Garmin 310xt - 4 weeks in...

Ok... I was one of the lucky ones to get my hands on this one early on.  (I love gadgets!!)  So, after about 4 weeks of using it, I thought I would post here on my experience.  (please realize, my S/N is 228, so with any new technology, there will be bugs...)

Why did I switch?  (I owned a 305)...  ANT+, Battery life and swim resistant.  It is basically the same unit other than those three aspects/features.  In the past, I had set it up on my bike, and wore a separate watch to keep overall time.

The Screen compared to the 305 is a bit clearer to read.  Not sure of the technical details here, but for me, a quick glance is all I need.  I have mine set up with 2 and 3 "box" screens with the top box always being the primary data point that I am looking for. 

Size - MUCH better and MUCH more comfortable than the 305... I can easily slip this one under my wetsuit, hit start and let it go... wetsuit slides right over it with no problems at all...   Band is a bit short for larger types... I have mine on the 4th set of holes and it is tight.

I used my old hr strap from the 305 and there were zero issues. 

I have used it for 4 races and here is where the bugs come in... one is clearly known as a "solution" is in the online support section on Garmin's website.   The first race was great... a Du and it tracked everything perfectly, uploaded perfectly and stored the information correctly.  However, races 2 & 3, both tri's, the data was there, but when I went to transfer the information (recorded in multisport mode), the data didn't show up and it was wiped from the Garmin device.  (slow learner, but now have the flag set to "don't delete" on the garmin device.

One of those races was a 1/2 distance where the detailed attributes of the race would have been valuable. 

I have also had, on two occasions, the issue come up that I mentioned was included in their online support.  That is, you push the power button, it turns on for about 4-6 seconds and then turns off.  Also, if you try to charge it, it goes through a continuous cycle of on and off.  The solution they put out there is to "Reset" the unit... where you hold the power and mode button down and everything is erased.  All workouts, all settings... everything is gone.    Like I said, I have had to do this twice now with the last one being after I got home from my race yesterday and went to download the data. 

Lastly, I have lost reception during a couple of runs where it was wide open to the sky... no clouds, no trees, no buildings. 

Overall, I love the functionality and the changes that they made to the unit.  I also understand the early adopter type of bugs are normal and they will likely get worked through with time.  Not sure if it is firmware or software updates that are needed to correct the issues. 

I will put updates here as I move forward.