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Tom R.PRO
Tom R. Sendmail

Garmin 610 or 910

posted 11 months ago | Report

I am looking to buy a new watch, and I think I want either a 610 or 910. Does anyone have either of these? What do you like or dislike about each?

I currently have a 405. The backlight has stopped working (I just wait until I get under a light to get my times.) The reset button has stopped working (I download data to reset it but can't set a new lap or lock the bevel.) for my past 2 runs, it has frozen or tuned off and reset. Downloaded data is incomplete and doesn't show route.

I have started to train for a 100 miler, and the battery life of the 910 is looking good. After the 100, I may get into tris, but that is just a dream for now.

With the 610, I am concerned with the touch screen. With the 405, rain, humidity, and sweat all change screens unless I lock the bevel, but since my reset button is broken, I can't lock it. How does the touch screen work when you are in the humidity or sweating profusely? Does anyone have any thoughts on either of these?

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  • Onci A.
    Onci A. Sendmail

    If you are going to try a tri before you expect to replace the watch, get the 910xt. It's been a great multisport gps for me.

    I had a 610 for about 6 weeks. I found the touch screen responded ok, even when I had sweaty fingers. I liked the small size (compared to a 305), but the screen was a little smal (again, against a 305) But mine was defective (had issues with finding/keeping satellites and would lockup) and ultimately got returned.

    I've been training with a 910xt for 4 months now and largely love it. Fast gps satelitte lock in, battery life is much better than my 305, large physical screen with 4 programmable screens to get the info you need. I find the buttons easy to deal with, but since they are just like the 305 I'm not surprised. My only gripe with it is with it's attempt to detect pool lengths in its swimming mode.

    posted 11 months ago

  • Tom R.PRO
    Tom R. Sendmail
    in reply to what Onci A. said:If you are going to try a tri before you expect to replace the watch, get the 910xt. It's been a great multisport gps for me. I had a 610 for about 6 weeks. I found the touch screen responded ok, even when I had sweaty fingers. I liked the s... read more

    That is great info. Could you expound on the last sentence? Does it use satellite in swimming mode? Does it work as well in an indoor pool, or is that what you are talking about? Thanks again for the insight. I've been leaning toward the 910, but I wanted to get a good idea of how people liked it.

    posted 11 months ago

  • Dan M.
    Dan M. Sendmail

    If multi-sport is in your future (Du or Tri) 910 is your watch. 610 is a great watch, but lacks multi-sport functions. The 610 does both running or cycling well, but no transitions or change of sport in the middle of a workout. With ultras in your future the extra battery life of the 910 will probably be a plus.

    posted 11 months ago

  • Onci A.
    Onci A. Sendmail
    in reply to what Tom R. said:That is great info. Could you expound on the last sentence? Does it use satellite in swimming mode? Does it work as well in an indoor pool, or is that what you are talking about? Thanks again for the insight. I've been leaning toward the 910,... read more

    The 910xt can track both open water and pool swims. Open water uses the gps, but the pool tracking uses an internal accelerometer. You configure it to the length of your pool and it somehow detects that you have completed a lap. Except that it sometimes decides to log extra lengths. It means I can't rely on the current distance to know when my workout is complete.

    Garmin's released one firmware update which made the problem happen less, so I'm hoping they will get it fixed eventually.

    If you haven't yet, go read DC Rainmaker's reviews. He's done both the 910xt and the 610:

    http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2011/10/garmin-forerunner-910xt-in-depth-review.html

    http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2011/04/garmin-forerunner-610-in-depth-review.html

    posted 11 months ago

  • Tom R.PRO
    Tom R. Sendmail
    in reply to what Onci A. said:The 910xt can track both open water and pool swims. Open water uses the gps, but the pool tracking uses an internal accelerometer. You configure it to the length of your pool and it somehow detects that you have completed a lap. Except that it som... read more

    Great reviews. Thanks for sharing.

    posted 11 months ago

  • Keith B.
    Keith B. Sendmail

    Another vote for the 910XT. I have it and absolutely *love* it. I've heard bad things about the touch screen on the 610, and other people don't have problems with it. I'd rather not take chances when spending as much as they cost.

    posted 11 months ago

  • Keith S.PRO
    Keith S. Sendmail

    Update May 2013 -- I am comparing these two watches as well. I love my 405, but am itching for something new. I'm running my first ultra in October. It is just a 50k, so I am not worried about battery life on my 405. But I'm looking to add miles in the future (50 miler in 2015?) and like the added battery life of the 910XT.

    Here's my deal: I don't see myself ever doing Tris or even Duos. So, if I went with the 910 simply for the longer battery life when I run an ultra over 8 hours, will I be satisfied with the day-in / day-out experience of using the 910 as my running watch? Or will the bulk of it get tiresome? My other option is the 610 and the solar battery pack that DCRainmaker references (love his reviews!) -- since the 610 can be charging *while* being used. That way the 610 is similar enough to my 405 (only bettah!) but also has the ability to get me through a longer ultra.

    Thoughts?

    posted 21 days ago

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