Garmins vs Running Apps
TyFit08
Posts: 799 Member
I use mapmyfitness and I feel like it is pretty accurate, but this article says the apps can be very off. Garmin's are pricey, but I'm starting to think they are worth the investment. Anyone else have any thoughts on apps vs gps watches?
http://runneracademy.com/running-apps-vs-gps-running-watches/
http://runneracademy.com/running-apps-vs-gps-running-watches/
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The Apps can be WAY off, depending where you run. I can't justify a Garmin however, when I can just run on pre-planned routes and run according to effort rather than pace or heartrate.0
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I'm hoping to get a Garmin for my birthday, because the running apps all give me conflicting info. I'd love to run by feel but my OCD must have numbers!0
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I think it depends how serious you are about your running. If you are going to be competing a lot and you need accurate times and distances then it would be worth the investment. Personally I don't need that degree of accuracy and am happy with my app.0
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I had real trouble with the apps I tried - none could keep a signal the whole way through a session so the information I got back from them was pretty much useless. It's a patchy area for cell phones anyway, plus lots of trees and an aged iphone so I won't knock the apps but it was frustrating.
I got my Garmin 210 a couple of months ago and it's been great for tracking runs, it's got an HRM and it also makes a pretty good everyday watch (I wear steel toe cap boots for work so it may be a little chunky but it doesn't look out of place lol). It was pricey if I think of it as just a means of tracking mileage but with the HRM and watch, the £153 seems more reasonable - plus I like being able to change route without thinking and still know when I'm near the target distance. I love it
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I just bought the Garmin Forerunner 210 on Friday. They didn't have the HRM in stock in the store so I got the watch right away and the chest strap is currently being shipped. So far I'm really liking it. I'm still figuring out how to use it, but I do like being able to see my distance, time & pace at a glance.0
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I assumed the apps were pretty accurate. It never occurred to me they could be this off. Today I had RunDouble and Mapmyfitness running simultaneously. RunDouble stopped giving updates halfway through and then started back about 15 minutes later. Initially, it was about a mile off from Mapmyfitness, then it caught up. Strange. I would like to get a garmin, maybe santa will bring it to me for Christmas.0
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If you have 2 GPS apps running simultaneously they will interfere with each other and give an even less accurate result and/or cause one or both to crash so that is not a good way to test them. It would be better to run the same route twice and measure it separately.0
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Maybe we could organize a Garmin Christmas exchange?
Yeah. I ran about 4 miles with Endomondo last night before it finally pipes up: you have run *1* mile with an average pace of *44* minutes. But, I'm running on a trail with mile markers, so it's just math. Endomondo tracks time really accurately.0 -
When I started running I used Endomondo on my phone and it was a little off sometimes but worked well most of the time. I didn't like having to dig out the phone from my armband when done, enter the cryptic password (it's a corporate phone so auto-locks after 10 minutes and has specific rules for the password), take off my glove (I was using it in winter) and stop the app. When I got my Garmin I was immediately hooked. So much easier to use!
I just saw the Garmin 620 online and am totally drooling over that one! I haven't had my 310XT for a year yet but that new model looks awesome.0 -
When I started running I used Endomondo on my phone and it was a little off sometimes but worked well most of the time. I didn't like having to dig out the phone from my armband when done, enter the cryptic password (it's a corporate phone so auto-locks after 10 minutes and has specific rules for the password), take off my glove (I was using it in winter) and stop the app. When I got my Garmin I was immediately hooked. So much easier to use!
I just saw the Garmin 620 online and am totally drooling over that one! I haven't had my 310XT for a year yet but that new model looks awesome.
How about you buy the 620 and sell me your used 310x?0 -
How about you buy the 620 and sell me your used 310x?
LOL! I don't think I'll be coughing up $450 any time soon for that one. My wife might get it eventually so we'll see if she's willing to sell her 310XT.0 -
I found apps to be way off and they would sometimes stop working somewhere in my run, then start again, etc. The app that was most consistent (can't remember which it was) tended to log my distance at twice what I really ran.
My husband got me a Garmin and I love it. It sometimes takes awhile to load the GPS. That's the only complaint I have. I keep it charged up, which helps, and start it while I'm putting on my shoes to give it that extra time to load up.
Sometimes, though, it takes a long time to start up and I wonder about that. Does anyone have this problem with their Garmins?0 -
Sometimes, though, it takes a long time to start up and I wonder about that. Does anyone have this problem with their Garmins?
It happens a lot for me. If it is taking more than a minute or two, I turn it off and back on. Then it usually comes right up. About once a month I do a hard reset and that seems to help.0 -
Sometimes, though, it takes a long time to start up and I wonder about that. Does anyone have this problem with their Garmins?
It happens a lot for me. If it is taking more than a minute or two, I turn it off and back on. Then it usually comes right up. About once a month I do a hard reset and that seems to help.
That's really good to know in case that happens to me. I've had mine a week so I've only used it a few times. The first time it took what felt like a long time to locate the satellite, but the couple times since then it's been pretty fast. My HRM came on Wednesday so I was able to use that on my run. I had to go straight to the gym after my run for my trainer session, but as soon as I got home I downloaded the info to my computer so I could check it out. I'm such a data geek.0 -
Sometimes, though, it takes a long time to start up and I wonder about that. Does anyone have this problem with their Garmins?
It happens a lot for me. If it is taking more than a minute or two, I turn it off and back on. Then it usually comes right up. About once a month I do a hard reset and that seems to help.
Thanks! I turn it off & on, too, and that seems to help most of the time. I'll try doing a hard reset. I haven't done that yet.0 -
In the interests of answering the original question, I set out this morning with both my app going & my Garmin on. When the app said I was at 6.2 miles I stopped it but kept running. When Garmin said I was at 6.2 miles I stopped it (and also stopped running). The difference:
Endomondo App: time 1:16:32, avg. speed 12:20, 1088 calories
Garmin: time 1:18:24, avg. speed 12:39, 819 calories
After I shut the app off I looked at the Garmin & it said I was at 5.87 miles.
Last night I had plotted out today's route on the Endomondo website, so I pulled that back up, along with my post-race maps from the app & Garmin to compare it to where the mile markers should have been. My app was just a little short on the first mile and a lot short on the second mile. The rest of the markers were proportionately off so I think it tracked each of those as close to a mile, but it was already wrong so I finished early. Garmin matched up with the online map, which tells me it was more accurate. I was on city streets, not on trails, so tree coverage wasn't an issue.0 -
How about you buy the 620 and sell me your used 310x?
LOL! I don't think I'll be coughing up $450 any time soon for that one. My wife might get it eventually so we'll see if she's willing to sell her 310XT.
I was just being silly. I'm good with Endomondo and trail markers. I find it inspirational when Endomondo tells me "You have completed...one...mile..." when I've just done 4.5.0
