Garmin is well-known for manufacturing excellent GPS-enabled running watches that come with rich set of features and deliver high performance. The mid-range running watches from the company, the Forerunner 220 and 210, proved to be excellent products just like their predecessors. In the following sections, we review the two watches briefly and compare their main features.
The Forerunner 220 succeeded the Forerunner 210 model. Garmin’s attempt at making a functional and easy-to-use running watch, was successful with the FR 210. But, the FR 220 is a more smart, sophisticated and good-looking watch. Most of the credit goes to its color screen with brilliant display that helps you read with little effort even under bright sunlight. Also, the built-in accelerometer shows your speed whether you are running outdoors or on your treadmill. On the other hand, the FR 210 was an improvement over the FR 110. It was a great mid-range running watch at the time of its release.
Battery Life
Both the watches come with rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. The FR 220’s battery lasts for 6 weeks in watch mode and 10 hours in training mode. The FR 210 has a battery life of 3 weeks in watch mode. When in training mode, the battery drains out in 8 hours. Clearly, the FR 220 is the winner, especially in the watch mode.
Connectivity
The FR 220 connects to other devices like smartphones (both Android and iOS) through Bluetooth while the FR 210 has no such feature, but it connects with a PC through a charging/data clip for transferring data. Both the variants have high-sensitivity receivers.
Display Technology
The FR 220 has a 1.0-inch diameter screen with a display resolution of 180 x 180 pixels while the FR 210’s screen is also of the same diameter, but the resolution is quite low at 52 x 30 pixels. Neither of the watches has a touch screen.
Other Features and Benefits
The FR 220 has the “silent alarm” feature which is not found in the other variant. This mechanism makes the watch vibrate instead of making sound when the alarm goes off. With this feature, only the person wearing the watch gets up from sleep without disturbing others sleeping in the room. The heart rate monitor and foot pod present in both the variants help tracking the pace, distance covered and the heart rate. Once you finish your run, the FR 220 provides a post-run summary which notifies if you crossed any of your previous records. This feature is not so powerful in the FR 210.
Garmin Connect
Both the variants are compatible with the Garmin Connect software through which one can store, analyze and share their workout data on social networks. It also helps to see the route traveled on a map, set new goals, etc. The FR 220 can automatically sync with the Garmin Connect Mobile App.
Aesthetic Appeal
Undoubtedly, the FR 220 is the better looking watch of the two variants. It also has a polished user-interface, thinner dimensions and a more comfortable, hinged strap that suits for all wrist-sizes.
Overall, in a comparison between Garmin Forerunner 220 Vs 210, the FR 220 beats the latter by a huge margin in all respects. Also, the FR 220 and FR 210 cost $250 and $207, respectively. So, just by paying an extra $43, buying the FR 220 would be a better choice – you can experience its rich feature set.
Related ItemsGarminGarmin Forerunner 210Garmin Forerunner 220
