How to Upload Runs From Garmin to Strava to One One Hundredth of a Mile
The research
- Why you should trust us
- Who this is for
- How nosotros picked
- How nosotros tested
- Our pick: Coros Pace 2
- Our pick: Garmin Forerunner 245
- Budget pick: Garmin Forerunner 45
- How much should you rely on a GPS sentinel?
- What nearly privacy concerns?
- What about the Apple Watch?
- Other proficient GPS running watches
- The competition
Why y'all should trust us
Amy Roberts covered activity-tracking wearables for Wirecutter for three years and has been a competitive recreational runner for even longer than that—since the days when every race's start gun was non immediately followed by thousands of tiny beeps as GPS-picket-clad runners crossed the line. Every bit a running bus (certified by the Road Runners Social club of America and the US Track and Field Association), she is also fascinated past running metrics, both in keeping rail of mileage and in how information may be used to inform training programs.
Wirecutter senior staff writer Ingrid Skjong has been a competitive recreational runner for more than 15 years. She has completed v marathons, numerous one-half-marathons, many (many) shorter races, and a few triathlons—all while wearing some type of running watch. Every bit a certified personal trainer, she has trained runners and endurance athletes, and she loves to immerse herself in all aspects of running-related training. She as well reviews fitness trackers for Wirecutter.
Additionally, three experts contributed their knowledge:
- Concrete therapist Bryan Heiderscheit, PhD, is a professor of orthopedics and rehabilitation at the Academy of Wisconsin-Madison and director of the UW Health Sports Medicine Runners Clinic.
- Houston-based running coach Steve Magness, author of The Science of Running and co-writer of Elevation Performance and The Passion Paradox, has coached Olympians, Earth Championship qualifiers, and five top-10 finishers at major marathons.
- Clinton Brawner, PhD, is a clinical exercise physiologist with the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.
Who this is for
Runners tend to exist an belittling sort, especially every bit we get into running races—and even more than so every bit we select longer-altitude race targets, such as half-marathons (13.ane miles) and marathons (26.2 miles), which require multi-day, multi-calendar week grooming programs to prepare the body for the impact and exertion of the main event.
While creating this guide, we kept in listen serious road racers, as well as novice runners who are interested in bolstering their training with data or pushing their running to the next level.
There are a number of advantages to using a heart-rate-enabled GPS watch for recording stats (as opposed to an app on a smartphone or—gasp!—cypher at all), including:
- split-second ease in starting and stopping a run and inserting lap markers
- quick-glance viewing of during-run information, such as altitude, time, current pace (more on that in a moment), lap distance and step, electric current heart rate and zones, and cadence (or the number of steps per infinitesimal the feet bear on the ground, which tin can be an indication of efficiency)
- from-the-wrist workout guidance, both in terms of endeavor (measured by heart charge per unit) and prompts, such as when (or where) to beginning and stop an interval
- an electronic log on a website or app (or both) for tracking mileage, analyzing performance, making adjustments as preparation goals evolve, and getting encouragement from other runners in the network
Wearables with more features let you to schedule out entire preparation programs (which many of the manufacturers provide for free), with workouts beamed to your wrist for yous to follow along. Some also provide navigation (such equally "back to start"), as well every bit the ability to share your location with someone post-obit along via a web link at home—a squeamish way to feel safer on solo runs or to allow fans from distant know how you're doing, moment to moment, in the big race.
Naturally, the watches tend to get pricier every bit they get more advanced. They've too go both more attractive and more than useful for 24/7 wear. The newest models are designed to be slimmer and sleeker, likewise as to contain all-day activity tracking (steps taken, reminders to move, auto-activeness detection) and slumber tracking. They are also designed to offer smartwatch-similar features, such equally notifications, text-message quick replies, agenda alerts, and even 3rd-party apps. After all, if you're going to spend nearly as much on ane of these as you would for an Apple Watch, you should want to show information technology off and enjoy wearing it around the clock, instead of just strapping it on when you head out for a run.
How we picked
We started by studying the recommendations of other editorial outlets, from Runner's World to PCMag to Gear Patrol, with a heavy accent on the piece of work of DC Rainmaker, which does the deepest swoop into practically every new piece of running tech.
Ultimately, we landed on the 17 contenders that were the most road-running-specific or that offered multi-sport functions (typically including swimming and biking for a triathlete). All of the watches we tested had onboard heart-charge per unit monitoring and a street price under $600. We opted non to test more mountaineering- or trail-oriented watches, which offer some similar features just have advanced navigation and additional sensors for elevation detection. Those models seemed unnecessary for anyone working toward a half-marathon or marathon and doing nigh of their training runs and races on paved roads.
How we tested
To review the watches both subjectively and objectively, nosotros divided testing tasks among the authors (who each tested independently, for almanac updates in unlike years). And we recruited Wirecutter'south Chris Heinonen, who has run competitively in 100-plus races since 2002. He has owned four GPS watches over the years, about recently the Garmin Forerunner 225.
Nosotros assessed the accuracy of the diverse sensors and evaluated every bit many of the watches' features as possible. In turn, Chris got to know each watch one at a fourth dimension, focusing on ease of utilise and wearability.
Hither are the criteria nosotros prioritized:
Ease of utilize and wearability
A watch that isn't easy to employ or enjoyable to wearable isn't one nosotros want on our wrists. Therefore, our first priority was to ready each of the watches individually, rating the fit and condolement, the intuitiveness of the interface (most accept buttons, only a couple also have touchscreens), and how hard it was to link to a smartphone.
Nosotros took each watch for a run, noting the visibility of the brandish, as well as how easy it was to start and stop a workout, insert a transmission lap, and find the data we wanted to see at a glance. Nosotros gave a watch bonus points if we could customize its face and data screens, and we also favored good looks and readability.
We also dug into the apps, reviewing how data appeared and how piece of cake it was to find what we were looking for, whether information technology was a running metric or how to change a setting. We besides noted whether we needed to use the manual or Google to figure out how to gear up a feature or customize a setting.
