Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
154 of 156 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Over-Engineered, 18 Jun 2008
The main improvement on the 305 is that this new generation of Forerunner actually looks like a wristwatch, so you'll be more inclined to keep it on for everyday use (allowing for the fact you need to charge it regularly). It's predecessors were too bulky and unwieldy for that and were strictly for training use only.
The battery life is also much improved - my 305 needed a re-charge after 2 hours training. This one has been going strong on 1 charge for a couple of days and 3 training sessions. It also features a handy power-save mode which again adds to it's usability and all round utility.
Now the negatives. The 305 was simple to operate. It had the usual menu buttons and side buttons to let you scroll through the functions. The 405 'improves' on this with a touch-sensitive bezel you run your finger round to operate - a bit like an iPod's click wheel but not half as user-friendly. I've only had the thing for a few days but my impressions are this is over-engineered and has actually taken the usability of the Forerunner backwards. It's simple enough to decipher but easy to inadvertently switch modes and functions, and not half as easy to operate 'on the hoof' as Garmin perhaps think it is. They should've stuck with the push button interface of the 305.
The charging adaptor is a plastic clip that just isn't as robust as the little docking station charger that came with the 305, it's also easy to not connect properly or inadvertently disconnect.
And what of the 'wireless' download feature? I dont see the point of this at all. It's considerably slower to upload your data than the 305 was. The 405 comes with a ANT USB stick that fits in your USB port then wirelessly downloads from your 405 when it is brought within 3m range. This USB stick will be hard to replace if you lose it, and losing it will reduce your 405 to a 200 quid digital wristwatch. A USB lead is easier to replace. This seems like a pointless innovation, and the fact you have to log onto the Garmin website to download the driver is infuriating. The manual suggests this is as simple as logging onto a webpage and pressing 'download'. Not for me it wasn't. Firstly the webpage wouldnt upload for a couple of days, then when it did actually finding the download in question took a bit of investigation - only to find that wasnt working either. Garmin assume everyone has easy access to high speed internet connection. What exactly is wrong with supplying the download on the user disc?? Especially when Garmin go to the trouble of supplying you with 6 different sets of paper instructions, each in a different language!?
Get past this and, as ever, the Forerunner remains an excellent training tool.
In summary, if you already own a 305 and it meets all your requirements then my recommendation is stick with it - unless you absolutely must have the very latest in Garmin technology. Its a better bit of kit.
EDIT: After 3 months of trying my hardest to persevere ive given up on the 405 and switched back to the much better 305. The final straw was taking the 405 on a half-marathon during which there was a light rain shower. The thing couldnt handle it and lost all functionality.
I cant believe Garmin didnt trial this product as fit for purpose, yet that appears to be the case. In too much of a hurry to get it out for last summer's market perhaps?
Anyway, this site wont let me revise my initial (and overly generous) 4 star rating, otherwise id drop it to 2. Avoid.
|
|
|
37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Nice, if pricey, bit of kit, 9 Jul 2008
There's no getting away from the fact that this is an expensive bit of kit and, for most people (me included), probably totally unnecessary. I upgraded to this from a Polar HRM without GPS and have been mainly using it for running for the past month or two.
As a bit of kit, it's great and works very well. The heart rate monitor is fine and the GPS seems to work accurately and well where I live (you can check the accuracy by uploading your workout into google earth).
You can customise up to three screens on the watch with up to three bits of information each (including speed, time, distance, heart rate, pace/mile). A slight downside of this is that if you have three bits of information, two of them are quite small.
I like the interface with the software that allows you to programme a workout (say warm-up, 10 x 400m speedwork with 1 minute easy) and then upload it to the watch, which then beeps at you at each change. As I said at the outset, I don't NEED this (I can count to 10 even when knackered), but I like it. The software also allows you to compare workouts with each other (e.g. speeds and heart rate graphs).
My minor niggle is a lack of battery life, which means I end up charging it every day to avoid running out of power (but the power clip device is natty and works fine).
I like the ability to monitor the distance and speeds I've run at, and I think this will help my training. Certainly, it's given me more motivation in the short term, even if my wife thinks that I've turned into a sad stato.
|
|
|
34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Out of the box, going back, but then..., 16 Jan 2009
Ive been running and cycling with HRM's for many years now and this is my most expensive foray into a new monitor plus GPS. After lots of web based review studying i decided to bite the bullet and go for the 405. Initially out of the box it all looked chunky and rubbery in a nice way, i then charged the watch and got playing. I had a complete nigthmare with the touch sensitive bezel and the software(Garmin connect) and the install on the PC version for when your away from an internet source, so went to bed feeling like I was going to return the 405 and get a refund.
Having slept on it(not literally:) I decided that Surely Garmin wouldn't release untried technology beta versions onto the market. So perseveared with it and played some more, started to get used to it and as I explored its functions and use started to quite like it. So went for a 10K cross country run and really got on well with it - the touch bezel is way easier to use on the fly than buttons! Got the software soughted - awesome:) now I have used this watch a good few times and it rocks. The chest strap is the most comfortable i have used as well.
The trick is just to take your time, learn about it and how to use it. Initially the watch and the software are not particularly intuitive but be patient and it all just comes together and you wonder what all the fuss was about. It is an extremely clever piece of kit with really advanced technolgy and loads of really useful functions; more of a computer than a watch in some ways. Also on the Garmin web site there are a series of short demo/instructional videos with a guy called Jake which are really worth a look before and after purchase as they really show the watch in its functional state and on an arm(so you get an idea of scale)! The Garmin spec sheet does not do it justice either, as it does alot more than it says on the tin! Including every heart rate type: BPM, %,HRR% and so on(doesn't mention % in the spec)
With reference to the water and bezel thing that has been mentioned this shouldn't really be a problem as you can easily lock the bezel and leave the unit paging through the info on auto. Also the other thing worth mentioning about the bezel, as this seems to bother some people from what ive read, is that you can change the sensitivity of the bezel in the menu, as it is purely electronic rather than mechanical. Similar to i pod but without that mechanical movement you get when you operate the i pod control.
Hope this helps
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
With an Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate, you can get them what they want (even if you don't know what that is). 
Amazon Home