Garmin 645 good running watch??

i would put the watch having music as the last of features. little radio or mp3 especially since you only listen half the time. I have a refurb 635 and it does more than I use.

I had one and returned it. It seemed like maybe the processor wasn’t powerful enough for the software. Lots of lag. Sometimes I’d hit the lap button and nothing would happen. I’d hit it three more times and give up. Then ten seconds later it would suddenly record four laps, but the times were not correct.

Others I know have had the same experience. It hasn’t been reported in reviews online because most GPS users don’t use manual laps.

I've had my 645 (non music version) for about six months and am very happy with it. I wear it all day for the activity tracking and like that you can dress it up a bit with different bands and faces. I use manual laps often and have not had any issues with lag. I would buy it again. 235 probably does everything you need for cheaper but I like the better appearance and a few more features with the 645.

Get it wrote:

I've had my 645 (non music version) for about six months and am very happy with it. I wear it all day for the activity tracking and like that you can dress it up a bit with different bands and faces. I use manual laps often and have not had any issues with lag. I would buy it again. 235 probably does everything you need for cheaper but I like the better appearance and a few more features with the 645.

+1 This

Very pleased with it. I came from a Garmin 220 and using an android watch after the 220. The battery life is outstanding on this thing. If I run indoors without music it probably lasts me 2 weeks otherwise outdoors with GPS about a week.

I love the ability to sync podcasts and music straight from my phone too and not needing a PC to load it.

Overall solid purchase and am very pleased.

garmin watches drop dead from battery failing after 2-3 years and even when new the battery barely can make it over 2 hours with gps and hr on

using it for music would pretty much guarantee to cut all those times in half if not worse

use some kind of cheap mp3 player with bluetooth clipon from ebay or something so when it goes dead your watch activity doesn't also

or better yet, don't run with music if you are on the road which is going to get you runover sooner or later

garmin fail wrote:

garmin watches drop dead from battery failing after 2-3 years and even when new the battery barely can make it over 2 hours with gps and hr on

using it for music would pretty much guarantee to cut all those times in half if not worse

use some kind of cheap mp3 player with bluetooth clipon from ebay or something so when it goes dead your watch activity doesn't also

or better yet, don't run with music if you are on the road which is going to get you runover sooner or later

I used my 220 and the battery never dropped to a noticeable level. Still lasted a full marathon with some juice to lasy another week of running.

With that the 645 can go over 6 hours with music, GPS, and HR monitor. So in half would still be really good.

I upgraded from the 235 to the 645 non-music. My 235 had about a 1/2 sec lag with manual laps. My 645 does not. Very pleased with it from a technical standpoint, and I like the look/slimmer form factor. The beveled edges of the face don’t catch on my sleeves, which was definitely a thing with my 235.

Do older 645s work with Spotify? I know the late 2018 ones work but how about before then when Garmin partnered with Spotify? Looking to get a used 645.

garminyayornay wrote:

I'm looking to buy a running watch. Currently using an iPhone SE. Not sure if the 645 is decent. Read some issues with pairing with airbuds. I run with music 50% of the time mostly on slower runs. I want something that tracks day to day activity so counting steps and monitoring heart rate activity would be nice. What do you think?

I bought one and returned it for a variety or reasons:

- The 645 is too small (I'm 6'3" and it looked like a woman's watch on me) but since I bought it online without trying it on I was not aware how tiny it is.

- The Garmin Connect app for your phone is UTTER GARBAGE and has major problems syncing and maintaining connections to your watch. I went back to using my 225 and an old version of the software (found the APK online). I don't plan on buying another Garmin due to the pain in the a$$ syncing one has become. Just read the reviews on Google Play about how bad it is!

- There's too much junk installed that is questionable. Things like on-board V02 max testing, stress testing, etc are mickey mouse in their implementation and totally useless. They over complicate the watch

I have an original 645m and it does not do spotify. I do like it as a watch though. Physical buttons to control start/stop/split instead of the bad touch screens of some of their past watches.

Can't speak to the first point as that is personal preference, but the iOS app is really well done. I have never had an issue with syncing or maintaining a connection with my Garmin (I've had the FR 920XT, FR 235, and (currently) the fenix 5). So your issues may be particular to the Android app or the BT connectivity on your phone, not with the watch.

I haven't noticed any "junk" that is installed. They have a number of their own apps pre-installed that can be deleted quickly and easily. It's not like there is 3rd party bloatware installed. I think you're being dramatic on that point.

I have a 645 non-music, not a single issue that would cause me to not recommend it, you can use it with optical HR only or with a HRM Run strap for the full set of metrics, I tend to alternate. I have owned about 8 different Forerunners, only one failure (405) which was replaced under guarantee.