I was thinking of getting the Garmin Edge 605 or 705.
I won’t use the heart rate monitor, as I have a Polar that I use and when doing bricks or in a race, I can’t take the Garmin with me on the run and I don’t want to change chest straps in T2.
I keep moving cities (am in a new one again as I type. This is my 3rd town in 4 years.), so the GPS would be really helpful, plus I could take it in the car with me.
Wanted to see if anybody is using these Garmins and what you thought of them?
I love the 705 for the color and all the data I can see/display. The GPS map display is sort of small to be real helpful though.
I was an early adopter on the 705 but mine was stolen late last fall in a car break-in and I’m on the fence about getting a new one, since I have a cell phone (iPhone 3G) which does GPS / Maps, with a bigger screen and better UI than the 705.
The 705 has a barometric altimeter but the 605 does not. The 705 will talk to Ant+Sport power meters, the 605 will not (based on what I have read).
Neither unit comes with anything but a low-resolution base map unless you buy the top-end bundle with everything. For the 705, this bundle includes the HRM, the speed / cadence sensor, and the map card. For the 605, just subtract the HRM. If all you care about is the maps then buy the base unit (the 705 can be found on ebay for< $400) and buy the map card separately - these can be had for < $100.
The screen on either is too small to be of much use in a car, I think.
Chris
Have used Garmin for some years, first 305 now 705 w/ power meter. Like them a lot, happy to sell them (my studio is a Garmin dealer), probably half the PM’s we sell leave with a 705 head unit. Agree with iPhone 3G GPS UI comment. Spent a weekend navigating San Francisco with it recently (on foot, not bike), would not consider carrying Garmin for around town with that phone in my pocket.
If you are regularly navigating new areas on the bike the 705 would be a cool solution, we rent them as upgrades to our bike rentals with BikeConcierge and several folks have really appreciated having them. Unfortunately creating & uploading routes is clunky at best if you don’t have the exact route available but for seeing where you are, and how to get back to where you started, they are handy.
Word is that the tri-focused Garmin device (wrist worn, ANT+ compatible) is on the way in the near future, we’ll see what really materializes, and when. Called the 310 XT I think. Hop outa the water, onto the bike & get power data on your wrist, pretty cool.
I have both the Forerunner 405 and the Edge 705 and love them both. I like the 405 because it gives me pace, distance, etc. which has been very helpful in my training. And the 705 is great because of its mapping, numerous data fields, and compatibility with Powertap. I suprisingly use the mapping a lot more than I thought I would. I like mapping out my course and downloading it to the 705. That way I can just ride and not worry about missing a turn since it will tell me when to turn. I try to mix up my training courses a lot so I don’t get bored.
Both units always find satellites quickly…about 5-10 seconds and I am yet to loose satellite reception while exercising.
I use a Garmin 705 on my bike. I found maps on Amazon for under $80. The maps and associated routing can be quite useful when you are in an unfamiliar area.
The 705 has ANT+ which allows it to display PowerTap information as well as heart rate. If you don’t do power or heart rate, there are several other GPS units that can mount on your bike and that don’t cost as much.
If the only reason you don’t plan to use the heart monitor is because you don’t want to change chest straps, note that the 705 can work with chest straps that aren’t Garmin. I’m not sure about the specific model Polar you have but don’t rule it out until you check it out.