Garmin wireless (ANT+) compatible fitness gear

Garmin adopted the open ANT+ standard for the wireless sensors (heart rate monitor (HRM), bike speed/cadence sensor, and foot pod) for their fitness and outdoors GPS models such as the Edge 705, Forerunner 305 and 405, and Oregon 300. This means that these Garmin models can receive and display data from other companies' ANT+ sensors, such as the CycleOps PowerTap cycling power meters, and also that other display units, such as those on the Concept2 PM4 rowing machine can display data such as heart rate from a Garmin HRM strap.

Garmin have posted an up-to-date overview on what companies like Concept2, Nautilus, and Octane Fitness are doing with ANT+.

Forerunner 50 is not a GPS

Given that it's one of Garmin's newest products, and that it starts at just $99.99, you might wonder why we aren't offering the Forerunner 50 watch. The simple answer is that despite it being a Garmin product it is NOT actually a GPS! It can connect wirelessly to their heart rate monitor, foot pod (for measuring running speed/distance using a pedometer-like technique), and bicycle speed/cadence sensor (for measuring cycling speed/distance using a cyclometer-like technique), and when used in those manners it is a convenient display/recording device.

But we feel that Garmin's other Forerunners, with actual GPS capability, so easily outstrip the features of the 50 that it's worth paying a little more for them, a minimal extra expense over the lifetime of the unit.

GPS for Runners

Garmin wireless (ANT+) compatible fitness gear

Forerunner 50 is not a GPS