Garmin Forerunner 45S GPS Running Watch with Garmin Coach
Garmin Forerunner 45S GPS Running Watch with Garmin Coach Training Plan Support, Bluish lilac (Iris), Small
Forerunner 45S39.5 x 39.5 x 11.4 mm Fits wrists with a circumerence of 124-185 mm
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| Dimensions: | 1.14 x 3.95 x 3.95 cm; 32 Grams |
| Model: | 010-02156-11 |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium Polymer batteries required. (included) |
| Manufacture: | Garmin |
| Department: | unisex |
| Dimensions: | 1.14 x 3.95 x 3.95 cm; 32 Grams |
| Origin: | China |
Love how it looks very stylish
Still learning new things about it. Seems to have loads of features.
Does everything I need, not too big on the wrist, very functional
I’ve owned a few forerunners and bought this new after being disappointed with the battery life of a renovated version of a different model, which died after half-marathon distance. This Forerunner 45 has easily coped with four hours of marathon training and still been going strong for runs on subsequent days before requiring a recharge. The sleep tracking function seems to be pretty reliable, detecting if I wake in the night. Very lightweight and stylish too.
Not disappointed at all with this purchase. Wish I had bought a Garmin sooner rather than waste money on cheaper fit watches.
Easy to use, no problems with anything it does, app is clear and informative.
This is a well built watch by Garmin, unfortunately mine developed a software issue within a few days, therefore I returned it to Amazon and purchased the Motorola at a slightly cheaper price. I’ve always liked Garmin forerunner watches as they have plenty of functions. Also the Garmin mobile app is better than others, it is very clear and easy to see your activity data. Would highly recommend this watch for the runner or for those attending gym classes. Nice looking watch which goes smartly with any attire.
I only use this watch for running because the 3G on my Apple Watch was poor. I’ve been using it for a year – It’s a good watch, GPS is accurate.
I bought this to use mainly for walking, with the occasional run, as my old Garmin, at over 15 years old, was showing its age. The watch is light and no trouble to wear, with a soft rubbery strap that has plenty of adjustment to suit most wrists. It has its own special charger lead, which is short and with a connection I’ve never seen before. It charges pretty quickly, and lasts 10 hours or so with GPS on (I haven’t timed it exactly). There is a battery indicator available on the watch. When switched on, you can start and select from a number of activities (activities can be added or removed in the app). It finds GPS pretty quickly. I only use the time elapsed/distance covered/pace functions, which all clearly show on the face when running. The session can be paused, and is remembered if the watch is switched off. If you have the app, when a session is saved, it will transfer the data to your phone over Bluetooth. The app has a bewildering array of information that I don’t really use (I just like to know how far I’ve gone and my pace). There are many functions that I haven’t used, but for my requirements, it’s pretty good and easy to use. I’ve only given 4 stars as I would have liked the battery to last a bit longer.
More than enough features for my requirements. Started off with a basic requirements to record time/distance for walking/jogging activities. The basics needs more than covered. I now have a wealth of other information relating to my wellbeing throughout the day e.g. stress levels, heart rate, calories and so on. All presented via Garmin Connect. I’m sure there are many other features/facilities I’ve yet to discovered. I’m not a Smartphone user so no knowledge of connectivity with such devices.
Very happy with my Forerunner 45
There are a wide variety of watch faces available, but I find a watch with physical hands is much clearer and more attractive. I only wear the Garmin for sports activities turning it off most of the time, which means less frequent charging is necessary.
The Connect app and website is ok for basic information but is a bit limited. GoldenCheetah or the Python SDK might be better if you are serious.
Two years ago, I bought one of those cheap 29.99 “fitness watches” from China. OK they work (as a watch) and the pulse is fairly accurate but the distances tracked are way out (not GPS) In addition , I could not see the small face in anything other than darkness.
I needed a watch so I could keep an eye on my pace and time and distance without keep getting my phone out and looking at Strava so I bought a Garmin 45.
My aim concern being I need reading glasses, was being able to see the numbers on the go. I can confirm they are nice a big on the always on display.
The best thing is the App. So much data is available. The sleep tracker seems accurate, heart rate also. The GPS is more accurate than Strava in my opinion.
