Transcription
Today, we're going to be running in seven different watches. Yeah, I don't think I've ever won this many, but we're doing it to find out which watch has the most accurate GPS data. Yeah, we picked watches from every major running brand. So, inhale, breath. We have the Coros Pace 3, we have the Kiprun GPS 900, we have the Polar Pace, the Apple Watch Ultra 2, we've got the Suunto Race, the Fitbit Versa 4, and the Garmin Forerunner 965. And we're going to be testing them in a few different locations: in the high-rise buildings of London, out on the trails, and then finally in a race situation. Let's find out who wins. Let's get stuck in.
Okay, so we've got the trundle wheel, and we need to measure exactly 1.69 miles, as that is an exact mile, which is a long way to be walking with this thing. But we've come to the busiest, loudest place to film to properly show how it is to be in an urban environment recording a run. World's fastest mile coming up.
Okay, so we've just measured out our 1-mile course using a trundle wheel, or measuring wheel as it's known. Yeah, so now it's time to actually get the GPS started for these watches. Ready? 3, 2, 1, go. Okay, Garmin is on. GPS is found. Fitbit is on. Unlock. Coros run, run. Finding it. Suunto acquiring GPS signal. Measuring heart rate. Wait in place. Okay. Oh, one of them just found. That's the Coros has just found it. Okay. Suunto's got it now. And Apple Watch has found. So Apple Watch found it immediately, as it's really good with that. So Kiprun watch has just found. So Polar is still, still waiting for it. This is only have one of those like awkward conversations with your running buddy, isn't it? Yeah. So what about this weather? See that? Oh, it's got GPS. Quick. I'm still waiting. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh. Connected. Okay, connecting, connecting, connecting. Go.
So, first up, James, let's go through what actually is GPS. Well, GPS stands for Global Positioning System, and it helps you calculate so many things like route, distance, speed, and elevation changes. Yeah, so it's made up of 30-plus satellites orbiting the Earth, and it works to find your exact location by calculating its distance from four or more of these satellites. They're actually similar tracking systems, similar to GPS. There's a system called Global Navigation Satellite System, GNSS, that includes GPS, but also GLONASS and Galileo. So technically, although most people generically refer to GPS, you could actually be using the other satellite systems for more accuracy. Yeah, most watches allow you to choose which mode, but we've decided to leave ours to auto mode for this test, which we'll explain more in a bit. Accuracy can be affected by things such as physical obstructions, atmospheric or artificial interference, which is why we are testing out the watches in a range of settings, including this built-up concrete one.
Okay, very interesting. Yeah. Do you want to go through yours first? Okay, so the Coros watch: exactly 1 mile. Nice. The Kiprun watch: also exactly 1 mile. The Polar watch: 1.01 miles, only just out. And the Apple Watch: exactly a mile. So they're all spot on, except for the Polar, only a little bit out, which is not what I thought. Yeah, I was expecting much more with high-rise buildings. But I did get a little bit of discrepancy between mine. So the Suunto: 1.01. Okay. Garmin: exactly a mile. Um, the Fitbit: 1.12. And what's interesting is that the Fitbit will vibrate whether you have GPS or you don't have GPS, and it was constantly vibrating. So actually, considering that for about 50% of that, I didn't have GPS, just the fact it's got it, it's pretty close. Um, this is probably something where I'd want to do another test to see kind of whether it would be more accurate. I know I've previously had Fitbits where it works so much better when it's connected to your phone. But if you want something that's constantly reliable, this is not done well so far. Not so good. No, but let's see how they fare on the trails. Yeah.
Okay, test number two: the measured mile on the trail. So we've come to the trails to see how much interference there is in nature when you go on a more scenic run. Yep. So exact same test. We're going to go measure it with a trundle wheel and then run it. See which is closest. Let's go. It is way harder on trail. Mmm. Yeah, I've given you no help for. Okay, we're 98, 99. Here now. Let's run back and see what's the most accurate. I know this has absolutely zero bearing, but I'm just trying to. Oh, my pace is 9.99 minutes. Oh, God. Fitbit's not, not having a great day. Let's go.
There could be GPS interference on the trail routes, as there are more objects which could block the GPS signal. High tree coverage may cause an error in GPS signal or mean there is no signal at all. There's also the possibility of GPS signals bouncing off large surfaces such as large rocks, which would increase travel time, causing errors. However, some high-spec watches can still track signals even with a lot of interference. If you leave it on auto mode, it will use the best mode for the environment, but you could also change it to dual frequency if you aren't needing to save battery life and can focus on accuracy. This means that it will use multiple frequency bands, which can help in more built-up areas such as this, or a more wooded area, or other tricky environments.
