Despite their continued insistence that left-side only power meters will meet the needs of most cyclists and triathletes, Stages Power recognizes that some athletes want the data and metrics of bi-lateral (dual side) systems as well. With this Stages Power R Dura-Ace R9100 Drive-Side Meter you have two options. First you can run this Gen 3 drive-side meter as a single-side unit, or combine with with an existing left side Gen 3 meter for a dual sided system. As each side pairs to most BLE and ANT+ head units directly these days, you can determine the set-up for you, and have options moving forward should you buy or own just a left side meter now. As this right side unit now comes with chainrings out of the box, you can set-up and rolling quickly.

Why measure power at all? Power measurement gives you a clear representation of effort and output that is consistent. Knowledge of power data allows you to exploit your strengths, improve your weaknesses, and plan crucial recovery. Single side meters can accomplish this but it is true that there are cyclists, most at the highest levels of the sport or those with injury recovery, who can truly benefit from accurate individual leg and spin cycle measurement. The key for Stages is their engineers found through thousands of miles of testing research that power differential between legs has no significant influence on ride data and its value as a training tool. This helps to significantly reduce complexity and cost while providing power measurement with 1.5 % +/- accuracy. Dual side metrics do give you more granular data and with the proper analyzation tools, can help you understand both sides of the your pedaling action to see where your fit, strength imbalances, etc, can be improved

Just install your new R9100 drive-side unit as specified by Shimano. No magnets, zipties, sensors or additional hardware required. The head unit pairing and Zero calibration tasks are just as simple. The Stages unit is equipped with an accelerometer that tracks crank position during rotation to calculate cadence. It sends the cadence and power information to your connected devices. Truly simple. The Stages self-contained pod means that from installation of the power meter to riding generally takes about 10 minutes. Install, pair the power meter via Bluetooth to your smartphone, or an ANT+/BLE compatible head unit, Zero calibrate, go ride. Easy. Stages even provides excellent instructions and support through their website.

It is crucial for accurate training and analysis that the meter be consistent to itself, that the rider can quickly and easily set Zero calibration at the start of every ride, and that temperature is always accounted for. Stages constantly corrects for temperature via Active Temperature Compensation (ATC) which takes place automatically and continuously while you pedal, allowing you to simply ride and use utilize your data without worrying about manual adjustments and accuracy is much better over many of it's competitors (whose units don't auto correct, or do so with far less frequency) whenever there is a significant change in temperature during a ride. Temperature can seriously affect the strain gage systems used to measure power, to the point where a long climb in the mountains during which weather and temperatures can greatly fluctuate, uncorrected data is nearly worthless.

The location of the meter pod on the arm/spider is crucial, as the arm and pod are then tested and calibrated together as a unit to ensure that the strain gages and sensors are working optimally with the specific crank arm. The pod itself is made of an incredibly strong polycarbonate blend that is similar material to that used in bulletproof glass. This material is perfect due to its light weight, superior durability and impact protection. Additionally, the Stages Power meter is highly sealed against environmental conditions, and carries an IPX7 water resistance rating, which means it can be submerged in water up to 1 meter for a maximum of 30 minutes.

It was crucial to Stages to make their power meter efficient, as well as keep their firmware updated. This version of the Stages Power Meter is their Gen3 pod, which is more streamlined than the original model (allowing for more crank arm and frame compatibility) and has much better radio antenna technology, to the tune of 6x better then Gen 2. There are greater communication options for sport and fitness watches and wearables. The battery compartment and door were improved and strengthened. It is easy to change the battery, a coin-style, readily available CR2032 model. Each CR2032 delivers 200+ hours of power to the unit. The StagesPOWER App also keeps track of the battery level, so you can be prepared. Firmware is updated via this smartphone app as well. Stages regularly advances their firmware and app to reflect new features and updates. The app is user friendly and will become your best friend as you manage your power meter, allowing for direct updates to Training Peaks, Strava, Garmin Training Center and other cloud-based training systems.