[ Ссылка ] Differences in GPS measurement on sportwatches Apple Watch 5, Garmin Fenix 6 Saphir, Garmin 245 and Coros Pace. [ Ссылка ]
I started running with 4 new GPS sports watches (heart rate monitors) and you can see here which one is the most accurate. Is the Apple Watch 5 better than the more expensive Garmin Fenix 6?
GPS accuracy measurement in heart rate monitors
What is the most accurate GPS watch? is a frequently asked question to me. So it was high time for a run with many GPS watches on my wrist. Thanks to running buddies Aart, Alfons and Bas you can see here the result with 4 colored lines on a Google maps map.
We went running up and down the mountain with 4 friends, about 500 meters and a distance of about 15 kilometers. There is 1 big reservation: The setting of the Fenix 6 was on Smart recording and not on seconds. He had been more accurate by the second. Still, Garmin chooses to set the default setting to Smart recording.
accuracy GPS watches
accuracy GPS watches
This cannot be changed manually for the other heart rate monitors.
The heart rate monitors are:
–Garmin 245
–Garmin Fenix 6
–Apple Watch 5
–Coros Pace
The chipsets in the GPS watches plus the software in the heart rate monitor itself determines the accuracy of these watches.
Measuring conditions
We wanted to do a test that was as fair as possible so we walked a nice route with the heart rate monitors "in the open air" / not under a jacket or gloves. It was also a quiet route without a lot of traffic and we did not walk under power lines.
We sometimes walked through a forest but the road was never overgrown by forests.
What is the most accurate GPS watch?
We also didn't walk through tunnels and such. It rained throughout the course and the temperature was 13 degrees. We were at an altitude of 1250 meters in Switzerland and walked through the Alps.
GPS chipset
The GPS chipsets in the watches are often made by other companies. This is how Vacancell and Sony make GPS chipsets. This development continues, so that an older watch (with an often older chipset) should in principle be less accurate. The Garmin Fenix 6 and Apple Watch 5 are the latest heart rate monitors, while the Coros Pace has been around for 5 years (and is the cheapest at 230 euros). The Garmin 245 is approximately 2 years old.
Measure accuracy
We have all 4 sport watches in the GPS test:
- Switched on at the same time
- Turned off at the same time
- Only done on my wrists (left: Apple watch 5 and Coros Pace and right: Garmin Fenix 6 and 245)
accuracy GPS watches
Rash
The result is striking because:
1) All heart rate monitors are pretty good at measuring GPS data and displaying the route taken on a Google Maps map (and therefore also on Strava, Runkeeper etc)
2) The measurements (the colored lines in the map) cross each other regularly, even though they were on my 2 wrists and we have not changed wrist or position
3) The Garmin 245 is at least as good in GPS measurement as the (almost 3 times as expensive and newer) Fenix 6
4) All models are sometimes a bit off. One moment the Garmin 245 measures the route very nicely, the other moment the Coros Pace and then again the Fenix 6 or the Watch 5 from Apple.
5) The Apple Watch 5 seems the most accurate, BUT:
6) 3 heart rate monitors measure 300 meters less than the Apple watch (namely 14.7 instead of 15.0 kilometers)
7) It is strange that the Apple watch measures some 300 meters more distance, despite the fact that the line most nicely follows the road. It is not the case that the other 3 heart rate monitors cut off the bends (which could explain that difference).
8) The Fenix 6 with this smart recording setting is not that accurate
9) The Coros Pace makes crazy leaps in the measurement
Conclusion
What can we conclude now?
If you buy a heart rate monitor that must properly measure the route, you can easily measure the route with all these models.
A difference of 300 meters over 15 kilometers. This difference of 2% is not large. Of course the test is continued with a measurement where the Garmin Fenix 6 is on the more accurate setting (second instead of Smart), but for the time being the Apple Watch 5 is the most striking in accuracy. This brand lives up to its name in the field of "wanting to be the best". With the almost 500 euros it is certainly not cheap, but can easily compete with the much-chosen Garmin models.
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