Electronics Review: Garmin Forerunner 205 GPS Running Watch

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Keeps excellent track of distances and time

Cons: Very slow to load and on the bulky side

The Bottom Line: 

Get the real miles

For your distance exercise

With this helpful watch

How Did I Run Without This Watch?

Three years ago, I signed up for my first two mud runs, and quickly determined that they wouldn’t be my last.  Along the way, I discovered that mud runs are great motivation to get out and run.  In 2011, I not only training for a 10 mile Tough Mudder, but also my first half marathon.  Helping me train for both is the Garmin Forerunner 205.

Last year, I tried to do some longer runs, but I’d have to map out a route beforehand and then hope I remembered the right landmarks.  And the mapping programs I found weren’t the best since I was often using a path that wouldn’t show up.  I began wanting to do some runs in a park near me as well.

I was beginning to think about getting a GPS watch when a friend offered me his.  He’d recently upgraded, and didn’t feel he needed two.  I jumped at the chance, and I’m glad I did.  Not only have I found my normal 3 mile run is really 3.3 miles, but several runs I did last year were much longer than I thought they were.  Honestly, that made me feel much better about how I felt after some of those runs.  I even used the watch to pace myself to my first ever under half hour 5K finish.  (I didn’t claim to be a fast runner, right?) And while I haven't gone on any of the trail runs I was thinking of doing yet, I have enjoyed exploring some bike paths while knowing I can still cover the distance I need to cover.

While this is a GPS watch, it is designed for a runner or cyclist.  It works best when it is keeping track of how far you have gone.  While there is a tiny map feature, it’s not really designed to help you find your way from one point to another.

Another thing this one doesn’t have is a heart rate monitor.  Frankly, I’m glad because I didn’t want that.  Those also tend to make watches more expensive

The watch itself is rather bulky, especially for someone who has stopped wearing watching period.  The face is bigger than any watch I’ve worn for years.  I know the new models are smaller since the technology to get the GPS information has gotten better since this one originally came out.  The strap is plastic, but it doesn’t feel that uncomfortable, even when I am sweating from my run.  And there are enough notches on it that I don’t have a problem finding a slot where it fits well.

When you first turn it on, it has to find the satellites so it can keep track of where you are.  That seems to take a while to load.  In fact, the bar that fills will get almost full and then pop back to the half-way point a few times before it fully loads.  That really bugs me.

But once it does load, you are on a screen set to record your run (or ride if you are on a bike).  The main screen will tell you how far you’ve run to the one hundreth of a mile, the time since you started, and your average pace.  You can scroll through other screens that tell you how many calories you’ve burned, your best pace and average pace, and compare your lap splits.

The start/stop button and the lap button are very prominent on the face of the watch, which is wonderful if you are trying to hit those buttons without really breaking your stride.  The display is also big enough that it is easy to see while still running.

Of course, some of the calculations seem to be rather suspect.  For example, the calorie count is based on age, height, and weight, all of which can be input into the watch.  But it doesn’t take hills into account at all, and it seems to be questionable when it comes to pace.  The current pace readout also seems slow to change.  I’ll lay on a burst of speed and it takes a good 15 seconds for the pace to reflect my new speed.

A button over on the left side is labeled Mode, and you need this button to see what the actual time is and how much battery is left.  They’re rather small when displayed.  I thought at first this info wasn’t on the watch anywhere.  It would be nice if it were in a more prominent place, but once I found it, I wasn’t that bothered by flipping over there to see how much battery I have left.

Speaking of the battery, I have found that I need to charge it about once a month when I take it out on my long runs.  That means I’m getting about six hours out of one charge.  The watch fits into a nice holder that connects to a computer USB port, and the display lets you know when the battery is done charging.

When you connect to a computer, you can also use the software that comes with the watch.  You can store all your runs and see how you are doing from one run to the next side by side.  You can also great a desired pace and then transfer that back to your watch and then challenge yourself next time you are out on that course.  Personally, I haven’t done much with the software.  I find it most helpful for figuring out my average pace and the distances of my long runs.  But if I decide to do more, I like the fact that the ability is there.

I also don’t take this watch out for every run.  When I do my normal course, I know how far it is and I pretty much know what my pace will be.  I just enjoy the freedom of getting out and running.

As I keep increasing my long runs, I honestly can’t believe I was training last year without a GPS watch.  I am sold on my Garmin Forerunner 205 and plan to use it as a regular part of my training.