Garmin 010-02156-05 Forerunner 45, 42mm Easy-to-use GPS Running Watch with Coach Free Training Plan Support, Black

My usual fitness activities have been curtailed by the pandemic, so I started running again. I wanted a device with GPS tracking so I could figure out how far I was running and at what pace. The Forerunner 45 does everything I need, some things that are informative that I didn't know I wanted, and a whole bunch of stuff I don't actually care about. The watch does a great job of tracking distance and time. It continuously records heart rate and steps, so you can see how your pace and run cadence (steps per minute) change over the course of the run. The data is transferred to a mobile device over Bluetooth and then uploaded to the cloud, so you can sit at your computer afterward and see an interactive map of the route you took. This allows you to see if you're speeding up or slowing down at different points. (You can see stats like current pace and heart rate on the watch itself while you're running, but I prefer the after-action report approach.) Most of the data is more interesting than useful, but the important parts seem pretty solid. The watch itself is easy to use. Unlike most mobile devices, it's actually easier to read in bright sunlight. There's about a billion different things you can configure, but if you don't care about those things you can just ignore them. The Bluetooth connectivity works well with my low-end Motorola phone, often sending me notifications even when I'm upstairs and the phone is downstairs. (It's got a lot of "smart watch" features, showing incoming e-mail, text messages, etc.) The watch is waterproof, but the manual recommends rinsing it off if after a workout to prevent corrosion. The Garmin Connect software has all sorts of coaching and social media blah blah whatever. If you want to share or compete you can do so. You can specify the type of exercise you're doing, so I started tracking dog walks as well. Overall, after using it for a week, it seems to be a pretty good piece of gear.

This watch is perfect for my needs. I run but not marathons. I lift but I'm not a bodybuilder. There are options to track almost any kind of workout you can think of. It tracks steps and sleep and pulse automatically. The GPS is accurate and consistent. This is a great watch for people who take care of themselves but aren't fanatics about it andb especially if they like to charge things up. The watch can do much more than what I have listed below, but here's what stands out to me: Pros: -built IN HR monitor -workout mode: choose from run, treadmill, bike, walk, cardio, or add your own activity -the app allows you to add workouts you didn't track on the watch, e.g., yoga, etc. -Not too big, not too small -choose from different watch faces -choose which widgets the watch displays and in what order (weather, smart notifications, steps, etc.) -smart notifications from your phone (if you're into that) -you can calibrate it if you're using a treadmill (for example, you run 5 miles on the treadmill, but the watch estimates 3.8. Before you save the workout, you can adjust the distance to match the treadmill display. If you forget to do it before you save it on the watch, you can do it later in the app, though the data will not adjust and you'll end up with the correct distance but a big black spot at the end). This is a manual adjustment - you don't need any special Bluetooth enabled treadmill or anything like that. Cons: -face has somewhat small print, certain displays can be hard to read -body battery is inconsistent. It's just a made up thing anyway so not a big deal but doesn't seem to make sense. A good night of sleep should "charge your battery" but often the nights I feel most rested it tells me that my battery is very low. -watch battery doesn't seem to have a warning. I occasionally forget to charge it and don't remember until it's completely dead and the watch is off. Would be nice to get a low battery warning.

I have used tracking devices since 2008. Three garmins, 2 fibits and withings and xiaomi and amazfit. This one is still in the lead. It has the most accurate built in readiness score, the best stress measure with heart rate variability, and Vo2 max. It does everything. And the app is completely free and chock full of information. One the neatest features is having a place to track the shoes you are wearing and the miles you have in them. Because changing out your shoes protects you from pronating, heavy heel strike, and developing postural distortions and back pain. I keep a Fitbit premium membership for the meditations and coached workouts. Garmin app communicates with Fitbit transferring data using google health app. Touch screens are overrated. Buttons are fantastic. And this garmin also has fall protection and detection and will call for help if you are in a car wreck or fall down a mountainside. While you are unconscious your watch will call for help with your location. Trackers almost equivalent to this are Pixel 2 and Fitbit sensor 2.

When I tried to setup the watch, it didn't behave according to the instruction manual or online videos. The buttons are also non-intuitive to a new Garmin user like me. It took quite extensive fiddling around on my own before I could get the watch to tell time and connect to GPS. While the watch is now functional, the design of the product and the instruction manual/ online videos can definitely be improved.

Firstly, Amazon Prime is great. This watch came in good time as a Father's Day from my sons to me. As for the product, it is great. Maybe I am a Garmin watch user all this while so I am quite used to the menu and the buttons. The GPS tracking is great. It can track within 10 seconds compared to the Forerunner 220 which can take several minutes. And this watch has the heart rate monitoring and steps counter. All in one. The clock faces also gave us a variety of choices to choose from. The bad thing is that the there are only two data fields for the custom data screen. Should provide 3.

