Need advice in deciding between Forerunner 230 and Forerunner 235

Hello,

I am planning to buy a running + smart watch; and after going through all available options (TomTom, FitBit, Mio etc) I am pretty much settled between these two:

• Forerunner 230
  
• Forerunner 235
  

I am currently using chest strap Bluetooth HRM with my iPhone. And definitely using chest strap is not convenient. But knowing its accuracy it cannot be ignored. And I do need to use the HRM with either chestStrap or Watch, as I prefer running with the HRM information available and would want the data to be reliable enough. My primary activity is running only.

Obviously, having HRM sensor on the wrist, saves a bit of discomfort using the chest strap HRM. But, if the watch inbuilt HRM got really poor accuracy then, I believe the chest strap HRM weighs over its discomfort.

One thing I would like to know from experts is:

• Is the 235 HRM so inaccurate that I should opt for chest strap HRM for running.
  
• Is the 235 HRM's current issues Hardware or Software?
  
• How far can the 235 HRM performance improve with future software updates? Will it bring in more features and measures with software updates in future? Or the hardware has hits its limit.
  

For me on the price front the 235 is about 20% more expensive than 230.
If I get 235, i'll not be in position financially to further invest in Garmin HRM Chest Strap.
But, If i get 230, i'll have to buy the Garmin HRM Chest Strap, which will make the package a little more than 235's cost (about 3% more expensive than 235).

I am very interested in knowing if there is even a slight hope in the performance of the 235 HRM in future, and will it eventually justify not having the Chest Strap HRM for running altogether.

I'll really appreciate if I can get a volume of advice/suggestions on which one I should go for and why?
My heart says 235 but by head says 230, and my wife says None. Totally confused situation, so i need to choose the best option for me (obviously not None).

Just for Information, where I live the 230 is available in Black, and 235 is available only in Red and Orange. Other color options not available. And I also intent to use this as my day-to-day watch also.

Thanks and Regards,
Sapam

Buy stuff based on what it is and can do now, not on what it might do in the future...

That said, right now I wouldn't buy the FR 235 if you really want to rely on it's HR data. There are just too many issues. It CAN perform up to par, but is slow to adjust (so interval training would mess up HR) and sometimes just screws up (cadence lock and other issues).

You might be lucky and it might work properly for you, but in my experience it doesn't.

Whether it may improve in the future, I sure hope so. It is hardware and software though, the cadence lock is a physical phenomenon but it should be possible to reduce it software wise. Same with the slow adjustments, dunno how they calculate it but should be able to improve it.

But Garmin is radio silent lately on updates for this watch, at least on the OHR side, so I wouldn't get my hopes up. Too bad because the watch in itself is pretty sweet...

I fully agree with above comment.
Even if you are lucky and get a specific device, or a combination of "skin-device-cadence-whatever" that makes your FR 235 perform well in HR wrist control (as it is my case for example) you will NOT get the reliability and accuracy you get with chest bands.
Actually, I enjoy some trainings without chest band (easy workouts, long runs and in general workouts where HR is not of importance to me) without too many issues. However, if we talk of intervals and races (where HR is a key point for me) I always use the chest band.

If you assume this point, go for the 235 and enjoy wrist HR testing, but if HR is of any importance to you when running, do not forget to acquire a chest band as well. Do not buy the 235 expecting wrist HR accurate performance, because you will be dissapointed: slow reactions, sudden changes, cadence lock ... will likely happen to you every now and then in the best case, and if you get obssesed with it, you will spend more time trying to solve the problems than enjoying the device.

By software, things may imporve a bit...but in my opinion, ...a bit. I do not see myself getting rid of my chest band in a short term.

My advice is to consider the Wrist HR control as a "Beta-feature", or better a "Beta-technology". Use it, enjoy it, test it, but do not rely on it.
Good luck and ... never skip your wife's advice:)!

I am very interested in knowing if there is even a slight hope in the performance of the 235 HRM in future, and will it eventually justify not having the Chest Strap HRM for running altogether.

Not if you are expecting equal performance with a chest strap HRM that uses ECG technology.

For what it's worth, I have both a FR235 and a Wahoo TICKR X chest strap. I've compared the results from both devices on the same workouts, and most of the time for my purposes they are close enough, if the FR235 is given time to warm up and catch up at the start, and strapped on tightly enough. Sometimes the FR235 is obviously wrong – but when it is, then at least I know I'll have to do something to the watch to sort it out before I start running, if I can afford the delay.

My heart says 235 but by head says 230, and my wife says None. Totally confused situation, so i need to choose the best option for me (obviously not None).

Well, if it's either the FR235 and no chest strap (either now or later… keeping in mind that you can get ANT+ chest strap HRMs for US$50 or even less), or the FR230 and a chest strap, then I guess the key question: How keen are you really for heart rate based training? If you're thinking you mightn't be primary focussed on heart rate for the majority of your workouts, but when you do for particular workouts you'd want the most accuracy you can get, then obviously the FR230 with chest strap is better, and you don't have to wear the chest strap every time but have a choice. On the other hand, if you're like me and you'd like to use HR for guidance in almost every workout session, but don't think a high degree of HR accuracy is absolutely critical to your training progress, then the FR235 is a better choice.

