iPhones and bikes

[harry747 0]

Hi.

I'd like to use my iPhone as a bike computer. Because both the 3G and the GPS eat battery power for breakfast, I want to supply some power from the dynamo to the iPhone. Does anyone know about any products that let me do that? Or would I have to come up with some custom solution? How much power would be required?

 

Are there any sensors (maybe Bluetooth?) that I can use to send a signal to the iPhone every time a magnet goes past? I'd use that to find out how fast I'm pedalling.

[MacCast 80]

Apple hasn't opened up the hardware APIs to many people yet, but when they do I'm sure we'll see this kind of product. Until then as Apple likes to say... "There's an App for that!" Here's a list of cycling apps:

 

http://ruedatropical.wordpress.com/2009/02/11/iphone-cycling-applications/

 

If you really want to hack togther some hardware you might try to track down this guys as he seems to have a little head start:

 

[desertrose0601 1]

Hi.

I'd like to use my iPhone as a bike computer. Because both the 3G and the GPS eat battery power for breakfast, I want to supply some power from the dynamo to the iPhone. Does anyone know about any products that let me do that? Or would I have to come up with some custom solution? How much power would be required?

 

Are there any sensors (maybe Bluetooth?) that I can use to send a signal to the iPhone every time a magnet goes past? I'd use that to find out how fast I'm pedalling.

 

One thought I had is - you could turn off your 3G & GPS settings (or put it in airplane mode) when you're using your iPhone for extended periods of time like this. I can use my original iPhone for a couple days w/o it needing to be charged. I wouldn't think one workout should drain the battery if you're just using it normally (as in, no video intense applications). But even then, it should last at least one day.

[harry747 0]

One thought I had is - you could turn off your 3G & GPS settings (or put it in airplane mode)

 

I'm afraid turning 3G and GPS off is not an option. The problem is that if i turn those functions off, my app won't work the way I want. The whole point of this is that I want to have a map, speed and so on, and for that both GPS (location and speed) and 3G (maps) are required.