The Garmin Edge 850 is the latest GPS in Garmin’s 800 series lineup and offers many of the features of the flagship 1050 in a smaller and more affordable package. In terms of Garmin lineup, this is a mid-tier cycling computer that shares the same updated screen as the Garmin Edge 550. As such, the Garmin Edge 850 has a retail price of $599.99 and features a 2.7” color touch screen. It’s Garmin’s latest screen design which is a high resolution vivid LCD with 420×600 pixel resolution. The Edge 850 also features all of Garmin’s latest gadgets and features including contactless payments with Garmin Pay, an integrated speaker with bike bell and real-time weather display view.
The Garmin Edge 850 GPS cycling computer offers a bright screen and an endless amount of features at the cost of battery life.
| Rating | 8.8 / 10 |
| Retail Price | $599.99 |
| Measured Weight (in g) | 113 (GPS), 45 (out-front mount) |
| Likes | + Bright and responsive color touch screen + Integrated speaker with realistic sounding bell, pleasant alert tones and even an optional voice navigation alerts + Impressive range of features and seamless integration with Garmin radars, cameras and lights |
| Dislikes | – Premium price for the screen size – Disappointing battery life means frequent charging for riders that do higher mileage – Garmin app is surprisingly clunky to use particularly for data layout changes |
| Where to Buy (US) | Garmin |
UNBOXING
The Garmin Edge 850 comes in a small cardboard box with a glossy graphic on the exterior with well designed cardboard inner dividers to separate all the accessories. Inside the box you’ll find:
- Edge 850 GPS cycling computer
- Flush plastic out-front mount w/ shims + allen key
- Standard handlebar mount
- Safety tether
- USB-C charging cable
- Instruction manual
Garmin provides everything you need to mount the Edge 850 so you can start riding immediately.
MOUNTING
The Garmin Edge 850 uses the standard Garmin quarter turn mount with the mount bolted onto the body of the GPS. Two raised tabs on each side are designed to slide into corresponding slots on a mount which holds the computer securely. Garmin includes a plastic out-front mount with a flush style fit that insets the mount to give the computer a sleeker appearance. There are also standard stem or handlebar double o-ring style mounts for riders that prefer to put the computer closer to the stem. You’ll notice there are also five contact mounts in the center of the mount which makes the Edge 850 compatible with the Garmin Charge power pack. That’s an accessory that is more useful with the lower runtime of the Edge 850.
FIT & FINISH
Visually, the Garmin Edge 850 shares nearly the same design as the Garmin Edge 550 as they use the same 2.7” screen. The updated color LCD screen boasts a 420×600 pixel display and is one of the main reasons that both the Edge 550 and Edge 850 have been reduced to 12 hour claimed runtime with standard use. The computer has slightly curved edges on the corner with large bezels above and below the screen. With the Edge 850 you have a color touch screen in addition to the seven physical buttons which provides a more seamless user interface, particularly on the map pages. This gives you the best of both worlds, all the physical buttons of the Edge 550 with the touch interactions of the Edge 1050.
There is a USB-C charging port hidden under a cover on the bottom edge of the computer along with nicely labeled buttons next to it. Garmin has also made the Garmin 850 compatible with the EU’s upcoming mandates for replaceable batteries which is why you see exposed screws along the edge of the computer. That means you can actually open up the computer and replace the battery yourself which is a welcome feature in today’s disposable device world. The computer has a nice weight to it with a premium feel and silver accents on the bottom buttons. Branding is limited to the Garmin logo on the front of the computer and below the screen. There is additional texturing and Edge 850 logo on the bottom of the computer which makes it easier to grip the computer.
USER INTERFACE
The Garmin Edge 850 shares the same user interface design as previous Garmin devices, so it should feel familiar to existing Garmin riders. With the Edge 850 you get the redundancy of physical buttons on the device as well as touch screen interactions. There are three buttons on the left side with a clearly marked red power button on the top left and two scroll buttons below it. Two additional buttons on the bottom corners for lapping and starting and stopping the activity timer. The menu button is on the top right while the return button is on the bottom right. While the buttons are a bit small, the grouping and spacing makes it easy to use as well as remember their function.
