Garmin Forerunner 410 GPS Sportswatch with Heart Rate Monitor

The Garmin Forerunner 410 is the replacement for the Garmin Forerunner 405 and Garmin Forerunner 405CX and as in this respect is a second generation device. The Forerunner 405 was almost a great device, small enough to be used as an everyday watch and a fully functional GPS runner's tool, but when the reviews started trickling in it became clear that it had a major problem, the sleek touch sensitive (iPod like) bezel didn't work too well when it became wet (with rain or sweat). The Forerunner 410 looks and works much the same as the Forerunner 405 but the troublesome bezel is now much improved.

The Forerunner 410 is primarily a runner's watch with just enough features to make it useful to cyclists; it's not really suited for the tri-athlete for several reasons. Garmin states that the Forerunner 410 is rated at IPX7, this means that it has been tested and found to be water resistant at a depth of one metre for 30 minutes. The GPS signal does not penetrate water so will not work anyway and the Heart Rate Monitor will not work in water.

The Forerunner 410 came with no charge at all in the battery, but charging is quick and simple; it was fully charged after about 2 hours. With the GPS enabled the battery will last up to 8 hours; this is borne out by experience. One improvement over the earlier Forerunner 405 is that you can now disable the GPS function and this extends battery life to around a week (apparently).

The Forerunner 410 has three available screens to view and each can be configured to display 1,2 or 3 of the 35 available data fields. Three of the 35 data fields will require the additional foot-pod for cadence information and a further eight fields will require the optional heart rate monitor. The Foot Pod is useful for capturing cadence (steps per minute) and for distance/speed when no GPS signal is available (in the gym and on the treadmill). The heart rate monitor strap is worth the investment and provides a wealth of additional data.

The GPS facility is excellent, it typically picks up the GPS signal well within one minute and so far it hasn't lost it. Tracking appears to be very accurate, typically within a few metres of the actual distance run. The elevation calculation can be a little vague (this is not the fault of the watch but a result of how GPS calculates elevation) but even this seems to tally on the Forerunner 410.

One of the most useful features is the Virtual Partner, this enables you to set a target pace for your virtual partner and track progress against him/her on your run. This is a fantastic feature for pacing yourself, especially in a race when it's so easy to start too quickly. It's easy to switch between the Virtual Partner page and the data pages on the watch by simply tapping the bezel. I've tried this in the rain and deep into a run with sweaty hands with no problem. I've even tried it with gloves on and it worked fine. The display can also be locked to prevent accidental activation.

The PC software setup was simplicity itself (I use Windows XP) and the watch automatically downloads the run data as soon as it's within range of the USB antenna (about 3 metres). The GarminConnect web site is free and gives a very good analysis of the data. It will show the route you took, heart-rate, speed, elevation and cadence and will even animate it to show all the readings as you ran - really impressive. There is also some free software available on the web (Sports Tracks 3.0) that is compatible with the Garmin 410 and that enables you to analyse the data still further.

The Garmin 410 is a really impressive piece of equipment and now that the bezel issues appear to have been largely fixed is definitely worth getting if you're a runner. If you're more of a Tri-athlete I may be tempted to go for the Garmin Forerunner 310XT as a more suitable device.

Impressed is the first feeling the Garmin 410 provides me. How cautious I was after reading so many split reviews on this and other models but made a leap of faith after the more positive reviews and purchased the Garmin 410GPS with heart rate sensor for the same price as older models.

The 410 is a very sleek GPS/watch, not too thick and large enough screen to provide a clear and easy to read display which is all user defined. After a look at the Quick Ref leaflet provided, I immediately placed the 410 on charge for just over 2 hours (3hrs is specified for a flat to full charge) then I had a little play just to get the feel for buttons and menu options available before tackling the instruction booklet and I found it very easy to operate and soon remembered the pathways to the various menu options.

Before you start getting frustrated because you can't see the information you would like to see...READ THE MANUAL PROVIDED ON THE CD. The manual is well written and easy to understand. Once I had completed this I was whizzing around and soon selecting the 3 different Training fields (Settings, Data fields, Training 1, 2 or3) and editing the fields to show specific info on my runs. I only used the first 2 trg screens and opted to turn Trg 3 off. Everything is user defined and it all depends on how much data you want access during or after your run.

The Bezel.. I have had no issues with the bezel. It is very sensitive so be very clear with your presses or your touch and scroll, I'm finding it easy to use and practice makes perfect. I do lock the bezel on runs to show my key data Time, Pace, Distance.

GPS..The GPS was very quick to acquire satellites, under 2 minutes on the first test at Exeter, Devon. On runs it again had no problems acquiring or tracking my location

I downloaded the Garmin Training Centre software and have paired the 410 with my Mac without too much stress. Data has transferred automatically when I'm in range, though I tend not to leave the Ant stick connected to my laptop (being mobile a lot) but once i plug it I choose to "Force Send" on the 410 to transfer immediately.

I have not used the Heart Rate sensor yet and I will update this review once I have.

Overall..after a couple of days of use I am still a very satisfied customer. Word of advice.. Read the manual first, Fully charge the unit before you play with it and the rest is childs play!!

I received the 410 with HRM as a gift in September 2011 and was very pleased with it. It has lots of great features and functions and I enjoyed using it. BUT and this is the big negative it failed after two weeks use. The bezel froze and would not respond to any command. I tried reseting and reloading the software all to no avail. So sent it back to Amazon for a replacement. Amazon were great and sent a new one straight out. I used the new one for a few weeks and started having the same problem again; finally it froze the same way the first one did so reluctantly I have given up and sent it back for a refund and will try a different product.