Running watches

Altruista75
Altruista75 Posts: 409 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm just getting into running (training for my 1st half marathon) and am looking for suggestions for a decent running watch. I've read review after review online and can't find one that seems to be an overall "winner" so I've decided to come to the forums to see what people think. I'm truly looking for one that has a decent GPS, measures distance & pace and possibly has a HRM included. Any help would be appreciated!

Replies

  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    I am a huge Garmin fan. You can get different models in different price ranges, their customer service is great and the product is good.

    I am on my 3rd Garmin (the first lost to puppy teeth, the second lost at a race). When I upgrade (I want a waterproof one for swimming too), I'll be going Garmin again.
  • ZenInTexas
    ZenInTexas Posts: 781 Member
    I recently got a Gramin 310xt (can use for swimming, running and biking) and I love it. I got the HRM and foot pod with it. It's awesome.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    I have a Garmin 410 and I love it. I also have the HRM and foot pod, but I haven't calibrated the foot pod for distance... I should. Very rarely it can't get a satellite signal and the foot pod would keep the distance for you. But the foot pod is unnecessary IMHO unless you regularly use an indoor track where the Garmin just can't get a signal.

    I remember when I was first shopping, that the 110 would have been enough for my needs... speed, distance, time, pace, and HRM, so if cost is a factor you may be able to find a used 110 really reasonably. If not, go for all the bells and whistles.
  • Socalgal13
    Socalgal13 Posts: 34
    I have an Garmin 910xt and I love it...you can wear it for swim, bike and run. It has HR monitor option, cadence monitor option and a foot pod option. I use the Garmin connect website to track all my training sessions. I am a little bit of a geek with numbers, so I like it. I was not sure it was worth the cost, but I have had mine for 6 months now and I would definitely say it is worth it.

    If you are not really needing the GPS option, I love my Timex HR monitor watch that I used for years. It has options for split times, lap times. calories burned.

    If you have an REI near you they have a flyer that shows all their monitors with their features so you can compare side by side

    Good Luck
  • scookiemonster
    scookiemonster Posts: 175 Member
    I have the Garmin 210 with the heart rate monitor. My husband also has the 210. We both love them - I don't go for a run without it. Easy to use, easy to wear, gives me plenty of information without being overwhelming, and not as expensive as some of the fancier models. Highly recommended.
  • wolfgate
    wolfgate Posts: 321 Member
    On top of being great GPS watches, Garmin is an excellent company. Great customer service. They do have policies on warranty, returns, etc. that in writing are pretty strict, but in reality their customer service people are allowed to be reasonable and go outside the policies to help customers in a reasonable fashion. American company as well, if that is important to you.
  • rwhawkes
    rwhawkes Posts: 117 Member
    I got a Garmin 405cx from Kijiji last October and could not be happier. The plan was to use it to train for a marathon but a bum knee scuttled that plan for now. I have been using it with the heart rate monitor (included) to track my cycling this summer and have logged virtually every ride - over 2300km so far. I believe the calorie burn coming off this device more than the MFP estimates.
  • GBPack93
    GBPack93 Posts: 76 Member
    Lot of Garmin recommendations. I use Nike+ with my iPod nano. Its nothing special but tracks distance, time, calories, PR's etc. and it will upload runs to a website which breaks down speed by mile. It is something I recommend if you are on a tight budget and maybe need a new iPod as the Nano 7th gen is fairly cheap for an Apple product.
  • thatjeffsmith
    thatjeffsmith Posts: 110 Member
    Is there a Garmin (or other brand) of watch that integrates with RunKeeper? And I'm not talking about gps exports of routes, I mean as I run it records directly to RunKeeper?

    I'd like to replace my big-*kitten* Android phone with a watch and a mini MP3 player with BT headphone support...unless there's a watch that can run spotify too?

    Maybe I needs this new Apple watch that doesn't exist yet?
  • Altruista75
    Altruista75 Posts: 409 Member
    Lots of Garmin suggestions. I'll do a little more research on those!
  • nicklippa
    nicklippa Posts: 31 Member
    I just noticed your question and in case you have not discovered this yet, the garmin gps watches that use ANT+ can sync directly with run keeper. I have the 410 and it works great.
  • nathalier71
    nathalier71 Posts: 570 Member
    I have the Garmin 210 with the heart rate monitor. My husband also has the 210. We both love them - I don't go for a run without it. Easy to use, easy to wear, gives me plenty of information without being overwhelming, and not as expensive as some of the fancier models. Highly recommended.

    I second this post!
  • heroeslegend
    heroeslegend Posts: 44 Member
    Is there a Garmin (or other brand) of watch that integrates with RunKeeper? And I'm not talking about gps exports of routes, I mean as I run it records directly to RunKeeper?

    I'd like to replace my big-*kitten* Android phone with a watch and a mini MP3 player with BT headphone support...unless there's a watch that can run spotify too?

    Maybe I needs this new Apple watch that doesn't exist yet?