With the touch screen you can swipe to access different features such as swiping down to view the widgets or swiping upward to view the glances page. Garmin has also incorporated a quick-access page which is shown with a single press on the ride pages. It’s a convenient way to see light, camera, and other quick-access type data fields. The data fields themselves can be customized on the fly by pressing and holding on the data field, and then pressing the pencil icon. There are a nearly limitless number of options from speed, distance to power analysis data that can be displayed as well as graphical options such as gauges or bar graphs. The Garmin App is the easiest way to customize the data field layouts and contents, but it’s surprisingly not as user friendly as apps such as Bryton which have live views and drag/drop style features.
RIDING IMPRESSIONS
With our recent reviews of the Garmin RearVue 820 radar and the Garmin Varia Vue front camera this was a great opportunity to try out the Garmin Edge 850. Although our first GPS cycling was an entry-level Garmin GPS, we’ve generally been riding with low-cost alternative computers such as Bryton. However, it’s easy to see the appeal of the Garmin computer from the first time you power it on. Everything is seamless and fast with the ability to reload your entire profile from a previous Garmin device as well as quick sensor connection and Di2 integration with customization of press, double press and hold functions. The best comparison of Garmin devices would be iPhones, it’s expensive but everything integrates seamlessly with quick controls for the camera, lane tracking for the radar and automatic light control.
As you add sensors, Garmin automatically adds appropriate data pages such as cadence views which makes it easy to start riding. You don’t have to fuss with buggy apps as everything loads quickly. Common tasks like uploading routes to the computer are a one button operation instead of making it visible on an App and then downloading to the device. With a single press the route shows up in both places, and even firmware updates are downloaded in the background and then sent to the GPS. The hardware on the Edge 850 is impressive as all the animations are smooth and zooming in/out of the map is fast and responsive. The computer is so fast it would often re-route us when we missed a turn before we even realized we were off track.
The big controversy with the Garmin Edge 850 is the low 12 hour claimed battery life, something that we noticed immediately with a weekday 1.5 hour ride reducing the battery life by 10% or more despite having no route loaded or power meter. While 99% of cyclists won’t ever ride for that long in one single ride, you’ll find yourself frequently charging the Edge 850 compared to other GPS computers that can go weeks between a charge. A big reason for the battery life is the screen which is bright with deep black colors and high contrast in bright or low visibility conditions. It’s honestly a bit too bright in some conditions which made us wish for a dimmer auto setting instead of turning the automatic setting completely off to extend the runtimes. We’d also point out that the 2.7” feels a bit cramped to something like the 2.8” screen on the Bryton S510 which is slightly wider. That more narrow width results in some strange data displays such as elapsed time with a small hour number display which can be confusing to look at.
Putting aside the poor battery life, the computer itself is easy to use with a very responsive touch screen. With gloves on we weren’t able to consistently trigger the double press for bell function Garmin added, but we were very impressed with the sounds the Garmin GPS makes. Instead of shrill beeps and bops, the built-in speaker creates soft and pleasant alert sounds with a very realistic bike bell sound. The speaker can’t match the tone of a true metal bell like the Knog Oi! but it’s very good for an electronic bell. While some of the features such as spoken navigation prompts were a bit strange – there is a reason it is off by default – but the bike alarm, built-in NFC payment system and integrated controls for lights / cameras are all easy to use. As with other Garmin products, there are an impressive array of features which cover the needs of almost any cyclist.
THE VERDICT
Overall, we found the Garmin Edge 850 GPS to be a feature-packed and user friendly cycling computer. Garmin has taken their top-tier feature from the Edge 1050 and distilled it down to a smaller and more affordable package with the Edge 850. The 2.7″ color touch screen is bright and responsive while still retaining physical buttons for an improved user experience. We were impressed with the seamless integration the computer offers with other Garmin devices and sensors, as well as the nearly instant GPS signal acquisition on startup. The big negative of this computer is the premium price and the low battery life which results in frequent charging of the computer. If you can look past that, the Edge 850 offers an impressive range of functions and features that integrate into the Garmin ecosystem.
Disclaimer: The product for this review was provided by Garmin. The views expressed on this website are solely those of the authors and are here to help people make an informed choice before a purchase. The authors or the blog itself does not get any monetary compensation from the product manufacturer or third-party websites/vendor links that are posted here.