|
Product Features
|
Product Details
Would you like to give feedback on images?
|
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
49 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
No Go: Very weak GPS and Proprietary Workout Software is an Issue,
By Anthony (London, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Timex Ironman Global Trainer With GPS Watch - Speed + Distance (Sports)
The specs of the watch are really good, but it is when you start using it that one realizes that the Timex Global Trainer does not perform to expectations.Firstly, the GPS in the watch, although it uses the same chip as that of the Garmin Forerunner, the performance in the Timex Global Trainer is extremely inaccurate. i.e. it takes an average of 5-7min to lock the satellites, unlike other devices, which can lock satellites in matter of seconds. Also, once a session is recorded and loaded onto a map (such as Google Maps), one can appreciate that the tracking of the device is very inaccurate. I have seen distance reading erros of up to 12% (e.g. you run 10miles and the watch says you have run 8.8miles!!) , which is very very bad. Other GPS watches only have a 2% error max accuracy (i.e. Garmin). I have checked this issue on the internet and other user reviews on Timex's Global Trainer GPS show this same issue. I have sent the watch to Timex, got it replaced for a new one, and the same issue persists. TIMEX HASN'T GOT A SOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM even with their latest FIRMWARE release (v. 3.14) made on August 2011. Secondly, the workout data downloaded from the watch to the PC is proprietary and can only be used on the TrainingPeaks website. Forget about exporting you data to other better and cheaper websites such as MapMyRun or WorkOutLog. This wouldn't be a problem if TrainingPeaks had a good system, but it is slow and in many occasions it won't load 100% of the workout information (plenty of software improvement is needed on their side). TrainingPeaks has a cost of c. $20/month, while other websites only cost $20/year. The Free version of TrainingPeaks won't show you all of the information from your watch (e.g. HR zones, Cadence Zones, Power Zones, etc). Conclusion: The GPS is a no go. On a spec basis the watch is not that expensive against competitors but if you include the cost of the software to visualize your workouts you need to add $+120/year, and thats another no go. I have bought the Garmin Forerunner 310xt, Garmin is better value for money and you are not stuck with proprietary software that doesn't work!
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
DID NOT CARE FOR IT!,
By SWA "Oriondriver" (USA) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Timex Ironman Global Trainer With GPS Watch - Speed + Distance (Sports)
I have a Garmin 405 which is not waterproof... I wanted something I could use for the entire triathlon... this one is waterproof but will not provide data on the swim... things I did not care for...1. Took FOREVER to acquire signal... downloaded new firmware.. still takes minutes to acquire! 2. HUGE... this thing is HUGE... not heavy but HUGE! 3. Training Peaks software not as user friendly as I am used to... costs $$ for access to all the features. 4. None of my logs are Timex compatible so uploading requires manual insertion of data... BAD! 5. You may be able to have 4 fields of data visible at once but it is nearly impossible to read it while running because it is so small. 6. Glare based on angle makes reading watch difficult! I was happy to go back to my Garmin... this thing was just not for me!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
This is a good ANT+ Head unit / solution for multisport athletes,
This review is from: Timex Ironman Global Trainer With GPS Watch - Speed + Distance (Misc.)
This review is effectively a response to many of the reviews that have come before. Since pieces are picked up from various, rather than respond, I'll just write my own.First off - the utility of this watch depends upon what you do with it. If you are a straight up runner, there are probably better watches - unless you are working on using increased cadence (more on the footpod below), heart rate, distance and time at the same time in your workout. Perhaps my eyes are better than some of the reviewers, but I have no problem reading the key aspects of the 4 portion view. And seeing lap time (for example, how fast was the LAST mile), heart rate (used to control pace and exertion for me during workouts and competitions), distance (to know where I am in the aforementioned mile), and overall time in the same glance is pretty powerful for me. Throw in Pace in another view - just a click away, and I've got what I need to train and compete. Further, the ability to completely customize any of the 6 or so screens is pretty valuable - for example, I have one of them set for Clock, so I can switch to the time of day to see whether my wife and family need me - but I don't buy the 'it's too hard to read stuff' because you can then go with a three or two window view and the font increases accordingly. In fairness, I don't think anyone could read the micro "time of day" at the very bottom of the screen unless the athlete in question was stopped (no way on a bike for example). As I recently added biking to my working out, I added an ANT+ cadence monitor to my bag of ticks. After properly installing on my bike it was maybe 5 seconds until the cadence data was streaming real-time on the watch. Same with the footpod that I just added to increase my running cadence to better approximate my cycling cadence. Do not be mistaken, this is a great running watch (I have yet to see ANY GPS unit that doesn't make errors - our larger Garmin Car unit puts us in the neighbor's yard all the time - so what?) I do believe that it's possible that the Garmin sports division watches are more accurate - but they might not be. The point is that the true TRI series from Garmin (310XT for example) is an acquired taste from a visual perspective to say the least. I'd rather wear this while running - but that's personal taste. Don't go out and buy the 610 Garmin and expect it to support power meters - as it doesn't. Plus it's twice as expensive relative to this unit - which isn't to say that you can't find something from Garmin at the same price point. I really like TrainingPeaks - and despite the annual cost find it to be a pretty solid tool. Comparing it to MapMyRun is a stretch. Training peaks is looking at the entire athlete - nutrition, peaking for events, exhaustion, etc. That said, one should consider TrainingPeaks in the cost of the watch if one is serious about the data - I too was disappointed by the 'free' offering by Timex. While I do see why some folks might be disappointed by this product and it might not work for them - it looks like there are too many DATED (important to see reviews using the latest firmware, for example, as I am - downloaded last week fresh off the press) and negative reviews of this product. They shouldn't create the impression to the multisport athlete that this watch doesn't work. It does work and I've had a great deal of enjoyment using mine. It's made me a better endurance athlete and turned me on to Training Peaks (which for me is a good thing). This watch is TONS better than the top-of-the-line Polar that it replaced (proprietary everything just to start). There are some very balanced reviews out on the net - so I'll not try to do a 'be all, end all' here. My favorite is by DC RainMaker - look it up. He's a very serious triathlete and blogger who seems to have kept his and uses it alongside Garmin products all the time (unless I'm misreading his blog). Don't give up hope if you feel that this is the product for you - it might just be. That said, do take into consideration what my fellow reviewers say. Many of the points they make are true (though the recent addition of Ant+ footpods is NO LONGER true, it was when written). I consider this to be an invaluable tool as I train for and compete in various distance events and triathlons - what more can I say? 2115|RXZE44F3L0REQ;2115|R3MA72KIBK6T5T;2115|R2EEZ81CSCDFH4;
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product).
|