There are many features that I haven’t even begun to use yet.
The only question is why do people pay 200+ more for a more expensive Garmin?
Great watch, i use the HR monitor on the regular, helps me calm down when i used to get panic attacks or i think something is wrong with me, you get used to what your regular HR is so actually if i have overtrained or am ill i can tell and relax a bit more than usual.
Mainly use it to help me keep a steady pace and HR during runs tho, was key in the half marathon i did back in 2021, couldnt have done it without this for sure. And timing my daily 3-5k runs.
Also at work i use the timer for my lunch breaks and stuff, its really handy tbh. Good watch, good price. When it dies i will probably buy a more expensive Garmin watch, as they have proven themselves quality.
A good basic GPS watch, all I need for essential running stats and no unecessary frills or gimmicks. Recommended.
The only thing that I don’t like is the strap is VERY stretchy, so I often over tighten it. Apart from this, it’s an awesome product, definitely buy one.
I really loved purchasing the Garmin 45S watch. Excellent for running and compatible with Strava which is what I was looking for. Also has added features of heart rate monitoring and notifying when each mile passes! Definitely recommend.
For just over 100 this has seriously impressed me. Battery lasts a week, heart rate tracking is very accurate, the onboard GPS is incredible and the workout tracking is great. It even recalibrates itself after your first treadmill run so it tracks your ‘distance’ better. Comfortable to wear all day, waterproof, I’d have happily paid 50 more.
Came safely
Works aweome
Keep fit
Running
Swimming
Tracks yr sleep
Steps
Highly recomended
Appealing design, variety of features incl. VO2 max, easy to use, just not too convinced about overall accuracy. For example, the sleep function shows me as sleeping even when i haven’t been, only because I have been lying pretty still in bed. Also records steps sometimes when I am sittng down during a bumpy ride. I guess it’s OK for someone who isn’t obsessed 🙂
Battery life could be better, whilst it works as a pedometer, after a run / walk, the number of steps taken don’t appear to be saved.
It would be good if the gpx of a route could be downloaded.
Garmin user manuals are clear as mud.
I took some time before buying this as I was not sure I would have used it! But I’m glad I got it in the end as it’s been my personal catch for an half marathon!! If you want to beat you previous record you’ll definitely need a garmin. great value for money!
Great basic watch for tracking fitness and sleep.
Bought this as i wanted to get back into running. This does it and more. Has great training plans for 10k, half marathon etc. Started the half marathon training and ive stuck to it. Found it to be quite accurate on the step count. Sleep tracker and running distance also. Highly recommend if you want a good reliable watch. I find the battery life will last a week. Maybe 5 days with tracked activities thrown in. Customised watch faces when you download the store to go with it.
This if for the 45S, which fits perfectly on smaller wrists.
The GPS tracking compares well with my previous fitness tracker and the demarcations on my local running route. The sleep tracking seems to over estimate the amount of sleep I get but that’s ok. The one downside is the battery only lasts about 4 days.
Didn’t want a touch screen and the button menus are easy to use. It’s very comfortable to wear. I went for the small version because I have thin wrists
Sync’s easily with my phone and there’s a wealth of data provided in the Garmin Connect app.
Use this for my running and it’s useful for tracking my 5k runs, giving me alerts at each k so I can pace my run. Has lots of features and the Garmin data platform is excellent.
Only negative is the poor battery life. Have to charge after just a couple of runs.
You’ll need to start the gps well before your run and cross your fingers. I’ve got into a routine and it’s only once let me down.
Other than that I can’t fault it. When it’s on offer it’s worth it.
I really loved this watch – perfect for staying motivated through lockdown! Until recently I’d have given it five stars – battery life is decent, GPS track seems very accurate, not too big/weighty…. just seems to work well in use, giving all the information required. I love the fact that you can configure it to get help if it detects a heavy impact (actually happened to me once when I tripped and bashed my head into the ground). I was a bit dazed but it was ready to start messaging my configured emergency contacts with my location until I canceled it. Love the VO2 max measure of fitness also which is great for measuring progress!
