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Recently my Garmin Edge 800 stopped being reliable. It turned itself off whenever it felt like it; most of the time when I was really relying on it. I had run out of open source maps, and was told that it would cost in excess of $150 to have the Garmin looked at. I’d had enough.
As soon as I arrived in South Korea I purchased a smartphone for navigational purposes. As it turns out this was the best gear swap-out I’d made in a long while – smartphones make navigation a pleasure because they are so user friendly. I can immediately download detailed maps which are easy to move, zoom in and out of, and create points of interest in. Not only is the device more usable, but the GPS chip in my iPhone 5S is faster and more accurate than my Garmin.
CyclingAbout Epiphany: Smartphones are the perfect navigation tool for bicycle travel.
But hold on a minute, it’s hard to ride and navigate with only one hand. How would I make the smartphone easy to access while riding? How would we wrangle it so that the phone is easy to take on and off the bike?
Quad Lock is the answer.
What is a Quad Lock?
Quad Lock started out on Kickstarter a couple of years ago and, and like any good idea on crowdfunding websites, it made tonnes of money and went into production.
The Quad Lock system is comprised of two parts: a mount (bike mount) and an adapter (iPhone case).
There are a number of different ways you can use the Quad Lock products, but the most useful for me is to connect my iPhone directly to the bike. To attach my iPhone, I angle the phone at 45 degrees and push it down with one hand. The spring-loaded bike mount allows the phone to engage and when I twist the phone straight, it locks into place with a firm ‘click’.
Once connected, the phone isn’t going anywhere… unless of course you want to take it off. Disengaging it requires two hands, one to push the blue tube away from the phone and the other to slide the phone to 45 degrees again to take it off. With a bit of practice you can actually do this manoeuvre with one hand!
Why is the Quad Lock Awesome?
The Quad Lock is secure. We have cycled some incredibly rough roads on our tandem bicycle (at speeds up to 100km/h) and have never felt like our smartphone was at risk.
The Quad Lock is fast. Within a second our iPhone is on and off our bike.
The Quad Lock is slim. Our smartphone case is only 4.5mm thicker than if we had a standard case. We’ve never felt like it is cumbersome in our pockets.
The Quad Lock is universal. Bike mounts, car mounts, tripod adapters, belt clips, arm bands, heart rate monitors – the Quad Lock will fit on it all. If you need to mount a device onto something they don’t make, try the adhesive mounts.
What Happens When it Rains?
I put a waterproof poncho on my phone. Seriously.
That said, smartphones are nigh on impossible to use with water on the screen. In my experience, touch screens are far too sensitive to use in the rain, even with a waterproof cover. I normally have to wipe down the screen on my clothing in order to make it properly usable. So the Quad Lock poncho makes rainy navigation possible… kinda.
What Smartphone Cases are Available?
Currently, Quad Lock smartphone cases are available for the iPhone 4/4S/5/5S/5C/6 and Samsung Galaxy S4/S5.
But, if you use a different phone/phablet/tablet/device, don’t stress. Quad Lock have you covered with a universal adhesive mount.
What is the price of the Quad Lock and where can you get one?
You can purchase Quad Lock gear from their online store.
Expect to pay $69.95 USD for a smartphone case and bike mount with free postage worldwide. If you don’t need the case, the universal kit is just $39.95 with free postage worldwide.
Would I Recommend it?
Definitely! It is hard to give something a near perfect score, but in the case of the Quad Lock, perfection has nearly been achieved. As mentioned above, the only issue I’ve found is that even with the waterproof poncho, the iPhone is too sensitive to be properly usable. When it rains, I simply put my phone away.
If you’re using a smartphone for navigation, the Quad Lock mounting system is a superb option.
The mount looks great. How badly do the GPS apps suck the battery life from phones? What’s your favourite app?
We use our iPhone like we would a paper map – it’s a base map and we turn it on whenever we need to look at it. In cities, this may mean using 30-50% battery per day, but in rural areas it can be as low as 10% per day. We charge our phone from the hub when we need, so technically we could keep the phone on most of the day using a turn-by-turn app, but it’s not really our style.
Our favourite map at the moment is MapsWithMe, but most others that we meet who use a smartphone for navigation use Galileo. Galileo is more powerful – you can upload custom maps via iTunes on a computer, whereas MapsWithMe maps are downloaded directly from inside the app.
My only issue is that I have a King Cage mounted over my stem so I’m unable to mount the the phone there…I don’t see any mention of it mounting on the actual handlebars?
Hi Wakatel. You can mount the quadlock to your handlebars just fine, as long as you have about 5cm of free space for the mount to fit! Alee
Thanks Alee, what are your thoughts on the rain cover for the iphone? It seems very basic when compared to other brands such as Otterbox, Lifeproof and the Optrix. I’m a bit worried about getting caught out in a heavy down pour…regards Wakatel.
I wouldn’t want to drop the phone in a river, but we’ve had it mounted during every rainy day and have not found any water to enter the rain cover.
For GPS positioning you don’t need any signal????
You will not need a signal from a mobile phone tower, but you will need a GPS signal.
The down-side of using an iPhone on the handlebars is that on hot sunny days it will overheat and shutoff. Plus, you really need a USB power source or it will drain the battery pretty quickly in my experience. I use a Garmin 800 and have my iPhone in my pocket or front bag. I’ve had a few similar issues with the Garmin though: random shutoffs, etc. Pretty frustrating.
Despite cycling in temperatures regularly over 40 degrees celcius, we haven’t yet had issues with our iPhone overheating! It does get very warm, but seems to be within the operating temperatures.
been using the Quad Lock system for a while and love it>Previously I was using a Ram mount, and any rough ground the mount would just spin on the bars.I keep my phone charge by connecting it to a B & M Ewerk which is kept charged with my Schmidt Dyno Hub (as well as front and rear lights).
With the phone locked in place, does the phone itself ever over heat?
I’ve had my phone overheat on a table in the direct sunlight before, but I’ve never experienced it on the bike, despite riding in 40+ degree conditions through SE Asia.
Hi, what is the black box with yelow round piece in front of the smart phone? (first Picture on this page). many thanks michal from europe.
https://www.cyclingabout.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/wpid-Photo-13-Oct-2013-242-pm.jpg
That’s the mount for my Ortlieb handlebar bag.
They have an out front version too now which clears the stem for yet another device
Hi Alee; this is Matt Roller, we met a few years ago in Nong Khai,Thailand. You guys were just coming into Thailand from Lao on your Co-motion, I was on my Surly LHT. In fact, I think you mentioned me in one of your videos, mistakenly saying I was looking for a wife… hahah
Nonetheless, have been using your site as a resource and see you are again on the road with a Koga. Awesome…I am just now finishing up another four month Asia trip starting in India and flying home from Vietnam next month.
I am writing to ask if when you make it Portland, OR and if I am home, would you like to stay at the house? If so, you will be well fed and watered 😉
I will though, pick your brains as I am in the throes of having a new bike built. Obsessing on Thorn Nomad, (however, communicating with them, they have very set ideas of what they want to sell me vs what I want to put together).
Also, considering something at the other end of the spectrum, a Coga, aluminum v steel, so very interested in your opinion…
Well, that all for now, be safe and hope to see you in the future.
I’m glad this website has been a useful resource for you, and I’m jealous of your Asian tour! I’ll likely be cycling through Portland in May 2019, and would love to stay. If you can’t wait til then to discuss bike things, send me an email with any specific questions you may have about your new build.
Here’s some info on aluminium vs. steel: https://www.cyclingabout.com/frame-materials-for-bicycle-touring-aluminium-vs-steel-vs-titanium/