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Brief Sure, the idea isn't new, but until now any previous attempts at some sort of heads up display proved to be more of a burden then something a rider could really use. For the system to work it would need to be wireless, small and devoid of any and all operating annoyances that would take away from the benefits such a system would provide. Sportvue has really done their homework as this MC2 unit proves that with a little bit of ingenuity, a true heads up system could be useful for any and all streetbikers. Overview I've been interested in this system for some time now and after seeing their booth last year at Laguna Seca, I decided to give them a try. I was pretty skeptical if this type of system would prove useful for todays street rider. Sure, all the gadget geeks will fall in love with this thing on sight, but what advantages does this system have for the rider looking for that little something to strengthen his riding experience? The MC2 unit displays your speed, gear, RPM and a programmable shift indicator. The RPM appears as a bar across the top of the display. The shift indicators appear on the left and right. The unit also has a radar detector option, but I currently don't use a detector so I have yet to see how it works. Unfortunately I was unable to obtain a radar detector for use in my review. Details I have to admit that when I received this unit it sat in the garage for some time before I attempted the install. After reading the installation instructions, I was more than a little reluctant to begin the seemingly ambitious install process. Well, due to a lengthy winter and an abundance of weekends where I found myself stuck indoors, I realized that it was about time I bit the bullet and give the install a try. To my surprise the installation was much more simple than I thought. Just make sure you take your time and follow the instructions. I've always found it best to read though the entire instruction booklet before beginning, that way you won't be surprised when you turn the next page. The Sportvue site has a lot of very good information about the installation procedure and the best places to hook it up the sensor and mount the base unit to your bike. Among other things you will need to mount the speed sensor to the rear tire and swing arm. This gives a pretty accurate speed reading as that will not change if you change the bike's gear ratio. The most noticeable element of the system is the Head-Mounted Display (HMD). You'll need to permanently mount a clip to your visor which will hold the removable HMD. After a few adjustments the LCD screen is easily viewable in all lighting conditions. I had no problems viewing the screen during the brightest days and the darkest nights. Even a dark smoked visor doesn't prevent the LEDS from doing their thing. You'll find three different brightness settings that are perfect for bright sunny days, early morning or late evening riding, or even at night as the unit has a very dim setting that doesn't blind you when riding during those hours of darkness. Battery life is pretty good and a fresh set of alkalines will get you through at least a handful of good day rides. The battery case is the only flaw in the HMD, as I find it hard to keep it on the unit. Many times I have found it on the ground or loose in my tank bag when storing it there. I've even thought I had lost it once but was please to find it laying around my buddies shop. It seems that when I switch the unit on while wearing my riding gloves, I tend to catch the little latch that holds the cover in place. You'll just need to be a little cautious and make sure that the battery cover is secure before taking to the streets. With the unit mounted on the shield, you can still move the shield up and down within its full operating range. The only problem is if you raise the visor too high, obviously you will no longer be able to see the display. You don't need to worry about the thing flying off. I can personally attest to speeds greatly exceeding the triple digit mark and the thing didn't budge an inch. Also, it didn't suffer from any noticeable vibrations or wind noises at any speed. I did find that the gear indicator calibration process was a little difficult to get right. After reading the instructs again and again I finally noticed that I needed to keep a steady throttle roll which proved important during the training process. I found this was most easily done by finding a nice long stretch of road to run the process. After a few test runs I finally got the indicator to read pretty accurately. I never thought much about using a radar detector on the bike because I didn't think I'd be able to see the radar units display in order to effectively heed its alerts. I can definitely see how using a radar detector with the Sportvue heads up display unit would greatly help visualize the radar alerts. I do plan on trying it out as soon as I can get a radar detector that will easily mount to the bike as we all know weren't not angels out there and even the most conscientious rider has felt the need for speed at least once. )
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The bottom line is, I found this unit works great and I liked the fact that I can keep my head up and view the screen rather than dip my head down to the gauges. At first I didn't think I would use it much on my more spirited rides but after the first time through our beautiful mountain curves, I found it pretty cool that I was able to see the speed without moving my head. Something that I've never been able to do before as I was more concerned with watching the road and did not want to look down at the speedo. I quickly found that I became very dependant on the unit. Not so much needing it when it was there but knowing quite well that it wasn't during the few times I rode without it. All in all it's a pretty cool system. If you can get passed the big heads up display unit sticking to your visor, I think that you'll find the unit is pretty useful for all day to day riding.
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