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SRAM Wireless Blips Can Now be Paired w/o Shifters

sram wireless blips on a road bike handlebar
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With the latest update to their AXS smartphone app, the SRAM Wireless Blips can now be paired to your derailleurs without needing a separate primary shifter on the bike.

Previously, the Wireless Blips could only be added to a bike that had either a standard shifter lever (road) or paddle/pod (MTB), or their BlipBox (triathlon/TT). Now, the app will recognize the Wireless Blip buttons on their own, and the only other component required is an AXS rear derailleur to serve as the “parent” component.

sram wireless blips on a triathlon bike handlebar

This opens up easier customization of shifter layouts, particularly for triathlon and TT bikes that previously had to hide a BlipBox somewhere in or on the bike. You can pair up to eight on a single bike, giving you plenty of shift location options.

stoll r1 superlight carbon hardtail 5.9 kg sram etap axs blip shifter

Mountain bikers can also use it to streamline their cockpit, as long as they don’t need it to control the Reverb AXS dropper. The Wireless Blips are still unable to send a continuous signal with a long press, so they won’t work for the dropper or with Multi-shift.

They retail for $99/pair and come with mounting brackets for drop bars. The Wireless Blips are not rechargeable and need to be recycled with other electronics when they stop working. SRAM estimates their battery life at up to two years, with more frequent riders likely getting a little over a year out of them.

SRAM.com

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31 Comments
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Alex
Alex
1 month ago

Wait a minute! I can can now set my road bike like Mavic ZAP now?

B Barber
B Barber
1 month ago
Reply to  Alex

Zap?! The memories and horrors of setting that up. Had a customer who had that set up and man, that shit sucked

Alex
Alex
1 month ago
Reply to  B Barber

Yeah I remember but I can use rim brakes and old school brake levers with ASX derailleurs now and put the blips on the bar tops and on the drops?

Dan
Dan
1 month ago

This is huge! So many options now and what it should have always been!

seraph
1 month ago

Least they could do is make the batteries able to be replaced. Make it a CR2032. Also they need to make the whole unit curved so it fits better underneath bar tape. My co-worker has them on his Diverge and they sit so awkwardly underneath his tape.

Veganpotter
Veganpotter
1 month ago
Reply to  seraph

While you need to be careful, you can replace the battery in your blips. My old roommate did it a couple times before he broke them taking it apart. He’s also an electrical engineer and used to doing things like that. But after watching him, I’d be willing to try it if I used blips. Not much to lose since you’re expecting to not have functional blips anyway. My big issue with blips as that most people very likely just throw them in the trash when they stop working

tech9
tech9
1 month ago
Reply to  seraph

@seraph exactly! Exactly to both of your points. Why they didn’t make the battery replaceable on these is a huge oversight. Also them not being curved a little does kind of stink. LeapComponants has some great mounts for these for various bikes (mostly mtb). Just going to give you a real heads up.. The battery life on these if you use them as dedicated shifters vs. an axs paddle is about 1-2months at best on a mtb. If it was two years (as they claim) it would be fine, but at the price of them and how fast they drain the battery if you use them as the primary shifter, it’s basically a show stopper. Really stinks because it would be so clean and nice to have these as a legit solution for longer than 2months.

Owen
Owen
1 month ago
Reply to  tech9

You think it’s an oversight?

Edge
Edge
1 month ago
Reply to  seraph

Absolutely, this does not need to be a throwaway product. I think this is a fantastic improvement but personally would not spend my money until there is a replaceable or rechargeable product.

Veganpotter
Veganpotter
1 month ago

Pretty hilarious that this was never an option before. They were always capable of doing this and SRAM knew it.
*I have a mountain bike AXS shifter on my TT extensions solely because I didn’t want a blip box.

Exodux
1 month ago

I’ve been thinking about this for a while now but my dreams got squashed when I found out they would only last maybe two years ( mostly likely shorter). This is a direction I wish Sram would take, but with a replaceable battery.

