Review: Garmin Forerunner 310XT
I’ve been using the Garmin Forerunner 310XT for almost two months now, so it’s time for a review. Before the 310XT, I had the 405CX, which I also reviewed. I was mostly happy with the 405CX, although at times the bezel system was a bit irritating and the 8h battery life wasn’t quite enough for hill walking. These weren’t the reasons for changing into 310XT though. The reason was that after about six months, the unit became rather unreliable: the battery sometimes lasted only a couple of hours and it died on me on a few long runs. I sent the unit to Garmin and they were happy to send me a replacement. However, I took the opportunity to get some more battery life, so I sold the 405CX and bought a brand new 310XT. A new unit with a heart rate monitor goes for around £230.
Most of the good things I said about the 405CX in my review apply to the 310XT as well, so I will focus on their differences in this review. The 310XT is aimed especially at triathletes, so it’s water-resistant. I haven’t taken it to the pool or on bike rides myself though, as I’m really just a runner at the moment. Having said that, I think I’ve already reached a stage in my training where I’d like to introduce something else than running. I could just go to the gym I guess, but the idea of some day completing an Ironman race has creeped into my mind… Well, the 310XT would certainly be the perfect partner for that, but I think that there will be new technology in the market by the time I would actually be able to pull it off!
Here is a little comparison of the 405CX and the 310XT:
Garmin Forerunner 310XT
310XT’s benefits over 405CX:
- Longer battery life (20h vs. 8h reported).
- Water-resistant to 50m.
- Better user interface (buttons instead of bezel).
- Each training display fits four data fields (three in 405CX).
- New data fields, such as realtime height gain and height loss (useful for those hikes).
- Bigger & better display.
- Slightly more comfortable heart rate monitor, although you can use the same with 405CX if you buy it separately.
405CX’s benefits over 310XT:
- Smaller and lighter, and also better design.
- You get an extra wrist band with the unit; I liked the velcro wrist band.
- Can be used as a watch, as the time is visible in stand by mode as well.
- More comfortable to wear.
I would say that the benefits of 310XT outweigh those of the 405CX. The prices of the units are pretty much the same, but I could see why some might prefer the less bulky look & feel of the 405CX. The basic functionality of the units is very similar; I haven’t really noticed any difference in terms of GPS accuracy or the features, except for the few added data fields and the map drawing function of the 310XT. Personally I value the long battery life of the 310XT, as well as the realtime height gain & loss data fields. These make the unit a nice companion on hill walks. I used it on my recent trip to the Dolomites (report of the trip here) and it was quite useful there. I could even use it two days in a row without charging it. Of course, the GPS is not very accurate for height gain and there were some glitches, but for the most part it was within 10-20m of the height reported on the map.
I still feel that one of the greatest features of these Garmin products is the Garmin Connect site. I could continue using the same profile as I did with the 405CX by just adding the new device. The site was recently revamped and it does look rather nice. There is also a feature for correcting any glitches in height gain that might’ve occurred, so you’re sure to get accurate information at least when you upload it to Garmin Connect.
In summary, the 310XT is another great product from Garmin. I just hope that the battery holds up better than it did in my 405CX. However, having seen how good their customer service is, the year’s warranty that these units have is actually quite useful.
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