35 Miles and 7 Days with the Forerunner 405: Part 2

This morning I set the alarm on my new Garmin to wake me up at 6 a.m. to go out for a run. That was a little optimistic. I fumbled to turn off the alarm and I guess I ended up hitting snooze because the darn thing went of 2 more times. I guess it really wanted to go running. Although I still have yet to figure out how to turn it off (there was some small writing on the screen telling me what button would be the off and which one was the snooze, but it was too early to pay attention to that), I was happy to have an alarm. It always bothered me that my 305 couldn't do many of the things a $20 Timex Ironman could do. Still the Alarm features are a little lacking; it only offers the options of "once" or "daily." My Ironman could have different alarms for different days, but then again, it didn't know how when the sunrise was (Garmin does...It is one of the Display options).

I went out on a 6 mile run today with the Virtual Partner dialed down to an 8:40 pace. While on the run, I could tell that the initial love blindness was starting to wear off and I started to have a few quibbles with the 405. For one thing, that gee-wiz bezel didn't want to pay attention to my sweaty fingers. It took a few taps before it would change screens near the end of my run when the sweat was pouring down. I also noticed that the map or "bead crumb" trail that was on my 305, was missing from the new 405. While this wasn't something I used everyday it did save me many of time when I left my hotel room for a run, wondering through a town only to need the map to get back. The 405 did retain the "Back to Start" feature (which I didn't use) that will probably accomplish the same thing, just a little less elegantly. I also spent a little time annoyed that when used as a watch, that cool Time, Date and Day of the Week view reverts to just the time to save battery. But as my runners high set in and I once again beat my Virtual Partner, I realized these are small annoyances.

I got home and again my workout uploaded without me having to do a thing. Of course I forgot to turn the GPS off again, but that is my problem. I sat down to think about how I was going to configure my training screens. I had spent a lot of time making sure I had just the right items displayed on my 305, in a clear order, and without any frivolous information. I realized that for now, I didn't need to add any new screens. I had already swapped the current pace out for lap pace and the default screens seemed to meet my needs. You see on my 305, a few of the things that I considered essential, are already on the 405. I used to have to use up a precious display just to give me the time so I could find out if I would make it home in time for a conference call. But the 405 is a watch, so I could just tap and hold the bezel to get "Time/Date." I also no longer need to devote a corner to GPS accuracy to let me know why it seems to go wonky. I can just tap and hold GPS, not to mention the 405's GPS seems a little more stable. I used to have a whole training screen devoted to the heart rate monitor...Well Garmin has already taken care of that. When the HRM is detected a new screen pops up to help you keep track...I even added the nifty graph for a little eye candy while I run. You see, these Garmin Guys really seemed to have thought this one out. They may have cut a few options, but I think they have made a much more consumer friendly watch in the process.

35 Miles and 7 Days with the Forerunner 405: A Regular Users Review Part 1

Being a lover of my Garmin Forerunner 305 I naturally was intrigued by the new 405.  I decided I wasn't going to buy it however, because my 305 worked great and I didn't see the need for a new Forerunner.  Well a few events conspired to change my mind (my current watch failing then a replacement Suunuto leaking and being sent back).  So when the family asked me what I wanted for Father's Day I took the plunge and asked for the new 405. 

While I was researching and evaluating my decision, I failed to find many user reviews that were helpful.  So I thought I might put one together.  I figured I would show people how I used the Garmin 405 everyday during a typical week of running, biking and everyday life.  I'm not really training for anything, so my goals are just to keep active by running about 35 easy miles and to use it day to day as an alarm and general time keeper.

Day One:  Happy Father's Day

I was a little ill over the weekend (I think I was bit by the poisonous tomato) so I didn't go for my usual Father's Day run, choosing instead to stay in bed and bask in the glow of my Daughter's adoration as I admired her hand painted mug (the kid is a Picasso in the making I tell ya).  So Day One with the watch consisted of charging it up, playing with the buttons and even reading the manual (I'm sure that's a first, I never read the manual).  I was very impressed by the design of the watch; while it looks like a normal sized watch, it actually probably has as much area as the 305 without looking like you have a DVD player strapped to your wrist.  This is accomplished by moving a lot of the innards (technical term) into the actual watch strap to give the appearance of a typical sports watch.  Because of this, the watch strap is curved; looking more like a bracelet if viewed from the side.  I have the wrists of a little girl and the watch fits me great, however you may want to try one on before purchasing if you could beat one of the Olsen Twins at arm wrestling.  Set up was a breeze, I didn't even have to enter the time, just choose the time zone and the watch connects to the GPS satellites to get an accurate time.  The buttons worked fine and the touch bezel was more intuitive than I thought it would be.  I'm sure if they just added more buttons they could have accomplished the same thing as with the touch bezel, however the cool factor gives you something to impress your friends when you show it off.  I may wish for buttons during a run, but for now I'm happy when everyone gathers around to ooh and ahh as I spin through menus like an iPod.  I did notice something odd when showering with the watch.  The back light kept coming on.  Normally, to turn on the back light you press the bezel in two places and I guess the water made the watch think it was getting hit with two fingers.  I just locked the bezel (by pressing the two buttons at the same time) and it stopped.

Day Two:  First Run, and 8 miler

I went out on a lazy 8 mile run after two back-to-back weeks of less than stellar mileage due to vacation and illness.  Before heading off I set the virtual partner to an 8:40 pace (hey, I said I was ill), then turned on the GPS and got going.  I didn't mess with any of the display screens, choosing to try Garmin's default screens before I customized them.  One of the key differences I'm noticing between the 305 and the 405, is that I seem to be using some of the features on the 405 more.  I think this is because I have the 405 on all the time, so I can play around with it and get used to the menus more than I did on the 305.  I only wore the 305 while running and spent little time messing with it between runs, but the 405 is there on your wrist all day, just begging for attention.  As a result, I don't seem to have to search forever to find a particular setting, maybe it is more user friendly or maybe it is just more familiar.

The run went well, however I decided to change the "Pace" display for the "Lap Pace" because it seems much more accurate.  I beat the virtual partner by over a minute (kind of rude of me to leave him behind, but I guess I'm feeling better than I thought) and got home to play with the Garmin Connect software.  The wireless sync went as advertised and Garmin gives you a choice between a Web based log or one downloaded to your computer.  I chose the web based, because I use SportTracks.  The new software looks great, even if it is no SportTracks, it does offer up one benifit:  You can send and track goals.  I filled in that I wanted to run a total of 35 this week, sent it wirelessly to my 405 and  up popped a little fuel gage telling me how far I have to go.  Then I went to SportTracks to load my run and I had to do a little research on where to find my history.  You see you can't import directly from the watch into SportTracks like I could with the 305, so instead you import the file from your computer.  It was easy though, on windows xp just navigate to:  C:\Documents and Settings\{your username}\Application Data\GARMIN\Devices\{your device ID}\History    and import.

So Day Two went well, although I forgot to shut off the GPS when I got back, so I drained the battery a bit (down to 66% by the time I noticed it).  I guess I'll have to remember that in the future.  I'll be back to let you know how the rest of the week goes.