队Packtalk Edge is the most current, up to date motorcycle communication system from the brand. Read all about迈克的第一印象where he goes into detail about his experience with the units. Cardo sent me a pair of these, so I popped one in my helmet and one in my riding buddy’s, and we rode from New Hampshire to New York to Ohio to test them out. You know, like you do.

A little background: I have been a dedicated Sena user since 2011. I’ve owned, installed, and used a whole lot of SMH10 units, and also used a 10C, each for years. Full disclosure: I have no experience with Sena’s mesh communicator offerings. Though I have a Cardo PackTalk (not “bold”) as well. And after a few thousand miles of use, I love the Edge. I’m already plotting a separate on-bike camera, so I don’t miss the 10C too much.

Here’s a quick rundown of my impressions.

The Mount

This might not sound like much to folks who have no experience with their comm unit unexpectedly separating from their helmet, but the strong magnetic mount is glorious. The old Sena SMH10 was famous for popping off its mount with just a little pressure on the top tab. This means they popped off in restaurants, or, if you didn’t get the tab perfectly aligned, on the road.

My 10C’s mounting tab has been broken and glued back together for a long time; I stopped taking it off my helmet because the mount was so questionable.

Not so, the Edge. Hold it kind-of, sort-of close to its mount and WHACK. It’s positively, correctly attached. To remove it, push down on the forward mount tab and slide the unit forward. So easy, and absolutely won’t fall off.

The Speakers

Cardo has been improving their speakers for some time (I have the JBL upgrade kit for my aforementioned Packtalk). This iteration, though, isextra good。我骑buddy Karen is hard of hearing, enough that she wears hearing aids off the bike. While riding, though, she wears earplugs just like I do. For thousands of miles (she on her F70 0GS with a stock windscreen and a Shoei helmet, and me on my Super Ténéré with a tall windscreen and a Bell DLX MIPS helmet), we heard each other just fine. This differs quite a bit from our previous experience (some Sena, some Cardo) where conversation above 50-60mph was iffy at best.

In addition, I found that the speakers were actually more effective with earplugs in. Without earplugs, the wind noise drowned out quite a lot of conversation. With them, though, wind disappeared and voices came through like a bell. I found this to be true while listening to music as well; music comes through so much clearer than I’ve ever experienced, especially with earplugs in. And that last point is a first.

No wind noise comes through the speakers at all, though, even when paired with other, older Cardos. I did not attempt to pair this unit with a non-Cardo. I have tried and failed to get my own Cardo and Sena communicators to talk to each other, so that wasn’t something I was willing to attempt on the road. I’d rather be riding.

Battery Life

Even after a nine-hour ride with breaks (during which I may not have thought to turn the comm off), paired with two other riders, the unit still held a charge. We three ladies on motorcycles chatted the entire time, too, so it wasn’t like we were giving the Cardos a break. About half an hour from our destination, I heard my Edge pipe up with “battery low” warnings. I immediately told my riding buddies, since I am traumatized by Sena’s “battery low” followed immediately by the unit turning off with a curt “goodbye.” Not so, Cardo. It told me the battery was low, but it kept trucking and we kept talking until we parked for the night.

Range

I was also quite impressed with the range on the Edge. Often, Karen and I would ride with folks who didn’t have comms, or had Senas, or preferred not to chat. I led, she’d ride sweep, and she’d let me know if anything was going on back there. There were a couple of times I lost visual contact with her headlight but I could still hear her voice. The comms cut out if she was around a mountain corner, or we were on either side of a hill. Otherwise, trees didn’t seem to bother them much. I’d estimate about half a mile line-of-sight and we were still chatting.

Group Pairing

I got better at group pairing the more I used the unit. This is probably true for all mesh communicators, but I found that the “admin” of the group needs to pair additional people. I wasn’t an admin for a group of five, tried to add a sixth, and got locked out of the group chat for the morning. A reboot fixed the problem.

Nitpicks

First, I wish the light would turn a different color when the unit is done charging. If the light is off, that could either mean it’s done, or I didn’t plug it in correctly in the first place. Next, the charge port cover is a pain to seat. I keep hearing about the importance of making sure that little rubber port cover is absolutely secure, to keep rainwater out, on every comm system. The Edge takes some attention and several tries to seat correctly and not pop back out.

Initial installationwasn’t any better or worse than any other communicator I’ve ever installed, except that Cardo insists on 3.5mm jacks, so that’s a challenge to tuck into a helmet liner.

That all said, after this experience would I drop $400 on one of these? If I was bereft of a single helmet communicator and wanted the best one, I would buy this one, but I would wait for a sale.

As for Karen? She has already told me she loves it so much she’s not giving hers back.