For their latest iteration of the Synapse, Cannondale has introduced an exciting electronics integration called SmartSense. Rather than strapping on multiple separate electronic devices to your ride after the fact, the 2022 Cannondale Synapse has Garmin Varia radar and Lezyne lights built-in, all running off a single battery—depending on the model that is.
There are quite a few different models for the new Synapse, though only five of them will be offered in the U.S. And of those five, only three of them will get the full SmartSense package. Check out all the models offered here in the states, below.
R-L-E Naming Structure
Not all of the new Synapse models will include the full SmartSense package. To make it easier to know what bikes come with what, Cannondale uses a naming structure that includes the letters R, L, and E. Bikes with ‘R’ in the name will include Radar, ‘L’ denotes lights, and ‘E’ signifies that the bike includes electronic shifting.
U.S. Models & Pricing
Synapse Carbon 1 RLE (Dura Ace Di2) — $9,000
Synapse Carbon LTD RLE (GRX) — $7,000
Synapse Carbon 2 RLE (Ultegra Di2) — $5,500
Synapse Carbon 3L (105) — $3,300
Synapse Carbon 4 (Tiagra) — $2,400
Missed our initial tech post on the new 2022 Cannondale Synapse? Check it out here.
I would have like to understand what happened to the ex-save front and rear concepts, to the split seat-tube… lacking depth of analysis on this presentation.
Now what I can’t get out of my head for the “king” of integration (starting in the late 90s, early 2000) is offering an external battery, not integrated, like a cheap e-bike? really Cannondale you lost me there… we integrate tool-boxes, hydration packs, batteries and could have a very nicely integrated powerbank for lights, GPS, radars…
The battery has such a short relative run time that it needs to be charged every 1-3 rides, making it impractical to imbed it in the frame. This battery is also a key feature of the product. They want it to feature prominently. I suppose they could’ve shaped the cover a little better and color matched it to the bikes but I suspect this tech will find its way to more bike models making that less and less practical with each model. In this case, the integration is not having to charge 3+ batteries to run peripherals.
The additional info you may be looking for is probably in the review article. This is he models/pricing article. I don’t know why they separate them.
Perhaps the most sensible bike Cannondale has made since the aluminum Topstone of 2017.
Strange that they chose to close off the lighting system to external units though. Personally I consider 600 lumens the minimum for an effective front light.
The relatively small battery capacity is also a mild concern given the Varia radar + light’s reputation for eating battery charge…and here it’s powering more things.
I thought that an interesting choice too. Perhaps this was driven by a minimum run time target or that Lezyne doesn’t offer a stronger STVZO (mandatory for German market) certified light at a low enough cost? They’ve probably also found that only a very small minority ride bikes like this in the dark as that mostly (not exclusively) commuter territory, so 350lm would be plenty as a daytime runner.
I’m interested to learn how much power the battery contains.
Update – The other article cites battery capacity @ 3450Mah. That’s a good amount for a front light but maybe it’s spread a little thing between the lights and radar?
Well this is a breath of fresh air!
Coincidentally I’ve recently been scouring the internet for a bike that has:
and I hadn’t been able to find a single example without going fully into gravel frame territory.
Not really interested in the electronics, but otherwise this looks very promising! That metallic blue is really nice too.
Specialized aethos?
no fender mounts and too expensive
Well, well, well…. B?sA threaded bottom brackets… from the folks who pioneered BB30 then BB30A…
all modern cannondales look cheap now
The product narratives have changed or forked. Less system integration (nearly none) on products such as this and the Crux/Aethos. Though there is internal wiring the light/radar/battery is more tacked-on than integrated. The Tiagra price looks like a fair deal – not buying the lights/radar/battery. Buying into better performance doesn’t happen until you spend $7000 or above and get better wheels. A wheel upgrade on the $2400 price would get you a lot of the way towards the same end.
all the frames are the same carbon?