Forerunner 205 vs. 305: Has any one purchased both?
1748569
I am not a runner, but a cyclist with a Garmin Edge 305. As a cyclist, or I believe anyone interested in fitness, the key metrics are not speed and distance. Rather, I'd suggest that time and intensity are far more critical. You may not be interested in "training" but even if you are just interested in general fitness, heart rate is a far better measure of how you're doing. Intensity can be most easily measured by either heart rate or by power output - but I don't know how you'd get power on a run, so that leaves heart rate. Ok - now that I've said that I will never ride without heart rate (even though I can display 8 metrics on my Garmin Edge, the only things I have showing are heartrate, cadence (pedal strokes per minute) and clock (time of day, not time in workout). I'm also going to buy one of these for my wife. She is a very casual runner and I'm guessing she'll never really use the heart rate monitor. She is more interested in making sure she gets an hour in every day, and if she happened to improve her times, then she'll be happy. She'll never track her performance outside of the very simplest of measurements. So I'll spend the money anyway, but she'll never use the extra function. If nothing else, I'll have an extra heart rate strap for myself... Hope this helps, it's just one person's personal opinion.
1758738
The HRM run is built into the HeartRate monitor. You need to have the package that includes both a heart rate monitor and the watch. When you download to Garmin connect you can see the oscillation on the chart with your range showing normal. You can see where On garmin connect your steps change.It's not super scientific but is interesting to see.Also check out the new fenix 2 before you buy the 620. It looks very impressive and the same price.
1140567
I do a lot of mountain running & hiking & I own a Casio Pathfinder (Triple Sensor) which does have barometric altimeter readings, so were I to purchase the Garmin 305 (which seems likely at this point) I would be using them in tandem. Of course I could not upload the real time data from the pathfinder into any of the websites mentioned, but my question is this (and I hope this is not too tangential to the Garmin 305 discussion) - does anyone have any information on the accuracy of the Pathfinders altitude accuracy?
632693
I ran with my Garmin405CX just yesterday on a route that I know is almost exactly 3.1 miles. I've driven it and checked the odometer. I've walked it and counted paces with a pedometer. I've mapped it on Google and Yahoo to the same results. The 405CX absolutely nailed it. If it's an accuracy problem, I'd suspect it is related to location or satellite interference of some kind.
2261816
No, as an employee of nike, I have researched this and the heart rate monitor is only comparable with the nike wear links+ GPS watch. The watch is defently worth it as I have been useing mine now for 3 months with no problems.
1076548
As others have answered I would recommend this for both trail running and road races. It is possible that you will lose gps on some of the trails, but that is going to be the case with any gps watch. For OCR's, I have a friend who used this on one and he said it did fine. I think the best match for you would be the 910. If you are looking to stay within a certain price range, the 410 would work, but you may want to consider the 910.
1414929
Only you can decide the better deal. If you take a look at the matrix chart on this page you will see some differences. Do you want TTS? The 205 doesn't have it. Want Canada and Alaska maps? The 205 doesn't have it. As far as discontinued, models get discontinued all the time. That does not mean unsupported.You also might want to check out the professional reviews at gpsmagazine.com to help you decide.
1447346
Garmin will tell you need the Garmin Premium Heart Rate Monitor (Soft Strap, ANT+ compatible). I am using the Garmin Heart-Rate Monitor (Regular Strap) I had from my deceased Forerunner 205 and it works fine. Some people complain the old monitor can hurt the side of the chest over the ribcage, so you might choose the new one. It seems to be a lot lighter too. The old one tends to slip when it is not tightly adjusted. Hope this helps.
1119966
The HRM-Run does come with the 620, as long as you pick the "With Heart Rate Monitor" option. The watch does not indicate the ranges, but that information is available once you upload it to Garmin Connect. The watch will only show you the point-in-time measurement, so once you have familiarized yourself with the ranges via Garmin Connect, then you can track your progress as you run.
572630
It says in the description of the Garmin 405CX I received; "Forerunner 405CX comes with a flexible, wireless heart rate monitor to help you make the most out of your training". I don't use this but it there.
1349368
Please, check Garmin home page. There´s a lot of way to choose how to see the screen. I use my watch and check just distance, time and current pace in same screen. Otherwise, if you are not a professional, see the 220 for 100 dollars less.....
700289
It is for me. The 220 has a longer battery life (10 hours versus 5 hours) and has a built-in accelerometer so you can track pace and distance indoors as well as outdoors. That's helpful because then Garmin Connect has all of your running information, not just the data for the outdoor runs. Also, you can track your running cadence (number of steps per minute) which I find very helpful. All that said, the Forerunner 10 is probably fine if you always run outdoors (or don't care about Garmin Connect having all the data) and just want to know how far you run and track it later on a map.
1447340
I previously owned a Forerunner 305, which I lost at the bottom of a river last Fall. But the chest strap from that unit works with the 310xt just fine -- both use the ANT communications protocol, and you just need to pair the chest strap with your watch. For long events I found this strap uncomfortable, with the plastic strap digging into the sides of my chest. So I finally upgraded to the new stretchy fabric chest strap. This one works great, and is much more comfortable. Unlike the plastic strap you can't just wipe it off after a workout or race. You need to air dry it, and periodically hand wash it as the fabric picks up body oils and odors. I'd buy one again. I previously owned a Forerunner 305, which I lost at the bottom of a river last Fall. But the chest strap from that unit works with the 310xt just fine -- both use the ANT communications protocol, and you just need to pair the chest strap with your watch. For long events I found this strap uncomfortable, with the plastic strap digging into the sides of my chest. So I finally upgraded to the new stretchy fabric chest strap. This one works great, and is much more comfortable. Unlike the plastic strap you can't just wipe it off after a workout or race. You need to air dry it, and periodically... » Read More I previously owned a Forerunner 305, which I lost at the bottom of a river last Fall. But the chest strap from that unit works with the 310xt just fine -- both use the ANT communications protocol, and you just need to pair the chest strap with your watch. For long events I found this strap uncomfortable, with the plastic strap digging into the sides of my chest. So I finally upgraded to the new stretchy fabric chest strap. This one works great, and is much more comfortable. Unlike the plastic strap you can't just wipe it off after a workout or race. You need to air dry it, and periodically hand wash it as the fabric picks up body oils and odors. I'd buy one again. « Show Less
1000798
I have a similar question as Bryon has. I have a Garmin Cycling Heart Rate Monitor (305) and was wondering if I could get by if I bought a running 305 and used my existing strap.
580340
I have 305 and I decided not to buy the new 405 because:a) I am using the 305 while kayaking (it is waterproof to 1 m) and I fear 405 is not;b) When running in a new area or city I can use the basic map of the 305 to backtrack (very useful when you are lost! ) and I read a post from the developers that the 405 does not have even the crude maps that 305 has and that basically sealed the deal fore me.
728650
The 205 does have a backlight which allows you to read the watch, in my opinion, much easier than when looking at it in the daylight. You can set the forerunner to alert you to a lot of parameters(distance, time, etc) and when you hit those markers the forerunner will beep and also light up.
831335
There is an Exerpuetic 990, which is also a treadmill. I'm trying to figure out the difference between the 990 and the 2000 myself. The pictures of both models look the same and the prices of both are anywhere from the same to $150 more for the 2000, so I'm not sure if there is a legit difference or not.