Also, remember you cannot just upgrade from an FR230 to an all-in-one solution with an optical HRM later (if you decide putting on a chest strap HRM every time is just not working for you in the long term) at the same ‘low’ price at which you can add an ANT+ chest strap HRM later to an FR235, if the optical HRM proves not to meet your requirements.

Just for Information, where I live the 230 is available in Black, and 235 is available only in Red and Orange. Other color options not available. And I also intent to use this as my day-to-day watch also.

Where is that? I thought Garmin offered the FR235 in grey in both India and Thailand. Furthermore, it is easy enough to get a black-and-grey replacement band (say, from a US retailer online). On the other hand, we cannot get an orange replacement band even if we wanted one.

As a daily watch either unit will function the same. The only feature you get with the FR235 is the

If you are not interested in the 24x7 HRM function and cost is a concern, then to me the 230 is the only choice. If the 24x7 is important, then you you should get the FR230, but be aware of the limitations.

I am not sure where you are at or how you did the cost comparisons, but they seem off to me. The FR230 comes in two configurations, watch only or a watch/HRM bundle. Both of which are less expensive than the FR235. In the US the costs are as follows:
FR230 = $250
FR230/HRM = $300
FR235 = $330

DC Rainmaker has a very thorough review of both watches, check out this link.

http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/11/garmin-fr230-fr235-review.html

for me i found the optical HRM to be way too unreliable so i returned it and got a 230.
it seems to work better for some than others, so are you prepared to roll the dice? (or buy from somewhere with a good returns policy)

also, having to wear the watch extremely tight and higher up the arm in order to achieve optimal results made it more uncomfortable than a chest strap.



..that said, if i were you i'd find the extra cash to buy the 235 and a strap cause i really like the orange colour.

Though the garmin website in India shows Black, Red and Orange for the 235, unfortunately the Black is not available in the stores.

The grey one is out of stock from the online vendor to which the Garmin India web site refers prospective customers when they click on the Buy Now button. However, I don't think that means that SKU has been discontinued altogether.

These things (actually everything) is expensive over here.

• Forerunner 230 - Rs. 22,990 ($342)
  
• Forerunner 235 - Rs. 27,499 ($409)
  
• Garmin Premium HRM - Rs. 5,299 ($79)
  

I suppose you can try ordering from (for example only) Clever Training in the USA – go have a look at DCRainmaker's web site to find out how to get a discount on the price! – and pay them to ship it to you. They sell a black-grey and a (Marsala) version, which I think better fits what you're after anyway. All up it'd still be significantly cheaper than paying US$409. It certainly appears to me they'll ship to India.

The grey one is out of stock from the online vendor to which the Garmin India web site refers prospective customers when they click on the Buy Now button. However, I don't think that means that SKU has been discontinued altogether.

I suppose you can try ordering from (for example only) Clever Training in the USA – go have a look at DCRainmaker's web site to find out how to get a discount on the price! – and pay them to ship it to you. They sell a black-grey and a (Marsala) version, which I think better fits what you're after anyway. All up it'd still be significantly cheaper than paying US$409. It certainly appears to me they'll ship to India.

I really appreciate the advice and did some math on how much it will cost me to order from international market.

Both Amazon.com and Clever Training Ships to India.
Forerunner 235 - $329
Shipping - $40 ($50 at Amazon)
Import Custom Duty @ 30% for watches: $110.7
===============
Total Landing Cost: $329+$40+$110.7 = $479.7 :(

So, unless someone is coming over from US and carry the watch along, its not very economical to import from US stores. Also, comes the after sales replacement warranty etc.

So, I guess the only options I have locally are.



Thanks and Regards,
Sapam

Fair enough, although you didn't factor in the discount at which I hinted

I'm not trying to plug Clever Training, or any other retailer for that matter, but:

Forerunner 235 - $329 —but you can get 10% discount
Shipping - $40 —standard international shipping is $29.99
Import Custom Duty @ 30% for watches: $110.7 —30% of ($329 less 10%) = $89.10
(We're luckier. Australians don't have to pay duties for individual import shipments of value below A$1,000… for now.)
===============
Total Landing Cost: $329+$40+$110.7 = $479.7 —$421.07 by my calculations

So, unless someone is coming over from US and carry the watch along, its not very economical to import from US stores.

Fair enough. The way I'd personally see it would be that it costs $12 more to be able to get the FR235 in black-grey (or black-red) which is not available locally. (I'm pretty sure the ‘black’ FR235 for the Indian market actually has a grey watch band, according to Garmin India. See )

If I'd known at the time that there is a black-orange FR235 model, and if I could have imported the Taiwanese market retail package of such for an out-of-pocket expense of $30 or so more than I paid for my black-red on in Australia, I probably would have gone for it.

Also, comes the after sales replacement warranty etc.

That's a legitimate concern.

Sounds like you need to decide if you would be more disappointed if you bought the 235 and OHR didn't work well for you or if you bought the 230 and found that you'd really wish you had the OHR.