You do the running. Forerunner 245 Music does the thinking. This GPS smartwatch doesn’t just tell you where you ran. It tracks your stats, crunches the numbers and gets to know all about your performance, your running form, your training history and even your goals. All you need to focus on is putting one foot in front of the other.
GPS Running Smartwatch with Advanced Training Features
Let the Music Play
If you can’t run without the perfect playlist, you won’t be able to run without Forerunner 245 Music. Sync your carefully crafted playlists from select music streaming services¹ — such as Deezer and Spotify — to your watch for ad-free listening. You can even store up to 500 songs right on your watch. It’s easy to transfer music from your computer and then queue up your favorite playlist for easy listening through headphones enabled with Bluetooth technology.
Was looking for my 1st Garmin as I got more serious about marathon training, staff were super helpful and I found what I was after.
Upgraded from an older Garmin and I love it! The music feature is very convenient.
I moved up from the Garmin 235 when the 245 Music came in and so far so good. Basically, the watch just works (if you're used to using a Garmin).
A lot has been made about all the extra stats and whatnot now available on the 245 and yeah, they're all there, and yeah, I ignore them. 90% of my runs are based on heart rate, that's what I really need to know, and the monitor works (and seems to work well). It would have been nice if the screen configurations from my 235 ported over to the 245, so I wouldn't have had to reconfigure my run and cycling screens (can anyone really read the info on a 3 data field screen), but that's Garmin.
Speaking of which, creating a workout and getting it reliably onto your phone still sucks.
Now, for the music part. If you're a Spotify subscriber, you're good. You create playlists on your computer and then upload them to your watch, and it works pretty well. I haven't tried Spotify podcasts, because I don't use Spotify for podcasts. I might have to switch, though, or bug Pocketcast into making a Garmin app.
Overall, I think this watch is a good upgrade. Is it worth over $500 after tax? Ehhhhh...I don't know. I sold my 235 and called in a debt to cover most of the price, but if I hadn't, I'm not sure if you aren't better off with a Forerunner 235 and an old iPod Shuffle.
