Runners with GPS watches....

hula808
hula808 Posts: 172 Member
edited December 19 in Fitness and Exercise
Can you tell me about your watch? -
Are you happy with it?
- about how much did it cost?
-how long have you had it?

I am a new runner and looking at tracking my HR, distance, time and calories, so that I can learn and watch myself improve. I dont need anything too fancy. I dont need training programs etc. I'd like it to be simple to use.


I had the Garmin 405 but had to return it because it kept freezing on me.
I am looking at the Nike or there is a new motoactiv...anyone tried that? Or the Garmin 110?

Thanks in advance!

Replies

  • arc918
    arc918 Posts: 2,037 Member
    Had the 405 for years (and a 205 & 201 before that). Just got the 610, it is awesome.

    REI has a screaming deal on them this weekend!
  • Trail_Addict
    Trail_Addict Posts: 1,340 Member
    I've had the Garmin Forerunner 305 since about 2007, and can always count on it. Although, I will be upgrading to the 610 for smaller size and up-to-date software.
  • CakeFit21
    CakeFit21 Posts: 2,521 Member
    I have the forerunner 310xt and I love it.

    If you are a member, ALWAYS buy from REI. You can take anything back at any time without a receipt. (even shoes)
  • brandyk77
    brandyk77 Posts: 605 Member
    I have a garmin 110 and paid 140 for it at REI.
    REI is hands down the best place to get your GPS. They are awesome


    I haven't heard the best reviews on the Motoactiv. The battery life is short. I have a Nike GPS that I got for free...and I don't use it. It is a complete waste.
  • ahamm002
    ahamm002 Posts: 1,690 Member
    I'm a huge fan of the Nike+ gps watch. Their website is very nice too. The only problem is that it only works for running. You can't use it for biking or anything else.
  • JustBeckyV
    JustBeckyV Posts: 182
    I have the 405 I believe and had use the nike in the past. The nike is a lot easier to use but the garmin has more features. I think they are both good on accuracy though.
  • belgerian
    belgerian Posts: 1,059 Member
    I have the garmin forrunner 305 think i got it for around 150 on amazon had it for a year and I love it does everything and more. I would recommend it to anyone. I use it daily for about 1 hour never had any issues with it except I had to get a new wrist band for it but it was under warrenty still and they shipped one right out to me.
  • DocGu
    DocGu Posts: 51 Member
    I have the Nike watch - really like it. However - it does seem that it overestimates my pace (it is telling me that I am going faster then I am really going) a little. They do come up with periodic firmware updates and every update seems to make the watch better.
  • lisa_m
    lisa_m Posts: 5
    I had the 305 and loved it until it stopped uploading my runs to my laptop. Thank goodness I bought a warranty through Square Trade and was able to get the purchase price back from them when they determined that there was something wrong with it.
  • artbkward
    artbkward Posts: 238 Member
    I have the Garmin Forerunner 201, it's been discontinued now since it's several years old. I think I got it in 2008, it was a Christmas gift from my dad (who is a sub-3 hr marathoner so he knows his stuff).

    It still works perfectly, I won't replace it until it dies. I don't use all the features mainly just pace, time, distance, lap time and once in awhile I use the training partner. It does count calories which I think are fairly accurate although it doesn't have a HRM. The calorie counter can tell if I run four steady miles or four miles of intervals/hills because the calories burned are different.

    The new Garmin's have a thing to go on your shoe to count treadmill miles too.
  • tim_jennings
    tim_jennings Posts: 172 Member
    I have the Garmin Forerunner 305, have used it for over a year and I absolutely love it. I don't know how I could go without it now!
  • El_Rapido
    El_Rapido Posts: 97 Member
    I have a Garmin 410, and I love it! I previuosly had a 305 for 4 years but upgraded recently.

