| GPS Reviews : Running GPS |
 | Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor
Bang for your buck! -- 2010-09-07
I bought this initially for my gf but I'm the one who's actually enjoying it since she is taking a sabbatical on running due to an injury. So I love it because I am able to upload the stats online and see how my performance went and how I improved.
I would recommend it highly to those who want the stats. It is very user-friendly. I didn't even read the manual to set it up.
Before I bought this item, I bought the Polar RS300X G1 and it was too much of a hassle to go through the manual. I bought all the accessories so my gf can use it and she gave up on it. So I bought her this. The Polar is still in the box unused.
The only thing I noticed is that the battery does not last that long. I used it once after a 30 min. run and my gf used it the next day and it said low batt. So I guess I have to charge it when I plug it in the USB.
Love my ForeRunner -- 2010-09-06
I got my Forerunner as a Mother's Day present. I use it while biking and running (I do triathlons) and love the device. This has been a fantastic addition to my training tools. I have a Polar HRM, and I use it during the triathlons since it can stand going into and out of the water. The Garmin 305 is not welcome in the water, but on dry land it is terrific. The data is lovely, the ability to customize the display to bring the information I want to the front for each activity is also delightful. I had to do a soft reset the other day, and it was easy to get the steps to do this on the internet.
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 | Garmin Forerunner 405CX GPS Sport Watch with Heart Rate Monitor (Blue)
How can you not love this watch? -- 2010-09-05
I read both the good and bad reviews for this watch and realized that all of the gps watches 'appeared' to have shortcomings here or there. Shortcomings supposedly included accuracy, problems with the touch bezel and how long the battery lasted. But I went ahead and purchased this watch about a month ago, and couldn't be happier. I work out before work 4-5 times a week in the morning, and also follow up with a recreational walk/jog in the afternoon a couple of times a week. I found this watch very easy to set up, both using the menu on the watch as well as the software included with the watch. Measurement of distance and heart rate monitoring were very accurate. And after completing a 45 minute jog, the battery life was only down 7-8% consistently.
Another benefit of this watch is the software included with the watch. When I finish with my workout, and set the watch on my desk next to my computer, it will automatically upload the session data and display the workout summary. You can also see a history of your workout, which includes your minute-by-minute heart rate, pace and distance traveled. You can also upload the info to connect.[...]with the push of button and share the info with your friends.
I really love this watch and feel it is well worth the price. I works great and is feature rich in options. Garmin has done a great job with this watch!
A must have -- 2010-08-24
I should have bought one a year ago, perfect training tool! The quick start guide that comes with it leaves little to be desired when it comes to actual functions...make sure you have a friend who has one. But once you learn how to use it, its easy. Love being able to track the data on Garmin's website, love it! Its a must have for a person doing any training, cant be without it.
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 | Garmin Forerunner 405 Water Resistant Running GPS With USB ANT Stick (Black)
garmin 405 -- 2010-09-03
very nice unit, just a couple of minor issues. in the training mode i wish you had the ability to choose which data field was displayed in large font. the bezel is rather sensitive but i quickly got used to it and found that if you're going to be doing itervals and recording laps it's best to lock out the bezel so that you don't inadvertently switch modes. other than that i'm very happy with the unit and would purchase another.
Unbeatable!!! -- 2010-06-13
For runners there is nothing like Garmin Forerunner 405 or 405CX. Unbeatable precision with a wide range of software resources to program and execute all your training plan.
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 | Forerunner 110 W/HRM Pink 000 by Garmin
Love it! -- 2010-08-29
My husband surprised me with this after months of listening to me debate as to whether it was worth the expense. Am I glad he did! I used it today for the first time and clocked my longest run ever. It was super easy to set up and use; I barely read the instruction manual. Once I got outside, it took about 45 seconds to find a satellite and I was off. With just the push of one button, it tracks time, distance and average pace per mile VERY accurately. Plus, it was a hot, overcast day and it did not drop the satellite connection once. Once I was finished, I connected it to my computer and uploaded the run data to Garmin's website. There, I could see all the details of the run, including calories burned. I am in love with this device! My only caveat is that I wish I could program it for intervals. Even though this is a "basic" GPS watch, Garmin should have really included that feature. That's the only reason this isn't a 5-star review. One final note: those who have very small wrists (like me!) will be thrilled to know that the watch fits well and doesn't look like you've got a computer on your arm.