HOWEVER, my Garmin Forerunner 45 is now two years old (I wear it all the time) but the strap mounting points at the top of the watch have now both broken off. One broke off first and predictably due to the extra load, the other shortly afterward. These are integral parts of the watch (cannot be replaced). I have had to glue the strap on with superglue, which seems to have worked fairly well, but it’s a bit of a poor show on a two year old watch. I am not a super athlete by any means – just slow, gentle running, so it’s not like it’s had a particularly tough life. From what I have read this seems to be a known issue with the watch, unfortunately…Just watch out for that.
Replaced my Vivoactive HR as water damaged after swimming ! New 45 seems in the main to be a Good replacement with some extra features and a better display. One issue is the battery indicator display isn’t very accurate. I run most days, 45 mins to 1 hours using gps. Heart monitor is always on. From fully charged the indicator drops to around 30% after just 24 hours. It then says at that level for 4 or so day’s and then I get the low warning. Ok, 5 days is about right when you include my GPS runs for the overall battery life between charges. The indicated battery level is however poor/ not accurate. note I contact the Gemini chat line to report this and basically got told to report it to “have an idea”. No option to replace or acknowledgment of the issue I raised. Poor service Garmi
Some of the reviews here will bemoan missing features compared to premium smartwatches, but if you’re looking for something to track your walking, running or cycling with GPS support, this will cover exactly what you need without breaking the bank.
From a lot of use it seems to be fairly accurate in what it says, and the Garmin app is good for tracking how things are going.
In terms of sizing, I went for the 45s as my wrists are quite small, and it’s by far the most comfortable lightweight smartwatch I’ve tried. If you’re looking at the 45 range due to similar concerns on comfort, you could be on to a winner here.
On the downside, I’d say the sleep tracking is quite poor when compared to fitbit’s equivalent, however I think it does everything else better!
I noticed Garmin have since released thj Forerunner 55, which may be worth a look as a similarly priced model with a few extra features bundled in.
This is my first expensive sports watch. My previous ones were 20 jobs which had a chest strap. I’ve always been a bit dubious about the HRM accuracy of wrist watches but this one seems ok. Its the HRM I’m mainly interested in, so that’s a tick. GPS will be used occassionally, sleep monitor also occassionally and on exercise days I’ll be using it as a watch. As a watch the screen is quite dark when inside – the attached picture is a good example. OK, so there’s a light but you don’t want to use a light just to read the time. Size. This is supposed to be LARGE but I wouldn’t call it large. Diameter is 40mm and live display is 26mm. This is not large. So I’m a bit dissappointed. Controls are a bit fidly but ok once remembered. Straps have always been a weak point with me (the rubber ones have never lasted very long) so it will be interesting to see how long this one lasts. Is this good value for money? Ask me in 6 months time.
This is my first Garmin watch that I got for running. I’m a new runner but love my tech so wanted to get this in order to keep me motivated. Really like the watch, the app is easy to use and had lost of customisation and data to look at. Especially for a relatively new runner. Not sure how accurate the sleep data is but GPS and heart rate info seems to be good. Watch is comfortable, only issue is I did get a sweat rash when wearing it 24/7 for a while. So I no longer wear it overnight, or at least change wrists every so often. May look into upgrading the strap sometime. Overall pleased and likely to stick with Garmin products in the future.
It’s great to wear on a daily basis and to keep track of everything: steps, vo2 max but also for workouts specifically. You can tailor which activities you use a lot to your watch, but also alter them on the app afterwards if you recorded it as something different (gym workouts are available on the watch to record but I record it as cardio and then switch it on the app).
I charge mine everyday whilst I’m in the shower for like 10mins which means I never run out of battery, but fine if I’ve done a long run/walk which uses a lot of battery for the gps, then I do have to charge it for longer. Generally the battery is really great though.
The gps is the only slight issue. If I’m running, I run with both my strava on my phone and my watch and there is a difference in the distances. If I go under a bridge it occasionally stops for a period of time and then restarts itself and generally, on a 10km, it will be around 500m behind my phone strava. Not a huge issue as I’m aware of the differences, but something just to note.
I’d say it’s more tailored to running but to be fair, I haven’t completely explored everything that’s available so I may be wrong with that!
