Garmin Forerunner 405CX GPS Sport Watch with Heart Rate Monitor (Blue)
by Garmin
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Garmin Forerunner 405CX GPS Sport Watch with Heart Rate Monitor (Blue)
Customer Review: Bought after the negative reviews
Summary: 5 Stars
I had serious doubts about buying this watch based on all of the poor reviews and I'm so glad I didn't listen. I honestly can't figure out what all the complaining is about regarding the touch bezel. I sweat a good amount and live in a warm climate - most of my runs with this watch have been in 75+ degree weather with 80%+ humidity. I usually soak through my clothes within minutes and I've never had a problem getting the bezel to work. Today was my ultimate test and I ran in a heavy drizzle/light rain. It took a little longer than normal (about 5-10 minutes) to get satellites due to the very heavy cloud cover, but once I had them I never lost the signal. The touch bezel still worked fine with rain on the face of the watch. It also didn't interpret the rain as a "touch" as some of the previous reviews stated. I'm a quite small person (5'2", around 110lbs with a small frame) and this fits me great with the included velcro strap.
I use the Garmin connect system with no problems from a Mac and usually only have to charge the watch every 5 days or so (I run about an hour per day with longer runs on the weekend). I consider this very satisfactory for my needs. To the reviewer that said a 9+ hour charge wasn't satisfactory for his long runs, I assume this is only a concern for ultra-marathoners.
Update 10/17/2010: I just wanted to add a note for Mac users. I did encounter a problem with the upload software that seems to be annoying. I purchased a new MacBook Pro this week that is running Mac OS X v. 10.6.4. Apparently to upload using this OS you have to reboot your machine in 32 bit mode. Annoying because you would essentially need to reboot twice (once to get into 32, then once to get back into 64). This isn't an issue for me since I still have my old computer that I use, but a bit frustrating otherwise. They are apparently looking for a solution, but it seems that this has been going on quite a while.
Customer Review: The touch bezel, not such a great idea
Summary: 2 Stars
I replaced a 305 that served me reliably for four years, then mysteriously just quit. At the time I considered simply buying a replacement 305, but I figured Garmin must have something much better out by now, so I bought a 405CX. The good news is the 405CX is no where near as clunky looking as the 305, it picks up the GPS satellites much quicker, the battery lasts a whole lot longer, and the chest strap seems to fit a little more comfortably although it looks the same as the old one. I don't use the virtual partner or pace functions and I don't upload my workouts so I don't have an opinion on them. The touch bezel and the way the menus are organized is why I only gave the 405CX two stars. The bezel is really frustrating, if its cool and your body isn't sweaty it seems to work okay. When it's raining or you're sweaty, however, the thing seems to have a mind of its own. It switches screens when you don't want it to and it won't switch when you do. I have to stop wipe it and my hands and arms off in order to get it back under control. You don't even need to touch it with your fingers, if it brushes against your body or sweaty shirt, off it goes. You can lock the bezel so it doesn't change, but then you don't get access to all the information you've selected. The labels aren't very intuitive either so you'd better plan on spending a lot of quality time with the online instruction manual. You also need to pay attention when you attach the charger, unlike the 305 that had a charging cradle, the 405CX employs a clip like device that has a couple of contacts you must make sure fit into to two indentations on the watch back. Nothing more frustrating than to strap on the watch and discover the battery is dead because you didn't get the charging clip firmly on the contacts. Like all Garmin devices it is well made and the GPS functions well, as does the heart monitor, but that touch bezel is too gimmicky for me.Customer Review: Runners Watch ruined by "Touch Bezel"
Summary: 1 Stars
Most of the other reviewers have done a wonderful job listing the pro's of this watch.
I agree with nearly every positive aspect of the positive reviews.
There is just one problem - they really do not expose the one tremendous negative of the watch - the "touch bezel".
