Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor
by Garmin
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor
Customer Review: Great for recuperation too !
Summary: 5 Stars
Garmin Forerunner 305 - Speed and Distance Monitor & Heart Rate Monitor
To start with, I'm a disabled veteran, 3 herniated discs, and have had both hips totally replaced. Prior to my injuries, I ran 7-milers, swam laps for 1.5 hours, and biked in excess of 30-40 miles, & also worked out at a gym. After my injuries I found myself unable to exercise for # 10 years. Now I'm 45, and do not want to blow my heart out, because I foolishly try to work out like I used to.
This Forerunner 305 can watch your heart rate at many different levels, and help you motivate, and pace in ways that just were not possible, in a little package like this 10 years back ! I can Power walk, and ride a recumbent bike, and even though this watch is marketed at runners & cyclists, using it for walking and hiking are among its major talents too. There is a bit of a learning curve, but the rewards, are a very flexibly progammed unit that frees you from guess work, and keeps you on track, when your trying to re-build your body after major surgeries.
It suggests heart rate settings for different aerobic levels, and creates zones for them. Remember though IF YOU DO NOT SIT DOWN WITH THIS UNIT AND ITS MANUAL FOR A FEW HOURS OR MORE, you will miss out on just how flexible and customizable it realy is ! I noticed a lot of complaints about this unit, and I think most of them are being made by people who refuse to read the MANUAL. As with most things in life, what you put into it is what you will get out of it. If you are lazy and hate to read & learn, then stay away from intelligent devices like this one, as it was never made for you. If you have half a brain, then grab one of these, and I suggest getting the foot pod that goes with it. If you hit a stormy sretch or worse, you still keep traking your speed along with time and heart rate. Go to your Local health club and find out your V02 max and ideal heart rate levels. Your local Dr. can often do this too. it's good to have these starting levels professionally targeted ahead of time, but the watch will do a rough estimate for you.
I have experienced no hardware or software failures of any kind as of yet with this unit. I updated the Garmin exercise software that came with the unit, I updated the USB Drivers, the watches GPS drivers, and the watches GUI software too. These are all avaiable at Garmin's website. Do It first befor you start using it for workouts etc. If you are not tech savy, then call Garmin tech support, as I had no trouble reaching them. It was an 8 minute wait... Remember Walking, carefull execise, and nutrition helps heal Back injuries ! Try juicing lots of organic veg. & fruit too. and get off that damn junk food and fast food, or you will never heal. I know, I did the wrong things first, but when I cleaned up my diet,and started walking, I lost @ 55 pounds, and healed up almost compleatly.
Hope you found this helpfull etc...
Customer Review: A gadget can't make you get in better shape....or can it?
Summary: 5 Stars
All in all, I've seen my share of fitness gadgets and tools come and go and I've come to appreciate a few as my very favorites and the forerunner 305 definitely in my top three. Now is the Forerunner 305 a completely necessary tool, no, not at all, if you really wanted to you could just googlemap out your run and figure out your pace with a watch, and you could definitely get a much cheaper heart rate monitor for that purpose. That being said, the Forerunner 305 is a fantastic tool and does everything that it can do nearly perfectly.
Having this tool to track and keep a history of my runs has really inspired me to run much more often. And looking at the watch while running definitely inspires me to run faster to keep pace or go faster than my last run. So from those perspectives the Forerunner 305 actually does get you into better shape.
For tracking runs the Forerunner 305 can't be beat, it's incredibly accurate in it's gps positioning and keeps detailed history of your runs (or bikes for that matter). I used to use the Nike + run system and this watch keeps much more accurate records on distance. The only small issue that I've run into with the watch with respect to its gps function is that the watch can sometimes take a bit longer to locate satellites when it's turned on if it's overcast outside. It also gives a great deal of display options and can show you pretty much exactly what you want to focus on in whichever display position you desire.
The workouts option provide good options to train with including the expected distances, 5k, 10k, marathon and anything custom inbetween.
The heart rate monitor is quite accurate and the watch even enables you to set alerts to go off if your heart rate is too low or too high. The only other issue that I have with the watch is that the calorie counts aren't necessarily the most accurate. The calorie counts are calculated based on weight and distance traveled. This is a basic method to calculate calories burned, and can vary in it's effectiveness based on the overall fitness of the person. A more accurate method to determine calories burned would be based on heart rate, which this watch should use, but does not, and I've heard that some of the cheaper polar heart rate monitors will do (because they have to since they don't know the distance traveled).
Overall though, this watch has been an invaluable part of my fitness arsenal and has enabled me to stay in great shape without a gym membership.
My other two favorite fitness tools are PowerBlock Elite 90 Adjustable 5 to 90-Pounds per Dumbbell Set and Bowflex SelectTech Adjustable Bench Series 3.1.
Customer Review: Wow! This thing is Awesome!
Summary: 5 Stars
I am one of those people who really don't care very much for fancy gadgets...I just like to run...get the information that I want (usually just time and average HR) and write it down in a running journal and that's it.
But Wow! I can't stop playing with this new toy. I love this thing. To be honest...I really didn't expect to much from the GPS, and I more than likely would not have purchased it had it not been on sale for $149 here on Amazon. But now that I have it...I would have paid the retail price of $299 to get it.
This is my first GPS running unit. I have a GPS for my SUV but never one for my running and like I said, I didn't expect much from it. Just thought it would be another HR monitor with some features that I would never really need or use. Boy was I wrong!
I used the Polar brand HR Monitors for years both for running and cycling and never had a problem with them. When I purchased this Garmine I also purchased my wife and mother both Polars off Ebay. I am now returning both the polars to purchase them each the Garmin 305.
