Customer Reviews

Garmin Indoor Foot Pod Accessory for Forerunner 305

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Great product, it's almost everything I expected from it. Its size is not bad, even a little smaller than the Polar S-625X's foot piece and also runs on a AAA battery that seems to last at least as much as the S-625X's. Its precision is very good as long as you calibrate it correctly, "fine tune" it carefully through the first 5 to 10 runs, and then keep your pace somewhat steady. I should clarify that the only other inertial sensor I have used before is the previously mentioned Polar S625X which behaves very similarly, that is, it accumulates some error if you change your pace or inclination (climb or downhill) significantly. One drawback is that in order to attach Garmin's Foot Pod to the shoe, you have to almost completely remove the shoelace. This is because unlike Polar's sensor, it's all one piece; this makes it very impractical to move from one pair of shoes to the other, if like me, you have 4 or 5 pairs of running shoes which you "rotate" during the week. What I did was chose one pair to always use indoors. Lastly, I want to comment, that it would be VERY VERY nice if you could use the Forerunner 305's GPS functionality to calibrate the Foot Pod and not having to run a known distance on a track or somewhere else. Since the Forerunner 305 is so precise and reliable, why not automatically use its distance information for calibration? As a matter of fact, when I calibrated mine, what I did is use my Forerunner 305 to mark an 800m track and then ran it again while calibrating the Foot Pod. Why not do it automatically? That would have saved me a run! Well, those are my 2¢ worth... Pablo

I love my Garmin Forerunner 305, and like many people, I was saddened when winter rolled around and the weather forced me onto the dreadmill for many of my runs. I felt like I wasn't getting "credit" for my runs since they weren't showing up in my totals on the Garmin Forerunner or on my PC software. I had priced the footpods before, but I wasn't really ready to pay another $100+ for one (the 305 with heart rate monitor was already a bit pricey), so I just gave up on buying a footpod.

Then one day I was reading a forum post where a user was raving about the new smaller version of the Garmin footpod that came out recently. I decided to do some more research on the footpods and I found that the newer version has basically two advantages--it clips onto the shoe (rather than lacing-in) and it is smaller. The clip-on feature is nice if you want to change shoes or just don't want the footpod permanently attached to your shoe. It also saves you the hassle of ever lacing it in in the first place. And with gadgets, smaller is usually better, right?

Well, I quickly found that the price of the older, lace-in version had plummeted since the introduction of the new pod. I decided that for ~$30, I could live with the bulkier lace-in footpod, so I ordered this unit from Amazon. What's the worst that could happen? If it wasn't my cup of tea, I'm only out $30. On to the actual review...

The pod works exactly as intended--I didn't need to calibrate it at all. When I'm using the footpod indoors, my Garmin 305 usually shows me within +/- .03 miles at every mile on the treadmill. Treadmills themselves are not always accurate, so I'm not going to calibrate the Garmin to the treadmill. And, quite frankly, I'm not the type of runner who really cares all that much if I've run 5.00 miles or 5.05 miles--close is good enough when I'm doing a treadmill run. (It's the outdoor runs that I care about, and there the GPS takes over.) I'm also not analyzing my cadence that much. I just use it for a good close approximation of speed/pace and distance.

I had some concerns that this pod might feel bulky on top of my foot, but in reality I don't notice it's there at all when I'm walking, hiking, or running. The main time it gets in the way is when I'm stretching before or after my exercise and I try to grab the top of my foot behind my back.

I recently got a shoe wallet and the Garmin footpod fits nicely inside, so I don't need to lace it into my shoe any more. The shoe wallet attaches to the laces with a velcro strap. This makes it easier to transfer the pod from one shoe to another, or just remove it when I am not using it, or when I want to stretch and the pod would be in the way on my shoe. If you want to do the same, make sure you get a shoe wallet that's big enough. Mine is a "Jogalite" brand shoe wallet and the pod fits snugly with just enough room for a key or two, an ID card, and maybe some bills. I'm told the Nike shoe wallet works great for this purpose, too.

It is a minor nuisance to peek inside the wallet and make sure the LED is coming on to tell me the pod is turned on (and vice versa to turn it off) but I still think it's better than having the pod laced in, or coughing up $100+ for the new clip on pod. And really you don't need to see the LED. Just feel for the button, push it, and then walk a few steps until the Garmin detects the pod and asks you if you are running indoors.

