carriage and onto the pavement. Didn't affect it. Great for general info..no cadence. Great buy for someone who just wants the basics. Speed, Milage/Kilometers, avg speed, time of workout,odometer, max speed
Submitted by
John Mentzer
a Weekend Warrior
from Medfield, MA, USA
Date Reviewed: August 7, 2004
Strengths: Available at time bike was purchased
Weaknesses: Unit sometimes "freezes", like a PC
Bottom Line:
Bought new with my Trek Y22 in the mid 1990's. Unit worked reliably 'til last season, when I experience "freezes", where buttons wouldn't change display, it it wouldn't update. Uses #386 battery, which is less common than CR2016 my Cateye ATC uses.
Sensitive to position of pickup. Fell over in a 'rock garden' on one ride, erratic speeds reported 'til I noticed pickup on fork had moved slightly when I wiped.
Similar Products Used: Cateye Solar, Cateye ATC (*love* to find another ... even a broken unit if only for the mount)
Bike Setup: Trek &22
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Paul Mehltretter
a Cross Country Rider
from Mankato, MN
Date Reviewed: January 13, 2004
Strengths: Simple, rugged, waterproof design. Still works flawlessly even after 6 years of use.
Weaknesses: wire and sensor are not very rugged; best kept on roads and light trails. Had to replace the reed switch on one of my two Sensor computers; good as new after that, although I should have replace the wire too right away. The only other problem was that the battery contact springs have worn, requiring a shim between the battery and battery cover to ensure constant battery contact (lots of vibration caused the thing to reset). Overall, it held up slightly better on the road bike than the xc bike.
Bottom Line:
Obviously this computer's wire is not rugged for off-road use. It remains trouble free electrically speaking; only mechanically has the sensor failed. I think some of the new lcd's are easier to read in low light conditions, but this does what it's supposed to. I give it 4 Chilis overall only because it still works 6+ years of use.
Similar Products Used: Sensor 2.0 (bigger display, way worse magnet mount) Gary Fisher Axiom (exact same as original Sensor)
Bike Setup: '03 Raleigh Professional (Shimano 105); Trek 950 (LX/XT)
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Chris H
a Weekend Warrior
from Cardiff, UK
Date Reviewed: August 14, 2003
Strengths: Reliable, durable, easy to use and setup.
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
Awesome bit of kit. Does the job well or did until recently when it gave up due to cable damage (did buy it in 1997 though). It outlasted the bike which can't be bad. Mate of mine bought an identical model at the same time and his is still going.
Bike Setup: Specialised Rock Hopper Comp with discs
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Steve
a Weekend Warrior
from Pittsburgh, Pa
Date Reviewed: January 6, 2003
Strengths: Big display, Durable, Buttons are easy to press, Easy to set up and Easy to reset
Weaknesses: Pain to keep pressing buttons to find something.
Bottom Line:
I've had this thing since around 93-94, I've ridden through snow, rain and everything else, the sensor has never let me down. I don't know about the new one's but mine is like a take that keeps on going. My only complaint is that it only shows one thing in the LCD at a time, but I would rather have that than a new one that apparently breaks. I give it 5 chilis cause mine has yet to stop working.
Weaknesses: forget how to set and frequently went from knobbies to slicks and speed/dist was probably a little off with slicks.
Bottom Line:
Holy smokes!! I don't know about the recent model Sensors, but I bought mine back in 96, rode three times a week for three years, rode here and there the last few years. I recently switched to Rock Shox and remounted, Bracket barely fit around fork. You won't believe it, but this thing still has the same battery and has never strayed more than a minute or so except for daylight savings.
Submitted by
Roy Burnham
a Racer
from Columbus, OH
Date Reviewed: April 16, 2001
Strengths: Good Pace indicator, easy read display
Weaknesses: Wire quality, computer mount quality, no support from TREK
Bottom Line:
After hit and miss success using this comp on my Cannondale T700, I went to remount this computer on my new Surly. I found that the wires had so badly deteriated, that I coulodn't get accurate reading for speed. The thing would flake out weekly when riden anyway. I just found out that the sensor is discontinued so I can't even replace the mount. Don't bother with this thing, go with Cat Eye or Vetta.
Trek computers (older ones) were great, this new 3.0 I ordered & have suffered thru using for months is ridiculous,PLEASE save yourself the misery & get something else! (even the clock speeds up).the Cateye Mity3 had all the features I was looking for after all, & I'll be retrofitting the bike with the rinkey-dink trek-sensor this weekend, no wonder it's shaped like a tombstone!
Submitted by
Lee
a Weekend Warrior
from Quincy, MA
Date Reviewed: December 28, 2000
Strengths: Easy to use, good info provided, is sturdy
Weaknesses: Contacts get a little coroded after a while, would like more features for the price.
Bottom Line:
I don't know why this computer is getting such bad reviews. I've had two over the last 4 years, and have only had one minor problem with them. The contacts got a little cruddy, so it wasn't picking up any info some times. I scraped them w/a flat head screw driver, and it worked like new again. I've had 2 of these 'cause I lost the first one. Over the 4+ years I've been using these I've never had any malfunctions (besides the mentioned above). I've crashed many times- more than I'd like to- and it's never broken. No frayed wires, no self resetting, I've even driven with it on the bike on top of the car on the highway in the rain with no ill effects. It's worked perfectly for me. I'm wondering why all these people have had problems with it.
Similar Products Used: Nashbar wireless (which sucked)
Bike Setup: HT w/Z2 fork
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
John
a Cross Country Rider
from Texas
Date Reviewed: December 3, 2000
Strengths: None
Weaknesses: This is the second one I have owned in past year. The first began unexpectedly resetting itself a few months back. I asked the dealer about it and they replaced it for free. Plano Cycle rocks! First ride out with the new Sensor and it failed. Every once in awhile it works, but I cannot finish a single ride without it resetting. Trk should stick to making bikes and not branding a POS like this.
If anyone is interested I am selling my like new
2011 GT Sensor 9r Pro
[url=http://classifieds.mtbr.com/showproduct.php?product=72796&title=2011-gt-sensor-9r-pro&cat=3]2011 GT Se Read More »
If anyone is interested I am selling my like new
2011 GT Sensor 9r Pro
[url=http://classifieds.mtbr.com/showproduct.php?product=72796&title=2011-gt-sensor-9r-pro&cat=3]2011 GT Se Read More »
2011 sensor 4.0 all stock,.
current weight 34 pds.
im thinking add $2k budget to it or purchase an all new $3k bike.
ideas im looking at 1x10, new wheelset, new drivetrain Read More »
I found a speed sensor on the trail between Farm Road and the intersection of Happy Pants and SRD. If you lost a speed sensor let me know what kind it is and a description and I wi Read More »
