COROS DURA - first impressions

Introduction

COROS is primarily represented in the sports community by its GPS watches. In 2024, however, the brand decided to, so to speak, step into cycling by launching the solar-powered GPS bike computer COROS DURA . As is the case with all beginnings, initial reviews pointed out shortcomings in the software and hardware. COROS decided to delay the launch of the DURA bike computer by a few months to iron out all the flaws. In the fall of 2024, a test piece was made available to the ralp e-shop, which was provided for testing by professional athletes. Here are their impressions of using the COROS DURA.

Jakub Siarnik

Jakub Šiarnik - a long-time representative of the Slovak Republic in ski mountaineering. His greatest achievements include 10th place at the World Ski Mountaineering Championships, Boi Taul 2023 in the Vertical Race discipline. Multiple winner of the Slovak Cup in ski mountaineering, multiple winner of the iconic ski mountaineering race Bokami Západné Tatry, and holder of the fastest ski alpine time on Chopok (1,000 m elevation gain) in 36m:30s. Here are his impressions of using COROS DURA.

Jakub Šiarnik: Instagram - Web

Introduction

There have been whispers for a long time that we can expect a cycling computer in the COROS range. When I received word from the ralpu echo e-shop that a test model would be available, I was excited, but at the same time I was afraid of the childish pains of a new, not yet tuned product. The initial reviews also indicated this. In the end, I was pleasantly surprised.

First impressions

The first impression after unpacking was pleasant. The computer was more compact than I expected. It uses the same mounting system as Garmin, or rather, 90 degrees rotated from the Wahoo ELEMNT ROAM that I have been using so far. The button response is immediate, the control of the main rotating crown is smooth and intuitive even with gloves. As a user of the COROS APEX 2 Pro watch, I knew immediately where to look. Connecting the required accessories was immediate - in my case, it was the COROS Heart Rate Monitor and a power meter. I had to perform a Factory Reset to pair with the app, but since it was a test model that was circulating among testers, this was a normal thing.

What am I missing?

I only miss the LEDs on the edges of the screen, which I set to display power or heart rate with the map on the screen, or which people use when using the radar. However, when comparing the recommended price to my Wahoo (289 EUR vs. 438 EUR), I wouldn't consider it a drawback.

What COROS could improve

As I outlined in the introduction, when evaluating features, I would assign them as a status as of today, because the pace of updates has made COROS legendary. What COROS could improve and I expect it to do so:

• Re-routing when deviating from the route tends to go back instead of dynamically recalculating the route.
• The absence of automatic detection of climbs on the route and customization of the Climb mode screen, as I knew it from the Wahoo bike computer.
• The clarity of map layers is weaker than with Wahoo, for example, a trail in the forest may not be distinguishable from a leisurely gravel road in some cases.

Which literally blew my fuses

What blew my mind, on the other hand, is definitely the battery, which is solar-charged. Basically, there is no need to charge the computer externally. To illustrate, I will give an example from an October ride, mostly in the forest, lasting 4.5 hours. The battery consumption was 6.2% and at the same time it was charged by 2.3%. So the charge level dropped by only 3.9%. In the summer, I would definitely end the training in a positive balance.

Conclusion

Finally, I would like to mention that I am most satisfied with switching screens with the rotating crown on the side and also with the possibility of having all activities in one app. Recording activities to the COROS app is instant, as is exporting to Strava or TrainingPeaks. Problems with maintaining a connection with additional devices, which were described by reviewers of the first versions of the software, were absolutely not demonstrated. The quality of the recording, even when riding through a ravine under the trees (Kvačianska dolina) was perfect, better than what I am used to with Wahoo. Therefore, when evaluating the price/performance ratio, I can definitely recommend purchasing this cycling computer.

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Samuel Kovac

Samuel Kováč - a professional cyclist who has been mainly involved in road cycling in the last four years, but has not missed out on disciplines that take place in the terrain (gravel, cyclocross). Starting in 2025, Samo will be more involved in off-road mountain bikes in the BeatMe Cycling team under the leadership of Tomáš Višnovský. Samo's greatest achievements: two-time Slovak champion in the hill time trial, Slovak champion in gravel, two-time Slovak vice-champion in cyclocross. Here are his impressions of using COROS DURA.

Samuel Kovac: Instagram

Introduction

My experiences and feelings with testing the new COROS DURA were great. As a professional cyclist, I need to see all the different functions on a cycling computer. The first important function that is perfect on the DURA is GPS. The very fast GPS loading when turning on the product and also the accurate recording even in the forest surprised me. I really like the clear display on the DURA, the overall interface is simple and intuitive. Garmin has its cycling computers configured quite complicatedly and it takes a few days for a new user to get used to it. I had no problem with this with COROS - whether it was the PACE 3 GPS watch or this new DURA. I also like the graphic highlighting of watt zones in real time, it is an interesting design that also helps mentally during difficult training.

What interested me?

What impressed me the most was the battery. It is at an incredible level, but I didn't expect something so revolutionary. In 15 hours of training, I used only 14% of the battery. Even during one training in sunny weather, I used 3% in 3 hours, while the solar returned 2.4%. The touch screen works flawlessly even in the rain or with gloves, which is a problem for Garmin, for example. And as a bonus, the display can be controlled using the side rotating crown - I really appreciate that. As a small negative, I evaluate the less intuitive navigation and also a few details: COROS DURA cannot record pedaling balance with a double-sided power meter and the Strava Live Segment function is missing. I believe that these two functions can be added with a software update.

Summary

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by COROS DURA. Downloading activities to the clear COROS application is very fast and for me the application is the best and most clear for the average user compared to other competing applications.