MSRP $249.99 w/o Heart Rate Monitor, $299.99 with Premium HRM
I tried 3 other products before settling on this one. First I thought a FitBit was what I wanted, as I know a lot of people who have one and love it. I tried the FitBit Flex and although it gave interesting data, including sleep patterns, there is no GPS and I was supposed to wear it 24/7, which I didn't want to do.
Next I bought the Polar FT4 and really like it, but it with no GPS I still needed my phone. I had been using my phone and the RunDouble app to record GPS/pace/distance data, but the accuracy was not great. Plus every time my phone rang the program got all screwed up. I also tried the MapMyFitness app but again GPS accuracy was an issue. Back at square one I turned to the internet and did some research. I narrowed my choices to a different Polar, a Garmin and a new Tom Tom GPS watch I read about.
Next I tried the TomTom Gps Sports Watch, but wasn't completely sold. I liked the simplicity of the features and the speed of finding a GPS signal, but mine had problems right out of the box. After plugging in the usb charger to my computer and doing the initial charge/update/download the screen went blank and I had to reset it. The next time I removed it from the charging base it stayed on for about 3 minutes and then the screen went blank again. Nothing I did, no button I pushed, no tap of the screen, nothing would make it come back on. Reset again. Finally I was able to go out for a run with it working and I liked the info I could get while running, but when I got back to my house and put it in its base connected to my computer the screen went blank again and my data was lost! I probably just got a lemon, that happens, but I was frustrated and turned off. It went back to the store the next day :(
After another few days of research I ended up heading to a REI across town on 12/21/13 and buying the Garmin Forerunner 220. I LOVE IT!!!!!!! So far it has worked flawlessly and is stylish enough to wear all day if I want. Battery lasts forever in watch mode and so far I haven't needed to charge it but once. Now I'm not running super long distances or for long lengths of time so take my lack of battery use with a grain of salt. The longest I have had it on, linked to the HRM strap and a GPS signal is about 50 minutes. As my mileage increases and my use becomes more frequent I will update my opinion. My only wishes are that it would upload data over Wi-Fi so I wouldn't have to hook it up to my computer after every run to update the info on my Garmin Connect page and there was a usable app for IOS and/or Android. I'll keep my fingers crossed that an app happens in the near future.
I tried 3 other products before settling on this one. First I thought a FitBit was what I wanted, as I know a lot of people who have one and love it. I tried the FitBit Flex and although it gave interesting data, including sleep patterns, there is no GPS and I was supposed to wear it 24/7, which I didn't want to do.
Next I bought the Polar FT4 and really like it, but it with no GPS I still needed my phone. I had been using my phone and the RunDouble app to record GPS/pace/distance data, but the accuracy was not great. Plus every time my phone rang the program got all screwed up. I also tried the MapMyFitness app but again GPS accuracy was an issue. Back at square one I turned to the internet and did some research. I narrowed my choices to a different Polar, a Garmin and a new Tom Tom GPS watch I read about.
Next I tried the TomTom Gps Sports Watch, but wasn't completely sold. I liked the simplicity of the features and the speed of finding a GPS signal, but mine had problems right out of the box. After plugging in the usb charger to my computer and doing the initial charge/update/download the screen went blank and I had to reset it. The next time I removed it from the charging base it stayed on for about 3 minutes and then the screen went blank again. Nothing I did, no button I pushed, no tap of the screen, nothing would make it come back on. Reset again. Finally I was able to go out for a run with it working and I liked the info I could get while running, but when I got back to my house and put it in its base connected to my computer the screen went blank again and my data was lost! I probably just got a lemon, that happens, but I was frustrated and turned off. It went back to the store the next day :(
After another few days of research I ended up heading to a REI across town on 12/21/13 and buying the Garmin Forerunner 220. I LOVE IT!!!!!!! So far it has worked flawlessly and is stylish enough to wear all day if I want. Battery lasts forever in watch mode and so far I haven't needed to charge it but once. Now I'm not running super long distances or for long lengths of time so take my lack of battery use with a grain of salt. The longest I have had it on, linked to the HRM strap and a GPS signal is about 50 minutes. As my mileage increases and my use becomes more frequent I will update my opinion. My only wishes are that it would upload data over Wi-Fi so I wouldn't have to hook it up to my computer after every run to update the info on my Garmin Connect page and there was a usable app for IOS and/or Android. I'll keep my fingers crossed that an app happens in the near future.