Garmin Forerunner 301

I received this comment in relation to yesterday's (23-1-06) blog. A Girl Running said...

Steve, we are thinking of buying the forerunner 301 tomorrow. Can you let me know if you have time, if it's easy to work and do you find it fairly accurate? Would you buy it again or try something else? thanks so much

Response I purchased my 301 in September 2005 and have used it for every run since. It is relatively easy to work out and the buttons are clearly labelled and relatively big (compared to traditional buttons on normal watches). The display is on the large side, a plus, in my book. The device itself is large and some refer to it as a briefcase. After a few runs the size of the device is not an issue, it's something you get use to. Is it accurate? Well, it gets very close to being accurate. If all your runs are under heavy/thick tree coverage then the GPS signal will either be weak or lost. If you are running a straight line and lose the signal and eventually pick up the signal 2, 3 or 5 mins later the distance recorded will be correct, it's simply a straight line calculation for the device. That is not the case if you have turned a corner. The straight line calculation will cut the corner (be a lesser distance). The above also applies to running next to tall buildings. I wouldn't even bother running through Melbourne CBD and expect the device to receive GPS signals. Apparently the problem is due to the fact that the aerial of the device is on the underside and not facing skyward. The new 305 unit addresses this problem. In relation to the HRM side of things I had some dramas with the 301 not receiving heart rate information. Prior to the 301 I used a Polar S610 HRM (it's still my day to day watch) and used that since 2001. I never experienced any HRM problems with the Polar. Over the last few weeks I've not had any problems with the HRM. The things I changed to address the problem:-

• Tightened the chest strap (tighter than when wearing my Polar HRM)
• Now use conductive gel

Comparing the Polar chest strap to the 301, the Polar contact point(s) are flush (flat - no grooves). The 301 is not flush, has grooves. I believe for this reason maybe the flush contact plate of the Polar means it doesn't have to be worn as tight (should be snug) as the 301. As far as GPS devices go I can only compare the 301 to the Timex GPS watch. My brother owns a Timex GPS watch and I trialled it once before purchasing the 301. I discounted the Timex unit simply because it was in too many parts, a watch, GPS receiver and data recorder. Returning to the accuracy issue of GPS readings, these can be addressed by free software (www.motionbased.com and SportsTracks). I use both. I find SportsTracks to be a very useful piece of software. It has heaps of features, one of them being the ability to easily fix erronous GPS points simply by dragging the line back to where it should be over a Google Earth image. Would I buy it again? Yes. If I was in the market now I probably would be considering the 305 an updated unit. With the introduction of the 305 one would expect the price of the 301 to drop. I hope the above helps.