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Garmin Fenix 5 or Suunto Spartan Sport

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 Dark-Cloud 04 Oct 2017
So i need to upgrade my ageing Garmin Forerunner 410 as the battery life isn't ideal, its still a good tool and gets around 6-8 hours on GPS but have started dabbling in longer events so want to track them, would also be used for altimeter emergency nav etc. in general hill use and races

I also cannot abide using a chest strap so am happy to swap that for a slightly less accurate OHR wrist measurement so i can program workouts and at rain to some sort of scientific level, which will make a change....

Has anybody had first hand experience of both devices ?

I am leaning toward the Garmin as i use an Edge 510 for cycling so everything would be logged in the same software etc. but it seems to have a load of stuff on there i won't need

I have read the usual reviews (DC Rainmaker ones for a start) and a load of others but am looking for real world experience

Cheers
 yorkshireman 04 Oct 2017
In reply to Dark-Cloud:

These kind of threads tend to just get people recommending what they've got. So in that spirit...

I've had the Fenix 5 since August. Before that I had the Fenix2 for about 3 years and the FR405 for about 4 years before that so I've only had experience of Garmin.

On your points:

Battery Life
I did the CCC with my Fenix 5 - I had it recording HR via wrist, on full GPS with 1 second sampling and I got to the over halfway point at Champex-Lac with 50% battery. There was a Garmin stand there so I took the opportunity to charge it up for 15 minutes and I finished the race after 22 hours with about 20% still left - so I reckon I might just have managed it if I'd not recharged but it was good to have the piece of mind.

I haven't tried UltraTrac in anger -it does GPS sampling less frequently and uses the gyroscope to fill in the gaps and increase accuracy. I tested it at home on a regular run loop of 8km and it managed to create an extra phantom KM. I haven't done it enough to know if its a regular issue.

The 5s and 5X don't have as good battery life.

Chest Strap
Like you, I thought saying goodbye to the chest strap would be great, and during races and especially ultras I don't use it. However, optical HR is nowhere near as accurate as chest straps and if you want to use a lot of the running metrics like VO2 Max, training load etc then you need to continue using a chest strap for some of your runs.

I think this is an inherent flaw in the technology as opposed to a particular problem with Garmin.

You mention however you want to train to HR, and there's a lot of theory now in coaching that its not the best idea since HR is really just a measurement of your body's reaction to the work being done, rather than an indication of the level of effort (for example like a cycling power meter) and therefore lots of different factors (fatigue, altitude, temperature etc) can give different HRs for the same level of effort. For that reason try looking up Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) and use that as a better methodology*

The optical HR works well for all-day activity tracking and managing data like your average resting HR throughout the week so you can see if you're getting fatigued and overtraining.

Overall
All in all I'm happy with it - it syncs automatically with the app after a run which loads everything straight to Garmin Connect and also Strava. The watch looks good and works well as an all-day device although I turned off the notifications as the novelty wore off. The UI is intuitive and it feels comfortable. I also like the quick release for the strap so I can use one strap for running and getting sweaty, and another for everyday use.

*obviously you're free to do what you like and apologies if I'm telling you what you already know
OP Dark-Cloud 04 Oct 2017
In reply to yorkshireman:

Cheers, yep, realise its going to be one of those threads !

Not reading much love for the Suunto kit at the minute as it seems they botched the first software release and are busy playing catch up, i did read the other thread on the Fenix, think you replied to that one too ?

Yep, understand all your points, i think that the chest strap could be solved with a base layer with the HRM belt built in, may be more comfortable and certainly worth a punt for £19.99

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/kiprun-hrm-t-shirt-id_8328859.html



 yorkshireman 04 Oct 2017
In reply to Dark-Cloud:

Interesting, I hadn't seen that (I'm trying to stop browsing round Decathlon too much my wife says I've got too much running stuff and she's probably right). I guess the problem with this is that you'd have to wash it every day or have several and it limits your other clothing choices.

What chest strap have you used in the past? I still use the rigid one (like this https://www.vente-du-diable.com/portal/ventes-privees/destock_sport_96587/p... as I found the soft one (apparently more premium, like this https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00B6KR8S0/ref=asc_df_B00B6KR8S046519214/?tag=goog... uncomfortable. I really don't find the rigid one a problem at all on runs of just a few hours.
Post edited at 14:04
OP Dark-Cloud 04 Oct 2017
In reply to yorkshireman:

Just used the normal Garmin one and a Polar one years ago, hate the bloody things with a passion.

We need somebody to invent an ANT+ body implant
 steelbru 04 Oct 2017
In reply to Dark-Cloud:

I haven't used either of these, so no experience...........

I currently use a Garmin 230 which is great ( especially since I added an app to show OS Grid Ref ), but I'd also like to have a barometric altimeter for hill days, plus Optical HR.
My investigations ( just concentrated on Garmin ) came up with the new Vivoactive 3, Forerunner 935 or Fenix 5.
I've immediately discounted the Vivoactive as it is touchscreen, and I'm leaning towards the 935 over the Fenix 5 due to cost, size and weight. I don't think there's anything on the F5 that's not on the 935 that I'd use.
I don't do triathlons so there's a ton of stuff on the 935 I'd never use, ideally I'd like a 235 with altimeter.
 Dave B 04 Oct 2017
In reply to Dark-Cloud:

I'm in a similar position to you.

I think that the suunto you would need would be the ultra, but this lacks ohr. If the Garmin is reliable, then I'd go for that. I love my suunto and would love to upgrade to ohr on. A good suunto device, but from what I've read ohr is just not ready for 90% of what I do and suunto is struggling to get things really reliable and feature laden.





OP Dark-Cloud 04 Oct 2017
In reply to steelbru:

Yeah i think the 935 is essentially an F5 in a smaller lighter case, and cheaper. I think i prefer the form factor of the F5 though, looks a bit more rugged, whether it is in practice i another matter.

Actually now you mention touch screen i *think* the Suunto Spartan is touchscreen which is a negative as far as i am concerned.
OP Dark-Cloud 04 Oct 2017
In reply to Dave B:

> I think that the suunto you would need would be the ultra, but this lacks ohr.

Is that because of battery life ? Looks to have the same functions as the sport ?

 Dave B 04 Oct 2017
In reply to Dark-Cloud:

Yes. Battery at max is too low IMHO. They reckon 12 hours max on the sport. Theoretically you can wear and charge. But I don't think that the magnetic charge cable attaches will work as well as the current clip charger on the ambits

OP Dark-Cloud 05 Oct 2017
In reply to Dark-Cloud:

Well not a conclusive thread but seems to be more love for the Fenix5 so I think I will go with that.....

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