Ok I have been spending way too much time researching which garmin watch to buy. Yes I live in the stoneage but my 310 xt lasted for a good 4 years now it is done! Does not recognize any heart rate monitor, new old etc. I used the strap and don't mind it however wouldn't mind doing away with the strap but because of issues with ohrm's don't mind continuing to use it. Anyways, I am looking into buying the 935 xt for many reasons but feel it has too much that I likely won't use. But prefer to be up-to-date with the watches these days. What are your thoughts on the optical hr monitor on the 935 xt? and in general as a solid watch...but it is super pricey...thus my hesitation. I was thinking the 735, or the 235 but not sure. I wouldn't mind more analytics in a watch. Can you and anyone please chime in if you have the 935 xt or if you went with a different one? I want to have a watch that will last a good 3 years or so, 500 bucks is a lot though. Also does this work with the older garmin hrm's? and what about the polar strap? and I read DC Rainmaker's review of the Scosche so may invest in that, but shouldn't a 500$ watch that uses optical monitoring really be accurate? sigh....decisions, decsions....thanks for the help!!
If money is an issue and you can get one REALLY REALLY cheap, then you might give it a try. Otherwise go for the 935. I bought my 735XT over a year ago because I needed a tri watch immediately and the 935 was still a couple of months away. If I were to make my decision now I'd not hesitate to pay extra for the 935.
Optical heart rate as stated by many above is very polarizing. It is really dependent on the user. For some it works very well and for others not at all. I enjoy seeing my all day heart rate stats and I like that it calculates my resting heart rate daily. It does not work well enough during an activity for me to use it though, also the watch will not calculate VO2max and lactate threshold without a heart rate strap so I just wear my HRM-Tri for all my activities. Even for the people that the optical heart rate works awesome on have bad results for interval training. It simply does not respond quickly enough to be useful. The 735 and 935 DO NOT use the same OHRM. If you are going to spend $500 on a 735xt, you might as well spend the extra $50 and get the 935. I would honestly not even consider the 735. The 235 is a running only watch and the hardware is considerably slower with much less features than the 920, 735, or 935. It is also MORE expensive than a 920xt. The 920xt is an older design and not likely to get any more updates but that is also due to it being a mature product and software that doesn't NEED any more updates. Basically if you need to do all the Swim/Bike/Run things you should look no further than a 920 or 935. Then it comes down to how much money you want to spend and aesthetics. If budget is the most important thing, buy the 920xt tri-bundle. If you want faster, better looking, and all the newest features(mostly just training load and outdoor functions) and are willing to pay twice as much for those things, get the 935.
1. OHR is still far from perfect. For me usable enough, but for others useless... I hate chest-straps to an extreme extend so am willing to live with the sub-ideal performance, but again overall it works pretty well for me. I only run though, and mainly for fun.
2. Owned the 735XT before this one, the 935 is smoother in operation and more future proof. A second hand 735xt might be an option for you though in case budget is an issue but connect-iq apps might stop working on it due to support stopping and all.
3. The quickfit system is great, wearing the leather band as day to day band and switching to sillicon bands when running (or during the summer with the happy colours ;) ). Original bands are overpriced though. The watchfases with 1hz updates (simply put, one can use watches with a seconds-hand at hardly any battery impact) are nice as well as the possibility to switch watchfaces
4. Battery time is pretty great, for me I average about 2 weeks with 3 runs (say 45-60 mins each) a week.
5. I underestimated the wifi-syncing benefits, again I basically put it on the pc (for charging) once every 2 weeks and other then that syncing all goes automatically over wifi as soon as I get in the room. (Sure, works with bluetooth as well but I always found bluetooth syncing slow and tedious)
6. Fairly active in sw and fw updates but I always have a feeling that weird bugs can be introduced during these, have the feeling the dev process could be more solid/stable
7. GPS good enough, quick lock and pretty accurate overall (originally bought a Fenix5 which had many issues in this department)
8. Looks are sobre, I was initially annoyed by the black empty ring around the display, but used to it now (and less noticable with a black watchface). Still, could have been done in a nicer way.
Anyway, hard to say. I am still very happy with it and it's a great watch, think one of the best you can get at the moment but it does cost a pretty penny and it's hard to say if it will have the 4-year lifespan you're looking for.
Thanks. How is the HRM-Run chest strap? compared to older straps? I have had such issues with the older straps and monitors that I switched to polar strap and garmin hrm monitor. Sorry for all the questions. I am a leisure runner, run up to 30 miles a week but I do run interval workouts regularly. Just need a solid investment watch. Tired of the flippin chest strap issues but would use if necessary. Also what about indoor workouts? i.e. treadmill, elliptical etc. Are there issues with the optical hrm indoors? do I still need to wear a foot pod for the treadmill pace? I will probably buy the 935 but it helps to know a bit more about what I am spending 500 on.
All oHRM's can be hit or miss. It doesn't matter the make or manufacturer. The more movement during an activity the chances are higher you'll get inaccurate results. I wear a chest strap for those types of activities. That being said, I own a FR 235 (same sensor as the 735) and I just replaced my VA3 for a 935. The difference in the oHRM is like night and day, but still not perfect. It works great for walking, hikes and everyday HR reading. Comparing the specs on Garmin's website it looks as if the new FR 645 will be more like the VA3 than the 935. I don't have any experience with the other devices, but between the 235, 735 and 935 the 935 is much better in all aspects.
I forgot to add that I'm using an older Garmin soft strap with my 935 and it works fine. I do plan on purchasing a HRM-Tri soon.
