SRAM has just announced its acquisition of the PowerTap line of power meters from Saris, which includes the P2 pedal power meter and G3 hub power meter which it plans to merge into its range alongside the Quarq and Zero power meters.
The news comes as a surprise. We don’t know if Saris has been wanting to offload its power meters or if SRAM was really desperate for a pedal-based power meter to compete with rival systems on the market and to broaden its power meter offerings. It could be a great move for PowerTap, as the power meter market grows in competition aligning itself with one of the biggest component brands will ensure its future survival and should mean more investment in product development.
The announcement states that all sales, support and service will continue without interruption during this transition period. We’ve dropped the UK distributor Raleigh a line this morning to see what will happen with UK sales and support - we’re currently testing the new P2 pedals which replaced the original P1 pedals, a dual-sided pedal-based power meter.
“Way back in 2006 when I started Quarq, PowerTap was the dominant power meter solution. The accuracy and durability of PowerTap hubs were the standard of power meter performance and set a high bar for us to meet,” says Quarq founder Jim Meyer. “It’s very exciting to now bring PowerTap products into the SRAM/Quarq product family. The future product opportunities are enormous.”
“We are proud of our accomplishments in the power meter sector,” Saris President and COO, Jeff Frehner, said. “We took a product category exclusively available to pros and made it accessible to all athletes looking to reach their highest potential. Today marks the start of a new generation of Saris. While PowerTap is leaving the Saris portfolio, we are excited to grow our product offerings across current and future categories.”
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David has worked on the road.cc tech team since July 2012. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds.