How does Shimano Di2 Actually Work?| Electronic Shifting 101

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can you explain price of the battery ~150-200 eur?? (for 2 cells, worth few quid and housing....)

if the battery is dead , can gears be change manually?

I suppose electronic control was inevitable and will become ubiquitous and I'd love to try it, but the thought of a bicycle that won't work without a battery just seems wrong.

Why does Shimano use wires instead of wireless communication?

What about longevity of electronic derailleurs vs mechanical derailleurs? How many miles would electronic derailleur last until needing to be replaced ?

What's the point of having everything cabled when you could have all components connected wirelessly?

I'm still using friction shifters

Are cables ever used in professional races anymore? Thanks.

YOU STILL HAVE NOT SHOWN HOW THE SHIFTING ACTUALLY WORKS FROM THE LEVERS !!! DO THEY WORK THE SAME AS MECHANICAL OR NOT ??

Love that Alex goes all the way down to bin explaining how di2 works lol

This is great, Alex. Very interesting and well done.

Global Cycling Network written in binary.. nice 👍 The heavy lifting of coding, though, is done in hexadecimal.. which is even cooler than binary!

real men use mechanical

Are there di2 compatible systems for a tri bike that only has shifters on the end of the aero bar?

Not quite true the connector on the end of the gearbox shifter is a diffrent size

Quick install

Joe Brandon wants to shut your bike ride down if your ESG score isn't high enough. Can't shift if you can't charge your battery. These are a horrible idea.

I thought this was done wireless

Always prefer mechanical group sets; a fan of Campagnolo mechanical sets

there are 2 different sizes of DI2 connectors.

I thought it was wireless. Wow. So many wires. How fucking pointless

Can this tow a child carriage?

Two bike in the garage. One with, and one without Di2. Both are very nice to ride with...

Hello, i have a simplon E-Bike from 2017 with e8000 DU and XT di2, is it possible to do Shift automatically (Like s1 or s2 Mode), or is it only an electric shifter but not Automatic Mode?

For a wireless system I sure see a lot of wires .

I’m considering an upgrade of my current Ultegra 11spd. Mech to the 11 spd di2 but thinking about the wireless 12spd seems like such a fun aspect.

Omg just make it complicated to bump up the price ffs

Who else is watching this now 105 Di2 has been announced?

Why would I use electric if I still do have a cable?

I don't race bikes any more, spend all my days on computers and/or fixing electronics. Was a bit suspicious of electronic gear shift at first, but honestly I think it's superb, have seen the electronics inside the housings (trust me it's very hard to get at for good reason) and I would be confident in saying that what Shimano has invented is near infallible. It's great that the connectors are all interchangable and wires are 2 core (these are maybe the only bits that might get broken easily and bieng this way are easy to fix and replace) Thankyou for such a great series of videos on Di2

How long does the battery last for? Maybe not ideal for touring/adventure bikes

Just out of curiosity; does anyone from the GCN staff still use mechanical shifting?

I absolutely hate this trend to electronic shifting

What would happen if the battery failed mid-ride, I guess it’d mean riding home in the same gear I was in when it failed?

I though it is bluetooth, would have made the world easier and cross compatible

As the prices come down I am more likely to adapt to the Di2 system on my bike from a mechanical Ultegra system. I like the idea that the derailleurs won't get out of adjustment due to cables getting old and make shifting a little more secure. It is not a good time when my chain falls off the big ring when I shift up on the front derailleur, which happens no matter how much adjusting I do to it.

Can the battery still fit if you use a dropper post?

Too many dang wires. Why not wireless like SRAM?

Sram is much better and simpler

hi, will a di2 10 speed rear derailleur work on a 11 speed cassette if the shifters are changed to 11 speed ones? thanks heaps !

Um that don’t look wireless to me

sram etap is wireless, so much more easy to install and setup and doesn't require any wire.

How about the upcoming wireless Di2 or SRAM etap? I am still not sure how well wireless will do, I mean I have concerns on loss of signals or interference. If you are out in a group ride and everyone has wireless, will there be any issue?

Im a new rider and I did not know that the bicycle I ordered online comes with an electric shifter. Having seen this video made me aware how it works. Thank you! I still have not decided wether I should stick to electronic shifter or go back to manual. I will update my post in 25 days after I rode my Grizl enough.

i have always wondered which cables goes where and which junction box needs to be installed. Thanks for confirming that it doesn’t matter. To simplify things even further the Di2 system and its wirings are just like a municipal water distribution and its piping.

If I dont have arthrritis in my hand, what for I need this ?