Beyond looking at run-workout functionality, we considered features such as action and slumber-tracking and smartphone notifications (that is, whether we deemed a watch to be one nosotros'd enjoy wearing 24/seven). We also kept an eye on battery life, noting whether a device drained more speedily than expected.
In addition to those more than-subjective matters, nosotros performed a number of timed GPS acquisition tests; continuing around for minutes on end waiting for a signal is no runner's idea of a good way to start a workout. Pro tip: Sync your lookout man to your smartphone right earlier you head out so that it has the latest GPS data loaded. If yous practice this, you can mostly look to wait seconds, rather than minutes, before getting on your way. (Uploading a run as well syncs your watch, so if you've been doing that regularly, yous'll be fine.)
Data-conquering accurateness
These devices aggregate a lot of information, which we systematically reviewed for accurateness and reliability.
Measuring distance with GPS
We tested the watches' altitude-measuring capabilities mainly in New York City. Another route was in Massachusetts (1.1 miles to a loftier school rail, around the track for ane mile, and and so back, for a total of 3.2 miles). And our tester Chris ran predominantly in Portland, Oregon.
For all merely one author's runs (which were of known distances, in Key Park), nosotros mapped routes manually using MapMyRun.com. For many runs we used the Strava app equally some other basis for comparison (though Strava rounds distance to the nearest tenth of a mile, whereas the devices and the MapMyRun software go to the hundredth).
We compared the concluding distances recorded, and we scrutinized the maps created in the apps for whatever geolocation issues, such as running in New York'south E and Hudson rivers (which obviously we did, according to many of the devices).
Also, while Chris ran with each watch separately, he compared the altitude recorded with a race-form altitude (a certified half-marathon, for example) or with known-distance routes he runs regularly with Squad Red Cadger in Portland.
Tracking heart rate
Accurate centre-rate tracking during a workout can help you approximate your effort, every bit long as y'all set your max heart rate manually and accurately in your device settings, rather than but relying on an age-based approximate (which most watches apply past default). Further, these watches utilize that data to inform other metrics, such equally estimated VO2 max and recommended recovery time between workouts.
Wrist-based heart-rate tracking is more often than not known to be less reliable than using a chest strap. Clinical exercise physiologist Clinton Brawner suggested that a margin of ±5 beats per minute (bpm) for heart rate (HR) taken from the wrist would be an acceptable tolerance, and that's what we used for our trials.
During exam periods from 2014 to 2019, nosotros conducted 3 tests to estimate the watches' Hr capabilities. For the first two, we ran on the treadmill, wearing each device individually and comparing the readings at 30-second intervals with those of an older Garmin sentry linked to a chest strap; we so took recovery readings until our middle rate was dorsum to baseline. Nosotros did a five-minute run at a steady step of 7 mph and a x-minute walk-run interval workout at iii.five mph and 7 mph, respectively. For our virtually recent round of testing, in the midst of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, we did not have access to a treadmill. And so nosotros conducted these tests outdoors, holding our paces as consistently as possible. Every bit soon as we are able to hop on a treadmill again, we will run these heart-rate-monitoring tests indoors.
On a three.2-mile rails run, Amy compared the devices (one on each wrist) against her Garmin with a breast strap; she picked upward her step—and therefore her endeavour—for the mile in the heart. On a 4-mile run, Ingrid compared the devices (one on each wrist) confronting her Garmin with a chest strap, recording Hr every quarter-mile and picking upward the stride for the third mile. Both compared the average Hour and the peak Hr recorded for each trial, and then they eyeballed the Hr graphs in the apps for readings that deviated from the control.
Measuring indoor distances
Because these devices all have treadmill modes (with accelerometers designed to count steps and calculate distance traveled), during our test periods from 2014 to 2019, nosotros tested ii at a fourth dimension (1 on each wrist) on treadmill mode for ane mile (again, at a seven mph pace). Using an Omron pedometer, nosotros compared the step count with our results and compared the distance with the reading on the treadmill. For our about recent circular of testing, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, nosotros were unable to access a treadmill. So to become a sense of step-count and distance accuracy, we instead ran a 1.42-mile measured loop in Central Park and compared the step-count results with those of the Omron pedometer and the distance to the measured length. Every bit soon as nosotros are able to run on a treadmill again, we volition conduct the indoor distance examination.
Tracking activities accurately
All of the watches rails all-day stride count, well-nigh rails sleep (to some chapters), and some have automatic workout detection (to tape walks, runs, and bike rides, even if you lot don't remember to offset the watch). To test these functions, we wore the watches two at a time for ii full days (ane per wrist, switching wrists on the second day, since action trackers are generally more than accurate when yous wear them on your non-ascendant wrist) and i night. We then compared their step counts with our trusty pedometer's results, and nosotros reviewed the sleep and action data they recorded. At this fourth dimension we also reviewed any smartwatch features, such every bit notifications.
Metrics nosotros didn't test
Nosotros worried less about the accuracy of some metrics, such as cadence (arm swing should lucifer leg swing reasonably well, said our experts), elevation measures (which we figured was not a big business for most route runners), and calorie count (which is largely based on estimates and challenging to verify).
We too didn't put much stock in VO2 max estimates; some running experts believe this is a metric whose importance is overblown in terms of preparation. The experts nosotros interviewed also agreed that a number calculated by a watch from wrist-based center-rate readings is unlikely to exist anywhere near lab-accurate.
How the watches we tested performed in some fundamental areas
GPS acquisition time and all-day pace-count accuracy
To assess how accurately the watches measured the steps our tester walked per day, we compared the daily total recorded by each sentinel with the daily total recorded by a pedometer. The tester conducted this experiment twice with each sentinel: On i day she wore the spotter on her non-dominant wrist, and on some other twenty-four hour period she wore it on her dominant wrist. The percentages above testify how much the watches' readings varied from the pedometer's readings.