Garmin ForeRunner 110 -- 2010-08-21
Have used it twice & loved it. Very easy to use & upload info on garmin's website.
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 | Forerunner 110 W/HRM Red 000 by Garmin
Love it! -- 2010-08-29
My husband surprised me with this after months of listening to me debate as to whether it was worth the expense. Am I glad he did! I used it today for the first time and clocked my longest run ever. It was super easy to set up and use; I barely read the instruction manual. Once I got outside, it took about 45 seconds to find a satellite and I was off. With just the push of one button, it tracks time, distance and average pace per mile VERY accurately. Plus, it was a hot, overcast day and it did not drop the satellite connection once. Once I was finished, I connected it to my computer and uploaded the run data to Garmin's website. There, I could see all the details of the run, including calories burned. I am in love with this device! My only caveat is that I wish I could program it for intervals. Even though this is a "basic" GPS watch, Garmin should have really included that feature. That's the only reason this isn't a 5-star review. One final note: those who have very small wrists (like me!) will be thrilled to know that the watch fits well and doesn't look like you've got a computer on your arm.
Garmin ForeRunner 110 -- 2010-08-21
Have used it twice & loved it. Very easy to use & upload info on garmin's website.
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 | Garmin Forerunner 310XT Waterproof Running GPS With Heart Rate Monitor
Best Triathlete GPS available -- 2010-09-03
... of course it is also the only one that many people can use throughout a full triathlon. Overall, I think this is an excellent product, but I agree with some of the others here that Garmin hides the ball somewhat in its marketing/advertising.
First, this is the only waterproof GPS watch that I've seen and it also has the battery power to get you through a full Ironman. As such, I can put it on my wrist and not worry about it until the end of a race (with the exception of hitting the lap button to change events/transitions). The multi-sport function that lets you set up the watch for triathlons, duathlons, brick workouts, etc. with or without transitions is fantastic. For me, this makes it great and the best solution available.
I do find the distance calculations for swimming absolutely ridiculous. As far as I can tell, swinging your arms for every stroke is what throws the watch off so much... interesting that it seems to be a problem based on it being too accurate. I've done a 3000 yd pool swim to find a claimed distance of over 3.2 miles. I do think Garmin should include a "Swim" function that just turns off the gps if they can't figure out a way to combat this problem... generally you know your distance in a pool or in a race, so the biggest interest (at least for me) is the timing of the swim.
Someone here said that biking with it on his/her wrist doesn't work, and I have never run into an issue with that at all. I find it works perfectly during biking, running, hiking, etc.
I will say that the price here seems too high. I've seen it for less.
Overall a very good product that people just need to understand has some limitations.
Amazing Training Tool! -- 2010-09-01
I have had my unit for less than 24 hours - In the first 15 minutes I easily setup up the watch & paired the heart rate monitor. After work, I went running with the new Forerunner unit. It was EASY to use and READ throughout my run. Early this morning I setup the ANT+ which easiliy paired with the unit. I uploaded the history and route to the [...] website with a simple click. Then I stared in amazement at the recorded details of my run with pace, elevation changes, the exact route, HR zones, etc. I can highly recomment this product! Now that I have this excellent technology, the only hard part that remains is the work of actually burning up the trails!
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 | Garmin FR60 Women's Lilac Fitness Watch (Includes Heart Rate Monitor and USB ANT Stick)
Very useful -- 2010-09-06
I've had this item for about a month now. One difficulty is getting it to change modes after I haven't used it for a full day.
Once I get it into the correct mod=e it is great and easy to use.
I do use the upload feature at New Leaf where the work out is broken down by times in zone and also how many total calories as well as fat calories were burned. I have felt very motivated by this device.
