Timex has a long standing reputation as one of the worlds leading watch brands. The Ironman T5F011 GPS watch is widely available for less than $200 so it should fit the budget of most fitness enthusiasts.
Features;
Unit size – similar to a conventional digital watch
GPS Unit – Separate from watch
Battery life – up to 2 years
Battery type – AA for GPS unit
Water resistant – to 50 meters except GPS unit is splash resistant
Heart rate monitor – Yes
Lap memory – 100
Waypoint – 100
Routes – 50
Warranty – 1 year
As with the previous Timex GPS Watch we reviewed this one also uses a separate unit for the GPS receiver. This receiver will ordinarily be strapped to the arm or waist when in use. The GPS receiver itself is only “splash resistant” which we think is a poor design feature for an outdoor fitness product. It would be much better if it were designed to be water resistant to 2 or 3 meters, or more.
The Timex GPS watch did obtain a signal reasonably quickly but the manual does recommend remaining stationary until a signal is obtained. The receiver did a good job with maintaining the signal when the receiver was worn on the arm. Tree cover was a factor once it became moderately dense but in most cases performance was acceptable.
Accuracy was measured against a known distance and the results were almost identical. We also tested the speed and distance readout with other GPS devices and found the accuracy to be good. Given the intended use the unit is more than accurate enough.
The heart rate monitor also performed well and would be a valuable feature for a GPS training watch. In fact, given the low price we cannot make any good argument for not having the heart rate monitor. Most fitness enthusiasts will definently want to have the ability to monitor thier heart rate when using a GPS watch.
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