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First impression: it isn’t that much better than my old fr 935

Elbo
over 2 years ago

Received my new 965 yesterday and did a first workout. My impressions so far:

Ohr still doesn’t work for me. It didn’t work on my fr935. It didn’t work on my tomtom before that. And it doesn’t work on the 965. (yes, I tried all the tricks and tips)

Gps is about the same. I never had any problems with the gps on my 935. The trail of the 965 looks similar than that of previous workouts in the same area with my 935.  I’m not that interested in a perfect trail. Current pace is more important. It seems slightly better but I have to look into that some more.

Sleep monitor still sucks. I had a terrible night and was awake for hours. My 965 reported only 7 minutes of awake time and tolled me I had a good night sleep. Same bs as on my 935.

Saw a few glitches in the software. Most obvious redraw problems with the watchface (one of the default garmins). But it’s garmin software, so nothing new there. Will find lots of other glitches.

The screen looks great but haven’t been out in the sun. I never had any problem with the screen of my 935, but you get more compliments about the 965’s screen. I do miss the possibility to glance at your watch to see the time wihtout moving your arm. You cannot sneakpeak what time it is. Raise your arm to turn it on works about as good/bad as on my old 935. (But on my old 935 I only needed it during workouts in the dark, with the 965 you need it all the time. It still has quite big bezels, but not as huge as on my 935.

Batterylife I cannot tell yet.

Bluetooth connection to my iPhone seems to be better. With my 935 that was really problematic (when I was away from my phone it didn't reconnect automaticly most of the time)

Charging port still sucks, probably. It's the same wobbly connector. The cable now has usb-c on one side, but I have no problem with usb-a. Guess it's a good thing to move from usb-a to c, but for charging my watch not a mayor difference.

Price. It’s f***ing expensive.

Case size. It's about the size of a fr 935, which I find acceptable. Don't want a bigger watch. The fr 955 has become quite bulky and this one is slimmer again (due to the amoled screen??)

Luckily you can turn of most random data generators, like body battery, training readiness etc. (Yes, I think they are bs. First, sleepscore is definitely wrong and that is one of the inputs. Second, at best it only confirms how you already feel.)

This may sound I’m disappointed with the new watch. Not really. My 935 served my well for 6 years but can’t hold a charge anymore. I hope this watch will also last 6 years. If it does it’s a great watch.

If you have a 945 or a 955 or even a well functioning 935 and looking for training changing features, don’t buy a new 965. It’s really not better than existing watches. If you like a new gadget or fancy a pretty screen, a 965 will suit uou.

(why didn’t I buy the cheaper 265, which would also do everything I want? Battery is the only reason to buy a new watch. A bigger battery last longer and will still have decent batterylife after 5 or 6 years)

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to ericgottlieb

    GPS was a game changer for me. Not because of distance or pace (I had that with a footpod on my Suunto T3), but because of navigation. I love navigation since I had a Suunto Ambit3. So far always breadcrumb has always lead me to the finish.

    Maps could add some convenience. Breadcrumb can be difficult at y junctions or when roads are close together. 

    But I do run with a trailrun group from time to time and I see people with maps on their watches (mostly fenix 6x) struggling at difficult junctions. 

    For me, navigation was the big game changer. Maps doesn't provide any new functions for me. (I will still create routes on my phone/laptop or get them from somewhere else)

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to Elbo

    Different people, different use cases. Only thing that I don't really understand is, why you bought the pretty expensive 965 if you don't need any of the fancy featurs. I mean, I don't _need_ most of them too, but I don't deactivate them. So a different Garmin model might have been the better choice. Or even a cheaper one from a different vendor.  No offens, sometimes we just want something, even if it's not much of a use ;)

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    i also owned a 935 and it was a great watch for the 4+ years i use it. yet, now owning a 955 Solar, as much as a few of the bugs have annoyed me, the multi band GPS definitely gives much better instantaneous pace while running through tree covered areas which is a huge improvement. i also personally like having maps for hiking, backpacking and running in new places. 

    for your use cases and described preferences, it does seem like the 965 is overkill. did you consider the 255? it seems that would cover the form factor of the 935, include multi band GPS, and have similar battery life to the 935.

    [and as much as the 255/955 are still MIPS, the backlighting is significantly improved over the 935 which is also a nice improvement too]

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to derek87
    derek87 said:
    the multi band GPS definitely gives much better instantaneous pace

    I agree with Derek re the multi-band GPS. I generally try run my marathons right under my BQ pace – I can't go much lower – and the 955 was accurate enough that I was finally able to ditch my Stryd.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to PatrickNSF

    I can explain why I choose the most expensive forerunner: batterylife.

    I know batterylife will degrade over the years. So better start with excellent batterylife and have decent batterylife over 4 years, than start with decent batterylife and have mediocre batterylife in a few years.

    Yes, coros has great batterylife, with some tricks. And it isn’t that much cheaper anymore.

    And I did say current pace seems to be better than on my 935, but I have to do more runs for a better impression.

    It seems some people are cherry picking from my quite long post.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to Elbo

    IMHO, i am not sure you will get more battery life from the 965 vs 255. i haven't dove into the specs, but the 255 has almost as good battery life as the 955 and i am guessing you will charge the 965 more frequently than you would the 255.

    again, i haven't done the detailed calcs and it will depend on exactly how you program the AMOLED display on the 965, but if i were in your shoes, i would consider the 255 (assuming you are still within return period for 965) if battery is your primary concern and you want to save yourself some money and still get the stellar multi band GPS.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to derek87

    Not a good idea. Like I said, I like to use my watch for a long period. Buying the latest model helps.

    Also, I do value the bigger screen for my aging eyes. I don’t see the benefits of amoled, other than it helps to fit a larger display in the same case.