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FR 235 vs FR 220 + Apple Watch

Former Member over 9 years ago

I am looking to buy a watch that has email / text / phone call notifications so I don't have to look at my phone during meetings as well as something that will fall into the daily fitness tracker category (HR trending, get your but moving alerts,...)

I currently use my FR 220 for all of my running (3-4 hours a week) and I rarely grab my heart rate strap for running. The FR220 is perfect for running and daily wear. I would like the heart rate info when running to help with general training improvements just not into wearing the HR strap all of the time. Multi-sport is low on my list as I have dedicated cycling hardware (Edge 520). I run to get away from work, so running with a phone is a no-go for me.

I am either going to buy an Apple Watch to supplement my FR 220 or buy a FR235 and pass the FR220 on. I wanted to get thoughts from this group.

FR235 lets me carry one device, can use the HR on my bike computer when I forget my HR strap, limited office functions.
Apple watch lets me have the additional app support, but wont sync data with Garmin Connect.

Thoughts?

0 schinder over 9 years ago

So long as your 220 isn't going to die any time soon, get the Apple Watch. I own an Apple Watch and an Epix, and the Apple Watch is way better as a smart watch. The first time you answer a text using Siri or take a call on the watch, you'll be hooked. Almost everything on the Apple Watch is better than on any Garmin device I've owned. The thing I use most on my Apple Watch is the complications on the watch face. I can see immediately what the weather is like outside, when the sun rises and sets, the battery remaining, and the phase of the moon, all at a glance.

Of course, the Apple Watch is in no way a fitness device. (Personally, I keep all of the "fitness" crap on my Apple Watch off, since almost nothing that I do (cycling, cross country skiing) involves "steps". ) The screen is very hard, if not impossible, to see outdoors. No GPS on board. The screen is off most of the time (otherwise the battery would go quickly), and you either raise your arm or hit the digital crown to get it on, for only a few moments. If you lose cell service, all of the great attributes of the Apple Watch are gone. We'll see if DC Rainmaker does a review, but if I remember correctly from comments he's made on his site, the optical HR on the Watch doesn't work very well when exercising (a complaint I've seen by others as well). And, of course, it doesn't pair with ANT+ sensors. Your plan of buying the Watch and keeping the 220 sounds good to me.

0 Former Member over 9 years ago

I'm a fan of a single device, thus why I got the 235 to replace a 220 and Fitbit Charge HR. I personally love my 235 and while I find it's quirks nothing more than a mild nuisance, others seem to have a lot more trouble.

0 chunkywizard over 9 years ago

I think it depends whether you want one watch or two. Personally I would get the 235 rather than have 2 watches. The 235 is more limited (ie no Siri) but you can just use your phone if you see the notification is worth dealing with, or a call comes in you want to take. If you sell on the 220 to patially pay for the 235 then it should be cheaper as well. As the other person mentions the sports side of the Apple Watch doesn't seem to be very good at the moment so you are paying a lot for a more stylish watch with notifications.

CW

0 PatrickNSF over 9 years ago

I've had an Apple Watch since launch, and I purchased my 235 to replace a 620 around Thanksgiving.

I've worn my Apple Watch probably 5 days since getting the 235 and am planning on selling it. The smart watch features on the AW are obviously better, but activity tracking is mediocre. I prefer having all my activity/exercise/sleep data stored in one location (Garmin Connect).

If Garmin had a fenix-styled Forerunner I'd opt for that without question. As it is, I'm satisfied wearing the 235 24/7.

0 Former Member over 9 years ago

I've had an Apple Watch since launch, and I purchased my 235 to replace a 620 around Thanksgiving.

I've worn my Apple Watch probably 5 days since getting the 235 and am planning on selling it. The smart watch features on the AW are obviously better, but activity tracking is mediocre. I prefer having all my activity/exercise/sleep data stored in one location (Garmin Connect).

If Garmin had a fenix-styled Forerunner I'd opt for that without question. As it is, I'm satisfied wearing the 235 24/7.

I too had the Apple watch and a 620. Yep, the Apple watch has many more smart phone functions, but I rarely used them. I really, really wanted to use the Apple watch as my running/fitness device, but all of the running apps were either too laggy, or too inaccurate to replace the 620. I was intrigued by the 235s specs, particularly optical HR, and have been extremely pleased with the the performance of OHR during my runs. As my daily tracker, the OHR sampling Garmin does lends itself to error and high calories counts ("stuck" HR) you can read about elsewhere. Until Garmin figures it out, I use an app as a watch face "Heart Alarm", that keeps the OHR running all the time. Yeah, I have to charge every night, just like I did my Apple watc, but I getvreasnable calorie burn numbers that flow into MFP for me. Yes, a "one device only" runner person here as well and Garmin 235, while still a work in process, is the watch for me .... for now...

Rich

0 R_Tellis over 9 years ago

If you're happy enough with the styling of the 220 for daily wear I'd go with the 235. While the smart features are obviously not as good as the Apple watch the integration with iOS is great and I haven't had any problems on a day to day basis, although there was one time after a firmware update (to the watch) that I had to re-pair the watch to the phone.