Our selection: Coros Footstep 2
Our choice
Coros Stride 2
The best GPS running sentry
Flush with features that will please runners of all levels, this lightweight watch has quick GPS conquering, a long battery life, and detailed metrics, all at a reasonable toll. However, the Pace two has fewer smartwatch features than the Garmin Precursor 245.
With the features of a loftier-end running sentinel tucked into a value-priced bundle, the Coros Step two provides an approachable, sport-geared, data-rich experience that we think will appeal to a diverseness of runners. Unlike the Garmin Forerunner 245, the Pace 2 doesn't back up smartwatch features similar onboard music, the brandish of your agenda, or local weather. It also lacks an oxygen saturation (SpO2) sensor, which the Forerunner 245 and 245 Music both have. But nosotros similar the Footstep 2's simplicity, appreciate the focus, and enjoy using this running-focused GPS watch.
The Pace 2 is available with either a nylon or a silicone strap in two colors (nighttime navy or white). We tested the nylon model, which has a sturdy Velcro closure. The sentry fit usa well; the strap tended to agree water when it got moisture—just enough to leave a clammy mark on a pant leg—and has stuck to our shirt sleeve occasionally. It is the lightest GPS running lookout we've tested, at one ounce (with the nylon strap) and 1.23 ounces (with the silicone strap).
The Step two'due south median GPS acquisition time was around xiii seconds—non the fastest we've experienced, but quick enough to become us moving without much wait time. The Forerunner 245 had a pokier median conquering time of 44 seconds. (Virtually of our readings were taken in New York Metropolis, with a few recorded in a small boondocks in Western Massachusetts.) This lookout man, like all of them, continued faster when nosotros synced it to a smartphone before heading out. Only one time when we were using this watch did it search for longer than a minute. After running with it for nigh six months, it has consistently continued rapidly and hands.
The watch's GPS accuracy performed well. It nailed the altitude of our ane.42-mile measured-loop examination and matched the control distance of a seven.1-miler along the Hudson River. In a few spots along that route, it had us running on water (which most of the other watches we tested did, too). Only on several outings—like a 7.28-miler, including woods, that Chris ran in Portland—the GPS traced portions of the route perfectly. In Key Park, information technology logged a 6.1-mile measured loop at 6.07 miles. A iv.02-mile measured loop came in at four.08; throughout the run, the watch was consistently .02 of a mile ahead of the Garmin Precursor 245. One brusk effort of less than 3 miles came in 3.iii% over the command—one of the highest deviations we encountered.
This watch didn't fare as strongly in our heart-rate tests. Compared with the Forerunner 245, the Footstep ii had fewer readings that varied by less than 5 beats per minute from our command chest strap. We noticed it would take a few minutes in the first to settle into solid readings and and then struggle to lucifer the control upon recovery. You tin can pair the Pace two with a chest strap (our Garmin continued easily), which will aid increase accurateness.
The Pace two has a pared-down navigation organization consisting of a digital dial and one push, both situated on the right side of the scout face. (The Forerunner 245 has five more traditional buttons.) We agreed it can take a beat or two to get used to the dial, which is used to gyre through the home screens, workout menu, or the four on-the-run data screens. To pause a run, you press the crown and and so scroll to "resume," for case, or "finish" (pressing the dial for about ii seconds saves the activity). The extra scrolling might feel extraneous at first, simply we acclimated to information technology apace. "If yous can live without the multiple buttons, I call back it'due south the all-time value and overall watch I've used given the price," said Chris.
The Coros app is detailed, relatively easy to navigate, and syncs easily. The daily primary screen breaks out active energy (an interpretation of daily action and workout calories), practise time, steps, heart rate, slumber, and workouts. From in that location, you can tap into each for a more-detailed view in landscape mode. Run data uploads apace and is organized well. Yous can create a custom workout plan within the app or go to the Coros website and upload costless ones designed past the company. (Coros recently debuted its Preparation Hub, which lives on the Coros website and lets runners analyze by and current metrics, create preparation plans, and bring together a squad or virtual group. We haven't tried it yet.) We had no issues syncing the lookout with other apps such as Strava, Apple Health, and MyFitnessPal.
One metric that the Coros Pace two measures (and the Forerunner 245 does non) is ability—essentially how hard you are working at a given centre rate or pace, which can help inform efficiency and evaluate intensity. Coros includes this within run information (along with others, such as cadence, pace, and time spent in heart-rate zones, which the Precursor 245 also reports). Tester Chris found its accuracy rivaled that of his Stryd (a separate accessory used to measure power), and he enjoyed having the data equally part of a post-run summary.
In terms of activeness tracking, the Pace 2 delivers the basics, with 24-60 minutes centre-rate monitoring and daily step counts (it overshot by a pretty authentic 5.55% on the non-ascendant wrist and 23.52% on the dominant wrist; we've found that it's adequately typical for the dominant wrist to deviate from the control more than the non-dominant wrist). The Pace 2 offers no reminders to move. It doesn't offer activeness auto-detection in the traditional sense; if it detects daily movements with a cadence of 130 or more, or a heart rate above 60% of your maximum, the duration of the activity will be added to your full exercise time. The Step 2 tracks sleep using center charge per unit and movement. It has 16 built-in sports and fitness activity modes, including indoor run, track run, strength, walk, and bike.
In addition to its swim mode (in which you can fix puddle length), the Footstep 2 offers open-water and triathlon modes (which the Forerunner 245 does not). Due to the pandemic, we oasis't been able to take the Step two to the pool but will do so every bit presently every bit we are able.
When paired with an iPhone, the Pace two offers notifications (texts, calls, e-mail, social media platforms, among others) that yous tin select individually within the Coros app or turn off completely. (Notifications tin be deleted one past one or all at once on the watch.) We have had no problems pairing with or syncing to our iPhone XS. (We didn't test the Step 2 with an Android device.)
