Polar RS800 SD vs Garmin 305

Customers unanimously agree that the Polar is more accurate. Calibrate it to 2 kilometers for best accuracy.

What do customers think about the Nike Triax system with the foot pod? Got one when they came out and I can calibrate it to be very accurate for one pace but if I run faster or slower than that pace it quickly becomes innacurate. Maybe it's just me?

Thanks.

Hello,

I own a S625X (same technology as the RS800) and a Garmin 305 (not 301, that one was horrible).

For me the Garmin works a lot better than the S625X when it comes to accuracy of the measured distance.

The S625X works ok when it has been calibrated and you run at paces close to the pace you calibrated it at.

I mean: when I calibrated at 5:00/km and I run at 4:15/km I will get significantly longer distances than running at 5:00/km (of course the distance was the same ;-) ). Not to speak of the fact that I need different calibration values for different shoes.

Anyway I'm sure that this is somewhat individual (your running-style etc.) but for me the differences are too big (over 5%).

With the Garmin the distance was always ok until today. The main disadvantages of the Garmin are the long startup-time (you need to give it enough time to acquire several satellites. Even longer than it tells you, esp. if you want to run through a forest!).

The shown current pace is useless and not accurate enough. I only work with average pace for the complete run or current lap. That's fine.

Bye!

I've the Polar RS200SD, I think that the differences in this are even greater. If I do an out and back loop, and warm up at the start the initial 'mile' may be measured at about 1.12 miles on the way back - a huge difference. The calibration makes no difference. I will never buy another Polar product as I've had so many problems (watch freezing, blank screen, losing data on runs, button falling off - seriously) the customer services are friendly when you contact them, but I'd prefer a watch without so many problems.

Thanks to both of you directly above this post for your comments.

Personally, a present for my wife was the Garmin and currently it is in the trash. Completely inconsistent, especially with regards to pace. Distance was never the same twice, yet I ran the same course day in and day out.

Have not run with the Polar products, only that I do have several customers who do, and in fact, two guys I train with (one with a Garmin, one with a Polar), and the Polar is much more accurate on both pace and distance.

That is my small sample size. I sold the Nike speed and distance system yesterday, so I will await if it is returned (the customer had returned a Polar RS800 to a big box store).