OK, that review was a bit longer than I expected--I'll shut up now.

item is a little bulky for this type of device (compared to nike+ pod) but you really do no notice when running.

instructions were fairly clear with one exception...when trying to sync the pod to your watch, you must shake the pod as if simulating walking/running. once i figured that our it worked flawlessly.

I bought the footpod so I can train on the treadmill in winter using my 305 and still be able to upload my speed and distance data to the PC and web. It works great. The 305 recognizes when the footpod is on, and asks you if you want to turn off the GPS. As far as accuracy goes, it does not display the same level of accuracy across a range of different running speeds. So if you walk 2 miles (8 laps) and then run 2 miles (8 laps), you would not get the same distance readings for the two activities. But it's accurate enough for me, to give it a 5-star rating. I have not seen a bad product from Garmin yet.

The foot pod sometimes is balky in its handshake with the watch. When this happens the prompt to use inddors pops up a minute or so after you pust the start button. I have found that you can minimize or eliminate this if you make certain to shut down the watch before you shut down the footpod, and then next time start the footpod before turning on the watch.

The calibration process should be able to use the GPS mode,instead of running a known distance.

The lacing system stinks! Should have a clip-type system so you do not have to completely unlace your shoe to install or uninstall.

I finally purchased this to add to my ForeRunner set and am very happy with it. Although there is a slight error factor (as mentioned on the Garmin site with information on calibration), the data is perfect for my needs.

The device works, plain and simple, which is enough to warrant the 3 stars. It allows me to keep using my Garmin Forerunner 305 while inside on the treadmill. It's also on the cheaper side.

The things I don't like:
1. The device is way too big.
2. I would be ok with #1 if there was a fast way to put it on and take off, but it gets laced on to your shoe. So on the days I'm not running, I have an ungainly large black thing on my shoe. I guess I can get a "running" shoe and a "weights" shoe or just suck it up.
3. The Garmin MotionBased site won't allow you to upload runs completed using the FootPod. This completely defeats the purpose of keeping track of my runs using statistics. Yes, I can upload to my personal desktop version of the software, but as noted in my Forerunner 305 review, the desktop version is sorely limited and doesn't contain ability to really drill down on the stats. I guess it's more encouragement to run outside, but in that case, I wouldn't need the Foot Pod. The Garmin site says indoor running functionality will come soon, but that could mean years away.

My Garmin Forerunner 305 is the first heart-rate monitor that has really inspired me to work out more consistently, but it didn't do any good for those treadmills runs during the cold winters in Minnesota. Now that problem is solved! As a side bonus, it also provides turn-over rate for my outdoor runs so that I can judge my leg speed.

My only gripe is the calibration is not very flexible. You can choose 800M or 1/2 mile and those are your options. Push Start when you start and Stop when you cover the chosen distance. Being GPS based you would think it could be self-calibrating like the Bike pod.

I have used this product for over a year with my Garmin Forerunner 305 so that I can track my running indoors on the treadmill at the gym.

This is easy to calibrate, and works flawlessly in conjunction with my 305. You do need to remember to replace the single AA battery periodically (there is no low battery warning light) to avoid finding yourself on the treadmill at the gym and having the unit just stop working due to a dead battery.

I gave this only four stars instead of five since you need to lace it to your sneakers, and it cannot be easily or quickly taken on and off. However, I don't even feel it when I run outside, or care what it looks like, so for me this is not a consideration. But for some people it might be.

You should be aware that Garmin now has a newer version of the footpod that will work with the 305, but was introduced for the newer 405 and 405cx. I just bought one for the 405cx that I ordered, but have not yet had a chance to test it. However, it is smaller and lighter than the older model (it uses a "button" battery rather than an AA battery), and also has a lace clip for easy and quick removal from your sneakers.

Bottom Line: if I were buying a footpod for the first time, I would buy the newer unit (which has received mostly positive reviews).

Update November 12, 2009: I have been using the newer unit now for several months (and reviewed it on Amazon) and am very pleased with it. I definitely recommend buying the newer version of the foot pod regardless of which model Garmin Forerunner you use.

Easy to use. Paired fast, no problem calibrating, very accurate. You have to lace it on and only way to remove it from your shoe is to unlace your shoe. Would be nice if it had a base that laced on and then the pod clipped on. However, the fot pod is so light you don't notice it there.