What Garmin, Polar, etc. is best all around for Triathlon Traing and Racing?
I'm fairly new to EN and have been using the Timex Ironman GPS system but I'm ready for an upgrade. Which Garmin or GPS system do you think is the all around best unit for power and pace training/racing.
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I'd argue for the Garmin Forerunner 305. Current price is about $180, half the cost of the 310. Functions well as an HR monitor and also a bike computer (good for those bricks). Some people here seem enamoured with finding the "one ring to rule them all", i.e., a device which can be used during swimming, will function as a power meter meter monitor, and records pace as well. Theoretically, the 310 should do that, but:
• Due to forward and back motion of arms while swimming, it will not tell you how far or fast you are swimming
• Use with WKO + still seems in beta testing mode
• It costs twice as much
Unless you already have or are buying a Quarq power meter, I vote for the 305 for running use, and secondary bike computer. Its software and upgrade paths are excellent. Unless you prefer the blingier solution, and like fiddling with different systems, stick with "single use" devices.
I'm sure you'll soon see other opinions below!
+1 on what Al said.
Mike
I read this review and others on his site before buying my 310. He also reviews the 305 and several other products talked about here at EN.
dcrainmaker.blogspot.com/2009/09/garmin-forerunner-310xt-in-depth-review.html
The fact that the 310 is waterproof was a factor for me. It also has a battery life of 20 hours versus 10 hours for the 305. Seeing that my bike and run at my next Ironman will take about 10.5 hours, I was not willing to roll the dice on the 10 hour battery claim on the 305! LOL!!
BTW, I have not had an issue with the 310 and WKO+. Works fine for me. Good luck!
Ugh. I had a 305 and it died just outside it's warranty period. I had purchased it from REI which meant I was still able to get it replaced even though the warranty ended. Rather than a strait replacement, I chose to upgrade to the 310XT. I have mixed feelings about both. The biggest issue with the 310XT had been it's issues working with WKO related to its use as a Power Meter computer. However, many of those issues have been resolved with WKO 3.0 (although, there are still other issues that WKO 3.0 has - including the fact that it doesn't calculate rTSS correctly- regardless of 310 or 305). All that aside, I'm confident the majority of issues will be resolved shortly and happy I made the upgrade and for the following reasons:
- The 305 is a bit larger (note- I have freakishly small wrists and I had to wear a wrist/sweat band under the 305 to get it to fit and not chaffe my wrists.) The 310 simply fits better on my wrist.
- The 310 is waterproof- I can swim with it. I don't care much that it won't get the distance right- but it is important to me to be able to put the watch on at the beginning of the race and not have something else to fuss with in transition. Additionally- I've spent way too many first miles of the run waiting for the satellites to pick up on the 305. Also, I use my Garmin for hiking/kayaking as well as running/biking and being able to not worry about it getting REALLY wet is important to me.
- Yes, I really like the idea of one tool for power and pace and having a second computer to troubleshoot PT Hub issues. I am currently playing with wearing the watch on the inside of my wrist to see if I can see it while in the Aerobars and if so, that's gonna be a huge benefit for me since I struggle greatly to find some way to attach that LYC to my tiny aerobar/stem system and still be able to see it.
Now all that said- there are things about the 305 I liked and miss. I found it much easier to set up workouts in the Garmin Training Center and download them to my 305 with set paces based on my zones. You can still setup workouts with the 310, but you can't tie the intervals to your training zones (instead you have to set up custom zones for each workout). There are also some fields in the 305 that are missing from the 310 (like sunrise/sunset time- not that big a deal for run/bike, but a huge miss for hiking).
By the way if you want a good laugh the animation on the site below is worth your time. I think RnP would appreciate the reminder from the Aussie about "Aren't you forgetting to TRAIN--TO DO THE WORK?"
http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/5749137/
Do you train with power? Is having Power on your watch important to you?
For those looking for a single solution - this is not it. The 405 works for runners and not so much for triathletes. On longer rides and runs I wear a Timex on the inside of my wrist just to keep track of my nutrition.
I don't know the Polar line well, but I'll comment on the Timex and Garmins.
If all you want is the current HR or to be able to look at HR data by lap after the fact (but not download it or see it second by second), the Timex is a clear front choice. They are real watches, and you just pay a small premium for the HR monitor compared to the "plain" version (Maybe $20-30). Waterproof and the whole shebang.
The Garmin Forerunner 305 is a wrist-mounted gps/hrm. It keeps time, but is NOT a watch. You only get 10-15 hours of use out of it per charge. It is a great device, and a relative bargain at about $175 street price. But it has critical limitations: (a) It's theoretically not supposed to be swum with, though people do. It's "water resistant". (b) It does not read power, i.e., it's not ANT+. It has three display screens of up to four fields each that can be fully customized within its limitations. Also, if you care about second-by-second data, it can only store about 3.5 hours worth. Under the "smart recording" option, which is good enough for many applications, storage is not an issue. All of the Garmins I will mention download the data, as you know.