Touch bezel is a misnomer. It would be much more accurate to call it the touchless bezel. Literally. If you sweat heavily when you run (I sweat approximately 1 lb per mile), this watch will lock up and become totally useless on EVERY long run. It doesn't require contact with anything other than your sweat. Some other reviewers have remarked that you can "just wipe off the sweat" and it will be good to go. Not true if it has been exposed to a significant amount of sweat. It requires 30-60 seconds of drying with an absorbent media (towel, paper, dry shirt) to regain functionality. The only option is to lock out the bezel no later than mile 2 of the run and keep it locked out until you have thoroughly dried it. Once the watch is soaked, unlocking the bezel, even for a couple of seconds, will start rapid, random actuation of the menu functions. At that point, the best alternative is to immediately re-lock the bezel and live with whatever random screen the watch is showing.
Unfortunately, I did not purchase this watch from Amazon. All though RR Sports had a great deal on the watch, I had kept the watch too long by the time my routine distances were long enough to lock it up on every run.
If you never plan to run more than 2 miles at a time and sweat like I do, this watch is a great purchase. By the time I reach 3 miles into a summer run, an unlocked bezel is at least 50% likely to lock the watch up. 4 Miles is at least a 90% lockup probability. I've never had it last 5 miles.
Needless to say, it was almost useless when I ran the 2010 Detroit FREEP 1/2 marathon!!
Customer Review: A very good COMPACT all in one unit
Summary: 4 Stars
I have been using the 405CX for a couple of weeks now and connecting it to my new iMac 27 running Snow Leopard. I'll break this down into 2 sections:
The Watch
I got rid of the plastic strap and use the velcro one instead. I love this strap, very comfy, good for different wrist sizes. The GPS locates very quickly and judging by the google map uploads it tracks extremely accurately, even down to 5 meters in some cases. It found my ANT+ heart rate monitor straight away and works very well. The customization for the scrolling multi pages is great. It's also a nice feature that it beeps AND lights up when you finish/intermediate distance. The pace monitor means you know how fast you're running each kilometer/mile. My wife has the more advanced triathlon watch but for me, the 405cx works perfectly for running and cycling.
The Software
I've read loads of OLD reviews about how flaky the upload software was particularly with a Mac. I can report that as of now, Feb 2010, I have not had any of these issues. The ANT+ stick is permanently in my imac and picks up the watch every time. The upload AND download to/from the ANT agent is perfect. The training center software is OK but nothing special. I don't bother with it anymore. I skip straight to the online Garmin Connect website which is awesome. The Google maps and google earth feature is fantastic. And I love the splits and playback function. The latest drivers fix all the connectivity problems with the mac.
Overall, a great device considering it looks like a normal watch and therefore does not make the owner look like a dork. The fact that it contains a GPS with playback course setting is also amazing. It's a very good product.
And for all the reviews before 2010, I would ignore anything about reliability as it's all been fixed now.
Customer Review: A mostly great device
Summary: 4 Stars
The Forerunner 405cx is my first Forerunner, and overall I'm thrilled to have it. I wanted it primarily for distance and pace measurement, and only after 9 months of owning it am I beginning to use it for other things.
I like all of the basic things -- time it takes to establish connection to the satellite; readability of the screen; the myriad things I can measure mid-run. On a day-to-day basis, this watch works great for me. I would recommend it to anyone who's a serious runner. I was nervous that having it would turn me into a neurotic (I hate pacing myself), but in fact I've learned that I run farther and faster than I would have previously guessed. Good to know!
My only real complaints thus far have to do with size. I'm a slender lady, and the watch is too big for my wrist. This is the updated version of the original 405, so it comes with two adjustable wristbands which are intended to fit under the watch and help it, in cases like mine, to be snug, but in reality they are a pain to adjust (you have to make sure the plastic loop is set *just so* underneath the watch or it digs into your wrist) and are also an extra irritating step. I understand that if Garmin had made the molded face any smaller, it wouldn't fit the average wrist, but surely there was another way.
My bigger complaint, though, is with the sizing of the heart monitor, which at its smallest is still a little loose on me. While I recognize I'm at the small end of the spectrum, size-wise, I'm not a waif. It doesn't seem like it would have been that difficult to make the thing adjust just a few inches smaller. Now, I have to shove the monitor under my sports bra and then hope it stays under there; it's not very comfortable and so I don't use it much. I'm glad I didn't pay an extra fee for the HRM or I would have been much more disappointed.