Amazing! -- 2010-09-04
I thought about this a lot. I read probably 100 reviews of all the GPS trainers and this watch. I am incredibly happy. I run and I row. I wanted an accurate pace and heart rate for zone training. This watch has been perfect. The calibration was important for me. I ran un-calibrated and it was probably 30 meters off over 800. Not bad but after calibration it is scary accurate. Over a mile it was within 3 feet. You can also find some great information from dcrainmakers blog but he did a 7 mile cross country run and the 310xt and fr60 had the exact same distance. So I don't know why people had problems with accuracy. I think it might be they didn't calibrate or didn't do it correctly. I could also be that the pod was not in the laces tight enough. I don't think I lost any accuracy from not getting the GPS watch or if I did the ability to use a treadmill is ample compensation. Ok so I thought about how cool it would be to see where I went on the map from a GPS watch, but I don't really care. I'm looking to improve my run from the data. I'm not going to show my kids one day that I ran down the same beach a thousand times. Who cares. The other big benefit is realtime pace. It seams spot on. I really need to know how fast I'm going so I can predict whats going to happen to my HR. From using this I've really been able to see things and train in ways I never could have before.
The heartrate functions are what you would expect. They simply work. No surprise there.
The Ant stick is awesome. I walk up to my computer the watch beeps and a few seconds later my data is up. Much better than having to type it or even syncing an Ipod sorry Nike but your website sucks. Its slow, the first page shows and almost useless graph. Garmin's site is all business. Its easy to use. Is it perfect? Of course not, but I haven't been frustrated once using it. I would recommend you follow the directions for the ant stick and have a workout in the watch and the software downloaded before you plug it in. I use a mac and it worked great.
The watch is really normal looking. You would never know it was a training watch. It's water resistant. You can hop in the shower and not have to worry. You can even go in the pool but your not supposed to use the buttons underwater.
Ease of use... Well its easy if you read the manual, and watch the videos. If you think your going to take full advantage of the watch just by fiddling with it your probably wrong. It can do so many things that it has a fairly large set of menus but they are very logically laid out.
For rowing I use the General mode and just collect heart data. It works perfectly. Don't be afraid of this watch. If you are looking for a normal appearance watch that you can wear all day and train with when time allows and not have to worry if you charged it or left it at home. This watch is great. I leave it on work, workout, live life and don't think about it. Its just there at the end of my arm and my data is always updated on my computer.
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| Garmin Forerunner 310XT Waterproof Running GPS With USB ANT Stick
Best Triathlete GPS available -- 2010-09-03
... of course it is also the only one that many people can use throughout a full triathlon. Overall, I think this is an excellent product, but I agree with some of the others here that Garmin hides the ball somewhat in its marketing/advertising.
First, this is the only waterproof GPS watch that I've seen and it also has the battery power to get you through a full Ironman. As such, I can put it on my wrist and not worry about it until the end of a race (with the exception of hitting the lap button to change events/transitions). The multi-sport function that lets you set up the watch for triathlons, duathlons, brick workouts, etc. with or without transitions is fantastic. For me, this makes it great and the best solution available.
I do find the distance calculations for swimming absolutely ridiculous. As far as I can tell, swinging your arms for every stroke is what throws the watch off so much... interesting that it seems to be a problem based on it being too accurate. I've done a 3000 yd pool swim to find a claimed distance of over 3.2 miles. I do think Garmin should include a "Swim" function that just turns off the gps if they can't figure out a way to combat this problem... generally you know your distance in a pool or in a race, so the biggest interest (at least for me) is the timing of the swim.
Someone here said that biking with it on his/her wrist doesn't work, and I have never run into an issue with that at all. I find it works perfectly during biking, running, hiking, etc.
I will say that the price here seems too high. I've seen it for less.
Overall a very good product that people just need to understand has some limitations.
Amazing Training Tool! -- 2010-09-01
I have had my unit for less than 24 hours - In the first 15 minutes I easily setup up the watch & paired the heart rate monitor. After work, I went running with the new Forerunner unit. It was EASY to use and READ throughout my run. Early this morning I setup the ANT+ which easiliy paired with the unit. I uploaded the history and route to the [...] website with a simple click. Then I stared in amazement at the recorded details of my run with pace, elevation changes, the exact route, HR zones, etc. I can highly recomment this product! Now that I have this excellent technology, the only hard part that remains is the work of actually burning up the trails!
