UKC

I'm tempted to get a GPS watch to use both running and on the road bike. I know these things are OK for speed, distance etc but do they have any means of telling me where I am (grid reference or such - not looking at high end ones with maps)so its useful for walking as well ?

In reply to GrahamD:
Fairly sure my Garmin 910XT (so fairly high end) can do it although I've never used it. You can download the manual from the garmin site so you should be able to find out

In reply to Southampton Tom:
Yes Garmin 910XT does give you current grid ref, as does the 610 and I think the 310

In reply to steelbru:
I should add that you can't see the grid ref changing as you walk with the 910, you effectively have to say you want to store a waypoint and it will show you the waypoint info on the screen, if you move a bit then you need to cancel back out and repeat that you want to save a waypoint. Sa a wee bit of a pfaff, but ok for occasional use.

The 610 is a lot easier, you just go to the Where Am I screen and the grid ref changes as you move about.

Not sure how the 310 works

In reply to steelbru:

And the 405 cx

In reply to steelbru:

The 310 works as you just described for the 910. I only ever use it to locate myself on a map if I have become totally disorientated (e.g., in a white out), and then work off the map from there so it works fine for me for emergency-only use.

I also enjoy having the GPS traces to show where I have been

In reply to steelbru: you can see the grid ref change, when you're on map view Press enter and it'll bring up a grid ref box at the bottom.

In reply to all:


Thats the only reason I'd want the location facility.

Most times I just want it for speed/distance for running and bike so the 310 looks to be about the lowest cost device with the facility (as far as I can tell!)

In reply to Dom Brown:
Are you sure that works on the 910 Dom and not just the 310 ?

Someone told me this before in a similar discussion and I tried it and couldn't get it to work on the 910 and there is no mention of it in the 910 manual.

Just checked again - if you press Enter on the map screen nothing happens

In reply to steelbru:
Ignore - found it

In reply to GrahamD:
I've got a Suunto Ambit... It's fantastic. I use it for running and cycling with a Heart rate monitor. I also use it to get stats for days on the hill. It gives awesome graphs and is incredibly accurate. I wouldn't use it for general hill walking navigation unless I had to, but nice to know it's there. It is good for navigating trails on runs, as you can create and imput routes, and it gives you a basic onscreen map. Tbh, it's probably a bit too high spec for what I actually need, but it was my 21st birthday and its a brilliant piece of kit none the less.

In reply to GrahamD:

Suunto Ambit is the one for walking/climbing/running etc

Garmin 910XT is for triathletes - running/swimming/riding

Check http://www.dcrainmaker.com/ for amazingly detailed reviews of both. Both will give you UK Grid refs.

In reply to balmybaldwin:

Really? How do you get that? (Not saying you can't do it, but I've never found it?)

In reply to steelbru: that's odd, may be a firmware thing because I've just done it on mine and it's OK

In reply to steelbru: cool

In reply to all:

Thanks all,

its a bit of a jungle trying to guess what 'category' I need to look in ! seems that to get basic position as well as speed/distance I need to get a lot of other features as well. the Garmin 310XT is looking the best value for money at the moment and I quite like the simple handlebar mount they do...

In reply to GrahamD:
Would have suggested you look at the Garmin Fenix but as its still newish the prices are well above that of the 310XT. Am wondering if the inclusion ABc would be of use. GPS height is notoriously inaccurate.

In reply to balmybaldwin:
405 series shudders!

In reply to Indy: i've got a fenix and an ambit (long story why i've got both...) and am currently using the ambit most of the time. However the fenix is, i reckon, the better nav watch and has a few extra features. The ambit is a better runners watch for occasional nav use - and i like the look of it better so tend to wear it every day.

In reply to andy:

The Ambit does look nice but I'm struggling justifying spending almost half the price of my bike on a watch !