Usability Suggestions
Planned
Power off/Sleep
- Power off/Sleep is not intuitive. Maybe add a Sleep and a Shudown button to the main menu. Also you may want to label the sleep button with the key combo (press bottom left and right buttons).
- Poweroff Timeout. I have read somewhere that the device will powerdown completely after 2 hours.
- Also the Sleep option in the seetings menu is origanized unter "Display", which is a bit unexpected.
Main Menu
- The initial default profiles were called like "Got Hills?" (which was the first profile). I would have expected something like "Ride" or "Map" or "Indoor". In fact I had three different indoor profiles preinstalled. Why?
- Going back to the main menu is also unintuitve using the app switcher. Maybe use long press on the left button (back button), which is also commonly used to navigate back.
- How to enter settings using just the buttons? I can only cycle through the profiles using the buttons.
- Is it possible to associate a bike with with a profile? Now I have to select my bike when saving a ride. Can I create a "Aeroad" profile that is associated with my "Aeroad" bike?
Routes
- Allow to sync Strava/Komoot routes on the device. Currently, I have to click the sync button on the dashboard for new routes to be fetched from Komoot. It does not automatically sync Komoot routes in the background.
- Opening the sort dropdown menu on the bottom switches between ascending and descending sort. Maybe only do that when clicking an item from the sort drop down menu and not when opening it.
- The map in the route preview loads very slow (e.g. 30 secs or longer
- Add option to show turn by turn popups only when not on map page.
- Show elevation plot when selecting a route
SIM
- I have used a German Netzclub SIM. This works fine in my other mobile phones and mobile routers. However in the Hammerhead I had to configure the APN. Should the APN not be automatically configured over the network?
- There is no dialer or SMS app. Would be useful in case of emergency... In fact missed calls are shown in the notification panel. But call back does not work.
Profiles/In Ride
- Add a hint how to open the quick menu. Features like navigate home or track back cannot be found elsewehere. I discovered the quick launch menu by change.
- Add an option to edit the profile to the quick menu
- White theme
- Ability to configure font size for labels and data values (also add ability to show only icon instead of labels)
- Do not use "No route added" overlay on "Upcoming elevation". Better switch to "Historical Elevation" automatically. Otherwise it is unused space when no route is loaded.
- Map with two data fields on top has lots of unused blank (black) space between the two data fields and the map.
- Use double tap on map not only to zoom in but to cycle through the same three zoom levels as when using the bottom right button.
- Allow more than one map page. Or add option to show full screen map e.g. by long pressing on the map.
- Color the yellow route line depending on the evlevation of the route
- How to end a ride without saving it? (i.e. discard a ride)
- When I press the zoom/Lap button on the map page quickly, sometimes it does not zoom, but creates a lap (or shows the warning that only one lap can be created while being paused). It should not create laps on the map screen.
- Auto Brightness using Ambient Light Sensor (if available)
- Add autolap feature (e.g. every 1km or 5km or 20 min)
(Completed) Rides
- Add option to show map of completed ride
- Show pace splits (e.g. every 1km, or 5km)
- Show elevation plot of finished rides
Elevation Graphs
- Ability to switch zoom levels of elevation graphs
- Show full screen elevation graph
- Colors like in Garmin Climb pro
- Show current elevation in the graph (e.g. in yellow color) and possibly also show current gradient in percent and maybe also average gradient for the part of the route displayed in the elevation graph
Map
- The map differs from what Komoot shows in its map. In your map all unpaved forest roads are displayed as black dashed lines, with Komoot (and also Workoutdoors for Apple Watch), the differentiate between wide gravel roads (usually two track gravel roads) and narrower single trails.
- I would be great if I could configure the three zoom levels that will be cycled through when clicking the bottom right buttom in the map view.
- I assume you are using Mapbox. It would be cool to support custom map styles (for advanced users) created using Mapbox Studio. Maybe this could be done on the dashboard.
Garmin Mount Adapter
- Loose fit and rotates easily when operating the buttons.
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Hi Toni, Thank you for taking the time to provide us with such great feedback and suggestion. We want to make sure we don't miss any of your input before we can share our ideas, roadmap and some of the challenges we want to overcome. We will get back to you with a detailed response.
Meanwhile, if you have anything else to add here, feel free to do so.
Happy new year in advance!
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Examples for the map problems:
In the following images I have marked some places with number (e.g. 1, 2, ...) so that you can easily correlate the images.
https://www.komoot.de/plan/@51.7535759,8.8860512,15z?sport=jogging&constitution=4
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The road in at point 4 "Dunenberg" in the image is actually not a paved road, but a gravel road (Komoot map is correct). Also I do not understand why Karoo 2 shows random yellow dashed lines on orange background. This is just a single track road, and no special cycle path (infact I would not recommend cycling there).
Also note how Komoot differentiates between bigger gravel roads (slightly dashed brown roads) and single tracks (black lines). Those gravel roads are usually wider and well maintained, whreras the single tracks often cannot be used as they have been claimed by nature.
https://www.komoot.de/plan/@51.7653434,8.9124870,15z?sport=jogging&constitution=4
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https://www.komoot.de/plan/@51.7484616,8.8554740,16z?sport=jogging&constitution=4
Why does Karoo draws the brown road with dashes near letter 5. This is just a hiking track, no special cycle path. Komoot is correct here.
