Following the success of the Favero Assioma, Garmin Vector, and Rally power meter pedals, the pedal power meter market is attracting other manufacturers.
One of them is Magene, which already has its pedal power meters. For now, these are only available for the Chinese market; even if you buy them, you won’t be able to use them outside of China. However, I believe Magene will want to penetrate the Western markets with them. Maybe they will unveil them at Eurobike 2024. But I am just speculating here.
So what can and will the competitors do? I will try to answer these and other questions below.
Magene P705 Technical Specifications
Below is the summary of the technical specifications of the Magene P705 power meter.
Highlights
Price: 4000 RMB (~$549)
Active temperature compensation
Advanced features (L/R balance, pedal smoothness, etc.)
Automatic zero-offset
Warranty: 1 year
Technical Specification
Accuracy: ±1%
Claimed weight: 149g/pedal (~298g/pair)
Cleat system: LOOK Keo
Claimed battery life: 100h
Battery type: Rechargeable
Waterproofing: IPX7
Q-factor: 55mm
Temperature compensation: Yes
Various functionalities are common in pedal power meters. The first one is the ability to measure the left and right foot separately (in the dual variant). Other metrics include not only power but also torque efficiency, pedal smoothness, and similar metrics. Personally, I don’t use these advanced metrics much; I’m basically only interested in power, cadence, and L/R balance. How about you?
Magene claims 1% accuracy (which is comparable to other pedal wattmeters) and a weight of 149g/pedal. These are almost identical parameters to the Favero Assioma. However, the recently introduced LOOK KEO Blade Power is even lighter (130g/pedal).
The pedal body is made of carbon fiber and is compatible with LOOK Keo cleats. The pedal axis and bearings are made of stainless steel. The Q-factor is 55mm, which is 1mm more than the Favero.
The price in China is set at 4999 RMB for the dual variant, which translates to about $549. I assume that due to other costs such as shipping, duty, and taxes, the final price will be higher in foreign markets and probably comparable to the Favero Assioma.
Magene P705 vs. Favero Assioma vs. Garmin Rally vs. LOOK Keo Blade Power
The following table compares P705 with other power meter pedal alternatives.
FeatureFavero AssiomaGarmin RallyLOOK Keo Blade PowerMagene P705
Accuracy±1%±1%±1%±1%
Weight w/o cleats299g/pair320-444g/pair(depending on the option)260g/pair299g/pair
Cleat typeLOOK KeoLOOK KeoShimano SPD SLShimano SPDLOOK KeoLOOK Keo
Claimed battery life50 hours120 hours60 hours100 hours
Rechargeable batteryYesNo YesYes
Spindle length54 mm53 mm55 mm with 2mm washer53 mm55 mm
Auto zeroYesYesYesYes
Single-sided and dual-sided optionYes (UNO and DUO)Yes (100 and 200)YesYes
L/R Balance, power phaseFavero Assioma DUO only‘200’ series onlyDual-sided onlyDual-sided only
Pedal center offsetn/a‘200’ series onlyYesn/a
ConnectivityANT+, Bluetooth SmartANT+, Bluetooth SmartANT+, Bluetooth SmartANT+, Bluetooth Smart
More infoFavero Assioma Reviewn/an/aMagene P705
Buy single-sidedCheck PriceCheck PriceCheck Price (tredz.co.uk)Check PriceCheck Price (amazon.com)n/a
Buy dual-sidedCheck PriceCheck PriceCheck Price (tredz.co.uk)Check Price (amazon.com)n/a
This table compares the main features of the Favero Assioma, Garmin Rally, LOOK, and Magene pedal power meters.
Conclusion
After the positive feedback on the P505 power meter from reviewers like GPLama, it will be interesting to see if Magene lives up to its reputation with the P705. However, it depends if they decide to enter foreign markets. Until then, all we can do is wait.
What do you think about the P705? Would you consider buying it, or would you rather take the safe bet of the Favero Assioma? Let me know in the comments.