I am most likely going to buy a GPS watch next month. Is anyone familiar with the differences between the Forerunner 201 and 301? From what I can tell, the primary difference is the lack of a heart monitor on the 201. Any quality differences between the two??
I rarely check my pulse when running, and when I do, it's after an intense uphill push, and I want to check out of curiosity. So, I'm wondering whether I really need the pulse rate monitor?? For those who do have them, do they help push you in your workouts??
I'm also having a hard time picturing myself running with this big-faced watch plus a heart monitor strap across my chest plus a fluid belt on long run days. Oh yeah, and the pepper spray to ward off aggressive dogs. I might as well start dragging a U-Haul trailer along with me as well.
I have a 201. But I wish I had the 301. Let me warn you though - I am a techie geek. I think way too much about stuff - but here is what happened to me.
I used to just train on a heart rate monitor - I loved it. Then I could pretty much tell what it was - so I stopped wearing it.
Then I got a Garmin 201 - awesome - keeps your pace - no more driving around to see how far you have run, etc. It is great at pushing you "just get to the next mile, ok, one more mile" - and you can use a website: http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/map?form=forerunner
to create maps - so you can see where you have run. ( I use the aerial black and white photo)
Now - I am wanting to combine the two. I now wear both sometimes because I want to see what my heartrate is at a certain pace. So - (and I only do this at night to hide the geeky-ness) - I run with my GPS, heartrate monitor, and MP3 player when I want to really see how I am doing.
I don't use all of the functions of the GPS - really only pace and distance - but it's worth it - I don't use it on all of my runs now - but it's a great training tool.
A U-Haul trailer would be a great training aid to throw into the mix(check my log later tonight ).
I think the mapping is pretty useful for training unless you are running along the river. For most people, grade has a significant coorelation to both heart rate and speed. And Dave runs lots of hills. I personally don't like using heartrate as a training aid, but it seems like a lot of runners do. I have a very high heartrate, and regulating it during running would only keep me from running. I do like to use heartrate as an analysis tool. Over the long term it shows running efficiency: What is my heartrate at a 7 minute mile, how fast can I run at 190bpm? I can see where it could be of some use in training though. If you want to run at a constant heartrate, it could help regulate your speed on the inclines and declines. With the 301 you can relate pace, grade, and heartrate very easily.
If the heartrate is something that you are not sure about using, it is a hard sell though. $222 versus $126 at TigerGPS.com(where I got mine). I would do some reading up on heartrate training, it is a pretty popular topic - and I honestly don't know much about it. Read about it and see if you think it could improve your training. When I buy something I tend to splurge, and I love gadgets too. Sometimes I go cheap, then I have to really want the upgrade to justify the initial investment.
I have the 201, have thought a heart rate monitor would be neat (I like gadgets too [img]smile.gif[/img] ) but not something I really need.
I like using the mapping tools at motionbased.com and you can even export as .gpx format and import into Google Earth for satellite pics and the ability to zoom in on your route and see how close to the street you really were.
And the interval training is pretty cool. You can pre-set it based on any combination of work/rest time/distance. So if you knew what laps you wanted, you can set it all up before you go and forget about hitting the lap button.
I do get weak gps signals in my neighborhood quite a bit from all the trees, but I figure it's pretty darn accurate.
Go for it! I'll be expecting maps of your runs in your log.
I've got both the 201 and the 301. The 201 I actually FOUND on the ground on the side of the road during one of my runs.
The main differences between the 201 and the 301 is the heart rate monitor function, and the ability to CREATE your own running, biking, or 'other' sport workouts in the Training Center software and uploading them to the 301, or creating the workouts directly on the 301 and downloading to the Training Center software. The Training Center software that comes with a 301 has a calendar feature that allows to schedule workouts as well.
If I had the choice of buying one or the other, I'd get the 301.
Do yourself a favor and go to www.garmin.com and find the user manuals for both the 201 and the 301 and thumb thru them, you'll see what I mean.
Thanks for all of the feedback. I will most likely buy the 301 unless my budget won't allow it. I think the 201 would be enough for what I would use it for the most -- pacing, measuring routes, making cool maps and graphs, etc. However, it would be fun to have the extra features of the 301 and the options of tracking my pulse rate and the custom workouts.
I think I might invest in a 301 towards the end of the year as well. I didn't realize it had so many cool functions until I read these threads. The one reservation I have is it appears to be rather bulky. Has anyone found it uncomfortable or awkward or annoying running with one strapped to your wrist? Does it have a belt clip?
It's not uncomfortable to me to wear, and I have small wrists. The velcro band is wide enough to where it makes it comfortable to wear and doesn't slide up and down on the wrist.
No belt clip.
It's fine.
Buy the 301, it's very cool.
Like I said above, go to the website and download the PDF owners manuals to get a better feel.
I think it is very comfortable, and not as big as it looks in a lot of the pictures. The only time it gets in the way is sometimes on pushups, and on front squats/cleans; but it comes with a strap extender for use on the upper arm.
BTW - don't know if you ride as well, but it makes a good cycling computer too. It will strap right on your handlebar or top tube. You can switch the pace from x/min per mile to x miles per hour - just hold down the mode button for a few seconds. Good for ride/run bricks too.
Only bad thing - in the woods you get a "weak gps signal" alarm if you are under a thick canopy for a while - so you lose your pace and the distance is off - but it's kind of expected due to the size.
Oh - another cool thing - the internal battery is rechargeable - and usually will last up to 14 hours - so at night you can switch it to constant backlit - no more searching for the watch light button during your night run.
*searching frantically for any maps/training logs of where you run*
atleast i tried...
but about the actual thread. decide if you want the heartmonitor, or may want it in the future. IF youve got the spare cash, id say go for the 301. Otherwise, you can always get a seperate heart monitor for less than the difference between the 201 and the 301, itd just be more gadgets to carry around/strap on while running. But this really doesnt help at all [img]smile.gif[/img]
__________________
"Obsession is a word that lazy people use to describe the Dedicated."
Actually, this was done using a Garmin eTrex Vista C and not a ForeRunner.
The below is a MotionBased Dot Racing image of a bike route I routinely ride. Dot Racing makes it possible to virtually race yourself or others from same route on a map. A great tool for monitoring performance and fitness tests, or too just size yourself up.
FWIW, I love my Forerunner 205. Forever I swore I'd never become one of those obsessed GPS runners, but it's quite convenient when you're not doing the same familiar routes. I still use a regular wristwatch for races, though (and hope the mile markers are correct!)
__________________
"If it felt good, you didn't push hard enough. It's supposed to hurt like hell." - Dean Karnazes' track coach, Ultramarathon Man
"My baby's soft and sweet, somewhere between a flower and a gun" - fiction family
Well, I've been pissed off at my Garmin 301 for a long time. It won't connect to my computer via the USB cable at all now and started giving me problems within one year of purchase. I think the new models connect wirelessly, though.
).
Linear Mode
