There was an excellent thread here a few weeks ago about the watch. Someone listed a site where the watch was selling for about $170....
Would someone mind repeating what it was if you know it, or of letting me know if you know of a better deal. Also, anyone have any more experiences to share with me before I think about going ahead and buying one of these.
Thanks!
Click on the Road Runner Sports ad on this website for 15% off. Then buy the watch there, it will probably be about $190 or so. I'm not sure where to get it for $170.
The watch works great for me. I use it in the stopwatch mode, where you can see elapsed time plus one other thing, like pace, distance, etc. I don't like the monitor mode. In monitor mode, you can see pace and distance simultaneously, but it is a pain to stop and start. So if you stop to stretch it can get messed up.
I normally use average pace, or distance. The current pace jumps around too much if you wear the gps on your arm (due to the back and forth arm motion). I guess current pace would be more accurate if the gps is on your shorts with the belt clip, but I don't like to have any weight there.
Chad,
Does it weigh very much?
The link below is selling the 100 lapper for $179. Here are my thoughts on the product. I've had mine since June.
1. Pretty accurate. GPS technology is sound.
2. The GPS thing goes on your upper arm and although it's not heavy, you look like one of those jogger types with a MP3 or CD player on their arm.
3. The pace function has a few seconds delay... so the pace it shows is the pace you were running about 5 seconds earlier. A little confusing when you're doing pick-ups and you look down and it reads 7:05/mi when you've already picked up the pace.
4. In very cloudy/rainy conditions you can lose the GPS signal. I've only lost it for a few seconds and then picked it up again. For measurement purposes, the Timex thing assumes you run in a straight line (shortest possible distance) during the time that you've lost the signal.
5. I've also read that you can lose the signal if the GPS thing doesn't have a clear view of the sky. I've run in some pretty wooded areas without a problem, though.
6. Replace the battery when you get the low battery warning... you've only got about 30 minutes left once that happens. It seems you need to replace the battery every 10 hours or so.
7. I can't figure out how to store the data from each run. In my regular Timex Ironman watch I can store lots of runs. I cannot determine if the Timex Speed+Distance has this capability. So I have to clear the data from my last run before I start my next run. It doesn't have a hook-up to a PC or anything to download the data, either. You've got to write it down, or it's gone.
8. Overall, it is very consistent (only off by a couple of hundreths or so). You can switch between metric and English readings.
9. If you want to use it to measure off a mile or something for intervals, you should run for a couple of miles first, then measure your interval. It seems that it takes a couple of minutes to get a good signal.
Good Luck with your decision. I like mine, and use it to measure new courses.
See link...
Here is a cheaper link.
No, it is not heavy. Never notice it on my arm.
I had a bad experience with one that I owned for about a week before deciding to send it back. I do most of my training in a wooded park and I would always lose the signal for minutes at a time, and thus I would never get an accurate reading. Others who have posted seem to be satasfied with it though.
For what it's worth, I think the Nike model is better, although it is more expensive. The cheapest I found it was for $199. Also, it doesn't go on your arm, instead the sensor is placed on your shoe.
I live in England but am visiting US soon do plan toget one I have found them at www.alsgifts.com for $150.00 I think also there is free shipping. I also read a thread on Runners world which said people liked there system and the sakme place sold it to them