Canadian brand 4iiii launched a new set of power meters at Interbike with the Precision Podiiiium. The crank-mounted meters start at $399 for single-sided Shimano Ultegra, and feature a USB-rechargeable battery instead of a coin-cell battery, plus indicator LEDs and ANT+/Bluetooth transmission.
Like Stages, 4iiii has a family of power meters that use strain gauges on the inside of the crank arms.
4iiii beat Stages to the dual-sided measurement with its original Precision Pro, which ProTour teams Bora-Hansgrohe and Quick Step were racing with this year.
The new Precision Podiiiium features both a slimmer pod on the left crank (down to a claimed 7.5mm from 8.2mm) and a hidden pod on the drivetrain arm. The dual Precision Pro has a small pod that peaks out between the chainrings.
With the new Precision Podiiiium, 4iiii went away from the coin-cell battery design, which the company said reduces the chance of users damaging the meter accidentally. While the old design was claimed to be water-resistant, that was dependent on the coil-cell battery being replaced without damaging the rubber washer. The new system uses a micro USB cable, much like a Garmin computer.
Speaking of Garmin computers, the 4iiii meters work on both ANT+ and Bluetooth, and therefore are compatible with high-end computer and smartphones.
4iiii claims the battery will last 60 hours. There is an indicator LED that flashes green when pairing, and red when the battery needs to be recharged.
4iiii sells its meters in two ways. The 'factory install' option means you send the company your crank or crankset, a meter or meters are installed, and then 4iiii returns the product to you. The single-side factory install is the cheapest option at $399 for a Shimano Ultegra crank. UK and AU pricing was not immediately available.
Then there is what 4iiii calls 'ride ready', which means a pre-installed meter on a crank or meters on a crankset. The Shimano Ultegra Precision Podiiiium crankset is $999, and the Dura-Ace model will be more.
4iiii Precision Podiiiium meters will be available early next year for Shimano Dura-Ace 9100, Ultegra 8000 and Ultegra 6800. Cannondale and Campagnolo models are in the works, the company said.