The watch charges quickly and has a good uptime when not used to track and monitor runs which means it is not constantly on charge for daily use and can be worn for a few days without battery issues. It monitors and tracks the run very effectively and is very user friendly to get used it in no time. The menus are customisable so you can choose the widgets to be displayed as well as choosing new faces from the Garmin app to personalise it to your own preferences. It’s easy to read and the watch is comfortable to wear as the strap is quite soft and flexible, and having a “normal” face diameter so it doesn’t look huge on any wrist.
First the only negative.. If you’re expecting the screen to look as vibrant as the ones in the promotional images then you’re in for a bitter disappointment as the colours are dull and extremely washed out in comparison.
I contacted Garmin support regarding the first watch received and was advised to send it back get a replacement, which I did, but the screen on the replacement is exactly the same.. dull and washed out!
On the upside.. the watch is extremely comfortable to wear and works well. Heartbeat monitor is accurate as is the steps monitor and the GPS connects without much delay. I wanted the watch to track my bike rides, which it does flawlessly and connects to my Strava account seamlessly.
Initial setup to my phone & Garmin connect app was painless. The app itself is brilliant. It contains a wealth of information regarding your activities, sleep patterns etc.. and allows you to tweak your general watch settings and customize downloaded watch face settings.. It’s much better than the fitbit app and a damn site more reliable.
This is my first tracker and apart from the dull screen it does everything I need and has good battery life so overall I’m pretty pleased with the purchase. However I would advise that anyone purchasing the Forerunner 45 to also purchase a screen protector at the same time as the glass doesn’t look like it would take much to damage it.
Generally all seemed ok.
But if you search the web, you come across hiccups, I came across those too.
Sometimes it would not be connected to my phone, but appears it is. Wouldn’t sync.
Started to not or sometimes wouldn’t connect with my cadence sensor. Changed that and the battery.
No better
Turn watch off and on, all ok.
This became the norm turn watch off then on would connect with cadence and phone.
Sometimes move away from phone, wouldn’t then reconnect. I put up with this sketchy performance for a few months thinking it was just a thing.
Then it seemed to get worse
Sometimes watch just refused to turn on.
Finally contacted amazon and they did exchange the watch.
Wanted to upgrade but they couldn’t do that.
New watch arrived. Set up as required.
If you are using iOS do not use the phone to connect, only use the app.
This watch does behave differently, very differently to my other
But it works totally, I don’t have to turn it off
It always reconnects with my phone and when I go out of range it tells me
It tells me when I’m back in range.
It always connects to my cadence sensor
It always uploads my ride.
So I’m pleased with this watch now, I was annoyed with the other.
Honestly, I’ve never been so impressed with a product.
It is incredibly easy and intuitive to use. The app is brilliant (much better than FitBit) and the watch is controlled with buttons, not by swiping, which means it’s quick and easy to use when working out and sweaty.
The GPS connected almost straightaway after leaving the house (the Surge always took a minute or so, and the Charge 4 never connected). The mapping is super-accurate – even showed which side of the road I was running on, and the altitude tracking seems plausible, unlike the Surge.
There’s a choice of clock faces, so you can see pretty much anything you want all of the time. It always annoyed me that the Surge only showed the heart rate for a few seconds after swiping, but the Garmin shows it all of the time. Added to this it calculates VO2 Max and stress levels (I can’t vouch for the accuracy). Yeah, it’s great.
A great watch/sports tracker and once set up and linked with the app makes recording and tracking exercise so easy. With GPS installed it maps the runs and cycling easy.
The app and web dashboard are so much better than what Fitbit and Samsung offer.
Excellent battery life.
Reasonably priced.
Areas of improvement are:
– Sleep tracking. It has improved in the past year but the Fitbit I had two years ago was more accurate so Garmin is a little behind on that.
– Changing straps is a bit of a pain on this model. For some reason those little screws are difficult to put back in so consider that if you intend to change straps frequently.
– Decent watch faces are actually very few and you can’t customise the default one. I think Garmin should offer more options on that.
– Doesn’t recognise resistance training. I understand leaving more premium features for the expensive models but it should at least let you manually record the time spent training.
