GPS Running Watches

Gremlins constantly misplace my watches like socks in the washing machine. I will not be purchasing a $300 watch. $40 is plenty to lose, thank you very much.

I've had a garmin 405 for about a year and love it! No heavier than any other running watch. The heart rate monitor is not only helped me hold myself back on easy runs, but in races tells me if i'm going out too fast. It's quickly taught me what happens if i'm not properly hydrated (your hr jumps up too high right away). My only complaint is the distance numbers are a little small without my reading glasses.

The distance is not perfect--but it's very good. Recent 5 k races on certified courses have been 3.1, 3.13 and 3.06

Running in a dense forest with a thick canopy overhead will definitely affect your Garmin. The gps's are probably accurate to within 2-3% on open roads away from high structures, but on trails it's probably more like within 5%.

If you wear one during a race, be sure to set the virutal training partner (if your model comes with one) to 5 seconds quicker than your target pace as you'll probably find a few extra tenths measured by the end due to not hitting all the tangents and the limited accuracy.

Got a 305 recently for my wife; a buddy has the 405. The 305 seems to be more accurate and locks onto the satellite more quickly, which I assume is just because it has a bigger antenna. Yet the 305 is half the price of the 310 or 405.

Wow it is pretty big....check out this link with pics compared to other watches. With that being said, I still think it looks cooler than my Garmin.

http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/06/timex-ironman-gps-global-trainer-first.html

Besides price (and maybe size?), what's the difference between the Garmin 110 and 405?

Since the 205/305 generation, I've found Garmins to be consistently more accurate than this (from measured routes I have repeated often).

They'll never be 100%, obviously, but the algorithms that are churning out the numbers seem to be pretty damn clever these days. My 310XT certainly isn't any less than 98% accurate for distance.

Prep Runner wrote:

New Timex watch shows everything on the same screen...without being large and heavy...it is the new standard...Garmin needs to catch up...also contains free online training log software powered by TrainingPeaks™

thanks timex employee. the timex gps watch is actually always 2.5% short on distance. garmin's 310xt is decidedly a better watch with the same size screen and double battery life.

another watch that hasn't been getting any love is the Garmin FR60. not a GPS watch but it's just as accurate after calibration. replacable watch batteries in the footpod, watch and HRM. suffers zero accuracy loss under trees. probably garmin's best overall running watch. oh and it's no bigger than any other wristwatch.

Does anyone think the 205 is still a good buy? The heart rate monitor thing isn't really important to me, but price kinda is. It's about half the price of any other of garmin's gps watches. My only concern is if Garmin is planning on releasing a new gps watch similar to this and similar to the price

I am a big fan of the Timex watches and had one of their original speed and distance series (complete with the seperate GPS unit). I thought it was nice, if not awkward.

I had a chance to run with the new Timex Global Trainer (a friend purchased one) and must say it is HUGE on your wrist. I don't know what Timex was thinking. No serious runner is going to wear that thing. Its heavy, the numbers are pretty small and anyone with a smaller frame (which is a lot of runners) its just going to look stupid on.

I would be willing to try one on a more regular basis if they came out with a smaller version.

curious about garmins wrote:

Besides price (and maybe size?), what's the difference between the Garmin 110 and 405?

I could be wrong, wouldn't be the first time, but I don't believe you can program workouts into the 110 like you can the 405.

Someone mentioned inaccuracy on trails. This can be true, especially if there are a lot of tight turns. Remember, even at their best they are still only accurate within a certain range. Open roads they are pretty good. Ran with mine on a certified 10 mile loop a few weeks ago and it was accurate within a few seconds by the end.

Feets of Fire wrote:

Running in a dense forest with a thick canopy overhead will definitely affect your Garmin. The gps's are probably accurate to within 2-3% on open roads away from high structures, but on trails it's probably more like within 5%.

If you wear one during a race, be sure to set the virutal training partner (if your model comes with one) to 5 seconds quicker than your target pace as you'll probably find a few extra tenths measured by the end due to not hitting all the tangents and the limited accuracy.

Yeah unfortunately that happens with any GPS watch, and it even hinders the performance when swimming. When I was using my Garmin 310XT I noticed it was going in and out on my swims, but placing it in the head of your cap can gain better results. Running under trees is no fun anyway, out in the sun is where it is at....