You can customize the watch face using whatsoever of five preloaded choices and nigh 15 colors; there are about 80 total faces to choose from on the app, which can be added to your on-watch selection lineup. When it comes to customization elsewhere, the app makes it fairly piece of cake to observe what you're looking for, including setting your maximum heart charge per unit (within profile settings).
The Pace 2 excels when it comes to battery life, which is rated at 20 days in standby mode and 30 hours in GPS mode (the Forerunner 245 promises seven days in standby fashion and 24 hours in GPS mode). We've gone days without charging and were pleasantly surprised when nosotros realized the bombardment still had plenty of life left. We've gone on long weekend trips more than once without bothering to bring the charger. (Predictably, of course, the battery volition bleed faster if you wear it daily and put in lots of miles.)
Our selection: Garmin Forerunner 245
Our option
The Garmin Forerunner 245 is a well-rounded, dependable GPS running watch with convenient smartwatch capabilities—more than the Coros Footstep 2 offers. There are watches that have more features (we've tested several), but the Forerunner 245 hits a sweetness spot, with solid run and activeness tracking, plus handy features like personal notifications, calendar integration, and local weather reports. (Garmin also offers an upgrade version of this lookout man, with music-storage capabilities.) Both the Forerunner 245 and the Pace 2 have a 1.2-inch color display. Although the Forerunner 245 is comfortable to clothing, with its silicone band it is a chip heavier (at 1.25 ounces) than the Pace 2 with its silicone band (at 1.23 ounces); the Step 2 is also available with a nylon band (weighing one ounce). You can customize the home screen using half dozen onboard options and various emphasis-color options (25 of them); you can add even more on the company'due south website.
The Forerunner 245 has v intuitively placed buttons, whereas the Pace 2 navigates with a digital dial and 1 button. The 245'due south interface is easy to navigate, but it might take a few tries to notice and arrange specific settings, such as maximum centre rate and centre-rate zones. Starting and ending a run is elementary—you close out an effort with the printing of a button, and choose to "resume," "save," or "discard." Using the buttons, yous tin can curl through data screens during a run. As with the Footstep 2, with the 245 all of the four run-workout screens are customizable on the scout itself; this can experience a flake labor-intensive, simply information technology becomes second nature one time you know where to go.
The Precursor 245 performed okay in our middle-rate tests. It showed substantial deviations from our control chest strap on both our 5-infinitesimal steady-country run and ten-minute run/walk intervals (though it came in a bit ahead of the Step ii). To improve accurateness, you can pair the watch with a chest strap.
The Precursor 245'due south GPS acquisition scored on the lower finish of our test pool: Its median connection fourth dimension of 44 seconds was 30.eight seconds slower than the Pace ii'southward (see the nautical chart above) and 25.1 seconds slower than that of the Precursor 45, our budget pick. Mail-testing, nosotros've noticed quicker results; pre-syncing the lookout can help speed up connectedness times. We never had an issue with it failing to find a betoken.
On our controlled, one.42-mile run, the Forerunner 245 nailed the distance. Information technology deviated just 0.25% on one Central Park 4-miler. And on two dissever runs of a nearly 5-mile loop in the same park, information technology overshot by 1.1% and 0.61%, respectively. During a 6-mile out-and-dorsum along the Hudson River, the watch came in at 2.69% over the control distance—a bit higher than its competitors. Upon inspection of the mapped route mail service-run, the Forerunner 245 put us in the water at a few points forth the route; withal, almost every watch we tested did the same thing.
The Forerunner 245 uploads data to the Garmin Connect app; we had no issues with it syncing. The master screen, My Day, breaks out action tracking, heart rate, slumber, and workout activities into easy-to-parse boxes that yous tin tap to become more information. Run data uploads quickly and is well organized, offering charts that you lot can overlay to compare, say, heart rate with pace (other running-lookout man apps, including Coros's, do this as well). Garmin has its ain social network of other Garmin-device owners, and its app plays nicely with others, including Strava, Apple tree Wellness, TrainingPeaks, and MyFitnessPal.
To send conditioning plans (your own, or complimentary ones designed by Garmin) to the watch, you must log in to the Garmin Connect website. The app as well allows for customizing your domicile view. Tap a workout within the app, and you get an easy-to-read, graph-laden rundown of specific data, including a map, pace, max and average heart charge per unit, middle-charge per unit zones, and training event (aerobic versus anaerobic, shown on a scale from 0 to five each). Information technology does non mensurate power (how hard you work at a given pace or heart rate, which tin be an indicator of efficiency), which the Pace 2 does. The 245 offers advanced slumber tracking and menstrual-cycle tracking. Information technology also offers incident detection during certain activities (meaning emergency contacts of your choosing will receive a notification and your location if, for example, y'all fall hard during a run; you lot'll need your phone with you for it to work). And it includes Garmin'southward Trunk Battery energy monitor, which uses heart-rate variability, stress, and activeness to give you lot a rough idea of your energy levels. (Similar features are not available on the Coros Pace 2.)
The Forerunner 245 supports the brandish of local weather, your calendar, or other apps (the Pace two does non).
The Precursor 245 has a few more congenital-in activity modes than the Pace 2 (20 versus 16), and you lot can create your own. Information technology offers six run profiles (running, treadmill, indoor track, outdoor track, trail, virtual), whereas the Footstep two has three. The 245 does not accept outdoor recreation activity modes, like skiing, cantankerous-country skiing, or rowing, or a triathlon manner (the Pace 2 has rowing, flatwater training, triathlon, open-water swim, and GPS cardio). Stride accuracy held steady. On our ane.42-mile controlled run, it overshot our pedometer count by just 0.43%. Over the grade of ii days of article of clothing, it was 3.35% lower (non-dominant wrist) and 22.4% college (dominant wrist) than the control. The 245 does not have an altimeter to count floors climbed (the Pace 2 does). The Forerunner 245 has a swim way, though we were not able to exam it because we didn't have access to a pool during the pandemic. Every bit soon equally we are able, we will take the 245 for test swims.
