Comparison

Varia™ vs HeartCast

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Varia™

Enhance your cycling safety with real-time alerts for approaching vehicles. This app provides visual and auditory warnings, helping you stay aware of your surroundings. It also allows for video recording and incident detection when paired with compatible radar and camera devices.

Highlights
  • Vehicle proximity alerts
  • Color-coded traffic indicators
  • Tone and vibration notifications
  • Video recording and photo capture
  • Automatic incident recording
  • Headlight and tail light configuration
Read full description

When paired with a compatible Garmin Varia radar device¹, the Varia app has the tools you need to ride with confidence. Using the Varia app, you can: • Be alerted right on your phone when approaching vehicles are within 140 meters behind your bicycle. • View color-coded alerts based on surrounding traffic: Green means you’re all clear, yellow means a vehicle is approaching and red means a vehicle is coming at you quickly and you should take caution. • Receive tone and vibration alerts for approaching vehicles even when you’re not looking at your phone. With a compatible Garmin Varia Radar Camera Tail Light or Garmin Varia Vue Camera Headlight, you can: • Set the camera in the best position for capturing videos and photos. • Record videos or take photos and save them while riding with a simple button press on your phone. • Automatically record videos of incidents and save the video footage with the Incident Recording feature. With a Varia Vue Camera Headlight, you can: • Configure light mode configurations for your headlight. • Add an optional Vault subscription, which automatically backs up your Varia Vue videos and provides easy access in the Varia app for searching, filtering and sharing. By adding the Varia eRTL615 Radar Tail Light for eBikes, you can: • Configure and edit light mode configurations for your tail light. Easy to Use Pairing your Garmin Varia devices with the app is quick and easy. Once you set them up, the Varia app will automatically recognize your devices. Even if you already have a Varia device paired with a compatible Garmin device or head unit, the Varia app provides additional awareness and peace of mind while riding. ¹ Compatible devices are the Varia RearVue 820, Varia RVR315 Rearview Radar, Varia RTL515 Radar Tail Light, Varia RCT715 Radar Camera Tail Light, Varia eRTL615 Radar Tail Light for eBikes and Varia Vue Camera Headlight.

About

HeartCast

Broadcast your Apple Watch heart rate data in real-time to compatible cycling computers using Bluetooth. Offers direct or bridged modes for broad compatibility, with customizable heart rate zones and live updates on your iPhone's Dynamic Island and Lock Screen.

Highlights
  • Broadcast heart rate via BLE
  • Direct and Bridge modes
  • Real-time sync
  • Customizable heart rate zones
  • Dynamic Island & Lock Screen display
  • Privacy-focused local processing
Features
Read full description

BeatCast is a pure software solution that broadcasts real-time heart rate from your Apple Watch to cycling computers via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) — no chest strap needed. Key Features: • Direct Mode: Apple Watch broadcasts BLE heart rate signal directly. Search for "heart-watch" on your bike computer to connect. • Bridge Mode: Watch sends heart rate to iPhone, which broadcasts BLE signal (device name "heart-phone") for broader bike computer compatibility. • Real-time Sync: Watch and iPhone stay in sync via WatchConnectivity. • 5 Heart Rate Zones: Based on the Karvonen HRR formula, with customizable age and resting HR. • Dynamic Island & Lock Screen: Live heart rate, zone name, and connection status at a glance. • Privacy First: All data processed locally on device. No data uploaded to any server. Fully compliant with privacy regulations. Perfect for: • Monitoring heart rate on your bike computer while cycling • Replacing a traditional chest strap with just your Apple Watch • Tracking heart rate zones during indoor training

Screenshots

Varia™4 screens
HeartCast4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: HeartCast at 5.0 against Varia™'s 4.4. HeartCast also leads on update cadence (daily vs every 2 months). Varia™'s advantage is ratings volume (321 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

HeartCast holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Varia™ has 321 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Varia™ ships an update every 2 months, HeartCast daily. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Varia™ versus HeartCast: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVaria™HeartCast
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (321 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings321 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.116.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size160 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGarminSichuan Palm Cloud Technology Co., Ltd.

Customer experience

Varia™

All ratings319 ratings
Positive83.4%
Neutral5.3%
Negative11.3%
Written reviews222 reviews
Positive50.9%
Neutral16.7%
Negative32.4%

HeartCast

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Varia™

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Incompatibility with older Varia models
  • Screen burn-in issues on some phones
  • Unreliable video recording and playback

Requested features

4 requests
  • Apple Watch integration for alerts
  • Customizable alert sounds
  • Ability to control Varia light settings from app
  • More detailed vehicle information (speed, distance, etc.)

HeartCast

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Varia™

No in-app purchases

None

HeartCast

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Varia™ free?
Varia™ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is HeartCast free?
HeartCast is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Varia™ or HeartCast?
HeartCast is rated higher. Varia™ averages 4.4 out of 5 from 321 ratings, while HeartCast averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Varia™ or HeartCast have ads?
Neither Varia™ nor HeartCast shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Varia™ or HeartCast?
Varia™ ships an update every 2 months, and HeartCast daily. Most recently, Varia™ was updated on October 26, 2026 and HeartCast on October 25, 2026.

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