Deal of the Week: Save $100 on the Garmin Edge 1050

The annual REI sale is live and the Garmin Edge 1050 is on sale at a $100 discount. That puts an excellent bike computer at the price it should always be and makes it worth a close look.

To be clear, this is only a $100 price drop, 14%, on a $700 bike computer. You wouldn’t think it makes much difference but it actually changes the whole conversation. Let’s talk about what I mean.

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What is the Garmin Edge 1050?

The Garmin Edge 1050 is one of the best bike computers on the market and should definitely be in our cycling accessory reviews. It’s not there yet only because I use it constantly and I’m working on a long-term review.

That happened because the Garmin Edge 1050 launched last summer and it broke the Garmin release scheme. What should have come to market was an Edge 1040 Plus.

The Edge 1040 and 1040 Solar were doing well and a Plus update would have made sense. Instead the Edge 1050 came to market and fundamentally shifted the Garmin hierarchy of bike computers. It’s taken some time to understand and it’s also taken some time for mounts to materialize in the aftermarket.

The mounts are necessary because Garmin Edge 1050 is larger than any previous Garmin. Along with that it’s also got less battery life plus a premium price. In some ways it doesn’t make a lot of sense but I think there’s an obvious reason.

The Edge 1050 really is a 1040 Plus and it only gets a different name because of technological limits of batteries and processors.

Obviously that’s a big claim so let’s unpack it. The big news, outside of the larger size, that came with the Edge 1050 was an all-new brighter, and higher resolution, screen. What didn’t get much coverage was that there was also a new and faster CPU.

If you’ve ever tried to do anything on a 540/840/1040 Garmin bike computer while you have a long route loaded, you know that CPU upgrade was sorely needed. The problem is that Garmin has historically been the king of battery life and that requires a low power CPU.

Garmin had to make the upgrade to the CPU but it also meant sacrificing battery life. I’m guessing the screen came along for the ride based on what was available. I’m also guessing that Garmin looked at real world use cases and decided that “20 hours of battery life under heavy use, and up to 60 hours in battery saver mode.” Was more than enough for the vast majority of users in the vast majority of situations.

Bottom line is the Garmin Edge 1050 has the best software features of any Garmin bike computer plus a faster processor and a much better screen. The Edge 1040 Solar is still for sale if you’d prefer up to 45 hours of battery life in normal use or up to 100 hours in battery saver mode.

Why does the $100 savings makes such a difference

It’s time for cyclist math here.

First we’ve got this great bike computer that has the best screen and the snappiest processor that Garmin offers. It’s also got less battery life. This is basically your one day ride machine for when you want the best of the best.

Then Garmin claims that you can still buy a 1040 or 1040 Solar for battery life. Which is objectively true but Garmin always keeps old products available for beyond when they make any sense. And the Garmin Edge 1040 makes no sense to purchase in 2025 for the current listed $500 price.

Now REI is dropping the Edge 1050 price so it’s the same as the 1040 and all the sudden everything makes sense.

If you don’t care about the snappiest processor or a brighter, higher resolution screen then grab the Edge 840 Solar. It offers up to 32-hours of battery life and normally costs $500. Bonus is that the Edge 840 Solar is also on sale for a $100 off at REI.

If you instead prefer a more premium bike computer then grab a Garmin Edge 1050 for that gorgeous screen. The Edge 1050 is currently $599 at REI making it a $100 up-charge over the normal price of the 840 Solar. If you’ve got your heart set on the bigger computer you’ll notice my use of cyclist math to frame it as only $100 more than the normal price of the 840.

If none of that sounds right, and your eye on ultra-endurance or just hate charging a bike computer, then head over to the Garmin website where the slow, but still great, Garmin Edge 1040 Solar is priced at $699.99. There’s now a clear progression of prices and features in the Garmin ecosystem.

Budget friendly bike computer options

I’m focusing on the Garmin 800 and 1000 series bike computers because those are the computers I think represent the best experience. The 1040 Solar offers the best battery life while the 1050 has the best hardware plus the most software features in the Garmin lineup. Meanwhile the 840 Solar offers buttons in addition to the touch screen and it’s less expensive.

None of those computers are what you’d call budget friendly though. If you are really looking to save a bit of money, while also staying in the Garmin ecosystem, then take a look at the Garmin Edge 540 on sale at REI for $249.You still get the use of Garmin Connect for fitness tracking and the 540 is no battery life slouch with it’s 26-hour normal use rating. The only reason I don’t recommend it as readily is that it’s buttons only and it’s nice to have a touchscreen for navigating the menu system when not riding.

Alternatively, another option would be to look outside the Garmin ecosystem. The Coros Dura lacks street names, which can make navigation a bit harder, but it’s also $250. On top of that, the system is so efficient Coros doesn’t expect you to turn it off. There’s a rated 100-hours plus solar charging. It’s designed to go to sleep and Coros doesn’t think you’ll ever need to bother diving into the menu to turn it off. It’s not available at REI and currently out of stock at Coros but that’s not a sale price so check out our Coros Dura review and check back for stock.

Feature comparison

The differences that matter