Garmin finally adds a camera to its Varia bike radar

For the first time since the launch of the Varia devices seven years ago, a built-in camera has been added to the rearview radar lineup. TheVaria RCT715 makes road cyclists more visible and warns them of approaching vehicles. Bicyclists no longer have to worry about mounting and charging two devices.

The RCT715 is a camera with a 140 degree field of view. Automatic incident detection uses a built-in accelerometer to capture video footage from before, during, and after an incident. Video can be set to record continuously, giving you about four hours of battery life with radar enabled and the red taillight set to a solid high.

Image: Garmin

The taillight is visible from up to a mile away during the day, and the rearview radar will warn riders of approaching vehicles from up to 140 meters away, if they have a compatible watch or the Varia app. When riding mountain switchbacks or isolated stretches of road, those alert can be lifesavers.

The Varia RCT715 is for $399.99. DC Rainmaker and Des Fit are two companies who have complained about false positives on incident detection and buggy software out of the gate.