Which Running Watch?

[marathonmommy]

Turned the big 4-0 yesterday and this weekend, I'm going to Dick's Sporting Goods to pick out my Garmin watch. I mainly want it to be able to track distance ran and see my average pace. I don't need a ton of bells and whistles. My friend has one with the foot pod and says it is very accurate. I had a less expensive GPS version that died on me and had to return. Thoughts? Which model do you prefer and why?

 

[lolafrances]

I have a 2 year old Garmin 205 that I love. I know the 205's are hard to come by these days but there are still 305's out there that are inexpensive.

This thread about GPS watches from a few weeks back may interest you!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2352151&highlight=garmin

 

[Duanerice]

I love my Garmin 305. But, I have only owned a Garmin and have never tried Timex or any other watches. It is a bit big but I am used to it. The Garmin 405 is a real pretty thing but a bit more expensive.

good luck,
Duane

 

[FFigawi]

I love my Garmin 305. But, I have only owned a Garmin and have never tried Timex or any other watches. It is a bit big but I am used to it. The Garmin 405 is a real pretty thing but a bit more expensive.

good luck,
Duane

I love my 305 too! I find it a lot easier to read and manipulate during a run than the 405, even if the 405 does have some cool features that the 305 doesn't. I don't use nearly all the capabilities of the 305, and I really need to do a better job of wearing my heartrate band so I can monitor my heartrate.

 

[scoolover]

I have the 205 also and have been very happy with it. I would not say that the pace feature is very accurate though. I am like a 4 minute miler and this thing always says that I am doing 8-9 minute miles. I just don't get it. ;-)

Seriously though, unless I am in a wide open area, the pace feature is on the slow side.

 

[liznboys]

I bought the Garmin 205 on Amazon last month, the price is still the same:
http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-Foreru...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1263566151&sr=8-2

I don't have experience with anything else, but I'm happy with it!

 

[Mark214]

I had the Forerunner 305 which I loved until it stopped working properly after 1-1/2 years. For some odd reason, I had to wrap a rubberband around it to keep it from shutting off during a run. Thankfully, I had bought it from Costco so I was able to just return it and get a full refund.

For Christmas, I bought my daughter the 405. It is a really nice watch.

My son has had several Polar models and they have all worked well.

Of course, none of the above are less then 250 dollars.

 

[Padstack]

I've been using the 305 for about 6 months now and I am very happy with it's performance. I track time, pace, distance & heartrate. All of which can be done on one screen, so there is no messing with it while I am running.

 

[heatherlynn444]

I have the 301, it's cheaper than some of the others, I really like it!

 

[bounceliketigger]

I've been using the 405 for a few months and really like it. For a woman, it's much smaller & more comfortable than the 305 IMO. Small negative though, the numbers are a bit small & can take some extra concentration to read while running.

 

[Goofed98]

Another vote here for the 305.

Another consideration, if you aren't too worried about bells and whistles, is downloading an app for your cellphone. I just downloaded one for my blackberry that does many of the things my 305 does, but no heart rate monitor.

 

[fashionista311]

i love, love, love my garmin 405. i'm a tiny girl (the 405 already takes up my entire width of my wrist) so the 305 would be a monster on me. the new versions (305, 405) are equipped with higher sensitivity gps receivers. if you run in areas with high buildings or large trees (or in my case...central park which is full of large trees surrounded by high buildings ) the higher sensitivity makes a huge difference. my mom had the original 105 i believe, and she said it was useless whenever she came to the city. once you get the hang of the bezel, it's so easy.

 

[bounceliketigger]

i love, love, love my garmin 405. i'm a tiny girl (the 405 already takes up my entire width of my wrist) so the 305 would be a monster on me. the new versions (305, 405) are equipped with higher sensitivity gps receivers. if you run in areas with high buildings or large trees (or in my case...central park which is full of large trees surrounded by high buildings ) the higher sensitivity makes a huge difference. my mom had the original 105 i believe, and she said it was useless whenever she came to the city. once you get the hang of the bezel, it's so easy.

My gym has an indoor track with windows all around, but the 405 doesn't work there. It took me a bit to realize I wasn't REALLY running a 25 minute mile! lol Otherwise, I just love it, especially the calorie counter!

 

[aldisneygrl]

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, my Garmin 305! If I could marry it I would. Like others have said, I don't use all the features, but I can't run without it.

The buttons are easy to use, and the display is easy to read.

Since the 405 has come out, the 305 has gotten cheaper. I got mine for my 40th birthday too. I LOVE it!! Have I said that before?

 

[fashionista311]

My gym has an indoor track with windows all around, but the 405 doesn't work there. It took me a bit to realize I wasn't REALLY running a 25 minute mile! lol Otherwise, I just love it, especially the calorie counter!

on a similar note, i wore my garmin at a half this past fall. i line up with the 4.5 hr pace group (half and full started together), start the race, and do my thing. i look down at my watch and it says 16 minutes, and i'm like huh why haven't i seen a mile 1 sign yet. then i see the 8 hour marathon pace leader pass me and i really start to panic that my garmin distance and pace is and has been way off, all my training has been wrong, i've never going to finish what's wrong with me why am i running so slow etc etc...and then about 3 minutes later i pass mile 2 and i calm down. guess that's what happens when we rely on technology instead of our heads!

but if you run indoors on a track alot (so jealous i wish my gym had one) you should look into investing in the foot pod. the garmin (or any gps wach) won't work indoors since it depends on satellites. the foot pod solves that. could be worth it!

 

[airman]

Another vote here for the 305.

Another consideration, if you aren't too worried about bells and whistles, is downloading an app for your cellphone. I just downloaded one for my blackberry that does many of the things my 305 does, but no heart rate monitor.

What app did you get for your Blackberry? I was checking them out last night and can't tell wich one is good

 

[Tiger Lily 03]

I was wondering the same thing about the blackberry ap. But, since I have Verizon, I don't think the aps will work unless I pay for their GPS tracking that all other providers get basic plan.

 

[Goofed98]

The blackberry app is called gpslogger.

If you google gpslogger from your bb, it takes you to the site where you can download the program.

What's really great is that it offers many different views, including elevation, and, my favorite, the path view. It will draw a line while you're running to show you where you've travelled (pretty nifty on trails).

Also, you can export the data via e-mail in two different file types. I know one type (.gpx, I believe), can be imported directly into SportTracks, where it shows up just like info from your Garmin.

Best part, the app is 100% free.