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 | Garmin FR60 Men's Black Fitness Watch Bundle (Includes Foot Pod, Heart Rate Monitor, and USB ANT Stick)
Very useful -- 2010-09-06
I've had this item for about a month now. One difficulty is getting it to change modes after I haven't used it for a full day.
Once I get it into the correct mod=e it is great and easy to use.
I do use the upload feature at New Leaf where the work out is broken down by times in zone and also how many total calories as well as fat calories were burned. I have felt very motivated by this device.
Amazing! -- 2010-09-04
I thought about this a lot. I read probably 100 reviews of all the GPS trainers and this watch. I am incredibly happy. I run and I row. I wanted an accurate pace and heart rate for zone training. This watch has been perfect. The calibration was important for me. I ran un-calibrated and it was probably 30 meters off over 800. Not bad but after calibration it is scary accurate. Over a mile it was within 3 feet. You can also find some great information from dcrainmakers blog but he did a 7 mile cross country run and the 310xt and fr60 had the exact same distance. So I don't know why people had problems with accuracy. I think it might be they didn't calibrate or didn't do it correctly. I could also be that the pod was not in the laces tight enough. I don't think I lost any accuracy from not getting the GPS watch or if I did the ability to use a treadmill is ample compensation. Ok so I thought about how cool it would be to see where I went on the map from a GPS watch, but I don't really care. I'm looking to improve my run from the data. I'm not going to show my kids one day that I ran down the same beach a thousand times. Who cares. The other big benefit is realtime pace. It seams spot on. I really need to know how fast I'm going so I can predict whats going to happen to my HR. From using this I've really been able to see things and train in ways I never could have before.
The heartrate functions are what you would expect. They simply work. No surprise there.
The Ant stick is awesome. I walk up to my computer the watch beeps and a few seconds later my data is up. Much better than having to type it or even syncing an Ipod sorry Nike but your website sucks. Its slow, the first page shows and almost useless graph. Garmin's site is all business. Its easy to use. Is it perfect? Of course not, but I haven't been frustrated once using it. I would recommend you follow the directions for the ant stick and have a workout in the watch and the software downloaded before you plug it in. I use a mac and it worked great.
The watch is really normal looking. You would never know it was a training watch. It's water resistant. You can hop in the shower and not have to worry. You can even go in the pool but your not supposed to use the buttons underwater.
Ease of use... Well its easy if you read the manual, and watch the videos. If you think your going to take full advantage of the watch just by fiddling with it your probably wrong. It can do so many things that it has a fairly large set of menus but they are very logically laid out.
For rowing I use the General mode and just collect heart data. It works perfectly. Don't be afraid of this watch. If you are looking for a normal appearance watch that you can wear all day and train with when time allows and not have to worry if you charged it or left it at home. This watch is great. I leave it on work, workout, live life and don't think about it. Its just there at the end of my arm and my data is always updated on my computer.
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 | Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor (Bilingual)
Bang for your buck! -- 2010-09-07
I bought this initially for my gf but I'm the one who's actually enjoying it since she is taking a sabbatical on running due to an injury. So I love it because I am able to upload the stats online and see how my performance went and how I improved.
I would recommend it highly to those who want the stats. It is very user-friendly. I didn't even read the manual to set it up.
Before I bought this item, I bought the Polar RS300X G1 and it was too much of a hassle to go through the manual. I bought all the accessories so my gf can use it and she gave up on it. So I bought her this. The Polar is still in the box unused.
The only thing I noticed is that the battery does not last that long. I used it once after a 30 min. run and my gf used it the next day and it said low batt. So I guess I have to charge it when I plug it in the USB.
Love my ForeRunner -- 2010-09-06
I got my Forerunner as a Mother's Day present. I use it while biking and running (I do triathlons) and love the device. This has been a fantastic addition to my training tools. I have a Polar HRM, and I use it during the triathlons since it can stand going into and out of the water. The Garmin 305 is not welcome in the water, but on dry land it is terrific. The data is lovely, the ability to customize the display to bring the information I want to the front for each activity is also delightful. I had to do a soft reset the other day, and it was easy to get the steps to do this on the internet.
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