It is more of computer than it is a watch/HR monitor. Very cool. The GPS signal picks up in about 15 seconds each time. The distance is dead on accurate. The HR monitor works great.
What I really like, besides everything working properly, is the fact that I can change the viewing screen to whatever I want. With the previous Polar monitors you were stuck with whatever they wanted you to view. With this 305...I have it set to display four read outs - Current HR, Current distance, Stop watch time, and Average Pace.
It is so cool to be able to look down at your watch and see your average pace and the distance traveled. I am super anal about the distances I run and I end up getting in my truck and driving the run distance three or four times to make sure it is correct. Now...I can just run...anywhere I want...and how cool is that.
Man...I really love this thing.
I even signed up for the FREE Motion software thing, which was very easy and gives me all this information that I probably don't really care about but is still very neat to look at.
The only negative thing I would say about it...and I don't find this a negative at all....is it is big. Looks like something out of star trek..while on your wrist. Doesn't matter to me though...I never actually wear the watch part anyways. I always carry it in my hand...easier to look at that way as I run.
If you are someone who must have it on their wrist....it is big and bulky.
If you have lots of experience with various GPS brands than there might be some things that I am missing but if this is your first GPS/HR monitor toy...than buy this thing...you will love it.
Hope this review helped.
Customer Review: Much better than expected!
Summary: 5 Stars
First, let me say that I am obsessive when I buy electronics. For a few days I will do research on various forums and consumer electronic sites in an effort to make sure that my hard earned money will go to the best product. Most of my research lead me to the Garmin 305, and I couldn't be happier.
When I received my Garmin I was waiting for all the problems that some of the reviewers had; band didn't fit, battery had problems, screen was too small, and performance problems. Let me just say, after spending a few weeks with the 305, that I believe most of the bad reviews are based on the reviewers not understanding how to change or manipulate the features on the 305. Almost all of the poor reviews I have seen--minus the actual faulty machines--could have been fixed by either reading the manual or just tinkering around...even the dreaded "erratic" pace count can be smoothed out.
The Good:
1) Does even more than I thought it could! Whatever you want this little machine for, it will blow you away with its versatility.
2) It is very light! I wear a stainless Submariner which is twice as heavy as the Garmin 305.
3) The 305's GPS is accurate...extremely accurate. I have 3 courses I run on a regular basis. I know the exact length of these courses and was anxious to see if the 305 could perform. I was astonished that it was exactly right! I would have been happy with a 50-foot+ standard deviation...but it was exact!
4) No problems with the heart rate monitor. Once again, let me state that most of the people that have problems with the heart rate monitor are probably plagued by user error.
The Bad:
1) I wish I could put more that 4 items on the screen. I know people have complained about not being able to see the screen, but I find it easy to read...I just want a few more items on it.
2) Should have a color screen.
3) I would prefer that it comes with a Velcro athletic band. I know they can smell after a few workouts but I like the convenience.
Lastly, I have only written a few reviews on Amazon as I feel that can't make that much of a difference in a consumer's opinion...but let me say this; if you want a watch that will keep track of your location, distance, speed, heart rate etc., then you need this watch. You can't go wrong!
***Update as of April 29, 2009***
So, 5 months of ownership later I'm still in love with my 305. I ran with it all winter, and a fairly rainy spring with no problems. I was skeptical of the garmin being able to handle runs in almost zero degree weather (my mp3 player didn't make it), and the rains of the previous month...but ZERO problems!
Customer Review: Finally the instrument all runners have been waiting for!
Summary: 5 Stars
I couldn't be happier with my Forerunner 305. I have used it now for over three months in all kinds of conditions. I have owned 2 other running GPS computers before, one of Timex' first GPS models, and Garmins' Forerunner 201 and they don't even come close to the 305. The 305 REALLY works great. Its precision is astonishing! It has never lost coverage on me and I have used it in the city with high buildings, under very leafy trees and any other conditions you can think of that could interfere with its operation. When I run indoors I use it with Garmin's Foot Pod and it works great (except for some inconveniences and considerations [See reviews]).
I love how reliable, precise and feature-rich it is. There's no room in this review to mention all its features, but they all work very well and show that it is a mature product where experience form designers, as well as users has been taken very seriously into account. Battery life is great and I love how quickly my 305 recharges on my Mac's USB port. (less than 30 minutes).
I also love, that opposed to the way the Polar monitors work, once you match your HRM waistband and your Foot Pod to your own Forerunner 305, you don't have to pair them again anymore. This allows you to turn it on while in the middle of a crowd without worrying of picking up somebody else's signal or not being able to get a "coded" transmission. It recognizes your accessories INSTANTLY. If you have used other monitors for years, you know what I'm talking about.
Another thing, this is the first wrist GPS I have that includes full Navigation features, something really good if someday you want to take it out while trekking or mountaineering. I do!
I have some comments on how to improve it: one is that I think it could be a little more ergonomic, Sometimes, after running a LONG distance (10~20 miles) my wrist gets sore (for which I wear it very tight to keep it from bouncing and helps). I would recommend to add a way to scroll while on the map view, not only to zoom in and out. Also, I think it could use more memory. I prefer to use it to its maximum recording capacity, which is one reading per second, and in doing so, I am limited to one or maximum two days worth of data. That forces me to download the information into my Mac at least every other day. And while talking about computers, I wish the Mac version of Garmin Training Center software had the same features as the Windows one. But don't take me wrong, it's not bad at all, and not many companies that make this kind of running computers support the Mac yet. Still, it would be nice if we could get all the latest features.
That's it, I suggest you run out (or click in) and buy one now. I'm glad I did!
Pablo