Notifications (which you select based on what you want displayed, including texts, emails, and other apps) pop up clearly on the brandish, and you can ringlet through and clear them past pressing the watch's buttons. (The Forerunner 245 is not equipped with Garmin Pay, the brand's contactless payment pick, which some higher-end Garmin models have.) Nosotros paired the Precursor 245 to an iPhone XS and had no bug syncing. Pairing the 245 to an Android device enables the option of automatic text responses.
Nosotros had no trouble with battery life. The Precursor 245 promises up to 7 days in smartphone manner and upwardly to 24 hours in GPS mode. After two days of vesture, the scout dropped to 71%. The battery charges apace.
The Precursor 245 Music allows you to sync playlists (from Amazon Music, Deezer, or Spotify) directly to the watch, where you can shop upwards to 500 tracks for phone-gratis playback with paired headphones.
Budget pick: Garmin Forerunner 45
Budget selection
If y'all want a GPS watch with smartwatch features—merely you also desire to spend less than the price of the Garmin Precursor 245—nosotros'd recommend the Precursor 45. The Forerunner 45 delivers elevated features in a lookout man that typically costs the same as the Coros Pace 2, though the Forerunner 45 has a more blank-bones experience. (Unless you know you want a Garmin, we think most runners will exist happier with the Pace two; the 45 is a member of the same series as our other pick, the Precursor 245, which typically costs around $100 more.) Overall, the Forerunner 45 is more bones than the Pace 2 and the Forerunner 245, yet the 45 has the Garmin feel (and a skillful number of those smartwatch features). Only you don't get quite the heart-charge per unit recording accuracy, activeness-tracking features, or customizability that you lot do with its sibling.
The Forerunner 45 comes in two sizes: a 42 mm model (which we tested) and a 39 mm model (called the Forerunner 45S). Either lookout man is comfortable plenty to wear all twenty-four hour period. And both sizes have a color display. The buttons on this model are situated the aforementioned as they are on the residuum of the Forerunner series, and they are easy to navigate, equally is the sentry's interface. Both the widgets and information shown during an action can exist customized, including the number of metrics (1, two, or iii) yous'd like to run into on a page. The sentinel allows you to bicycle through three data pages during a run; the Precursor 245 offers four.
Data is organized neatly in the app and is piece of cake to review. The watch syncs chop-chop to the Garmin Connect app. That said, we did meet a small glitch: Several times, when the Precursor 45 disconnected from our iPhone XS, nosotros were unable to reconnect information technology without having to turn off the scout and power it back on. Once we did that, it reconnected immediately. Merely this was a bleep we weren't expecting.
During our test menstruation, the median GPS conquering time for the Forerunner 45 (xviii.nine seconds) was 25 seconds faster than that of the Forerunner 245 and about 5 seconds slower than that of the Pace ii, and it never timed out due to non finding a signal. Pre-syncing often helps to speed upwards the GPS conquering time of any GPS running watch; we didn't always pre-sync the Forerunner 45 earlier heading out for a run. The lookout measured altitude dependably, with many of our runs falling nether a one% deviation from the measured distance or command.
During our heart-rate tests, the Forerunner 45 did well on a five-minute steady-state run, but information technology jumped effectually on walk/run intervals, missing some rises and falls. Using a separate chest strap with the watch can assist meliorate accuracy.
As for action tracking, the Forerunner 45 counts steps, reminds you to movement, and machine-detects walking, running, and biking, which the Precursor 245 besides does. The Forerunner 45 doesn't have swim tracking, merely it is water-resistant to five atm (atmospheres), equally are the Precursor 245 and Pace 2. The Forerunner 45 has 11 action modes, including indoor rails, indoor cycle, elliptical, and yoga (the Forerunner 245 has 20, likewise every bit the ability to add more). It has advanced slumber tracking, which uses HR information, as well equally movement-based data. Information technology also includes Garmin's Body Battery energy monitor, which uses eye-rate variability, stress, and activity to requite you a crude idea of energy levels (something the Forerunner 245 too has). And the Forerunner 45 offers all-24-hour interval stress tracking and guided breathing drills (which the 245 also provides).
Unlike the Forerunner 245, the Precursor 45 doesn't allow for quick text replies by Android users. Information technology does, however, have a more-robust offering of smartwatch options than the Forerunner 35. You can cull from vi different watch faces and vii accent colors (the Forerunner 245 offers six watch faces, plus an option to add more from the app, too equally twenty accent colors and two background colors). And its widgets include local weather and the power to sync to your calendar (the Footstep two does non back up that). At that place are telephone music controls, merely (unlike on the Forerunner 245 Music), there is no option for onboard music storage and playback. You can choose from 15 widgets to display (steps, calendar, and more).
The Forerunner 45 touts a battery life of seven days in smartphone mode and xiii hours in GPS mode (comparable to that of the Forerunner 245, merely much less than that of the Pace 2). It shows an icon with five bars, instead of displaying remaining bombardment life as a pct (as the Precursor 245 does); this can make information technology trickier to determine how much power is left. After two days of wear, the battery level dropped to iv confined.
If you'd like a sentry with a like wait and feel to the Forerunner 45, but with a few more run-specific and smartwatch features, a longer battery life, and swim tracking, we recommend the comparably priced Garmin Forerunner 55.
How much should you rely on a GPS spotter?
A GPS running watch is an crawly tool to inform training and track miles. The fundamental word here is tool. In our feel as runners and coaches, we've seen too many runners go then defenseless up in their watches that information technology'due south like the proverbial tree falling in the forest—if your GPS watch fails, does a run fifty-fifty count?
