AN EXCELLENT ELECTRONIC COUNTER FOR $7

The one thing I've found with electronics is, you get what you pay for. I picked up a digital camera at Wal-Mart for $14 figuring, "how bad can it be?" and found out

But the cyclocomputer would give you a rough idea of where to start looking for mile splits, and as such it should be well worth $7.

Maybe the next version will have a digital camera built in

Stu:
You seem to going by conventional wisdom that cyclocomputers are only good for getting a rough idea where splits are located. To the contrary, those used as electronic counters give superior performance and accuracy to that of the Jones.

I would rate the Bell as second only to the Protégé in performance as an electronic counter. So far I like the quality, and at a cost of $7 I am not too concerned with longevity.

After seeing Pete's setup with the calibrated rim, I'm convinced. It's so simple it's perfect. I'd have a hard time relying on only one, though. Pete's system of two computers would make more sense, and if the $7 units are as good as you say, still plenty affordable.

Belt and braces. My own experience with cyclocomputers is only current to 1986. I Imagine they, like everything else, have come a long way since then.

Yesterday I went to the office supply store to get a small calculator to carry with me while I measure courses, expecting to pay $5 or $6. I found one for 99 cents.
When I was a kid a calculator that could do what this one does cost about $200. Around that same time, I remember a McDonalds commercial that touted the fact that you could get a burger, fries, coke, AND change back for your dollar. Amazing that for the cost of that meal today, you could buy THREE calculators.

I remember those first "pocket" calculators. You had to have deep pockets, in more ways than one. Thing was the size of a paperback novel (not a Tom Clancy, but maybe a Stephen King).

$200 was a lot of money in 1977. And the battery lasted about 10 minutes, too. Those red LED's sure ate up the power

Walmart also sells a cyclocomputer by Schwinn, but this fails as a counter because the distance function fails to increment at slow wheel speed.

Battery Change Fixes a Problem

After using the Bell for several months, the circumference setting began to spontaneously revert from 5000 mm to the default of 2124 mm and I could not reset it. Removing the battery and replacing it appeared to fix the problem, but it was not permanent.
Batteries are often not fresh when you purchase a device and I noticed that my battery was a bit low in voltage. However, recommended replacements were rather obscure types and not available at Wal-Mart. I therefore purchased a 357 for $1.50 at Wal-Mart because it was only a little thicker. By grinding off three small protrusions on the inside of the lid on the battery compartment, I was able to fit the 357 perfectly. The problem has not returned since.

Recently the Bell stopped working and I was very surprised to find that I had broken the electrical wire between the sensor and the meter. The wire is so flimsy and unprotected that I had no suspicion I had done so.
The Bell has some novel features, but despite these I now recommend going only with the Protege or one of the newly revealed commercial counters.