    Nothing integrates directly with runkeeper yet, but theres a bunch that you can download to pc/mac and upload. Bryton, Garmin, Magellan immediately come to mind.
  • MinimalistShoeAddict
    MinimalistShoeAddict Posts: 1,946 Member
    I am a huge Garmin fan. You can get different models in different price ranges, their customer service is great and the product is good.

    I am on my 3rd Garmin (the first lost to puppy teeth, the second lost at a race). When I upgrade (I want a waterproof one for swimming too), I'll be going Garmin again.

    Garmin is great!

    Here is by far my favorite site to compare GPS watches (all the major brands):

    http://www.dcrainmaker.com/product-comparison-calculator


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  • mlogantra76
    mlogantra76 Posts: 334 Member
    I have the Garmin 210 with the heart rate monitor. My husband also has the 210. We both love them - I don't go for a run without it. Easy to use, easy to wear, gives me plenty of information without being overwhelming, and not as expensive as some of the fancier models. Highly recommended.

    I second this post!

    Ditto! My husband(a non-runner) researched Garmin watches and settled on the 210 for me. I love it:)
  • jayclock
    jayclock Posts: 51 Member
    I have 910XT for cycling and triathlons.but just got a Forerunner 10 for everyday usage and it is excellent. Personally I find the HRM of no value, and in any case if I need that I have the 910XT. So the F10 is perfect to keep on all day as watch (5 weeks charge), use as a basic stopwatch when swimming, and now is what I use for running.

    I managed to get mine for £70 but that was a special from Garmin for one day.

    Only thing to watch out for is the size. It is not very clear but there are two sizes. The brighter colours tend to be the smaller ones. I have a standard man's wrist and the big size is fine, although I think the smaller one would be ok too
  • nihil_gnome
    nihil_gnome Posts: 17
    Stay away from Magellan. I haven't used their newest watch, but the Switch Up was terrible, the distance was off by at least 25 percent when tracking runs (Showed me zig zagging back and forth across the road and through medians/ditches).

    You can't go wrong with Garmin... TomTom's new running watch is also excellent, and probably has the most export options. Garman supports a ANT+ heart rate monitor while the TomTom supports Bluetooth Smart. The absolute best resource for comparing running watches is http://dcrainmaker.com. He also offers a coupon for 10% off everything at clevertraining.com, and most orders ship free.
  • SwindonJogger
    SwindonJogger Posts: 325 Member
    http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2013/11/sports-gadgets-recommendations.html

    this site will give you al the info you need when in comes to gps watches
  • eldamiano
    eldamiano Posts: 2,667 Member
    Garmin are very good. I have a Garmin Forerunner 205. Doesnt have a HRM but does everything else but there are a number of other Garmins that do have HRM.
  • Runs4Wine
    Runs4Wine Posts: 416 Member
    I know a lot are recommending the all-in-one Garmin... but I run with music anyway, so I have my iPhone which I use the RunKeeper App (free) to track distance and keep data about my runs. It also cues me when I should start/stop for interval training. I then use the Polar FT4 HRM to gauge calories burned.

    I find it to be cost effective and acceptable for my needs.
  • DanielleDavids
    DanielleDavids Posts: 96 Member
    I'm a Garmin fan for sure. I have the 305 which isn't made anymore but the newer Garmins are much sleeker and do everything you want. They're an investment but I've had mine for three years, I use it all the time and I've never had a single problem with it. I love them!

    I also see lots of people wearing polar fitness watches and I've heard only good things, but I can't personally attest to those although I'd love to try them!
  • chunkytfg
    chunkytfg Posts: 339 Member
    Obviously all depends on budget.

    I had a Garmin forerunner 305 which was fantastic up until I dropped it out of a window 30ft down onto concrete and it stopped the GPS working. Cheap as chips now if a little bulky.

    I now have a Garmin FR620 as I am also a numbers and data man so all the running metrics stuff in the HR strap is great if a little bewildering! The FR220 is a fantastic option if you don't want to fork out nearly $400 for a watch though.

    The 910xt as recommended is also good but if you want a pure running watch and don't need all the cycling and swimming ability then it is unnecessary.

    DCrainmakers site as has been suggested is just about the most in-depth place to go for a decent transparent view on all things sports(well swim/bike/run anyway) technology.
  • megan1869
    megan1869 Posts: 166 Member
    Maybe I'm just cheap but I tend to stick to the free Map My Run app... I'm always running with my phone anyway.... plus I put the waterproof case on it so no worries if it rains or whatever.... may have to check out some of these awesome sounding watches though!
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    Another happy Garmin user here (FR610). Check out the reviews by DCRainMaker that SwindonJogger linked to.
  • ItsMeGee3
    ItsMeGee3 Posts: 13,254 Member
    I have a Polar (with the foot pod). Love it. Garmins are nice too
  • nicklippa
    nicklippa Posts: 31 Member
    Hello Everyone, I have the 410 with the ANT stick and I just noticed that you can sync it directly with Runkeeper. You go to run keeper on your desktop, click on "LOG" then click on "RUNNING" then UPLOAD then "IMPORT FROM GARMIN DEVICE" and it looks for your GPS watch. You totally bypass the Garmin Connected.

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