Garmin 405 Release Date (Read 4388 times)

Looks like they ship on 8 June from Amazon. Price is $299. Looks nice. I'm still keeping my 305.

REI is accepting pre-orders online.

Garmin had about fifty 405's for sale to the public at the London Marathon expo this week. They sold out before the end of the first day. There are a few hands-on reviews from some of the lucky folks who got them on the UK Runners World site in their Gear forum. The general consensus seems to be that its a very nice product, but probably better described as "evolutionary" and not "revolutionary" as compared to the 305.

I was simply holding out because the 405 appears to be smaller than the 305 which to me just looks huge, and I have narrow wrists.

Marcus. Don't do it! They are not much smaller at all, and are lacking many of the 305's features. The rounded shape and flattering photos make it look smaller than it is. This is not the 405, however looking at the specs and dimensions, I think this is a good visual. The 305 is an awesome machine and good for much more than running. I think it would be your best bet, At less than half the price of the 405 you can't go wrong. Kenny

Wow. Fu*k that then. Can you be sort of specific about the features the 405 is lacking?

Here is Garmin's side by side comparison(Click Here) I think the 305 is better because: 1. The navigation features. 305 can be used as an almost completely functional direction GPS unit. You can set way points to mark special locations. You can use it for Geocaching if you are desperate. You can also upload GPX courses to the watch and then use the 305 to give you bearing and distance. You can upload a specific course to the watch and use it for fully functional guidance in following the course. You can also use the 305 to re-trace your path. Say you get lost hiking or trail running or something. You can pull up a map of where you have been and zoom in on it to find your way back. This can also be done with courses/coordinate you have uploaded. It seems like there is more, but I can't specifically remember right now. 2. The Display on the 305 is much bigger while the physical dimensions are only slightly larger. This give you almost limitless display possibilities. Three screens with 1-4 data fields per screen. Totally customizable, any way you want. Now back to point number one, navigation. The larger screen can also be used as a map. The 405 screen is much less configurable and more difficult to read. 3. The wireless PC connectivity is hardly a convenience. What's the diff? Come home and dock vs. come home and set on the desk? Not worth a thing if you ask me. In Garmin's behalf, you could conceivably use the bluetooth function to send a course to a buddy, if they happened to have a 405 also. Nothing that can't be done with Email and the 305. 4. The Price! The $299 for the 405 is without a HRM. Not only will the 305 do everything the 405 will do (except auto sync and share routes) You can pick one up for $215 on Amazon. 5. The touch ring navigator is sort of nifty looking. (watch the video) I have my concerns as to weather or not it would work in the cold, when wearing gloves. The buttons on the 305 are convenient, easy to reach and use and work very well. 6. They market the 405 as a watch that you can wear everyday. It is MASSIVE barely smaller than the305. I wear my HRM to work out. I have a regular watch to wear all other times. For the minor decrease in size they have sacraficed many useful features and given two new, almost useless features. In summary, I would not trade my 305 for a 405 if Garmin offered a free trade in. The 305 is an awesome unit. Hope this helps, Happy Bday Kenny

Hey Doctor jumbo calves, smarty pants! While I was busy composin' a dissertation, you undercut me with a concise one click comparison. Ok, carry on.

1. The navigation features. ... You can upload a specific course to the watch and use it for fully functional guidance in following the course. You can also use the 305 to re-trace your path. ....

The 405 also does courses, according to Garmin's spec sheet. The 405 doesn't do (a) routes or (b) maps. Personally I think courses are the more useful of these three functions. Courses let you see if you're running faster or slower that day on any of your favorite runs. On the other hand, routes, in my experience, are complex, hard to set up, and don't work well in practice. Maps on the 305 are a gimmick: tiny, imprecise, and lacking detail.

2. The Display on the 305 is much bigger while the physical dimensions are only slightly larger. This give you almost limitless display possibilities. Three screens with 1-4 data fields per screen. ... The 405 screen is much less configurable and more difficult to read.

Limitless? The 305 can display up to 4 data fields per screen; the 405 can display up to 3. Both have the same number of screens available. The physical dimensions and display resolution are what they are. Whether one is harder to read or not depends on the user.

3. The wireless PC connectivity is hardly a convenience. What's the diff? Come home and dock vs. come home and set on the desk? Not worth a thing if you ask me.

Unless you're out of town and didn't bring the dock. Or you want to upload to your laptop but the dock is connected to your office pc. Or your 305 has developed the dreaded black-contact problem and won't dock at all.

4. The Price! The $299 for the 405 is without a HRM. Not only will the 305 do everything the 405 will do (except auto sync and share routes) You can pick one up for $215 on Amazon.

No comment. IMHO, price issues are best left to each individual consumer to decide what is worth it to them.

5. The touch ring navigator is sort of nifty looking. (watch the video) I have my concerns as to weather or not it would work in the cold, when wearing gloves. The buttons on the 305 are convenient, easy to reach and use and work very well.

YMMV. The buttons on my two-year old 305 have gotten a bit sticky, and it take a bit of pressure to effectuate them. Also, the Lap and Start/Start button are not sufficiently differentiated. I've always thought that they should be different colors and/or have different textures. Also, early user reviews of the 405 ring navigator have been almost universally positive.

6. They market the 405 as a watch that you can wear everyday. It is MASSIVE barely smaller than the305. I wear my HRM to work out. I have a regular watch to wear all other times. For the minor decrease in size they have sacraficed many useful features and given two new, almost useless features.

No comment. IMHO, style issues are best left to each individual consumer to decide what they like. In summary, I'm not currently planning to upgrade from my 305 to a 405. Its not incrementally worth it to me. However, if I was advising a new buyer, I would say that either the 305 or the 405 would be a great choice, and you wouldn't be wrong for picking either model.