My Garmin swim watch bit the dust. (Warning to anyone who has one - make sure the back is really snapped down after you change the battery or it will get water inside...like mine did!) I really enjoyed having this as a tool to keep track of what and how I swam at each workout. But I'm debating replacing it with the Swimovate Poolmate Live...which appears to have an option for open water swimming. Has anyone used either of these watches, or both, and have an opinion to share?
The Garmin Swim is a very good watch for pool swimming. I have had one for several years, and the battery lasts over a year. But if you want something for open water swimming, you need a watch with GPS and open water mode. Open water mode simply uses a different algorithm to filter the raw GPS given path, which can be very noisy, as the arm is more than half of the time underwater. I have a Garmin 920XT, which supports both pool and open water swimming. It used to be an expensive triathlon watch, but it seems to be on sale now and you can get it for $200. DCRainMaker has a website with very good triathlon gadget reviews, including some swimming watches. It also has pointers to possible discounts, sales etc.
The Garmin Swim is a very good watch for pool swimming. I have had one for several years, and the battery lasts over a year. But if you want something for open water swimming, you need a watch with GPS and open water mode. Open water mode simply uses a different algorithm to filter the raw GPS given path, which can be very noisy, as the arm is more than half of the time underwater. I have a Garmin 920XT, which supports both pool and open water swimming. It used to be an expensive triathlon watch, but it seems to be on sale now and you can get it for $200. DCRainMaker has a website with very good triathlon gadget reviews, including some swimming watches. It also has pointers to possible discounts, sales etc.
