Before I got a smartphone with electronic mapping, I was sure it was a bad idea. It would degrade my ability to use a map and compass and why did I need it when I could manage just fine with a map and occasional use of a grid reference from a basic GPS device? Then I got a smartphone with electronic mapping and soon became a convert.
Before I got bluetooth earphones, I insisted I didn't need any. My cheapy wired earphones worked just fine, even if I did have to reseat them in my ears every few paces and occasionally, particularly on a windy day, would catch the wire with a flailing arm and rip them out entirely. It was the latter occurrence that had me, one day, searching through a drawer for an old set of Mick's wireless earphones. What a revelation! I became a convert to the wireless version, but insisted I didn't need a bone conducting model. I held out on the latter point until a couple of months ago, when I had an uncomfortable run involving a hat, my hood and an earphone being pushed painfully into my ear. I finally let Mick buy me some bone conducting headphones. The ones I went for are ridiculously expensive (more expensive than any single pair of running shoes I own, although that's perhaps more a reflection on my shoes...), but it only took one run for me to declare that they were worth the money.
One more example? Before I got a fancy all-singing GPS sports watch, I insisted I didn't need one. My old Fitbit Surge did everything I needed, with the only flaw being that it wasn't waterproof. Then Mick bought me a Garmin Fenix 5s for Christmas a few years ago, choosing that model because I insisted that there was no point spending the extra on the 5s Plus, because I just didn't need those extra features. In particular, there was no value in me having mapping on my watch, because I've always got my phone with me, and thus always carry mapping. Running in so many unfamiliar places when we're on the road, I'm quite adept at navigating from my phone as I trot along.
When Mick finally decided to upgrade his watch from a Fitbit to a Garmin Fenix, he went for the higher model. As it turned out, he never used the extra features, but did have to take the significant hit on the battery life. It was the battery life that put the first nail in the coffin of that watch for him; the final nail came when Fitbit issued a recall for his old watch, that he hadn't used in a couple of years, and gave him a full refund on it. He used that refund to buy a Coros Apex, which boasts a far superior battery life compared to the Garmin.
That left us with a Fenix 5s Plus sitting in a drawer, having decided it was of more worth keeping it than we would get in resale value. And, as it was sitting in a drawer doing nothing, I thought I'd have a play with the mapping and routes features.
The better window to have done this experimentation would have been any time over the last few months. In reality, I loaded the routes on Saturday and tried out the mapping on Monday. I learnt quite a few things about how to use it in the first lap of Grizedale Forest, and by the end of that lap I was sold. Having mapping and a route on your watch is: a) a revelation!; b) much more user-friendly than I would have thought possible on such a small screen; and c) much easier than getting a phone out to check a direction (moreover, if it's raining and my phone is throwing one of its 'accidental use protection' hissy fits).
I might have to read the manual for this device and investigate some of its other features!
Given the examples above, I also need to acknowledge that when I insist the model I've got is fine and I don't need anything better, I'm probably wrong.
(Harking back to my previous post, the two reasons I should have taken along my previous watch: 1) using the mapping ate the battery of the 5s Plus at an alarming rate, getting through 50% in two laps (perhaps in part because I had some sub-optimal settings selected) - it only lasted the whole day because I charged it when I stopped for my soup and sandwich. 2) The information screens I was getting in navigation mode weren't giving me the information I wanted in a succinct enough fashion, so I need to find out how to do some configuration. If I'd had both watches with me I could have had one on each wrist and been able to see where I was on my left wrist, and all the other stats I might have wanted on my right. Of course, those other stats are entirely of passing interest; my day was in no way marred by not knowing pace, heart rate or distance at a glance.)
Before I got bluetooth earphones, I insisted I didn't need any. My cheapy wired earphones worked just fine, even if I did have to reseat them in my ears every few paces and occasionally, particularly on a windy day, would catch the wire with a flailing arm and rip them out entirely. It was the latter occurrence that had me, one day, searching through a drawer for an old set of Mick's wireless earphones. What a revelation! I became a convert to the wireless version, but insisted I didn't need a bone conducting model. I held out on the latter point until a couple of months ago, when I had an uncomfortable run involving a hat, my hood and an earphone being pushed painfully into my ear. I finally let Mick buy me some bone conducting headphones. The ones I went for are ridiculously expensive (more expensive than any single pair of running shoes I own, although that's perhaps more a reflection on my shoes...), but it only took one run for me to declare that they were worth the money.
One more example? Before I got a fancy all-singing GPS sports watch, I insisted I didn't need one. My old Fitbit Surge did everything I needed, with the only flaw being that it wasn't waterproof. Then Mick bought me a Garmin Fenix 5s for Christmas a few years ago, choosing that model because I insisted that there was no point spending the extra on the 5s Plus, because I just didn't need those extra features. In particular, there was no value in me having mapping on my watch, because I've always got my phone with me, and thus always carry mapping. Running in so many unfamiliar places when we're on the road, I'm quite adept at navigating from my phone as I trot along.
When Mick finally decided to upgrade his watch from a Fitbit to a Garmin Fenix, he went for the higher model. As it turned out, he never used the extra features, but did have to take the significant hit on the battery life. It was the battery life that put the first nail in the coffin of that watch for him; the final nail came when Fitbit issued a recall for his old watch, that he hadn't used in a couple of years, and gave him a full refund on it. He used that refund to buy a Coros Apex, which boasts a far superior battery life compared to the Garmin.
That left us with a Fenix 5s Plus sitting in a drawer, having decided it was of more worth keeping it than we would get in resale value. And, as it was sitting in a drawer doing nothing, I thought I'd have a play with the mapping and routes features.
The better window to have done this experimentation would have been any time over the last few months. In reality, I loaded the routes on Saturday and tried out the mapping on Monday. I learnt quite a few things about how to use it in the first lap of Grizedale Forest, and by the end of that lap I was sold. Having mapping and a route on your watch is: a) a revelation!; b) much more user-friendly than I would have thought possible on such a small screen; and c) much easier than getting a phone out to check a direction (moreover, if it's raining and my phone is throwing one of its 'accidental use protection' hissy fits).
I might have to read the manual for this device and investigate some of its other features!
Given the examples above, I also need to acknowledge that when I insist the model I've got is fine and I don't need anything better, I'm probably wrong.
L to R: Garmin Fenix 5s, Fenix 5s Plus, and Coros Apex Pro.
(Harking back to my previous post, the two reasons I should have taken along my previous watch: 1) using the mapping ate the battery of the 5s Plus at an alarming rate, getting through 50% in two laps (perhaps in part because I had some sub-optimal settings selected) - it only lasted the whole day because I charged it when I stopped for my soup and sandwich. 2) The information screens I was getting in navigation mode weren't giving me the information I wanted in a succinct enough fashion, so I need to find out how to do some configuration. If I'd had both watches with me I could have had one on each wrist and been able to see where I was on my left wrist, and all the other stats I might have wanted on my right. Of course, those other stats are entirely of passing interest; my day was in no way marred by not knowing pace, heart rate or distance at a glance.)
No comments:
Post a Comment