Garmin Forerunner GPS Series | ||
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RUNNERS, BICYCLISTS and TRIATHLETES that want to
IMPROVE THEIR PERFORMANCE NOW CAN with cutting edge technology and simplicity. |
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Garmin Forerunner 201
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Garmin Forerunner 205 |
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Form meets function with Garmin's next-generation, sleek and stylish line of
personal trainers — the Forerunner
205 & 305. Don't let their good
looks fool you. These taskmasters will continually push you to do your personal
best. In addition to its new look, the Forerunner 205 includes a high sensitivity
GPS receiver and new courses feature for optimal performance.
Designed for athletes of all levels, this running partner and personal trainer has one goal in mind — a better you. It continuously monitors your speed, distance, pace and calories burned so you can train smarter, more effectively. It tracks your every move with a super-sensitive GPS that even works on tree-covered trails and near tall buildings. Receive a detailed post-workout analysis on the PC with included Garmin Training Center® software.
The Forerunner 205 keeps you on track with innovative features including:
* New! Sleek, stylish, lightweight design that "wraps" the
GPS antenna around part of the wrist for a better view of the sky, improving
reception during training
* New! High sensitivity GPS receiver provides faster acquisition times and
improves tracking under trees and near tall buildings
* New! Customizable screens let you view up to 12 data fields on 3 data screens
for immediate feedback on the information you need most when training
* Multi-sport capability lets you seamlessly transition between sports without
resetting the unit, so you can use it for running, biking, and more
* Easy to use — no calibration required. Just turn it on and go
Customize your Forerunner 205 to get the most out of your training. To help you achieve your personal best, the Forerunner 205 includes the following smart features:
* New! Courses feature lets you download recorded courses and compete
against previous workouts
* Auto Pause® pauses and resumes training timer based on a specified speed
so you never have to start or stop the timer
* Auto Lap® records lap data when you reach a specified time, distance
or position so you never have to punch the lap button
* Virtual Partner® lets you train against a digital person at specified
time, distance or pace goals
* AutoScroll cycles through data pages during a workout
Included Garmin Training Center software helps you tailor workouts to meet specific goals and objectives. Create your own workouts or use workout templates included on the CD. Interactive analysis tools let you chart performance overlaid on a map.
You can also analyze your Forerunner 205 data with Garmin's web-based application, MotionBased.com, which provides in-depth analysis of your workouts, online mapping, and route sharing to take your training to the next level. Endurance athletes can use the Forerunner with TrainingPeaks.com, an easy-to-use web-based training system designed to help athletes train for any event.
Forerunner 205: You'll like the results
Garmin Forerunner 205 Customer Comments
Reviewer: Swantje G. Dixon "busy Mom" (Inverness, FL)
(REAL NAME)
What a great device! Forerunner
205 is very accurate and easy to use. A perfect GPS
for running. Very light weight and not so bulcky. I really like that you
can switch miles/meter and 12h/24h. I just started running and never owned
a device like this before. I'm very satisfied with it. I would recommend
it to everyone.
Wow - this is amazing, February 27, 2007
Reviewer: S. Jones "sjones301" (San Diego, CA) -
(REAL NAME)
This thing is amazing. I''ve had the Forerunner
205 for a few days now and have gotten
several runs in with it, although I plan to use it for biking as well.
There are obviously lots of cool things you can do with it in building
maps of your runs, then taking those runs, turning them into courses, and
then racing against yourself later.
However, the core reason I wanted it was for:
- Mileage estimates
- To get feedback on speed/pacing
First Mileage Estimates - I never knew how far I was running and just took a guess. Now I am training for a marathon and that wasn't cutting it. I tried to use a mapping website where I digitized my routes using a mouse on the PC. Turns out if I mapped the run 3-4 different times, I'd get as much as a mile difference in a 15 mile run. Not good enough.
So this thing nails it on mileage and now I don't too far or too short in training.
Feedback for speed/pacing - As I've never known how far I have run, a stop watch didn't do much good for estimating how fast I am running - only how long I ran for. When I tried to do speed workouts or slow 10+ minute per mile recovery runs, I never knew if I was going slow enought to truly recover.