I love this watch. I use it for running and it’s great for that. Would have liked it to do aerobics and it has no downloadable apps in Garmin IQ other than watch faces. That was a disappointment because When I looked up about swimming and Garmin forerunner the web said it didn’t track but there was good swim app. Not for this forerunner so beware.A shame when it is fully waterproof. I’m not sure why it doesn’t. It’s gps is excellent and it’s pretty intuitive to use.
Unfortunately mine started to drain battery power really quickly and it had been amazing before that. Amazon customer support was outstanding though and I have my replacement no hassle. That is the only reason I give 4 stars in case the battery issue is a common thing but I’ve not seen anything to suggest that.
The only thing I don’t like (hence the 4/5 stars) is that it can take a fair while to find a GPS when I start it. It’s taken well over two minute sometimes, although there have been times when it’s quicker. And of course, it might just be where I live. But the reviews I read before I bought it (e.g. techradar) did warn me of this, so fair enough.
For its price it delivers decent amount of features enough for advanced amateur runner. The most important to me were:
* large digits
* bright backlight with hand gesture activation
* Garmin Connect synchronization (great app!)
Extra features I found useful but was not relying on them initially:
* phone notifications
* find my phone (within the range of BT connection, obviously)
* fully customizable data screens (data you see during an activity)
Cons so far:
* had 2-3 software updates which resets most of the settings to defaults (e.g. units default to miles, time to 12h format)
* one of the GPS software updates broke the fix acquisition, took 2-3 minutes (normally 10-20 seconds) – that was resolved by another update a week later.
* realistic battery life with 1-2 activities during the day is around 5 days
Surprisingly easy to use and navigate the menus once you’ve worked out what the buttons do. Becomes intuitive fairly quickly, especially given I’ve not had a smart watch before. Thought it would be complicated or clunky but was pleasantly surprised how user friendly it is!
The watch face is easy to read and the watch is comfortable to wear – I have slim wrists and the 45s is ideal in terms of the face diameter and the length of the strap – which is quite soft and flexible, not hard plastic.
Very customisable menus – you can choose which ‘widgets’ are displayed and in what order. There are quite a few watch faces to choose from on the Garmin app and you can easily make your own from a picture and upload it.
The app is great for tracking patterns in terms of sleep and exercise, planning workouts and using the Garmin coach – would definitely recommend. I didn’t realise my phone calendar could sync to my watch, which is surprisingly useful and easy to view.
I tend to leave the Bluetooth switched on on my phone to receive alerts for calls and notifications during the day, but don’t take my phone out running or in the gym, and just sync the watch when I’m done exercising, which works well, especially with the app to track things.
I found the step counter to be somewhat variable in terms of accuracy – but for running there are three different GPS options, so the accuracy there doesn’t seem to be any problem at all.
Given the watch cannot store music, it’s handy that you can control your music from the watch. I use Bluetooth headphones and Spotify on my phone and can use the basic music control functions from my watch at the same time, and also answer or ignore calls. I imagine having control from the watch is brilliant if you do take your phone out running.
I didn’t want to have a watch that stored music or could do contactless payments, so for an exercise oriented smart watch this is brilliant. I would definitely recommend it to anyone that wants a lower end / starter one – but it packs many more features than I expected for the price and certainly feels like a high end item.
Few odd observations that will hopefully be fixed in future software releases:
– Syncing to Strava has resulted in the elevation value being significantly over estimated (seems okay in Garmin Connect). Not sure if this is a Strava issue or a problem with the GPX data (Strava can correct the elevation if you choose it to).
– If you set Workout interval repetition to 0 then it looks if if the watch doesn’t deal with the datatype properly and displays a very large negative number on the second interval. Still works, but need fixing (see final image).
– A few of the custom watch faces are extremely cramped, and even the default Garmin ones aren’t very polished around the edge of the screen (some show a few rogue white space pixels around the circumference). See second image.
Overall though really happy with my purchase. The Garmin Connect app syncs everything seamlessly and (elevation issue aside) it syncs to Strava (and MapMyRun) without any problems.
UPDATE: Excessive elevation issue syncing to Strava appears to be fixed (01/06/2019)