Rim Brake enjoyer
Rim Brake enjoyer
1 month ago

Nice. Brake levers are not aerodynamic so I’ll be able to ditch those bulky shifters for this. Can’t wait to win the Masters 51-53 criterium race this Sunday. You think I should wear a normal hat or a sombrero on the podium?

Steel ftw
Steel ftw
1 month ago

Sombrero for sure

Rim Brake enjoyer
Rim Brake enjoyer
1 month ago
Reply to  Steel ftw

I wore a team hat with the 75 different sponsors that are on our masters team kit.

Mr Pink
Mr Pink
1 month ago

At that price point and only a 2 year battery life and the battery isn’t replaceable this is perhaps sram’s biggest failure and one of the biggest industry screwups. It’s a bad precedent for the industry. SRAM knows better and this shouldn’t be considered “innovation” it’s lazy engineering and irresponsible product development.

A pity. This looked great. Initially but alas it’s a terrible waste of money unless someone figures out a way to replace the battery.

C’mon Bikerumor. YOU know better too. You should be calling this poor design out.

Bumscag
Bumscag
1 month ago
Reply to  Mr Pink

LOL @ expecting BR to say anything negative about one of their advertisers’ products.

Raoulign
Raoulign
1 month ago
Reply to  Mr Pink

Not sure how this actually fits with the right to repair in Germany?

Tim
Tim
1 month ago

Yet another sustainability fail from SRAM. And so obviously stupid. Adding a replaceable or rechargeable battery should be table stakes for bike electronics by now. Was thinking these would be a nice addition to my AXS setup. Now – hard pass.

Lu Is
Lu Is
1 month ago

it’s not april 1st yet!

Ti473
Ti473
1 month ago

To me the biggest shortcoming is that they can’t do multi shift.

David
1 month ago

Hard pass

Ted
Ted
1 month ago

Like others I reiterate the non replaceable battery is STUPID. Sram is polluting the planet for greed.

Antoine Martin
Antoine Martin
1 month ago

That will look good with your sram power meter with non replaceable rings.

Chris
Chris
1 month ago

I have a gravel bike with Force AXS. I prefer the Shimano hood shape and brakes. I might buy di2 GRX brakes and calipers and use the blips to shift. Crazy or no?

Seán O'B
Seán O'B
1 month ago
Reply to  Chris

That’s what I’ve been doing, but with TRP Hylex brakes. While the non-rechargeable, non-replaceable batteries rubbed me the wrong way, SRAM claimed 4-7 years life, which seemed within the bounds of reason. I’ve been using a pair for 18 months and the AXS app still indicates the battery level is fine. My wife, on the other hand, got an apparently faulty pair. They died within a few months with very little use, but SRAM did replace them.

Daniel
Daniel
1 month ago
Reply to  Chris

That’s my current setup. I’ve place the blips on the inside of the drops just below the rubber cover of the hoods. That way I can reach the blips from the drop bars and from the hoods with my thumb.

NegativeYoda
NegativeYoda
1 month ago
Reply to  Chris

If the hood shapes weren’t so ridiculously long, this would actually be a nice work around to run TRP Hylex brakes

Rob
Rob
1 month ago
Reply to  Chris

Planning on doing exactly this, will actually integrate it into the Shimano shift levers but either way I like the idea of shimano shifters/brakes with 12 speed wireless.

Raoulign
Raoulign
1 month ago

This would be super nice for running cable brakes and nice alloy brake levers, super light as well

bobo
bobo
1 month ago
Reply to  Raoulign

yes, I’m planning to run this on my cross-check CX/winter SS flatbar convertible.

Daniel
Daniel
1 month ago

That is news? I’ve been running wireless blips without a shifter since October ’23. (Back then) you need(ed) the shifter for the initial pairing, but after that they work independently with the derailleur.

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