Timex Ironman T5F011 Mens Bodylink w/ Heart Rate Monitor
Timex has a long standing reputation as one of the worlds leading watch brands. The Ironman T5F011 runners watch is widely available for less than $200 so it should fit the budget of most fitness enthusiasts.
Features;
Unit size - similar to a conventional digital watch
GPS Unit – Separate from watch
Battery life – up to 2 years
Battery type – AA for GPS unit
Water resistant – to 50 meters except GPS unit is splash resistant
Heart rate monitor – Yes
Lap memory – 100
Waypoint – 100
Routes – 50
Warranty – 1 year
As with the previous Timex GPS Watch we reviewed this one also uses a separate unit for the GPS receiver. This receiver will ordinarily be strapped to the arm or waist when in use. The receiver is only splash resistant which we think is a poor design feature for an outdoor fitness product. It would be much better if it were designed to be water resistant to 2 or 3 meters.
The unit did obtain a signal reasonably quickly but the manual does recommend remaining stationary until a signal is obtained. The receiver did a good job with maintaining the signal when the receiver was worn on the arm. Tree cover was a factor once it became moderately dense but in most cases performance was acceptable.
Accuracy was measure against a known distance and the results were almost identical. We also tested the speed and distance readout with other GPS units and found the accuracy to be good. Given the intended use the unit is more than accurate enough.
The heart rate monitor also performed well and would be a valuable feature for a GPS training watch. In fact given the low price we cannot make any good argument for not having the heart rate monitor.
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Review: Garmin Forerunner 305 - GPS Tracking Watches
Routes feature – Yes, 50 max
Warranty – One year
Being the big brother to the Garmin Forerunner 205 it might be helpful to read our product review for that model. The two models share basic features, size and functionality with the Forerunner 305 including the heart rate monitor. An optional feature available with the 305 is a cycling cadence counter but we did not test that option. It should be mentioned that the heart monitor and cycling sensors will work indoors since they do not rely on the GPS signal to function. So if you also work out using stationary equiptment these features will be useful.
For those interested in peak training we think a GPS tracking watch must have the heart rate monitor. It works well and when training on varying terrain there is simply no way to gauge heart rate without a monitor. In use the heart rate monitor readings do not “bounce around” to much but instead they remain reasonably steady. This allows a quick glance at the screen less often and with more confidence in the accuracy of the reading at any given time.
Since GPS accuracy is important to most users we paid attention to that while running and also double checked the readings with several other GPS units. To satisfy our curiosity we brought the Forerunner 305 watch along for a highway road trip and verified its accuracy using the highway mile markers. In all tests we found the accuracy to be excellent and cannot imagine the need for greater accuracy, given the presence of a strong signal.
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GPS Tracking Watches – What They Aren’t
We thought it might be helpful to provide some explanation about the various types of GPS receivers. So far, and for the foreseeable future this site will speak to the users of GPS Tracking Watches (also commonly known as a runners watch) that are geared towards exercise and fitness enthusiasts. As we have mentioned elsewhere on this site these watches are convenient to wear and provide a wide variety of useful data intended for the user to monitor and optimize the workout efforts.
Searching the internet and other electronics retailers will reveal a growing interest in using GPS receivers to track the position of other people. Common uses may include tracking your children, your suspicious wife/husband, employees and so forth. Some may have been confused and think the “exercise” watches can be used for tracking others, they can not, at least not without some customization.
GPS receivers are all similar as far as using the satellite network to pinpoint the receiver’s position. In order to provide the ability to monitor some one wearing or possessing the receiver the information needs to be transmitted to a monitoring station. This is commonly done using cell phone towers or other radio signal technology. Exercise watches don’t transmit signals to cell towers or anywhere else.
If you are looking at tracking someone without there knowledge it is possible to do but not with exercise watches. You are now entering the “spyworld” which is a growing industry with many new and innovative products.
We will soon add two new product reviews of popular GPS Tracking Watches.
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