Next Generation Forerunner

Today, Garmin official unveiled the next generation Forerunner at the Consumer Electronics Show. Images and chatter of the new sleek design have been on the message boards for more than a month. The word was out when CES blessed it as an honoree for their 2006 Innovation Award.

Now that we are part of the Garmin machine it goes without saying and we’d be crazy not to, but we might as well make it official and spell it out, MotionBased will support the Forerunner 205 & 305. Garmin says units will be available in February, MB support will immediately follow.

We got our first prototypes a few weeks ago, and have been testing in earnest since. Our initial impressions are strong. While most will be struck by the new body style, it’s what’s under the hood that impresses us. After all, it’s all about the data. Right? Like the Edge, Forerunner 205 & 305 have SiRFstarIIITM architecture. That means dramatically improved GPS reception. We’ve subjected our prototypes to GPS torture – Muir Woods tree cover, Skeggs Point canyons, and downtown skyscrapers – and they’ve performed like a champs. We were blown away to see our route up-and-down the isles of our local Best Buy. Check out this run though Muir Woods - the tallest trees on earth

We’ve also been pleased with the heart rate monitor, improved accuracy and softer material than its predecessor. Both the Edge and Forerunner 305’s use the new HRM. The course feature is also new to the Forerunner, (read more about couses - Edge post). Courses enable users to download activities form the MotionBased TrailNetwork or your personal Digest for real time Dot Racing on the device. That’s right, you can race yourself or challenge your friends. Don’t forget, safety first. We don’t need anyone getting hurt our there…

Do yourself a favor, step into the next generation of GPS.

Comments

[Rick Shearer]

I ordered FR 305 on Amazon and it said delivery would be late March even when I chose 1-day shipping.

[zsmith]

wow, how can it be late march if it says they'll have it Feb. 13?
Offroute.com appears as though they have them in stock (changed from shipping "late janurary to Usually ships within 1 business day) with free next day air but when I emailed them yesterday to confirm they said,

"No. Due in any day. None are in stock at this moment"

[Robert Griffith]

I have order the Forerunner 305 off of www.tigerGPS.com and they show a release date now of 20 Feb. But when I emailed them the other day about my order I was told they would be shipping them out end of this week. I also have an email from Gramin telling me they have shipped the 205 and 305 to the suppliers.

[Zach Smith]

well I guess I'll place an order soon.

but I have an accurcary question. I was dissapointed in the recption I got from my 201 today. It was along a road with trees and sometimes more in a valley, but I even got a bad map on an area where I should've gotten better recption.

First, how much do you think the auctual distance is off by
Second, how much difference will the 205 have over the 201. is it's new GPS that much better?
Third, how fast should it take for the 205 to lock onto a signal. It seemed like it took me about 2 minutes today

Here's my run:
http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/invitation/accept.mb?senderPk.pkValue=18123&unitSystemPkValue=2&episodePk.pkValue=436658
i was running along the streets...

[Robert Griffith]

Zach, I have heard that the 205/305 will be within 10 meters accuracy. Second, the new chip I have been told is like day and night but since I have not received it yet I dont' really know, but the few articles I have found about the chip are all postives. Also the same for the singal it says in the manual that for the first time it will take a few minutes to lock on but only seconds after that.

[Zach Smith]

Does anyone have an accurate date on when online stores will have them? I've heard both that Garmin has started shipping them to suppliers, and that they have not. I would really like to have this for the next half marathon I'm doing (Austin Freescale), and I would need before I leave on Feb. 16th. Any ideas if I could get it by then?

the two online stores I've tried are
www.offroute.com
www.tigergps.com

[Kathy]

I am a beginning runner. I want to track distance, pace and heart rate. The "original" forerunner is too large for me to carry on my wrist (although it would be a good work-out!). Is there a GPS type system that does just these simple features, that can be accessed on your wrist while exercising. I have the Nike "tailwind", but it is on my shoe so I can only get information after my run...
Thanks for any help !

Forerunner 305's were posted on e-bay today....

[Clark Weber]

Kathy,

I think you'll find the Forerunner 305 to fit better on your wrist. I'd visit a retail store that will carry the Forerunner 305 to try it on for size. They should be out in most stores in March.

[zsmith]

Kathy,
I really don't find the 201 to be that big. I have small wrists so it covers a fair portion of my wrist, but it's light enough that I don't notice it.