Also why is the zigzag near word "Bukhove" drawn in yellow dashed brown. It is impossible to cycle there and certainly not a cycle path.
Also why is the road "Bukehove" marked in green. This road is just like any other small road. There is no cycle path that ends in the middle of nowhere.
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Hey Toni,
I really appreciate you for sharing your thoughts on the features and functionality of the Karoo 2 unit. It's because of customers like you that we improve our user experience and products based on your suggestion and feedback. Let me address your points here.
Power off/Sleep:
- I can totally understand your need for the sleep and power button on Karoo 2. Certainly, it would be a little difficult for users to transit from 5 buttons on the Karoo to 4 buttons on Karoo 2.
- With 5 buttons on the Karoo, it was easy to map one button for power on/off while it is now difficult for us to define the power on/off on the Karoo 2 unit. However, we ensured that this feature would be there on the new unit and as a result, we set the combination to ensure our user base gets it going with the physical buttons.
- When compared to the Karoo, we have the sleep timer on the Karoo 2 at the same location. You can find it easy to set your sleep time for the unit under Settings > Display.
Main Menu
- We have continuously tried to upgrade the features which already exist on the unit with our software updates. For the main menu, we do have the default profiles set as Got Hills.
- However, you can rename those by long tap on the profiles. There is no hard and fast reason for the default profile to be Got Hills or Road/Map/Indoor. Got Hills was set as a default profile for the Karoo and the same has transited to the new unit - Karoo 2.
- Karoo OS is based on the Android platform and all the Android-based devices have the app switcher to select the app which you can navigate.
- We have tried to make it simple with the app switcher to navigate the apps while you are on the ride.
- To enter any apps on the main menu, while you are riding, you need to long-press button D. With this, you can see the apps which are currently running in the background and you can choose to navigate to the settings app (as you desire to).
- If there are no apps running in the background, you can choose the HOME tab on the right to land on the main menu and accordingly choose the main apps you prefer.
- Besides, we have made it easy to go back to the ride screen by choosing the profiles you are riding with.
- I am extremely sorry to inform you that we do not have the feature where you can associate your bike to the profile but certainly you can choose your bike while you save your ride (once you have added your bike under Settings > Bikes)
Routes:
- We have tried to maintain the flow of data between the Dashboard and the unit. However, we have not implemented a sync button on the unit to get your routes from the third party.
- We believe it will be far easier for you to get the routes from Dashboard, edit it if necessary OR add waypoints and saving that will show the same on your device.
- Besides, we have thought about the clarity of the route on the Dashboard to be preferable to that on the unit. I am sure you would find the flow simpler than that on getting the routes on the unit and then editing it.
- Considering the latency of the map in route preview, I checked on my device and found the map preview loads immediately once I tap on the routes app. Could you please check your internet connectivity as I suspect this would be a primary reason?
- In regards to turn by turn banners to pop up on any screen while you are on the ride, we have tried to ensure the user is informed about the next upcoming turn. We have not restricted this only to maps considering there might be instances where the rider is on the data field page or graphical data screen page and seeing the banner, he/she need not navigate to the map page to have a look at the map. We have tried to take safety as our higher priority while you ride with Karoo 2.
- Currently, we do not have the elevation profile graph on the unit when you select the route prior to the ride. However, you can view the total elevation of that particular route.
- Selecting the route of a smaller distance would be easy but we have tried to bring clarity while you select the route and the unit shows the elevation reading. However, you can see the elevation profile while you ride with a particular route.
SIM:
- Karoo 2 works on GSM sim with 2G, 3G, and 4G band coverage. You need to check the band or spectrum that your sim supports. The same would be compatible with the Karoo 2 unit.
- Karoo 2 shows the phone notification for the call or SMS on the screen; however, there is no integration of the calling or messaging feature on Karoo 2.
- There is no dialer available on the unit. You can see the call notification, read the message, or check the notifications on the unit.
Profiles/In-ride:
- To ease your riding experience, we have transited the feature of a quick action menu from which you can choose to remove the route, lock your Karoo 2 screen or return to the home screen.
- Quick action menu can be accessed by pressing button A and C. Let me share an article for your reference - https://support.hammerhead.io/hc/en-us/articles/360058711853--Quick-Action-Menu-
- I am not sure if you would like to edit the name of the profile or you would like to change the profile while you are mid-ride.
- To clarify, you can rename your profile by long-tapping the profile. However, while you are riding, you cannot update the profile. However, you can change the profile while you are in-ride by long-pressing the button D > go to the main menu and choose the preferred profile you want to ride with.
- The option of having a light or dark theme was removed back in August 2020. I am sorry to inform you that we do not have the option to change the black theme to white. However, I have taken the feedback and will certainly forward it to our Product team.
- Though the screen of Karoo 2 is tailored by a few millimeters, we have ensured the labels and the number in the data field are clear and ensure clarity of readability.