"The beauty of a GPS sentinel is that y'all can look at trends over fourth dimension. For the average recreational runner who wants to track mileage run per week, you lot can get good information," said clinician Bryan Heiderscheit. "Overall, I'1000 a proponent of using one—information technology can exist a motivating factor to collect data, come across what you did, and share with your community."
But the reality is that GPS itself can and does fail. Ecology factors similar tree encompass and tall buildings tin touch point force and acquisition. Watchmakers attempt to counter this by using multiple satellite networks (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BDS) and high signal-refresh rates. But when you wait at the map data of basically any recorded run, you'll meet at to the lowest degree some small zigzags forth your route where the GPS skipped out (for example, you probably did not run into a trunk of water) and gaps where it lost signal entirely. You'll chop-chop realize that no spotter tin can be fully trusted, especially for instant-pace readings during a run.
Heiderscheit pointed out that if targeted intensities and speeds are required for interval or tempo runs, upholding an accurate footstep matters more. (Intervals are curt, intense, repeated efforts alternated with recovery periods; tempos are longer efforts performed at a quick but controlled clip.) That means it's essential to railroad train your body to learn what paces feel like past effort, by doing timed drills over a known distance.
Using average lap pace on a lookout man is fine for ensuring that you're hit judge paces on a training run with a wider target window—say, when your "like shooting fish in a barrel run" pace is anywhere between a ix:00 and ix:30 mile. Y'all just shouldn't rely on it during a race if you have a specific goal time and therefore an average pace per mile or kilometer to meet or trounce. One erroneous GPS-inserted mile marking and your entire average is thrown. Information technology may help to add a calibrated footpod (a device with an accelerometer that more precisely fills in any GPS distance gaps with data extrapolated from stride length and cadency). Only in a big race, you may exist better served by inserting manual mile or kilometer laps at every marker you pass on the race class (assuming they're placed accurately). This mode, you lot can meet the bodily time yous took to run each one and compare the results with those of an former-fashioned pace band (which lists the target clock time to cross each marker); and then you can base any footstep or effort adjustments on that.
What almost privacy concerns?
GPS running watches have the potential to collect a significant corporeality of your personal information, including your historic period, contact information, heart-rate readings, and whereabouts. Using these devices to their fullest potential ofttimes hinges on your handing over personal statistics. If y'all're concerned about digital privacy, y'all should know how the companies that make and support your devices treat your data. To avoid surprises, read a company's privacy policies thoroughly, and keep in mind that if you share with a third party, like Strava or MyFitnessPal, y'all'll need to empathize those policies as well.
Although the data that your GPS running watch (or fitness tracker) collects might seem innocuous, it's tough to know how it might be used in the future. For example, location data has been used in surprising ways, like when Strava data was used to reveal the location of military machine bases in 2018.
Garmin reported in July 2020 that it was the victim of a cyberattack that led to a temporary service outage. According to a statement, the company has "no indication that any customer data, including payment data from Garmin Pay, was accessed, lost or stolen." The breach does, however, underscore the importance of security.
As function of our research, we reached out to the companies backside our picks to ask them to answer a serial of questions addressing what nosotros think are important privacy and security considerations. "Rule of thumb: lack of response to specific questions near protecting user data is a red flag," John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at The Denizen Lab at the Academy of Toronto, told us in an email. "A company that cares about security should want to reassure users that they are in proficient easily." Here'due south what the companies told us.
What is required to sign up?
- Coros: Username, e-mail address, gender, birth date, height, and weight.
- Garmin: Username, email address, password, gender, birth date, meridian, and weight.
What user data does the app collect?
- Coros: Daily data nerveless includes steps, calories, exercise fourth dimension, heart rate, and slumber.Conditioning data collected includes steps, calories burned, workout time, centre rate, pace/speed, GPS, and tiptop.
- Garmin: Activities and activeness data including steps, altitude, pace, heart rate, sleep, etc.If sharing with tertiary-party apps (like Strava), info including calories consumed.
If location-based services similar weather [are] chosen, the physical location of the device. When syncing, info including IP accost, time, appointment, and geographic location.
What permissions does the app ask for?
- Coros: Bluetooth access (for phone pairing), location, photos and camera (if adding a profile photo or saving workout photos), and cellular data.
- Garmin: Bluetooth access (for phone pairing), location, camera (if adding a profile photo).
Is data encrypted at remainder and in transit?
- Coros: Yes.
- Garmin: Yes.
Is data collected by the device or app shared with third parties for marketing purposes?
- Coros: No.
- Garmin: No.
Is data collected by the device or app used internally for marketing or other purposes?
- Coros: No.
- Garmin: No.
- Coros: Yes. Coros utilizes third-party security audits.
- Garmin: Customers who believe they've identified a security issue tin can report information technology via a submission class.
Were at that place any known data breaches in the past two years?
- Coros: None.
- Garmin: A ransomware attack in summer 2020.
Is the privacy policy like shooting fish in a barrel to understand?
- Coros: Average; read it here.
- Garmin: Yes, Garmin includes a more readable version alongside its comprehensive policy; read it here.
What about the Apple Spotter?
We conducted our latest assessments—the same ones nosotros used for fitness trackers and GPS running watches—on the Apple Lookout SE, our budget pick for iPhone users. (We're currently testing the Serial vii, our elevation smartwatch pick for iPhone users.) Our conclusion? If you are primarily looking for a running watch, we recommend that you focus your search on that. If you're a runner who'due south interested in having the Apple tree ecosystem on your wrist, the Apple tree Scout volition serve you, only in that location are some caveats.
You cannot first and stop your timer quite as precisely every bit with the Apple Sentry, which has a 3-2-1 inaugural at the start (the workout starts when the metrics appear on the screen). To terminate the workout, y'all can either swipe and tap or press the digital crown and the side push button simultaneously, which pauses the run; you lot then swipe to end information technology. To insert laps (which it calls "segments"), you tap the screen twice. All of this is more time-consuming than pushing a button on a running-specific watch.
