I previously had the (very popular) forerunner 205 so this review will be based on comparing it to that. I bought the 205 when it came out in 2006 and it’s still going strong. I love tech though so decided to treat myself to an “upgrade”…
The Good
- Wifi and bluetooth data uploading. This is really handy. Saves getting the computer out. The live tracking is also good, but it requires you to take your phone on your run.
- Dedicated button for showing the current time of day.
- It’s smaller.
The Bad
- No multisport. If you want to enter a triathlon and have transitions etc. you’ll need a different watch. In fact, this watch was unbelievably released without any cycling mode but that is now available in the latest firmware.
- No navigation features. So no back to start, or following a route for you. You’ll need a different watch.
- Fewer data fields. The 205 lets you see 4 fields at once.
The Ugly
- GPS isn’t as accurate! In fact, it’s pretty poor. See (http://fellrnr.com/wiki/GPS_Accuracy) :
This means my GPS data often sends me swimming and accidentally collecting Strava segments I didn’t even run…!
A paragraph where a summary would normally be
Well, I’ve been pretty critical of this watch and that’s mainly because there are so many steps backwards for such an expensive watch. I still own my 205 but I don’t use it. That’s because uploading data with a cable and the Garmin uploader was such a terrible experience I’d do anything to prevent it.
Meh.