Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Resolved Any runs on series 4?
- Thread starter Fthree
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Hmm im having second thoughts after reading this tread and this review: https://www.techradar.com/reviews/apple-watch-4-review/5
Love using spotify on my runs and paying 50% less with student discount seems better than apple music.
Will this watch be for me? My primary use will be for fitness, and if it tracks less accurate than my iPhone it seems very expensive for a glorified HR monitor.
Love using spotify on my runs and paying 50% less with student discount seems better than apple music.
Will this watch be for me? My primary use will be for fitness, and if it tracks less accurate than my iPhone it seems very expensive for a glorified HR monitor.
RunGap is your solution to pull from health and sync to Strava, Garmin Connect, or just about anything else. I use it to sync to Garmin since most of my activities are Garmin tracked.
Thank you! I’m looking for the option to sync it to Garmin connect. Seems like they only give Strava, training peaks, and a few others but not Garmin? (Thanks)
[doublepost=1537706982][/doublepost]
I too love Strava but when I opened the Apple Music app they gave me the option to get the student discount as well ($4.99) it’s a bit of a learning curve but Apple Music hasn’t been bad yet.
[doublepost=1537707208][/doublepost]
So ran again this am, long run today -16ish milesFor whatever reason the Apple Watch paused right after I started running and I didn’t notice until I was about .21 into the run (Garmin was recording also)
It is worth noting however that after the run I had 63% battery left on the AW. I was using cellular, GPS with Apple Music on the whole time.
[doublepost=1537707342][/doublepost]
Thanks you! I’m looking for the option to sync it to Garmin connect. Seems like they only give Strava, training peaks, and a few others but not Garmin? (Thanks)
[doublepost=1537706982][/doublepost]
I too love Strava but when I opened the Apple Music app they gave me the option to get the student discount as well ($4.99) it’s a bit of a learning curve but Apple Music hasn’t been bad yet.
[doublepost=1537707208][/doublepost]
For whatever reason the Apple Watch paused right after I started running and I didn’t notice until I was about .21 into the run (Garmin was recording also)
Last edited:
Highly suggest purchasing iSmoothRun if you intend to use the AW seriously for running. Much more customizable and directly exports to many services including Strava and Garmin.
Distance accuracy is fine on the AW despite the differences in tracks between it and Garmin. It is very repeatable, just a bit different than what Garmin measures, but I've done many certified courses where the AW was closer on total distance than those using Garmin. If you really want accurate distance and pacing, you need a Stryd footpod (which iSmoothRun supports).
Distance accuracy is fine on the AW despite the differences in tracks between it and Garmin. It is very repeatable, just a bit different than what Garmin measures, but I've done many certified courses where the AW was closer on total distance than those using Garmin. If you really want accurate distance and pacing, you need a Stryd footpod (which iSmoothRun supports).
You can export as a .fit file and then manually upload to Garmin Connect, not ideal but possible.
Is your Watch also set up for cellular? Just wondering if that might be adding to your smooth results?
Just a quick update. I ran a marathon last Sunday with the AW4. It took me just over 4 hours and I played music and had Bluetooth, gps, and cellular on and still had about 26% battery life left at the end. I wore my AW4 and my Fenix 5 during the run and the aw actually registered me @27.14 miles while the Garmin was 29.27 (of course we all know a marathon is 26.2 miles) the aw actually was closer to my distance. I am very pleased with how the aw performed.
Was that a Fenix 5 or 5 Plus?
I’m still using my Fenix for running primarilary for the alway-on screen. I’m not necessarily that fast – I’m a 3:25 marathoner – but I find it really difficult to pace myself with the Apple Watch’s screen.
Stryd sounds pretty interesting - do you know what other apps support it on the watch outside of their own?
you are fast.
It is a Fenix 5. I do not run with the AW screen always on. I just really kind of know my pace and how fast I should be going and check it periodically.
[doublepost=1539440155][/doublepost]
I did not have my phone. which made me kind of nervous and at the mercy of the AW because there were 45000 other runners and it would have been almost impossible to meet up with my wife at the end without being able to call her. It is worth noting however that I used a playlist that I had downloaded to the watch (From apple music) and did not rely on the cellular streaming data for that. Seeing texts come through and having free hands throughout the marathon was AMAZING. I typically finish in the <4:18 hr timeframe and can see that if you are pressing more to the 5/6 hour time you may have battery issues.
Well done! If it was a proper event then the Apple Watch distance looks good as you are always going to run more than 26.2mi as measured by the organisers because it's unlikely you would run a perfect line the whole way.
DEF!!!! dodging and weaving and not doing the corners exact end up adding to the course! so Id say that the AW4 was a lot closer
[doublepost=1539441545][/doublepost]
I think this is why the distance was so accurate (and you probably had a good GPS track, too). I've found in the past that when the AW pulls GPS from the phone the GPS can be less accurate depending on where you store your phone while running. I keep mine in a belt at the base of my back under my shirt and I get better GPS from the watch than from the phone. This was true for me with Series 3 as well.
But it's great news that the AW lasted the entire race. That's encouraging![/QUOTE]
Yes!!! I am a little doubtful that one could use cellular, blue tooth, GPS and music the whole time if they are anticipating 5/6 hour race time however.