Now I know how fast I am going. The instant pace feedback is not that great, but the lap pace is very good. I realize now I have a tough time running slower than 10 minutes per mile so it is helping to discipline myself. I haven't done a speed workout yet, but it will be great to see how my training is coming along and if I am on target to meet my pacing goals to run a 1:45 half marathon.
Also - calories burned. Some reviews mention this is way off. There is a firmware update that corrects this and it is fairly accurate now. I've compared what forerunner says with some web based estimation tools and I'm comfortable with the 205's calorie estimates.
The reason for only the 4 star rating:
- Garmin training software is fairly simple. I have opted to use a freeware
SW version called Sporttracks by zonefivesoftware.com. Great mapping
capabilites and the reporting, analytical tools are better. Not as intuitive
to use, but for a free package it is better than what Garmin provides.
- Also, some of the extras on the Garmin are useless. Stuff like the %
grade is way inaccurate, and the elevation is questionable.
Bottom line - if you want a tool to improve your training and don't want to be tied down to a system that uses a footpod and/or want to build maps of your runs, this is a winner.
Garmin 201 vs 205, February 22, 2007
Reviewer: Caveman017
I have bought this GPS running watch about a week back. For the past year
and a half, I have been training with the Garmin Forerunner 201, but with
the recent falling prices of the Forerunner
205, I could not resist upgrading.
First off notices:
Charging and transferring data via USB is much faster then the 201. The
battery went from empty to fully charged in less than two hours, where
before with the 201, it would be overnight before I could use it.
Comfort:
The 201, although bulky, was not that heavy, especially during the run.
The one thing I hated was how it limited the wrist movement due to the
prolongated size. The 205 does not suffer from this problem as it's much
thinner.
Accuracy:
With the 201, it never had a hard time finding the signal, just that randomly
during my runs it would loose signal, or say I was running at a 10 min/mile
pace, when in reality, it was near a 7:00 mile pace. With the 205, I
have never experienced and weak signals, and it will even "find
itself" from inside my house - something that I could NEVER do before.
Fixed Annoyances:
-With the 201, when you stopped the time, it would create a new lap - with
the 205, it will continue with the same lap until you hit the lap button.
-USB dock. I don't know why Garmin decided to sell the x01 series with
a Serial cable in 2004 when all PCs had a USB port. Neither of my new computers
had a Serial port, so my 201 was useless unless I wanted to use my PC from
1999.
-A/C adapter size. The new one is about 1/3 the size of the old one
Cool stuff:
You can customize the fields to include everything you wanted to know:
Sunrise
Sunset
Time of Day
Direction (N,NE,S,SW etc)
Average pace
Lap Pace
Distance
I'm loving the 205 a LOT more then the 201. I hope you love it as much as I do.
Absolutely the best gift for a running geek, February 21, 2007
Reviewer: Kent D. Altena "Bowulf" (West Des Moines, IA)
(REAL NAME)
I have heard it compared to the microwave -- you just don't know how you
got along without it after you buy one. It is the truth. As a numbers junkie
who can't trust his body for speed, I now can tempo train with the best
of them because my pace is on my wrist. Highly recommended.
Garmin Forerunner 205, February 21, 2007
Reviewer: Joao G. D. Santos "JG Diniz" (Rio de Janeiro, Rio de
Janeiro Brazil)
(REAL NAME)
Excellent purchase. I recommend Forerunner
205 for outside training. It's
very accurate and easy to operate.
What types of athletic training was the system designed for?
Triathlon training, marathon training, cycling training, running training, multisport training and more.
Forerunner 205 Features:
* GPS: High Sensitivity SiRFstarIII™ architecture
* Weight: 2.72 oz. (77 grams)
* Display (WxH): 1.3” x 0.8” (33mm x 20.3mm)
* Physical size (WxHxD): 2.1 ” x .7 ” x 2.7” (53.3mm x 17.8mm
x 68.6mm)
* Lap Memory: 1,000 laps
* Battery Life: 10 hours (typical use); rechargeable lithium-ion battery
* Waterproof: IEC 60529 IPX7 standards (submersible in one meter of water for
up to 30 mins.)