[zsmith]

also note that the Forerunners on ebay ARE preorders, so it will still be the same timeframe.

[Robert Griffith]

Kathy,
The Forerunner 305 would be a nice GPS if you want to track location, distance, speed, heart rate, and plus quite other nice features. You can go to www.garmin.com and download the manual. But it has the price tag to match. If you want a small watch type to wear that only monitors heart rate you can get them for under 100.

[Mike Hitch]

Hi - I have been a loyal user of the Forerunner for about a year and a half - now have the 301 but do not use the HRM much. So, I am looking at the 205 to upgrade I really like the look and ergonomic factors AND the better reception. However, the latter comes at a cost of lower battery life - 10 hrs for the 205/305 vs. 14 hours I am seeing now on my 301. For me, a runner only, this is not a biggie as I would gladly trade-off the decrease in battery vs. increased reception - my longest runs are marathon or marathon preps that last about 4 hours. Thanks to Garmin for keeping the innovation going.....
Mike

[Peter Cochran]

I've been a loyal FR 301 user since it was released a year ago. I became an even bigger fan when I could buy the accessory pack to make transitions between bike and run easier during tri training. Can the 305 clip-on to my bike like the 301 with a quick-release bracket pack? Also, does MB have any plans to extend the web service to non-GPS activities? I'd love to input my pool workouts when I can't do an open water swim with my 301. Is this possible?

[Clark Weber]

Peter,

The Forerunner 305 was not designed to mount on a handlebar. If you mount it on a handlebar, the GPS antenna will point towards the ground. We haven't tested this to see if you'll get completely shut down, but I doubt it will work well. We have not heard of an adapter from Garmin that would alleviate this problem.

We have plans to support non-GPS activities -- a top priority in the 2006 product roadmap.

[milkywaye]

woah.... hang on there clark.. that is bad news for triathletes! (and cyclists who would prefer the forerunner to the edge)

can you test that out asap on your test model? (having said that my unit it on pre-order at amazon.. so have already bought it!!)

even if i wear the watch on my wrist it will often be at same angle as if on the handlebars.. furthermore i run with my wrist at a 45deg angle and so the gps antenna will partially be pointing towards my body.. are you suggesting that my reception will be compromised?

(luckily most biking is done on the aerobars which mean the antenna is pointing directly up).

--\\

i am also interested in the non-GPS support!.. are you also thinking of including Polar support?.. nearly all of my other sport activites involve using my Polar 720i

this all goes down the path of a full training log (which as MB devotee i am very happy about!).. but to make the most of this the myactivites tab really needs a day/month/year type view in addition to the map and table views

[zsmith]

milkywaye,
which forerunner did you order and do you have an expected shipping date from amazon? i'm trying to decide where to order my 205 from.

[Mark]

I just got the new Edge after using the 301 for over a year now. I love the new computer, elevation gain is much more accurate through the unit then with Motion Based, and I love having all the different screens at once. Even when I use the correction MB is still overly generous with elevation gain.
My only problem was that when I loaded the new training center software, I lost all my old data. I had 90% in MB so not a total loss. But very frustrating.

[Connie]

I'm interested in getting the Forerunner 305. Is the cadence sensor on the Edge 305 compatible with the Forerunner 305?

[Clark Weber]

Connie,

The cadence sensor on the Edge 305 is compatible with the Forerunner 305.

[Milwaukee]

Can you provide an update on the release date for the forerunner 305...I heard Feb 13 initially, but now I'm hearing Feb 20...

[Clark Weber]

Milwaukee,

I would not expect to see any new Forerunners until late February or early March -- and if they arrive early -- hooray!!!

[zsmith]

I ordered my 205 this past Sunday from HDO Sport. It was supposed to ship friday, but has now been moved to Tuesday. I don't know what the 305 shipping times are though.

[Dan]

Does the Edge 305 allow the user to see lat/long info on the display? Can it be "tricked" into presenting this info on the display (e.g. by showing the lat/long for a waypoint)?

[Clark Weber]

Dan,

This has been a highly requested feature. We've notified Garmin to make a firmware upgrade to give users the option to display lan/long info -- either as a constant field or when you mark a waypoint.

Can't make a promise that it will get fulfilled, but I can promise that they have been told.