- We don't have the option to customize the font size and labels as we want to keep it standard for our users.
- We have tried to reduce the complexity of the unit by setting it as standard font size and labels.
- Agreed with your suggestion on the ‘No Route Added’ overlapping the elevation graph. However, we have set this option to ensure that this graphical data field will read the elevation profile of the route only when a route is added.
- We understand the need for the map to be complete on one screen or for an additional map screen to be added.
- We have received requests from a bunch of users before, however, we have tried not to accumulate numerous data fields for those riders who need a lot of data.
- Besides, we have ensured the safety of the ride with no continuous swiping of the screen from the data field screen to the map and back again. For this reason, we have allowed the numeric data fields on the map screen.
- You can choose no numeric data fields on the map screen with the map screens available while you create or edit your profile.
- We have the yellow color for the track you are riding. However, with no routes, you can see the grey route color. I would be curious to learn how the yellow line on the route would be beneficial for the riders to show the elevation. Could you please elaborate on it?
- We do not have the option to end the ride without saving it.
- You can end the ride which is a part of saving a ride. However, if you do not want to keep the ride saved, you can delete the saved ride by swiping it from right to left of the screen by choosing the ride from the rides apps on the main menu.
- I believe you pressed Button D while on the ride and the lap was recorded.
- While you press the button D (right bottom button) twice spontaneously, it will record the lap on the map screen.
- If you press button D with an interval of a few seconds it will zoom in. Also, I would like to inform you that we have three levels of zoom on the unit.
- You can see the map completely zoomed out when you have the button D pressed for the third time.
- Unfortunately, Karoo 2 does not have ambient light sensors. Though we agree that the ambient light sensor controls the backlight to save the battery, we have the battery save mode on Karoo 2. With this feature, you can extend your ride time by optimizing the screen usage and internet connectivity settings.
- Auto-lap feature: The auto-lap feature is planned on the Karoo as well as more lap related data-fields, and visualizations. Garmin and Wahoo add a lap based on user preference which they set pre-ride. It's an important feature for someone training for races.
Completed Rides:
- You can certainly view the map of the completed ride on the Dashboard.
- You can click on the ride which gets automatically uploaded to the Dashboard (once the ride is saved) and you can view the route traversed on the map.
- The same feature on the unit is yet to be planned.
- We believe that the map of the route would certainly be one of the parameters a user will refer to while he checks the riding data. We have made this simpler by keeping the Dashboard an open platform to view the route map.
- You can certainly view the elevation plot of the finished ride.
- We certainly would like our users to see and analyze their riding data.
- Currently, we do not have the elevation graph on the unit after you have saved the ride; however, we have integration with third-party applications like Strava, Ride with GPS, etc where you can see the detailed information and graph of the elevation profile for the route traversed.
Elevation Graph
- You can view the elevation graph on the unit while you ride and you can view the elevation graph in full screen on Karoo 2.
- You need to select the graphical representation of elevation from the layouts that is available and choose only the elevation graph. This will help you view the elevation profile in full screen.
- Garmin is totally a different platform and it uses its own ways to represent the data. I am not sure if you are looking for the colors on the elevation profile. We have the yellow color which indicates the elevation graph for the traversed route and the white color on the graph shows the upcoming elevation on the route.
- We do have the current gradient in % but in the numeric data field.
- You can certainly choose the current gradient % in the same data screen with the upcoming elevation.
- We are yet to plan for the average gradient data field.
- We use the open street map and have defined the legends while you use your unit on the ride. Here are the map legends that we use - https://support.hammerhead.io/hc/en-us/articles/360044351394-Mapstyle-Road-and-Paths-Legend
- I am sure this will help you understand the way Roads and Paths are displayed on the Maps available on your Karoo and Karoo 2.
- While you are riding or viewing the route on the map page on the unit, we have the three-level of zoom option on Karoo 2.
- You can press the button D on the map screen to zoom in.
- A further press will enable the next level of zooming.
- The third press of the button will zoom out.
- We have had requests from a handful of users to allow customization of the maps. We have taken this request to our Product team and will certainly look forward to seeing how it is prioritized.
Garmin Mount Adapter:
- I would like to inform you that we have named this part as a quarter turn adapter based on its functionality. Yes, it is compatible with most of the Garmin mounts but I cannot commit to its compatibility with all the Garmin mounts available in the market.
- It's really unfortunate to hear the loose fit of the quarter-turn adapter on the mount while you press the buttons on the unit. We are working on it to ensure it has the perfect fit.
- To keep you informed, we are doing gap analysis on the unit to ensure the loose fit issue of the adapter is easily eradicated. We will soon announce once it is ready for usage.
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Wow this is fantastic feedback, especially the following points:
- Power off/Sleep is not intuitive. Maybe add a Sleep and a Shutdown button to the main menu. Also you may want to label the sleep button with the key combo (press bottom left and right buttons).
- Is it possible to associate a bike with with a profile? Now I have to select my bike when saving a ride. Can I create a "Aeroad" profile that is associated with my "Aeroad" bike?
Thanks Abhishek for addressing some of these, looking forward to seeing some of these suggestions implemented.
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