The Garmin 405 is (as has been mentioned) basically speaking a runners-only device. You can read about it and decide if you like the more watch-like look, but recognize that it's not a good choice if you want to use it for other things.
The Garmin 310x is the new watch-like device, and it's considerably more than the Forerunner. It is clearly the "next generation Forerunner" and is similar in the display and usage. It reads ANT+, has a new smaller file size, ample data storage, 20 hour battery life, and is WATERPROOF. It has a mount system that is practical for usage as a bike computer if you want to use it that way, too.
Among the bike-specific products, the Edge 500 is the clear bang/buck performer. Hands Down. Only reason to go to the 705 is if you want maps with street names, etc like a mini-GPS for your car. All the other Garmin products give you "breadcrumb" maps on the device, but do not show a map beneath them.
On all of them, you can put in a "route" to follow - the choice is just whether you want/need the street map beneath, as far as the bike-ones go.
Best,
William
I've been using the Garmin 305 for 4 years, and have never had a reason to "upgrade" to he 405 or the 310. I don't need an ANT + head unit (I use the iBike, which is ANT+ should I ever get a PowerTap or whatever. I use it to bike and especially run with. On the bike as a back-up to the iBike computer, and on the run for pace, HR, etc. Like Paul, I do not race with pace, except for a small Timex Ironman telling me how long each mile took me.
Brands are useful tools. Garmin is the clear leader in applying GPS technology to all sorts of uses (boating, flying, hiking, climbing, etc), and thus spends a lot of time considering how people will actually use their products. Polar is probably the leader is applying HR technology to various, uses, and so carries a premium price.
ANT+ is a wireless protocol in the 2.4GHz frequency range. It allows devices to communicate with each other. The bike or wrist mount device (Edge or Foreruner) is an ANT+ receiver and other accessory items (HR monitor strap, Speed/cadence, Powertap, quarq, etc.) are ANT+ transmitters. Each device is numerically coded so that once paired you wont receive someone else's say HR strap signal.
The FR305 & 405 and Edge 305 while being ANT+ units, are not equipped to do power, so they won't work for that application. But they are all definitely ANT+ units.
As far as Edge 500 vs 705 there are a few other differences, the 705 has a larger screen and can display either more data fields or the same amount of data fields in larger characters which may be helpful to people that have difficulty reading small type. The Edge 500 records temperature the 705 does not. The 705 uses TCX files which are plain text XML files that can be read by many applications and web services. The Edge 500 uses proprietary FIT files which can only be read by GTC and maybe WKO device agent (not sure about that). FWIW, the FR310XT creates both TCX and FIT files.
the dcrainmaker blog is a good source of information for pre purchase decisions.
The GTC software can "translate" the FIT files into TCS, although that does add an extra step.
How do you like the iBike computer? Is it accepted in the Haus vs. a PT setup? I just looked at the write up on the iAero. It looks very good, especially the new features to dynamically measure coefficient of drag. I was about to order the standard EN PT Pro+ wheel build but want to get your thoughts on the ibike. Any other threads on the forum I should take a look at?
I use a polar s625x with the power add on. Its good enough. its around 600 for the watch and power. its not as accurate as a powertap, as it uses the chain to estimate power, but its accurate enough and if your power goes up it goes up either way.
Benefit: one device, take it off the bike, throw it on wrist and go
uses a pretty accurate footpad, instead of GPS, no waiting for satellites no worying about passing clouds.
detriments: actually the only thing is when you shift gears if you don't do it fluid enough the power jumps a bit for a second.
@ Scott:
Scott - In this link: http://www.endurancenation.us/en_forums/search.php?searchid=298810 there are a number of threads in the "old" EN forum on iBike, contrasted with PT. In the new forum, here's a link to an iBike thread: http://endurancenation.us.dnnmax.com/Community/Forums/tabid/101/aff/26/aft/262/afv/topic/Default.aspx both James Lewis and I have longish posts about iBike use I use the iBike because it's what I came into EN with, and I'm too cheap and lazy to make any switches now. Advantages: small, easily transfers between bikes, software is easy to use (especially on Mac), provides lots of "extra" data, like road grade, temp., altitude, wind speed and direction, up to the minute Normalized Power and TSS and IF. Disadvantages: I think the power numbers are much more variable. I.e., when others are seeing a variability # of like 1.05, I might see 1.1-1.15. I think it over reads power up hills and into the wind, and under reads going down and with the wind, but maybe up hill and into the wind is just harder than I realise! At about $800 for the reasonable set-up, it offers a small price advantage. But I think it's a little more esoteric in learning how to work with it than the power tap seems to be. Check out those links above for more info.
Al
Thanks for the advice. Just realized I didn't get back to you. So I chose the standard set up (PowerTap Pro+ and Wheel Builder Wheel) from coach Rich. The iBike sounds like a good choice. I am sure that no choice is perfect.
Thanks again,
Scott