Goodbye Garmin 305 - Hello Echo

My 305 would not hold a charge like it did when a fresh new puppy.
I almost sent it in to Garmin and paid $80+ to get a refurb.
I ran across the Magellan Echo "smart watch" and got one for $129.
It "echoes" the data from your iPhone running app.
Here is a TOO LONG video of me showing the highlights.
I did not script it, so I wandered a bit - sorry - you don't have to watch it!   

For fast and competitive runners - you will not be interested - you want to be as light as possible.
I got it for ultras - as long as you keep your iPhone running - the Echo will keep working.
I have a Anker recharge unit (shown in video) that is not small, but can fully charge an iPhone 5-6 times.
I wear a vest, so it works great - for me.

Interesting...I ended up paying $75 to get a refurbished 305 when mine died this fall.

I kept my Garmin, so I still have the option of doing that too.
And I may do that when I don't want to run with a phone - of course, now Susie would kill me if I did not carry.
In case I fell.

charles.moman wrote:I kept my Garmin, so I still have the option of doing that too.
And I may do that when I don't want to run with a phone - of course, now Susie would kill me if I did not carry.
In case I fell.

I opted for the free referb even though my watch was out of warranty. Did you at least call them?

It still holds a 2 hour or more charge, so I was thinking about giving to a friend at church.
I may call them anyway, but there is a standard charge.
My friend would love it and he does not do huge miles.

There is a standard charge, but Garmin has been known to waive that charge.

Jim Lentz wrote:There is a standard charge, but Garmin has been known to waive that charge.

Dang, I couldn't get them to waive the charge for me

The support page says a flat $79. My 305 is over 3 years old - way way out of warranty.

charles.moman wrote:The support page says a flat $79. My 305 is over 3 years old - way way out of warranty.

My watch was way out of warranty too and they replaced it with a referb free of charge. All I'm saying is that you should call them.

The last time I used it, I think it lasted for 3-4 hours.
I gave it to a fellow guitar player - he is a runner, but only does 4-5miles a day normally around Columbus.
Last fall he did his first half marathon and I don't think he cares about going longer.
I told him we could send it in if he wanted to pay for it, but he is very happy with it.