Okay, so I’ve been meaning to upgrade my running watch for a while, and I finally narrowed it down to the Coros Pace 2 and the Pace 3. I’m a pretty avid runner, hitting the pavement maybe 4-5 times a week, and I like to track my stats – you know, pace, distance, heart rate, all that jazz. My old watch was starting to feel a bit… ancient.
First, I grabbed both watches. Seriously, I went to a store and held them. The Pace 2, I already knew, was super light. Like, ridiculously light. The Pace 3? Also crazy light! They both felt like practically nothing on my wrist, which is a huge plus for me. I hate feeling weighed down when I’m trying to hit a new PR.
The Setup Struggle
Next, I charged them both up. Pretty standard stuff there. Then came the slightly annoying part – setting them up with the Coros app. It wasn’t hard, but it took a little fiddling. I had to pair each watch individually, download some updates, and customize the data screens to show exactly what I wanted. I prefer to see my current pace, elapsed time, and heart rate all on one screen. Took a bit of button-mashing, but I got there.
Hitting the Road
Then, the real test: I took them both out for a run. One on each wrist. Yeah, I probably looked a little ridiculous, but hey, gotta get that data, right? I did a couple of shorter runs, a tempo run, and even a longer, slower run to really see how they performed in different situations.
- Display: The Pace 3’s screen is slightly bigger and a touch crisper. It’s not a massive difference, but it was noticeable, especially in bright sunlight.
- GPS: Both watches locked onto a GPS signal pretty quickly. I didn’t notice any significant differences in accuracy between the two. They both tracked my routes perfectly.
- Heart Rate: The optical heart rate sensors on both seemed pretty accurate. I compared them to my chest strap (which I trust more), and they were generally within a few beats per minute of each other.
- Battery Life: Coros boasts about the battery life on these things, and they weren’t kidding. Even with daily runs and GPS usage, I was easily getting multiple days out of both watches before needing a recharge.
- New features of Pace3: I tried to use a music control function. I had to download some music for testing purposes. The touchscreen made this a bit easier.
The Verdict (For Me)
Honestly, after all that testing, it was a tough call. Both watches are fantastic. But, for me, the slightly improved screen and the touch screen option and the new feature of music control on the Pace 3 were enough to make it the winner. If you’re on a super tight budget, the Pace 2 is still an amazing value, but I decided to splurge a little. So, I packed the Pace 2 back up and returned it. Pace 3 is my new running buddy!