Garmin Forerunner 205 Wrist-Mounted GPS Fitness Computer

Garmin Forerunner 205 Wrist-Mounted GPS Fitness Computer

Average Customer Review
 (373 customer reviews)

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Product Description

Just when you thought Garmin had cornered the market on powerful, affordable, and effective wrist-mounted GPS devices, here comes the Forerunner 205. The release of this device is a major achievement from a design and technology perspective. This isn't just marketing-speak; the Forerunner 205 is the most accurate, most reliable wrist-mounted performance and GPS tracking tool we've ever tested. Yes, it's that good. While no device this compact can do everything (yet), the 205 pushes the boundaries of what is possible from something strapped around your wrist. While the 205 doesn't offer heart rate monitoring, or connectivity with Garmin's wireless speed and cadence sensor -- for that, you'll need to step up to the Forerunner 305 -- but it's a great way to get basic GPS location and performance data.

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-See what customers are saying:

"A must for every runner, biker or combination thereof"
By, Brian Hawkinson (San Jose, CA)     

"Having recently ran my first marathon (July 06 - SF) and half-marathon (Oct 06 - SJ) I was eagerly looking for something I could use outdoors to track all the essential data. I was very used to, and tired of, running on the treadmill to figure this out. I took a chance and got the Forerunner 205. I couldn't be more happier.

When I opened the package I immediately turned it on, indoors, and it found the satellites in about three minutes. Before I ran on it I took it with me to work, while driving, and tested the speed, distance and elevation to see how accurate it was. The speed was a little slow in catching up as I accelerated but it was always accurate once I was at an even pace. Top speed was correct. Once in the office I compared Yahoo Maps and Google Maps distance: their's said 5.4 and the 205 said 5.38. Elevation was off by about 10 ft.

Next up was my running. I took it out for a 4 mile run. The pace, again, fluctuated some as I was running, but that could be my own faulty running style. Elevation and speed seemed to be accurate though and was absolutely essential to maintaining a steady pace (which I wish I would have had for both the half and full marathon). Once I got back to the house I uploaded my history into the Garmin Training Center. This software is amazing. It breaks down your time, pace, average speed, max speed, calories burned, and elevation (descent and ascent) for your overall run and/or for each mile (if you set the Auto Lap to a mile). The mapping part of the software is amazingly accurate. I purposely would run a circle around a tree and cross over my out and back path to see if the 205 kept track of it, and it did! Every turn I made was recorded.

As a previous reviewer stated, the only time I noticed my speed wasn't accurate (it would say 0) is when I went under an overpass but it immediately started up just before I ran from under it. Also, as the same reviewer stated, at this exact time there was a spike in the data for that short section. Also, every time I turned the 205 on it found the satellites from 30 seconds to two minutes, but the one time I turned it on in the hills while driving it took about five minutes, which is still not too slow. I have since turned it on while driving, but not in the hills, and it found it very quickly.

With many marathons, half marathons and triathlons coming up this year I cannot wait to be running with my 205, something I cannot believe I ran without in the past. I would whole heartedly recommend the Garmin Forerunner 205 to any runner, biker or combination thereof. A definite recommend."

"The 205 is a great product!"
By, G. Millar (Mountain View, CA United States)

"I bought the 205 for my girlfriend and we use it when we run together. It makes running fun. We like how it tracks our per mile time as well as how easy it is to put in lap times. Never had a problem with it going down or finding a satellite.

It's light, easily worn on the wrist and you barely know it's there.

One time a couple of weeks ago, we were running in another city and after running four miles we were completely lost. The 205 helped us get back to our starting point. Without it, we would probably still be out there. :)

We haven't used it for hiking yet, but plan to this weekend and I suspect it will really help knowing how far we have gone and where we are.

I highly recommend the 205."

"GPS on your wrist...awesome!" 
By, Paul Wistrand (Juneau, AK United States)

"I'm not a runner or a triathlete, by any means. I bought the Forerunner 205 for when I go on walks / hikes on the many trails around where I live. Despite the large size (as compared to a standard watch), it fits my fairly small wrist and is not heavy. I actually forget I'm wearing it... Oh, and it does have the date and time in nice large easy to read characters. If you've ever owned a Garmin eTrex (the original yellow GPS that cost about $100 when it came out), then you can expect about the same amount of features. There is no base map built in, but you can mark waypoints and there are other basic GPS functions. The real feature, though is syncing to your PC with the included training center software. It logs each trip, displays a calendar and map of your route and graphs your performace (pace, elevation, speed, etc.) Great product, no regrets!"

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