The SE does not have an always-on screen; the Serial seven does. The data you can see on the Apple Scout during a run is displayed on 1 screen—showing every bit many as five metrics or single metrics that yous can gyre through using the crown control. We plant the multi-metric screen cluttered and hard to read mid-run, just there is an option to highlight a single metric (each has a different color) in this view. The one metric the Apple Scout has that other watches don't is rolling mile pace. You tin run across this number simply on the multi-metric screen, and it is field of study to the same potential GPS accurateness issues every bit whatever other location-based metric.
We found the mile alerts to be so gentle that we barely realized they were active. The scout has merely a few options for workout "goals"—open-ended (which ways you've gear up no specific goal simply would like the sentinel to record your workout), calories, altitude, and time. And in that location'due south no walk-run or interval fashion (though there's an app for that). Mail-run data includes total time, distance, calories, elevation proceeds, average cadence and middle charge per unit, average footstep, and splits. The Apple Conditioning app on the picket steers workouts, while the Fettle app allows you to parse conditioning and activeness data on your phone. Apple Watch workouts can sync directly to Strava.
The Apple Watch ideally acquires a GPS point when the Conditioning app opens, so information technology does not requite a confirmation when GPS is secured. (If it doesn't lock immediately, the accelerometer measures step and distance until a signal is institute.) The Apple tree Picket's GPS office tracks a fairly shine line forth routes, including around corners. It's prone to the same ecology factors that tin undermine any GPS signal, but we had consistently accurate results that deviated reasonably from measured controls. The spotter performed very well in our heart-rate tests.
Battery life is upward to a promised xviii hours. That's fine for shorter runs and standard preparation days, but information technology could potentially fall short for longer runs and marathon training or racing. On a day when we ran vii miles in the morning, the battery dropped below 60% by early afternoon and required a charge by nightfall (a typical scenario for the Apple Scout). This isn't a dealbreaker if yous're willing to scroll with the sentry'due south recharging needs—and the Series 7 has the potential to charge faster than previous models. But many GPS running watches provide substantially longer battery lives and can run for days (sometimes weeks) without needing a charge.
Other good GPS running watches
If you want a GPS running watch with a similar await and feel to our budget pick, simply with additional features like swim tracking: The Garmin Forerunner 55 takes the Forerunner 45's capabilities a few steps further for the aforementioned price, though it delivers a less-refined overall experience than our two height picks, the Coros Pace ii and the Forerunner 245. Unlike the Precursor 45, it is able to track swims. Its battery life promises up to ii weeks in smartwatch fashion and upward to xx hours in GPS way, which is nearly twice as long as that of the Forerunner 45 on both fronts. The Precursor 55 performed almost identically to the Forerunner 45 in our middle-rate tests (stumbling similarly on run/walk intervals). It counted our steps with a healthy caste of accuracy. Its median GPS acquisition time is 10 seconds, and it came in on the nose in our 1-mile treadmill exam. Its GPS measurements fell inside reasonable percentages of deviation for most of our runs. The scout has five running profiles, including treadmill and track (the Forerunner 45 has three). It also features daily suggested workouts, which pop up on the watch at the offset of a run and are based on your previous efforts and residue.
If y'all want an unadorned starter picket: The Garmin Forerunner 35, a former budget choice in this guide, is a bones running watch in both class and function. It has fewer options for customization and a slower GPS acquisition time than our other picks. The Precursor 35 is a practiced activity tracker and did a serviceable job of measuring our runs, with several falling below a one% margin of mistake (okay) and a few ranging from a ii% to five% margin (not bang-up). It has a square-screen design and a black-and-white display. We think it'south a fine choice for those disinterested in bells and whistles.
The contest
The Coros Apex offers ultra-quick GPS-indicate acquisition (near 20 seconds faster than our summit pick's), and it has a comfortable, compact design geared toward daily wear. Simply its on-board eye-charge per unit monitor performed less accurately in our tests than much of its contest (including the Garmin Precursor 245), and its activity tracking was as well less predictable. To navigate, you use a digital dial (top correct) and one button (bottom right), versus traditional buttons—like its sibling and our top pick, the Coros Stride 2, does. Its open-h2o-swim and triathlon modes do speak to runners who are interested in multi-sport endeavors.
The Coros Stride—the predecessor of our selection, the Coros Footstep 2—is a straightforward running and triathlon watch with lightning-fast GPS acquisition. Only it offers fewer features than the Stride 2 and the Coros Apex and less-accurate eye-rate monitoring than the Garmin Forerunner 245. The Step had solid showings in our other tests. But its rudimentary activity tracking, express smartphone features, nonexistent slumber tracking, and plasticky looks (which scream "sports watch") brand the Pace far less highly-seasoned to wearable all day and night than the Pace 2 or the Noon.
Garmin'due south Precursor 235, a previous height selection in this guide, suffered confronting our updated test field due to its speedily crumbling engineering (Garmin launched it more than five years ago). However, the Forerunner 235 acquired its GPS signal in a mere v seconds, as long equally we had recently pre-synced information technology with our telephone. On the other paw, its older Garmin heart-rate technology faltered in our tests. The 235 has a plasticky, somewhat obtrusive design. And its view-only notifications, limited action tracking (no activity auto-detection, floors climbed, or stress/HRV monitoring), and less-detailed sleep tracking made information technology less appealing for 24/seven wear than whatever of our picks.
The Garmin Forerunner 745—billed for "serious triathletes"—seems like a lot of sentinel for virtually runners. It is easy to wear and feels like a coach on our wrists, updating us on whether (or not) a workout was productive or how many days of rest nosotros should take between efforts. It's true that other Garmin watches likewise do this. Only the coaching feels peculiarly pointed on the Precursor 745. One tester who enjoyed running with it noticed that the battery life suffered if the SpO2 claret-oxygen sensor was used often. The picket performed solidly in our GPS distance tests, but it was quite up and down in our heart-rate assessments. Overall, it's solid. But you can become a comparably robust lookout man for considerably less (the 745 is normally around $500).
