I already have a garmin 210 so I don’t need the running ability of the 910.
Pros for 910:
Can measure swimming, not sure I care.
A single device to upload instead of 2.
Can gift 210 to SO
Pros of 510:
A little cheaper
Screen should be better on bike. Not sure how much? Anyone have thoughts?
I have both. If you don’t really care about the swimming metrics I would consider the 510 or even the 500. If you don’t find the bluetooth live tracking particularly intriguing, the 500 can be had for a steal these days. I definitely appreciate the larger screen of the 510 (vs the Forerunner) on rides. I might keep in mind that there’s a decent chance there will be a new forerunner in the spring. If I remember correctly the 910 will be two years old soon so there might be a refresh. It would pay to wait then even if you don’t want the newest one since 910 would drop in price.
I had a 210 and a 500 bought at different times, then upgraded to the 910 last year. I think about going back to a run only watch at times but LOVE the swim settings of the watch. It’s nice to be able to not have to count exact laps, see paces, and if you really want to geek out you can since it uploads each lengths time so you can analyze how you start/finish a set. I don’t do that very often but today I did a swim test so I will be checking to see where I made some “mistakes” with my pacing. I do not use the 910 for cycling though unless it’s a race and then I will use both devices.
I had a 305 for years and have used my 410 on my bike for a while and ultimately I found I preferred a dedicated cycling computer now. I just got a Timex 2.0, but I can’t give a review as I haven’t used it enough yet, but so far so good.
I could see the 910 being nice to have for swimming I suppose. Having an automatic lap timer in the pool would be nice… but not of that much value unless I could see it while swimming.
I have the 910xt and just purchased the 510 because on the bike the 910 just didnt work for me. The altimeter on the 510 is way better than the 910xt. I also like having the temp displayed actively. You can get more data on the screen as well. getting a sat fix is much faster on the 510 as well. I would rarely have issue with the auto pause on the 910 but as of yet no issues on the 510.
If you dont care about the swim metrics then I would def say strongly consider the 510 or the 500.
I definitely prefer the 510 on the bike. A bike computer is better than strapping on a watch to the watch-mount. I run a 510 on the bike, 310xt for running, and use a Garmin Swim for the pool. Pretty much the only time I swim open water is in races, and I’m pretty fast so I don’t care much about the swim metrics of a 910. I guess three devices could be seen by some as a “pain” but I find it much easier and more convenient 99% of the time.
I definitely prefer the 510 on the bike. A bike computer is better than strapping on a watch to the watch-mount. I run a 510 on the bike, 310xt for running, and use a Garmin Swim for the pool. Pretty much the only time I swim open water is in races, and I’m pretty fast so I don’t care much about the swim metrics of a 910. I guess three devices could be seen by some as a “pain” but I find it much easier and more convenient 99% of the time.
What he said.
What I like of the 510 over the 910 is the live tracking. It makes my wife feel better when I’m gone for hours and she can track me at any point.
What I like of the 510 over the 910 is the live tracking. It makes my wife feel better when I’m gone for hours and she can track me at any point.
I haven’t had much success with the live tracking.
Most of the time the Garmin Connect app on my iPhone crashes and the live tracking gets disconnected. But that might be just because I have over 3000 activities uploaded to Garmin Connect. I’ve also had issues with the battery on my iPhone dying quickly when the temperature is below 0 degrees Celsius.
I haven’t had much success with the live tracking.
Most of the time the Garmin Connect app on my iPhone crashes and the live tracking gets disconnected. But that might be just because I have over 3000 activities uploaded to Garmin Connect. I’ve also had issues with the battery on my iPhone dying quickly when the temperature is below 0 degrees Celsius.
They do need to work on the app, they should have an option to only sync back some # of activities. However it has improved since the first release, before it would download all the activities every time you opened the app before uploading a new ones.
I’ve also had issues with the battery on my iPhone dying quickly when the temperature is below 0 degrees Celsius.
My iPhone love to shut itself off in below freezing temps, especially if its in my jacket pocket. When I plug it in though it shows the battery percentage right where it left off.
iPhone issues aside, I love the 510. I also have a 910 for running, swimming and racing but on the bike I could never go back to the small screen of the 910.
I already had a 310, and it has served me well for triathlon since its launch. For Xmas I upgraded to the 910 for the added NP and TSS features as well as the swim stuff (dunno that I’ll use it a lot for that, but…). My plan is to wear it on my wrist through my training and races (all sports) giving me one device to upload, however for both form and function (screen space and options) I think I’m gonna go ahead and spring for a 510 to remain on the bike.
Long story short, both . . .if you can swing it lol, but if you have a run watch and don’t need the swim stuff get a 510. IMHO
Sounds like 510 is a win. When would garmin release the product refresh if they are going to? Maybe a 520 I due
Sounds like 510 is a win. When would garmin release the product refresh if they are going to? Maybe a 520 I due
Historically, Garmin has announced many of their new devices at CES in Las Vegas, which takes place Jan 7-14, 2014.
Or I guess if I kept a 910 on my wrist all the time, I could just get a el-cheapo bike computer that can read ANT+ cadence (plus maybe has a wheel spin sensor instead of a GPS for distance)… then just upload my watch, but use the bike computer for current info. (I don’t have a power meter, so really just need speed, distance, and cadence… all of which you can do without a GPS chip)
My impression is a 520 is a long way off – at least a full year, maybe even two. The 510 is still pretty new. I think you can sort of tell by how easy it is to get one on sale, and 510’s don’t go on sale. Also, the 500 is still widely available. In addition, there is the 810 as the “more advanced” bike computer. The 510 does things like blue tooth links with phones. It seems like Garmin is revamping the running watches this year with the intro of the FR 220/620 – part of the reason the 210 and 610 were “cheap” during black Friday deals. They’re also launching the power-meter-pedals for the bike set. It seems like the 310/910 are the next models that are due to be made full-color screens or whatever (which seems pointless). I could be wrong about all this since I’m definitely no insider… but I don’t think I am. 
Point being: the 510 is probably not going to be changed any time soon.