Exactly How Good is the Xplova X5 EVO?

April 30, 2018

Is the Xplova X5 EVO Actually Any Good? We unboxed the Xplova X5 EVO and took it on a road trip to the Italian lakes so you can decide for yourself.

We unboxed the Xplova X5 EVO and took it on a road trip to the Italian lakes so you can decide for yourself. The Xplova X5 EVO has a camera at the front

It's a Revolution!

Cycling computers have had a revolution over the past five years and just when you thought they couldn't hold any more technology Xplova enter the market with a feature-rich device that goes one step further by incorporating a video camera!

Out of the Box Experience

From the moment the box is in your hand, the product has a premium feel and the packaging adds to the excitement of receiving a new toy. The box materials are similar to a Garmin or a modern smartphone, it opens nicely and has detail on both boxes adding to the anticipation. The Xplova looks proud in its box

What's in the Box?

The device comes with a short lanyard that can be used to attach the computer to your bike and stop it from falling off, but that's very unlikely. The quality of the out front mount that also comes with the product is very good, it's very well made and has a spacer so it fits most handlebar widths. You also get an Allen key to fix the mount to your bars and a USB Micro charging cable. Xplova X5 EVO - What do you get?

Setup

The device is delivered with a full set of English instructions but we didn't need them for a quick start. It's self-explanatory and the Xplova set up wizard that launches when you switch on the device for the first time takes you through initial set up. The Xplova set up wizard is excellent Pairing with your wifi, and sensor equipment is easy and the menu is intuitive and easy to flow through. Installing the mount on the bike is also straightforward and we were up and running, on our first ride within 5 minutes. This included the pairing of a heart rate, power and cadence meter.

Construction

The clever stuff is contained within a rugged and robust casing. Our tester actually dropped the Xplova in Italy on a gravel road descent and it bounced down the hill with nothing but slight cosmetic marks to show for its ordeal. The Xplova is tough It's waterproof / sealed to IPX7 standards meaning it can be submerged in a meter of water for 30 minutes and has 'wet weather buttons' for when big, thick, wet gloves make using the responsive touchscreen difficult.

On the Road

Controls

The X5 EVO's touchscreen and buttons combine well and make using the device easy. Navigating between the custom rider screens and profiles is not difficult and powering the device up and down is simple using the buttons. The Xplova is waterproof and hard wearing

Profiles

You can choose from five preloaded profiles, each profile can bet set to have various screens for different activities. We have it on authority from Xplova they intend to enhance this functionality to include custom profiles so you can add to them too. The X5 EVO has a series of screens that can be edited

Screens

Each screen for each profile can be modified to include different metrics. There are also very useful graphs for tracking power and all the expected data fields for you to choose from. The Xplova graph screen is a great feature - we love it

Maps

The device is supplied preloaded with a great map. As with the rest of the screens, the map screen is easy to use, perhaps easier than the awkward Gamin navigation on the Edge range. The X5 EVO's map screen is easy to use

The Camera

The Xplova video can be viewed when riding the bike In a nutshell - The camera is an exciting addition to how you enjoy riding your bike, it has various recording formats and options including time lapse, dash cam, manual record and auto record, explained in more detail below.

Dash Cam

As with a car dash cam, this is an excellent feature. Basically, the camera records a 20-minute loop, automatically rewriting itself meaning that you will always have the chance of catching that special moment without having to start and stop the recording. It can also be useful for your commute, giving a continuous video of your ride to and from work.

Manual

It's very simple - You press record to start the camera and press record to stop the camera.

Auto-record

Triggers can be set to start the camera when custom speed, power, or heart rate thresholds are hit. This means that you can stay focused on your ride and your surroundings without recording becoming a distraction and when you hit 1000 watts in the sprint the camera flicks on.

Time-Lapse

A nice additional feature the time lapse function allows for basic time-lapse photography to be taken compressing a day on the bike into much shorter videos.

File Browser and Playback

The Xplova has a simple file explorer on the device that gives instant access to your recordings and allows for playback when you stop your ride for a break. The rider data such as speed and power can be easily overlayed in the videos using the smartphone companion app.

Companion Apps

Apps exist for both Apple and Android smartphones. There is a connection app that basically acts as Garmin connect. Although the Connect app has the added feature of creating routes on the fly that can then be synced to the device at the side of the road which is a very nice feature. The route planning in the app is greatThe connect app is also used for syncing rides, training plans and courses to the device from Strava and your own Xplova profile The video app syncs videos to your phone where you can cut, edit, crop and paste to your heart's content. You can also overlay your ride data such as heart rate and power meter readings over the footage and even add music. The apps are genuinely easy to use. They feel intuitive and straightforward.

Extra, Extra!

The X5 EVO has loads of tech that we will cover in more detail over the coming months but to add to what has been discussed already the companion apps also have professional training plans incorporated into them, community shared routes and other functions not covered here. We're only really looking at the tip of the iceberg

Summary

This review really only touches the surface of the features available. The Xplova is an outstanding, easy to use, feature-rich cycling computer, that is priced similarly to other options with a similar bank of features. Add in the camera functionality and the device is a real contender if you're in the market for a new cycling computer. See for yourself! We're offering a free heart rate monitor and cadence sensor for a limited time, that's a saving of over £109! - Shop for Xplova Now Want to keep riding this winter? Check out our tips for staying warm here!