Okay, and stop the watches. It's quite a big task. Okay, watches stopped now. Let's compare the scores. Okay, so Apple Watch Ultra: 0.98 miles, so just a tiny bit short. And then the Kiprun watch is at 0.99, so again, super close. The Coros: very annoying to be short though. Yeah, very annoying to be short. Coros is 0.98, so that's the shortest of this bunch. Interesting. And then the best is the Polar watch, so 0.99 miles, so just tiny bit short. So none of them are, none of yours tipped over to a mile. Well, in comparison, Suunto: exactly a mile, so very good. Similar with the Garmin: exactly a mile. And then the Fitbit: not far behind, 0.97. Okay, so that was the most short of all of them. Yeah, but they're pretty bang on for a trail run, that's quite impressive. Yeah.
Okay, so the Garmin and the Suunto have come out on top in the trail test, but there is one final test to go: the race. D-dun-dun.
Okay, so here we are. The final test of the day, which is a 5K race around one of the busiest parks in London. So usually for a bigger race, you would be following the racing line, but because we're a slightly smaller race, that racing line doesn't exist lined on the ground. But we have measured it out with our trusty trundle wheel, and we're going to follow that route as closely as possible, and as closely as possible to each other, to make sure the test is as accurate as possible. And the race route is measured at 3.18 miles. Yeah, bear in mind though, that if, if you do end up weaving a lot within a race, then the longer distance shown on your watch at the end will reflect the fact that you've run longer, not down to GPS inaccuracy.
Okay, it's race time. The watches are ready to go. We've set them all up. They're about to start us off. We're only for a 30-minute 5K, which is lovely. It's very warm. It's very warm. And as you can see, there is no one behind us. Everyone we're going. Oh my God. It's so much. A helpful way to monitor how accurate your distance is in a race is to follow the kilometer or mile markers. And these are mapped out specifically. If you turn off your auto-lap, you could also press lap on these markers to track more accurately, especially in a longer race like a marathon. But remember, the smaller races may not be as accurate, as they're often tied to the nearest lamppost instead of exactly where the mile is. This is a good environment to do it because if you've ever done a race in Battersea Park, you will know that it's not famous for GPS. Oh, what a finish. Yeah, we're going to duck under 27 minutes. Oh, nice. Finishing 26 times. That was wham. That was one.
Should we compare distances now? I feel like you need to go first with the some of the scores I've got. Okay, right. So starting off with the Fitbit: 3.13. What we were aiming for is 3.18. So actually, that's pretty good. Then the Suunto: 3.16, so a little bit closer. Garmin was just telling me my max heart rate is adjusted. That's always good. Garmin was 3.14, so again, like, super close. You have a very different experience. Yeah. So let's start off with the Coros: is 3.12, so again, pretty close. The Apple Watch: 3.11, pretty close. But then the Kiprun watch is 2 miles [Music] and 63. Wow. But the Polar is 2.32 miles. So there must have been something that's gone wrong with the GPS there because that is way beyond what you would expect from any kind of GPS watch. But the fact that it has struggled is pretty surprising, considering how well it's done in another race in the other test so far. Yeah, so gutting for the Polar. So it was the Suunto that came out top in that final test. But who's the overall winner?
Before we do that, let us know in the comments down below, do you use a GPS watch? Do you take on a race? And do you use the auto-lap feature at every kilometer, or do you just let the GPS watch do the whole tracking? Let us know. I was actually so impressed at how close most of the watches were to our measured line. But it was also interesting to see that the different watches performed better or worse in different environments. Lots more of the watches were slightly less accurate on the trails. So if you are big into your trail running, you might want to look if your watch has a high accuracy setting if you're worried about the distance being correct. Bear in mind though, that this will affect the battery life. All of the watches we tested today are from the leading brands out there and are the best all-rounder running watch from those brands. Most of them have watches at higher price points that may be better in trickier environments. So let us know if you want us to test any others out.
The Fitbit Versa 4, despite being slightly off for some of the distances, is the cheapest of the watches we've tested and is part of Fitbit's lifestyle range. Considering the price point for this, it held up pretty well in vigorous testing. I was also really surprised at how much the Kiprun and Polar watches lagged behind in the 5K race, but this highlights how it might be more useful in a race to use official markings and have your watch as more of a stock watch. I found it really surprising how different each layout of the watches are. If you get a new watch, definitely make sure you've played around with it and been out for a few runs with it before doing a big event, as all the buttons, sticks, are getting used to, and every watch is different. I love how the Apple Watch asks if you're doing an activity when it detects that movement. And the overall winner was a tie. Both the Suunto and the Garmin came up top, winning two tests each. Would you like us to do this test over a longer distance? We did 5K, we've done a couple of miles. Would you like to see us do a half marathon? James is volunteering to run a marathon. I'm not. But let us know what you want us to do in the comments. And let us know what is your favorite watch. And if you want to see me training for a 10K using that watch, go and watch the video up here. And I'm going to go lie on the ground. I'm tired.