It feels like there are exciting things happening every year these days, but 2024 was an especially big year for new tech in the bike world. From new SRAM brakes and drivetrains to big volume tires and helmet safety tech, there was a lot to like this year. Keep reading to get stuck in.
SRAM
Some of the most exciting tech this year came from SRAM in the way of their new Maven mountain bike brakes, and their RED AXS road and RED AXS XPLR gravel groupsets.
Maven Brakes
Released in February, the Mavens mark a new era in braking power. Using a huge caliper to house massive pistons, as well as harness heat in a positive way, keeping the braking surfaces warm and therefore efficient. All this makes for a giant step up in braking power and control, making the Mavens some of the most powerful brakes we've tested, now available at price point us mere mortals can afford, and coming stock on a plethora of bikes.
RED AXS
SRAM also launched two new RED groupsets: RED AXS for road, and RED AXS XPLR for gravel. The centerpiece of the RED E1 groupset is the brakes - with a redesigned ultra-lightweight caliper and a totally reshaped lever, it creates effortless braking, with a super ergonomic hood shape. RED AXS being the lightest electronic road group ever with improved shifting is just the cherry on top.
RED AXS XPLR
RED AXS XPLR brings SRAM's full-mount derailleur technology to the gravel world, combining incredible resilience with smooth, crisp, shifting. A 13-speed cassette enables wide-range gravel gearing, with tight ratios, and mountain bike inspired chain retention on a single chainring. In short, it's the 1x gravel bike groupset we've all been waiting for.
Computers
Hammerhead Karoo
SRAM launched the new Hammerhead Karoo computer as part of their RED AXS launch earlier this year. Any brand launching a computer than genuinely competes with Garmin is a good thing in our books, since the big G has had the market cornered for so long. The new Karoo got a gamut of hardware upgrades including a brighter screen, increased storage, increased RAM, increased processor speed and more. DC Rainmaker said Hammerhead is "one of the few competitor brands to Garmin to actually make it over the hump from ‘cute startup’ to a very legit competitor"
Garmin Edge 1050
Garmin's flagship cycling computer, the Edge 1050, gets some big updates for 2024, most notably a high resolution LCD display to rival most smartphones, and a built in ultra-loud bike bell. Other features include realtime road hazards, in-ride messaging, live locations and incident reports for group rides, and more. Mostly, the 1050 adds the brilliant and responsive display to what was already a stellar cycling computer.
Wahoo ELEMNT ACE
Wahoo's ELEMNT ACE just launched towards the end of the year, a few months prematurely thanks to internet leaks spoiling the surprise. While it might be true that the software wasn't exactly ready at the time of launch, the ELEMNT ACE boasts an impressive feature set including one of the biggest screens on the market, super detailed maps, huge battery life, and a wind sensor for aero intel. We're sure software updates will come thick and fast, making their flagship computer one of the best out there, and at $100 less than Garmin's flagship offering, it's hard to ignore.
Tires
Pirelli PZero Race TLR 40c
Tire tech is often overlooked, but it's still tech. Tires have come a long way in recent years, and combined with other innovations such as disc brakes, frame materials, rim materials and tubeless tech, we now can have our cake and eat it too. The Pirelli PZero Race TLR 40c tires released earlier this year combine the benefits of a fast-rolling race tire, with comfortable, high-volume rubber. We love it.
Schwalbe Radial Tires
Schwalbe completely re-engineered their tire casing for their new radial gravity mountain bike tires. Essentially changing the angle of the threads in the casing, it changes the way loads are distributed through the tire, meaning the casing can be much more compliant. This in-turn means a smoother, more supple ride, with increased puncture resistance and greatly improved grip thanks to a larger contact patch. The only trade off? Rolling resistance. Schwalbe's radial tires are aimed at the gravity crowd then, but could be a game changer. Coming stock on bikes like the Heckler SL Stout kit, they could be the next best tires for 2025. Look for this casing on the Albert, Shredda, and Magic Mary.
Trainers With Movement
Indoor trainers are an excellent tool for staying in shape through the colder months, and can be great for structured workouts, but they're not the most dynamic or exciting way of training, so we'll take all we can get to improve things. The latest innovation in the indoor training world is trainers with movement, such as the Tacx Neo 3M, and the Wahoo Kickr Move, building in fore-aft motion, for a more realistic indoor training experience, particularly when getting in and out of the saddle.
Smith Optics and Aleck Crash Sensor
Smith quietly released a selection of helmets with the Aleck Crash Sensor earlier this year. Integrated into the Forefront 2, Payroll, Trace, and Triad, the Aleck Crash Sensor can detect a crash, and sends a notification to your emergency contact. It's rechargeable, and pairs wirelessly with the Aleck phone app, sharing your GPS location in the event of a crash, and also can send a notification if you don't return to cell service within a set amount of time, for those backcountry adventurers.
Ebike Tech
New Gen 5 Bosch CX Motor
While it's not a game changer, the new gen-5 Bosch Performance Line CX motor brings some welcome changes to the system, including decoupling the freewheel whule coasting, and reducing drive noise, dramatically lowering decibels overall for a quiet ride. The motor casing drops 100g, and the new PowerTube batteries pack in more energy density, dropping more weight here, bringing full-power weight closer to mid-power bikes. Specced on the new Santa Cruz Vala, we're excited about this new Bosch drive unit.
Dyname S4 Lite
Rocky Mountain's new Dyname S4 Lite launched alongside their new Instinct Powerplay SL mid-power bike this fall. Packing 65Nm torque and 550W peak power, the Dyname S4 Lite is 30% lighter than their full-power system, but doesn't drop 30% of the power, closing the gap between full and mid-power. Check out the Instinct Powerplay SL here.
Fox Live Valve Neo
Fox's previous generation of Live Valve launched back in 2018, receiving an update in 2022, and it would be kind to say that it was ahead of its time. If we wanted to be a bit more pointed, we might say that it was overly complex, and a little messy looking, thanks to all the wires, sensors, and batteries. Thankfully, Fox's newest version of Live Valve - Neo, goes fully wireless, with better integrated sensors, and fewer components. Moving sensors to the brake mounts, integrating the main battery into the shock and doing away with the electronically controlled fork damper entirely, Neo simplifies Live Valve, while making it more descent-focussed unlocking some subtle but important performance gains.
