Tested: Hammerhead Karoo – does it measure up?

When the original Karoo was released back in 2017, Hammerhead was independently owned. Nowadays, it’s part of SRAM, but continues to operate largely as a standalone brand and has been slowly making inroads into the lucrative GPS bike computer market.

The subject of this review, the Karoo 3 – or simply the ‘new Karoo’ as Hammerhead refers to it – was launched around 18 months ago, succeeding the Karoo 2 to become Hammerhead’s flagship head unit. From a size and cost perspective, it slots directly into the mid-market alongside the Wahoo ELEMNT Roam (2.8-inch screen) and Garmin Edge 840 (2.6-inch screen). On paper, it has plenty to offer, but how does it deliver out on the road?

First impressions

Out of the box, the new Karoo is a good mid-size unit with a generous 3.2-inch touchscreen. With a sleeker and more elegant form factor than the Karoo 2 it certainly looks good. The quality is also quite robust; however, I did immediately notice there’s an ever-so-small amount of play in the side buttons, which could be a slight worry for long-term durability. At 125 grams on my home scales, the unit certainly isn’t heavy, but it is a little weightier than both the Wahoo Roam (95 grams) and Garmin 840 (85 grams). In terms of other notable changes from the Karoo 2, the new unit boasts a considerably brighter screen, louder audio alerts and enhanced battery life. It also has 4GB of RAM, double the previous model, and boasts a weather-resistant design for protection against mud, dust and rain with an excellent IP67 ingress rating.

Getting started

Despite a significant increase in RAM, the new Karoo is still a little tardy to boot up, something that proved one of my main frustrations with the entire experience. The device ships with a variety of easy mounting options, including a bespoke bar mount and a handy Garmin/Wahoo adapter plate. Setting up is simple and intuitive, just switch it on and follow the prompts to set your display preferences and pair with sensors. I was up and running in a few minutes. Initial syncing to third party apps such as Strava needs to be done via the Hammerhead or SRAM websites, but after that everything happens automatically. As tends to be the case with most head units nowadays there are myriad data display options at your disposal – including live segment and climb data – so best to set some time aside to sift through all of those.

Navigation

Overall, the map functionality is excellent with clear visuals, real-time distance countdowns, loud audio alerts and crisp screen resolution. I’m no tech boffin, but during the review the GPS accuracy (Multi-band GNSS) was very reliable with minimal lag between what I was seeing on the device and what was happening around me. The other thing I appreciated was that the Karoo syncs automatically with your Strava account, allowing you to easily explore and create routes on your smartphone or computer – knowing it will be waiting for you when you next clip in to ride. You can also simply drop a pin on the map screen when out riding and get real-time navigation prompts that automatically adjust to your saved routing preferences, such as avoiding main roads or unsealed road surfaces.

Riding

In-ride usability is very good, not least due to the Karoo’s generous size. You can flick the touchscreen to shuttle through the different data screens or simply use the side buttons if you prefer. I found the screen brightness and resolution easy to view in all but the very brightest of sunlight, something no doubt aided by the use of anti-glare Corning ‘Gorilla Glass’.

Battery life

Hammerhead says battery life has been increased significantly from the previous model Karoo and claims run times of 15+ hours in standard mode. However, should you take advantage of an array of advanced battery saving options (I didn’t) that claim increases to a whopping 35+ hours. Intentionally set to maximum brightness I was getting 12-13 hours of riding time per charge during the review. Charging time from 0-100% was around three hours using the USB-C cable provided.

Summing up

The third-generation Hammerhead Karoo is an excellent mid-sized touchscreen head unit with great graphics, seamless usability and an enormous array of functions. For me the only slight negatives were the tardy boot-up times, occasional data lags (sudden increases in speed and power seemed to throw it for a few seconds) and the small amount of play in the side buttons. While not as well-known as the big two head unit brands, the new Hammerhead Karoo is a worthy contender and I’d gladly run it as my own. Find yourself a good deal and you’re unlikely to be disappointed.

More info at www.au.hammerhead.io