    Garmin are the original and best, I'd get a garmin before any other GPS however, I would steer clear of the cheaper model (110?) because it lacks features like intervals, virtual partner etc.
  • momma3sweetgirls
    momma3sweetgirls Posts: 743 Member
    I have the Garmin 305. It was a gift from my dad so I don't know how much it was. I love it, but I will need to get an additional foot pod to make it work indoors on the TM. I have to use my regular HRM for indoor runs. All in all, it's a great toy!
  • KemaVA
    KemaVA Posts: 81 Member
    I dont have a gps watch but I have a great (free) app. :-) I use CartioTrainer on my Droid to track my runs.
  • adamswife23
    adamswife23 Posts: 52 Member
    I have a Garmin Forerunner 110 and LOVE it!! Cost me just over $150 but so worth every penny!!! I will never run without it now. Their customer service is great too! I recently had problems with my watch and they let me ship it to them and sent me a new one free of charge and it has been over a year since I bought mine.
  • 0lightasair
    0lightasair Posts: 42 Member
    I have the Nike watch - really like it. However - it does seem that it overestimates my pace (it is telling me that I am going faster then I am really going) a little. They do come up with periodic firmware updates and every update seems to make the watch better.

    Second.

    Plus it looks awesome, which appeals to my superficial girly soul.
  • LishieFruit89
    LishieFruit89 Posts: 1,956 Member
    bump since Im curious too
  • grinch031
    grinch031 Posts: 1,679
    Have had the Garmin Forerunner 405 for a couple years. Spent $350 and that included the HR monitor, but I think the price has gone down alot more recently. The cool thing about this watch is you can upload all your data to a website and see your route that you traveled and elevation along with each lap's pace. It has this 'bezel' touch rim for navigating menus that never seems to work right for me. Its either too sensitive or not sensitive enough. I find the menus too complicated for me to navigate easily. Plus the device froze up or couldn't access the satellites and we had to reboot and factory reset it a few times.

    I've had the Timex Marathon for a couple weeks. It cost about $100. I prefer the buttons on it and find the entire menu interface simpler, but it also has much less features than the Garmin. Its pretty much a basic GPS watch for tracking pace, distance, and time but not much more than that. I like it because I wanted simple and cheap and that's what I got. Its been reliable.

    The pace shown for the Garmin is different than for the Timex. For the Garmin, the pace shown is not your current pace, but it is the pace in which you are slated to finish the current lap based on the distance you've already covered and your current pace. For the Timex it seems to be your actual current pace, at least an average over some small time period.
  • ines25
    ines25 Posts: 107 Member
    I love nikeplus they are the and all my runs are on the websit is like 80 dollars
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    I have the Garmin 405 and have found it really reliable. It was a Christmas present from my lovely husband, so I didn't pick it myself, but I think he did a pretty good job.

    BUT, if I was going to buy another one myself I would get the Forerunner 405CX (i think that's the right model, please correct me if I'm wrong) as it uses your heartrate to calculate calories where the 405 doesn't. It doesn't really bother me- pace and distance are the things I need and this does a great job.
    I like the webpage where I can view my runs and look at the charts for distance, elevation, heart rate etc. I have found this sometimes a little crashy but apart from that, I'd give it a good rating (if you don't mind the HR/calories thing).
  • to_the_surface
    to_the_surface Posts: 38
    I have a garmin 910xt, Had a polar unit before that got water in the pool and died a slow death. I use it because i ride a bike and i swim besides running and the little device keeps track of all my workouts. If i were only or mostly running it would be an absolute overkill.
    If you run with music the motoact would serve both purposes (all the gps hrm speed/pace functions plus a music player all in one). If you carry your phone while running then the motoactv would be overkill as the music player in your phone would probably be better.
    For simple i'd consider the garmin fr60. It doesn't have gps but it comes with HRM and a footpod which is a more accurate tool to measure running pace/speed and also will work indoors with threadmills. Basically you'd have all the info you need but it would not "map" your runs.
    If you look up garmin factory outlet it runs like $120-130 for the fr60 bundle. It's also compatible with bike speed/cadence sensor in case you decide to incorporate bike riding in your routine.
    I do not own one, and i do not work for garmin either, but if i wasn't swimming and just biking/running i'd have probably gone for the FR60. It is basically is a very inexpensive tool that would not break the bank when/if it needs replacement.
    Good luck
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