I've been surfing the web and looking at reviews, but the problem with reviews is you get a mix of good and bad and it always seems like the reviews are so mixed that it might as well be a toss up. Maybe I'll get a great watch that will work wonderfully, maybe I'll get a shitty watch that I'll be constantly fighting with.
I had the good and the bad in one of my old watches, a Polar (can't remember the model number). The heart rate monitor aspect was great. The timing aspect was great (when are they not?), but the GPS unit was blocky and never calibrated correctly. It was a pain in the ass pretty much. I think it told me I ran 3 miles when I really ran 1 mile once... That threw up the red flag.
I've been leaning toward the Nike+ considering I already use the Nike+ app on my cell phone. I am tracking the year's mileage on an excel sheet, but I have over 500 miles logged on Nike+. In fact, in the next 70 or so miles I'll finally be leveling up! So as you can see it's hard for me to completely let it go. Still, I've seen spectacular reviews and then I've seen reviews where people have returned multiple devices so I'm just not sure.
It does get frustrating looking through reviews and I'm at that point where I'm just not sure where to turn. I've reached out to some fellow runners, one of whom I really respect, and I'm hoping to get some suggestions from then. I'm also reaching out to you guys... do any of you have any suggestions about watches? Not looking for anything super fancy and I would love to keep it on the more financially reasonable side.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI like my Nike+ watch. It is does not have some of the functions that I wish I could see in real time like. Elevation or battery level. But the GPS is pretty spot on, it can take time to locate the signal (sometimes a minute), but once it does holds it. Especially if you use the shoe pod. But it has a good battery life, and it is easy to upload to your computer with the built in USB port.
The Nike website is a harder to use than the previous version. I was coming from a background of Runkeeper. I really liked runkeeper site, It was simple and straight forward. As for the Nike site you have to hunt around for things. But once you get the hang of it, its not too bad.
For a while I was having an issue with charging my watch, but I factory reset it, and it has worked fine. (With the help of Nike Support)
From what I could tell from my search of GPS watches, Nike put out a very good, and affordable (not to mention stylish), watch which can easily satisfy the half/marathon runner. But if you are going to do a lot trail running or get a lot more serious about running, people suggest a Garmin or Suunto which can be quite a bit more expensive.
All in all, I like my watch. It has done a good job.
I would suggest going to a good running store that will let you try it out, see if you like it. Always try them on first, some are big and bulky and even a little heavy. Which can be hard to get used to. Hope this helps, and if I can answer any questions let me know.