Running/exercise watches

JamesH85

JamesH85

JamesH85

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There are currently some deals on the rainforest for Garmin, I've been after one of these GPS/excise watches for a while.

Does anyone own a 235/645 or anything and have any advice on which to purchase.
 
What do you want it to do?

GPS with pacing and heart rate?

You can't really go wrong with a Forerunner, I had a 935 for ages before upgrading to a Fenix 6 (I compete in triathlons).

I guess just figure out want you want it to do, and go with that. Some of the bigger differences now include music, NFC payments etc. If you don't need all that, go with a more basic one.
 
I've been a long term fan of the Fenix range from Garmin, some great deals to be had on the Fenix 5 now it's been superceded.
That said, the Garmin app is crap, and buggy. Also been hacked pretty bad if that bothers you.

Do you have a budget in mind?
If I needed a new watch tomorrow I'd find it hard to not buy a Wahoo Rival.
 
NoNameNoNumber said:
I've been a long term fan of the Fenix range from Garmin, some great deals to be had on the Fenix 5 now it's been superceded.
That said, the Garmin app is crap, and buggy. Also been hacked pretty bad if that bothers you.

Do you have a budget in mind?
If I needed a new watch tomorrow I'd find it hard to not buy a Wahoo Rival.
Click to expand...


Never had an issue with Garmin Connect app (apart from that hack!). All my main data goes into Training Peaks anyway, but still never had an issue with the syncing side or use of the app for me.
 
I'd Ben looking at the forerunner 235/245 and some of the music models too.

I'm trying to gauge if there is anything better out there for the.money or from a competitor.

I wasn't looking to pay anymore than £250.
 
Polar would be the only other 'real' competitor.

Forget Fitbit - they're for won't hold a candle to Garmin and co for proper exercise tracking.
 
NoNameNoNumber said:
Have you seen the Wahoo Rival?
Fair one on the Garmin app, YMMV I guess.
Click to expand...

Watch DCR's review of that yesterday. Looks good initially, but there are A LOT of basic features it cannot do. It's basically set up for triathlons.

But a lot of basic stuff such as step tracking, sleep tracking, VO2 max tracking, recovery tracking etc it does not have.
 
Have a Forerunner 245 as it seemed to be the best at the time. It did develop a screen fault but was quickly replaced by Garmin. Been pretty flawless, links to Strava, tracks sleep etc. Really great buy.

235 is pretty old now so avoid if you can.
 
Zatoichi.uK said:
Have a Forerunner 245 as it seemed to be the best at the time. It did develop a screen fault but was quickly replaced by Garmin. Been pretty flawless, links to Strava, tracks sleep etc. Really great buy.

235 is pretty old now so avoid if you can.
Click to expand...

I think the best I have found is the 245 music at Argos for £199. I'd like to take the music option so I no longer need my phone at all.
 
Had a forerunner 235 and now have a fenix 6s. I got the fenix for the map navigation and less plasticky appearance. I recently compared the appearance of the two here.

I would not get the 235 now unless it's a bargain and you only use it for exercise. Its features and appearance are a bit outdated now. The forerunner 45 is perfect for a basic GPS sport watch but the 245 would be what I would go for. It has a few more features, like training status, that I personally find useful. It's on a deal today on Amazon Prime for £179 for the non-music version.

Competitors are Suunto 3, Polar Ignite and COROS Pace 2. They all seem to get favourable reviews so are worth a look. Forget the Wahoo Rival, it's a first generation product and has lots of issues. Fitbit & apple watch will do if you need a lifestyle watch that can also pass as sports watch.
 
Shadowness said:
Watch DCR's review of that yesterday. Looks good initially, but there are A LOT of basic features it cannot do. It's basically set up for triathlons.

But a lot of basic stuff such as step tracking, sleep tracking, VO2 max tracking, recovery tracking etc it does not have.
Click to expand...

I was perhaps blinded by the fact I do triathlons :D

That said, I haven't really looked into them at all as I'm not in the market for a new watch. Seems they have some way to go before it's a genuine Rival.
 
Mrs has 235 and I have fenix 5. Both are decent. The 235 definitely has more basic software and lacks the more in-depth functionality of the fenix 5 but it's perfect just for a phys watch.

Fenix 5 and above are only really worth it if you intent to wear it as a daily watch as well as what ever activities you do. I basically never take mine off apart from to charge it - very happy with it.
 
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