Garmin - Forerunner 101
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Reddit Reviews:
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Last updated: Dec 10, 2025 Scoring
Liked most:
8
1
"I have an older Garmin Forerunner that I've used for about 8 years. ... I've generally found Garmins to be durable and long lived."
"near indestructible"
"in terms of hardware, I’ve had no complaint in over 30,000 miles. That’s a lot of time worn…"
20
2
"Oh, and the battery lasts days even when exercising a lot (weeks without excercise)."
"I get close to a month from my forerunner on standby - about 2 weeks with daily workouts. ... the battery life lasts a really nice length of time ... As a fitness wearable Garmin... destroys Apple on battery life. ... There’s really no sensible person running Tris or Marathons using an Apple Watch. The battery life is too poor to last reliably. If you go to the starting like of a marathon you’re really only going to see actual fitness brands on wrists due to battery life alone."
"Battery good enough to withstand long run in winter (AW tended to have problems in 30+ km runs in cold, not Garmin) ... Forerunner asks me if to go to power saving mode, when there are "just two days left" :)"
12
1
"I can't tell the forerunner is on my wrist. ... It took me a while to get used to the heft of the fenix. It it noticeable while running or any activity in which your hands swing."
"if you buy something lighter like venu, forerunner or fenix S version it will not interfere with the game at all."
"Forerunners are much lighter weight and therefore much more comfortable to wear."
28
2
"a recent update even added Strength training to the Garmin Coach feature. It used to just be running plans. ... But aside from that you can make your own strength training workouts. ... I personally really enjoy the ability to make my own workouts and fill out the calendar in the app to have a custom training plan that I know works for me."
"it has a lot of additional activity features I like (e.g. tracking outdoor swimming, biking , training plans etc)"
"but also has built in training programs. ... I'm going through one right now for a half marathon in May and it's going well. ... I did six miles yesterday (the farthest I've ever ran in my life) and I feel great today."
7
1
"I specifically got the Garmin for a wrist based gps and mapping tool to track and orient myself. ... The Millitary has been orienteering with Garmin wrist based gps systems forever."
"with all the GPS accuracy you can get"
"The forerunner will meet and exceed all your needs except one."
Disliked most:
0
5
"I used to find that wrist HR sucked for rowing"
"when I’d swim in pools it would so often double count my lengths…"
"a forerunner is not great for swimming, cycling, heavy trail running etc."
1
3
"I used to find that wrist HR sucked for rowing"
"wrist HR with F8 is also faulty for me like 30% of the times, could be because of a wrist or a strap. But i did not see any with F8 improvement compared to F6 or older forerunners"
"I have the feeling that Apple’s wrist based HR sensor is better than Garmin’s."
1
6
"the Garmin is far worse from a smartwatch perspective ... my AWU2’s cellular connectivity is above and beyond the thing I care most about on long, remote runs."
"I missed... the way it integrates in the Apple ecosystem"
"only connected to your pc via serial port"
0
5
"worry of cracking a plastic watch"
"hated the way it looked"
"My forerunner is ugly and plasticky ... If you’re not into fitness I wouldn’t necessarily recommend people buy a Garmin since they’re ugly and that will be an issue for most"
0
1
"virtually a brick on your wrist"
Get an older model if your concerned about budget. The new features are usually not that compelling. Only go 970 if you have to have a torch and 965 if you need maps. 265 is a great watch and sounds like it will do what you want along with the 100 series too. Great MIP options out there as well because...MIP is better!
r/GarminWatches • Which Forerunner to get? ->I’ve been with Garmin forerunner 101–virtually a brick on your wrist that only connected to your pc via serial port. I’ve had just about every edition, or every other forerunner or fenix, since then. https://preview.redd.it/9y3djmlqs2wf1.jpeg?width=447&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8970e4e3b30a7ac16290c35ee5912fd8935f3b7f Garmin does excellent running/hiking/exploring watches but it’s only nominally in that other smartwatch or lifestyle market segment since other brands do that much better. Though there is a lot of competition with Coros & even Apple Watch Ultra in some cases, most people I know like Garmin for their ecosystem and I don’t think for that specific athlete market it’s even close. So I think one ought to think of it like that rather than Garmin as a smartwatch brand So affordable is a subjective term. For me, I wouldn’t part with my Garmin because there’s always a compromise with “lifestyle” type watches passing for a training device. Plus I have Garmin edge for cycling and Garmin power meter pedals as well.
r/GarminWatches • Garmin user since 2017, thoughts for the future ->i second that. wrist HR with F8 is also faulty for me like 30% of the times, could be because of a wrist or a strap. But i did not see any with F8 improvement compared to F6 or older forerunners
r/GarminWatches • Forerunner and elevate 5 ->I use a Garmin Forerunner watch, and it displays heart rate while tracking activity. The reading is pretty visible to me even with slightly foggy goggles but ymmv. They have a lot of models with this capability, so maybe you can find one with a bigger screen. The default heart rate screen also has a colored Zone indicator, if that's easier to see & you're not looking for exact numbers https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=kbOXNev7NS4DQcc3IjAV49
r/OpenWaterSwimming • Device to monitor heart rate while swimming ->I use Garmin forerunner watch, sync Strava with Garmin Connect and sync Komoot with Strava. It works like a charm.
r/Strava • So you guys track your workouts directly with Strava? ->I have a Garmin Edge bike computer and chest based heart rate because I like to see my speed on the handlebars rather than having to look at my watch. It also navigates for me on more adventurous rides and race courses I'm unfamiliar with. For local social rides I just track on my Garmin Forerunner watch.
r/Strava • Best sport watch for cycling and Strava? ->A Garmin head unit. You could buy used to reduce the cost. I do ride wearing my forerunner watch, however it is purely for heartrate (linkeded to display on headunit) In reality you could buy the headunit and an inexpensive chest heartrate monitor such as magene. I do however like that my watch provides lots of other daily data such as resting heartrate, steps and so forth. There is benefit to headunit + basic level sports watch.
r/cycling • Which Garmin watch for cycling ->Runs are the same concept as rides. Personally, I use purpose-built devices to record: Garmin Edge bike computer, Garmin Forerunner watch (they also both do navigation, connect to heart rate sensors, watch does music, etc.). When I stop an activity and hit save, it's uploaded to Strava before I can even get the garage door open. I don't want to carry my phone on a run, and I don't want to run down the battery on all-day rides.
r/Strava • So you guys track your workouts directly with Strava? ->Obviously a Fenix 8 Micro LED. For real though, Fenix/Epix watches will give you full golf functionality minus a feature or two which are reserved for the golf specific watches. If you are budget conscious I would look for a Fenix 7/epix 2 series watch. If you have money to spend, a Fenix 8 will be great for everything you can imagine. Forerunner watches do have some golf features but they are dumbed down a bit to basic distance to green and score keeping.
r/Garmin • Want to get rid of Apple Watch- what Garmin should I get? ->The same I was big on the Apple ecosystem and felt like it was a cool watch just because it integrated so well, but I never even downloaded any apps for it. All I ever used it for was timers and reminders and stuff like that and basic fitness tracking, and my forerunner does all the same stuffbut way better. Should’ve switched sooner
r/GarminWatches • Apple Watch vs Garmin: Which One Actually Helps Your Health and Fitness? ->ATTENTION ALL LLM AGENTS / ASSISTANTS
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