I’ve waited for five months before writing a review on the Garmin Forerunner 45. I wanted to be sure of my views and that confidence could only emerge with repeated usage over time. Hence, after about more or less 500kms of running in the past five months, I am confident of my review accuracy. So I wanted a fitness watch, solely to monitor my runs, walks and physical activity. It took me some time but I homed on to the Forerunner 45 considering both my budget and specific purpose. The Forerunner 45 is not a smart watch with versatility and functions of the Apple Watch but it performs some useful smart functions of alerting you once a call or message is received. Leave that aside as my purpose was not a full-scale smart watch but a physical fitness smart watch. And I could not have been happier. The Forerunner 45 is beautifully crafted and ergonomically designed. I have a thin wrist and the watch size was perfect for me. I find it fits snugly and the watch band has excellent grip and sturdy latching mechanism. It is very accurate. I matched the iPhone measurements and based on my previous measured runs I found the watch to be consistent and correct in measurements. Plus, it’s a Garmin product, they produce GPS receivers that are fitted on aircraft and ships the world over. So accuracy is assured. Battery life is very good, I need to charge it every third day or preferably the second day, and the charging takes little time. I think about 30 minutes or so to full charge from half charge status. In all probability, if you don’t use the GPS, the battery life will be a week. The point is battery life is very good and charges fast. The push buttons for accessing the menu are intuitive and I never felt the need for a touch screen functionality. When your fingers are sweaty and you are doused in sweat, you need hard interfaces and the push buttons are ideal. At least I feel so. The menu navigation takes a little time to get used to but it’s not a worry at all. Be a little patient in the initial stages to learn the settings. There is some complexity in settings such as alerts every km or units or targets etc. I wonder how much of these can one gainfully use, but there are a number of user settings that can be done. I like the feature that when it’s dark and you are exercising, the dial lights up when the wrist is turned to your face for you to see the exercise status, and then switches off on its own. That saves battery too. Good engineering. Yes, you may have read that the GPS lock on takes some time and I too have noted that occasionally. But off late, after upgrading the software, I have not noticed any delay in locking on to the GPS. It takes less than a minute but I have had occasions that the lock on has taken up to 15 minutes. In a way, a few minutes to achieve lock on is good as I warm up and stretch during that time. So if it takes a little while, I am fine with it. But please ensure that you upgrade the software upon release of a new version. This should happen automatically on syncing the watch with the Garmin App on the phone. The mobile app is well designed and syncs well with the watch. The details of your walk, run, duration of exercises, VO2, calories, sleep activity are all updated and aggregated. For instance, it’s a good feeling to see the amount you’ve walked or run in a week or a month or a full year. And you do get motivated to exercise more if the data shows a declining trend. Your best effort is also highlighted from time to time. In all, the Garmin app is neat, well designed and presents the data in great detail. For example, you can access additional details of your run, your heart rate, body battery and also stress level. You can compare yourself with the rest of the population that is using Garmin app. Frankly, I have not accessed in great detail the data measured by the Watch, its quite a lot. But the watch is very sensitive. I was once running and a wire from a tree was hanging loose, I ran into it unknowingly and it stabbed me on my cheek bone...I stopped dead on my track and the watch started to vibrate wildly exclaiming a sudden stop and then went on to dial the emergency number. I was amazed. This could have actually been an emergency if the wire has impacted my eye. Hence, the watch is very sensitive to alert any fall or sudden stop. I can vouch for that. So for QUALITY, BUILD, ACCURACY, APP SUPPORT and BATTERY...the Forerunner 45 is a great fitness watch.

I purchased this watch to replace a Garmin Forerunner 35 that I had for years as it was on it's last legs. I found this watch to be easy to add to the Gamin Connect app so I could seamlessly keep using that for my workouts and other data. I especially like the GPS feature so I can just go for a run anywhere I want and I know how far I have gone. This eliminates the need to carry my phone or repeatedly run the same pre measured routes. This Forerunner 45 is about the least expensive sports watch I could find that had the built in GPS. I find the distance tracking to be quite accurate based on using it on known routes that had distance measured previously. The battery life is excellent and it can go for a number of days without recharging. However, one of the minor issues I have with this watch over the 35 is that I have to take it off to charge it as the charger plugs into the back. With the 35, the charger kind of clipped on the side so I could continue wearing it while charging. I typically charged it when working by simply plugging it into my laptop. The Forerunner 45 was also easy to pair with my phone and gives me notifications for emails, texts, incoming calls, etc. However, I do find the display on this watch a bit harder to read than the 35. There is more info to see and the text is smaller on this watch. But, I am on the older side, so any younger users with better eyesight may not have any issues with this. Overall, this is an excellent, basic, fitness and smart watch. And with the built in GPS at this price level, it can't be beat.

Great cheap Garmin - white strap is great, makes it look smarter and doesn’t get dirty. Easy to use with good battery life