Garmin's Forerunner 945 is also more running watch than about runners want or demand. It performed well in our heart-rate tests, has relatively speedy GPS conquering, and traced our runs reliably in GPS mode. Information technology easily synced with Spotify and offered equally no-fuss playback. But at 47 mm (ane.9 inches), its display is substantially larger than that on the Precursor 245 we recommend (i.2 inches) equally well equally on the Forerunner 745 (ane.7 inches); this might deter some people from wearing it 24/7. In addition, the buttons are likewise easy to press: We unintentionally kicked the watch into conditioning style several times. Extras such as a pulse-ox sensor and onboard maps are likely more than what most runners need. "It's a very nice scout," said one tester, "just it's such overkill."
The Garmin Vívoactive three, bachelor with optional onboard music, is technically more of an avant-garde fitness tracker than a GPS running watch. Information technology fabricated our list in part considering DC Rainmaker reviewed it favorably for the latter apply, equally well every bit because we had enjoyed a previous version of the Vívoactive for running. The master reason this model didn't end upward existence a pick was that it uses a touchscreen. We didn't listen the screen on the Vívoactive 3, and we found information technology intuitive and responsive (even with wet fingers at the puddle), specially because you control start and terminate by using the side button. But many runners are non fans of touchscreens on running watches and have pointed out that a touchscreen is harder to utilise in the common cold with gloves on.
The Polar Vantage M is geared toward recreational runners who nonetheless want a full suite of functionality. It has a sleeker look than previous Polar watches, improved heart-rate monitoring (it did well in our outdoor middle-rate test), and very quick GPS acquisition. Just it feels outsize, and you tin't customize the home screen or conditioning-style data fields. You tin pause a run, simply yous can't access your stats while it'south paused. To stop a run you have to hit a button in one case to pause and then hold information technology once more (for 3 seconds) to end. The Polar app feels busy and a bit dated.
The well-nigh tricked-out fellow member of Polar's Vantage series, the Polar Vantage Five offers features such as road guidance and power output, the latter being a metric that measures where a runner's energy is going (up or forwards). Nosotros had fun with that, simply the same quibbles that cropped up with the Vantage Thousand popped up hither, besides. The Vantage Five is large and heavy, and information technology lagged backside in some of our testing. You can't customize the home screen or workout-mode data fields, and the buttons are hard to press. Although its route recording kept in step with our New York City runs (information technology was the only watch we tested that didn't put us in the water on an out-and-dorsum 4-miler forth the W Side Highway), tester Chris struggled with its accuracy on tree-thick routes in Portland, Oregon.
Despite its ugly-duckling advent (including the graphics) and a less-than-comfy fit, the Polar M430 has some nice features and capabilities. The square screen allows more real manor for metrics. And the run summary is specially overnice and detailed, as is the break screen (which shows all of your data at once when you break the picket, similar at a calorie-free; other watches gyre your stats, so viewing takes longer). It acquired GPS chop-chop and had the best GPS accuracy of all the watches we tested—within the ±two percent margin of error listed in its manual. Nevertheless, the post-run maps showed inaccuracies (including having ane tester running on water in New York Metropolis'southward East River), so y'all can't rely on it for instant pace. On elevation of that, the HR recordings weren't crawly, which was surprising considering that Polar made its proper noun on that detail function. The M430 has bully battery life, peculiarly if you turn off the smartwatch notifications (we did this because you can't select which apps send notifications to the watch, and we found getting a wrist warning for every e-mail annoying).
The Suunto 7 is a smartwatch with sport aspirations. Merely we found information technology likewise cumbersome in size—it'due south more than 1.4 ounces heavier than the lightest watch we've tested—and daily upkeep to recommend. The large (1.four-inch) color screen is brilliant and lovely, and it has numerous smartwatch capabilities. Only the setup is clunky, and information technology requires 3 apps—Suunto (which records runs and sport activities), Google's Wear Os (its operating organisation), and the Google Fit app (which records daily activity). We repeatedly had problems trying to pair the Suunto 7 with our iPhone XS before ultimately succeeding. Its battery promises ii days in smartwatch mode, but we struggled to go through 48 hours without having to charge. Sure aspects felt extraneous, including the demand to toggle the screen to "always on" earlier going for a run (otherwise the watch will sleep mid-miles). It collects a lot of information, only data pages aren't customizable. As far as measuring distance, this smartwatch consistently came in over the mapped or control distances of our runs, oft by about 3% (not stellar).
Our testers consistently began their reviews of the Suunto Spartan Sport Wrist Hour with ane near unanimous phrase: "This thing is freaking huge!" That's the main obstacle that no amount of GPS accuracy (it's pretty good overall), various multi-sport settings (including open-h2o swim), or advanced running features (navigation/back-to-get-go, workout programming) tin can overcome. The interface too has a pretty difficult learning curve, with both a touchscreen and buttons, still no labels to help you out as you fumble your manner through. Fifty-fifty afterwards weeks of testing, we routinely hitting the incorrect buttons to starting time and end a run, for example. Nosotros also plant the onboard Hr tracking to be pretty abysmal. Even if you didn't mind the watch's size, wearing the Spartan Sport Wrist 60 minutes as an all-day activity tracker isn't really worthwhile because information technology has only a step counter; the sleep tracking is basically useless (duration simply—and it wasn't accurate at that).
The Suunto Spartan Trainer Wrist HR is appreciably smaller than the Spartan Sport Wrist HR, but it lacks many of its bigger sibling'due south features. In our tests, information technology institute a GPS betoken quickly, even without assistance from a smartphone, but its distance accurateness and erratic heart-rate monitoring were disappointing. The button-only interface presents but as much of a learning curve as the Sport version. And considering information technology has the same limited action and sleep tracking, we'd skip it for all-day wearable besides.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-running-watch/
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