I am especially super happy about it because I bought the watch about 2.5 weeks from the marathon in hopes I could give it a good trial before. It seemed great on the training runs leading up to the marathon so on a whim I decided to trust it and go over my return window. GLAD it paid off!
I've had my S4 watch for a couple of weeks and have been trying very hard to stop using my Fenix 5+. While I think the GPS is more accurate, heart rate and cadence is equal, I really miss the advanced information provided by Garmin. Training Status, Lactate Threshold and Training Effect are such good indicators of how your training is going. Currently HealthFit is feeding Strava but while it shows my Relative Effort is just below "average', Garmin is saying I've been "Unproductive" - which I have been pushing my runs too hard.
It would be IDEAL if Apple just partnered with Firstbeat on the activity side of what the watch collects. It would make it the ultimate fitness device for anything under 6 hours long OR Garmin allow data to be feed by Apple Heath and display it like it came off their watch
Point is the S4 does a great job of recording your run, playing music/podcasts/audible books......
It would be IDEAL if Apple just partnered with Firstbeat on the activity side of what the watch collects. It would make it the ultimate fitness device for anything under 6 hours long OR Garmin allow data to be feed by Apple Heath and display it like it came off their watch
Point is the S4 does a great job of recording your run, playing music/podcasts/audible books......
Just finished an 18 mile training run in 2:45 hours. Drained 67% of the battery, which was a bit higher than I would have liked.
Ran with LTE, Bluetooth headphones connected to music (but already downloaded onto the watch, so no streaming), GPS and no connection to the phone.
By my rough calculation, I’d drain about 98% of the battery running a 4 hour marathon. Not great, but another reason to hold onto a Garmin (or run with a phone).
Ran with LTE, Bluetooth headphones connected to music (but already downloaded onto the watch, so no streaming), GPS and no connection to the phone.
By my rough calculation, I’d drain about 98% of the battery running a 4 hour marathon. Not great, but another reason to hold onto a Garmin (or run with a phone).
I've had my S4 watch for a couple of weeks and have been trying very hard to stop using my Fenix 5+. While I think the GPS is more accurate, heart rate and cadence is equal, I really miss the advanced information provided by Garmin. Training Status, Lactate Threshold and Training Effect are such good indicators of how your training is going. Currently HealthFit is feeding Strava but while it shows my Relative Effort is just below "average', Garmin is saying I've been "Unproductive" - which I have been pushing my runs too hard.
It would be IDEAL if Apple just partnered with Firstbeat on the activity side of what the watch collects. It would make it the ultimate fitness device for anything under 6 hours long OR Garmin allow data to be feed by Apple Heath and display it like it came off their watch
Point is the S4 does a great job of recording your run, playing music/podcasts/audible books......
Yes, the AW is very much a 'jack of all trades' for me and convenience has won over, apple pay/dictating texts/music/podcasts/great swim tracking. I picked up an S3 to try last Jan and have stuck with it but I would love the advanced analytics of Firstbeat when it comes to fitness (I do a lot of endurance and need a to be told when to rest). The alternative is to get a FUGLY Garmin Fenix but the new plus with music is stupid money and I think it looks so FUGLY to me, did I mention how FUGLY it looks.
Looks are subjective. I have the 5+ Titanium and think it looks much better than the AW 4. The only reason I’m drawn to the AW is for the better notifications and apps. It’s quite an unattractive watch otherwise in my opinion.
Haha of course it's subjective, I'm just messing around. I just don't like those 'man-bloke' style watches, I have a £5K Brietling my dad gave to me as an heir loom, never worn it, never will, it will stay in a drawer, not my thing. I happen to like the AW, reminds me of an old 70s Pulsar, retro cool.
I do think the F5+ is overpriced though.
I have a stryd foot pod which I've used with my Fenix 3 with great success. I tried Ismoothrun with my series 0 but had no success at all. The stryd appeared to pair but didn't record distance. Didn't get any heart rate either.
My series 4 should arrive this week so I'll give it a try with that. I have to say for me any run app that doesn't sync to strava/training peaks etc isn't worth while.
The only thing I'm really wanting now is a Spotify app.
Interesting. Just out of curiosity did you shut off the WiFi? (Not that that would matter a whole lot) I know when i did a 16 I had about 64% left.
[doublepost=1539554938][/doublepost]I have a garmin footpod and running dynamics pod. Over the last couple years I’ve found them to kind of be gimmicky as they give me information about things I really cannot change Much anyway. The footpod was great for the treadmill however the AW seems to do great at that as well.
Agreed! I got it discounted, but it's still overpriced.
It's like the AW SS/SB now – unjustifiably expensive given that less expensive options do the same thing. It's like Apple and Garmin are working off the same pricing memo.
[doublepost=1539555287][/doublepost]
I thought I did, but noticed it was back on during a water break. I'm going to attribute some of the battery drain to having a less than optimal cell signal where I ran today. There are a few spots that drop to 4G (not LTE) so I'm assuming that was a bit of a drain.
I don't have any intention of training or racing with the AW – I like an always-on screen while running and I use a calibrated Stryd, which I can only use uncalibrated on the AW – but I think it makes for a good enough backup for easy runs, or even long runs where keeping to a pace range isn't critical.