Garmin Forerunner 101

The Garmin Forerunner 101 is not as sleek or sexy as the Garmin Forerunner 405, but it will save you hundreds of dollars and it's still a GPS watch; that means it can track distance and pace accurately. The Garmin Forerunner 405 gets better ratings overall, but reviews indicate that you shouldn't overlook the Garmin Forerunner 101 if you're on a budget -- it's a great value, even if it is somewhat big and bulky. The Garmin Forerunner 101 uses a long, wide display -- the watch's width is 3.26 inches, compared with only 1.88 inches for the Garmin Forerunner 405. Still, this watch tracks much of the same data, including pace, distance, time and calories, and it also includes the popular virtual partner training tool. Reviewers say the GPS is very accurate, although the satellite signal has a tendency to flake out near tall buildings or under dense tree cover. Unlike other Forerunner GPS watches, the Garmin Forerunner 101 uses two AAA batteries instead of a rechargeable battery, although some owners prefer that setup. In addition, you can't upload your workout data to a computer with the Garmin Forerunner 101, but it does store up to two years of data in the internal memory. If you want the ability to track your progress using Garmin's online software (which is now available for both PCs and Macs), the Garmin Forerunner 405 (*Est. $300) or Garmin Forerunner 305 (*Est. $180) are well-reviewed alternatives.

Because the Garmin Forerunner 101 has been around for years, it's not featured in many recent gear guides or professional publications. We found the best coverage at Amazon.com, where more than 100 customers rate and review the watch. Older reviews, in publications like Running Times and Time magazines, are also helpful in supplementing owner feedback.