Garmin
Garmin Forerunner 255 Music Running Watch

I've been wearing the Forerunner 255 for about 3 weeks now! I'm finally getting the hang of accessing all of the information being tracked and fine tuning all of the personal details. Would definitely recommend for the runner/athlete or average person looking to be more mindful of their health stats!

I have the watch about a month now, battery life is 8-9 days. I for the most part like the watch a lot, loaded with features. The one thing that I am unhappy with is that garmin does not let you manually input BMI information and will only use what the watch "guesses" your BMI to be. I track all aspects of my health and fitness and this seems ridiculous that garmin not only won't let you input your own data but inputs grossly inaccurate data of its own. I had dexa scan which showed my BMI of 13 however garmin inputs its BMI info on me as over 24% its laughable that it's that incorrect and pathetic that garmin won't let you use the more accurate data as this is a device that supposedly tracks health and fitness levels.

This watch replaces my 3rd Apple Watch - what kept me in the AW universe for so long was the ease of listening to Apple Music while working out, something you're not going to be able to do with the Garmin because Apple Music is protected...I almost returned the Garmin once I figured that out but after digging into & becoming more familiar with the health features of the Garmin I'm glad I didn't. The Garmin is data rich & more accurate than my AW which always gave me poor VO2 max readings & could never get my calorie count even close to other devices. I'm 66 yrs old & live by the Clint Eastwood motto of "don't let the old man in" by staying active. I don't run so I'll miss those features of this tool but it covers the other areas of my different work out routines & keeps me on point with my goals & I especially appreciate the much longer battery life, not having to recharge every day. If you're active, this is a great tool to keep you informed - the interface is not as slick as the AW but the learning curve is worth the effort.

I had an apple watch for a long time. Battery on the apple only lasted 2 days the Garmin goes for days. The app's are easy to use and the map on the watch is pretty cool. I got the watch because of my running habits and it keeps me in pace on my running. This is a watch to buy and the cost of it is great.

The watch is very beautiful, and very nice for the regular day.

For me personally, when I do my bike training, 95% of the time, the watch can't read my heart rate.

It's just stays around the 65 RHR doesn't matter how hard I work.

Wrist is always the most convenient HR monitor, the customizable faces and multi data field apps are great. Integration with Strava is very cool.

I haven't managed to figure out how to set long-term pace goals. The ability to set, mangae and work through custom programs for longterm goals would be a good addition. As would Apple Music integration.

Updated from a Garmin 245, and like the extra features.

I bought this in July 2023 and I'm still wearing it six months later. I love it and still gives me the most accurate data I would ever need. I ran a half marathon in it with the brightness at 100% with dual band frequency GPS on, and it only drained 13% battery life. Totally recommend it!!!

The Garmin Forerunner 255 is a great watch that you can tailor to your needs

I have owned plenty of watches in my life and this is absolutely the best one ever! I am so happy I made this purchase.

I can't believe the weather doesn't update without having an activity live. The treadmill calibration is off and I have to hit so many buttons before I get to simple functions like a timer. It's not very intuitive and would be useful with a voice command function to get where you need to go. Additionally the screen brightness isn't very much.

I just upgraded from Forerunner 245 Music to the 255 Music. There was a black Friday deal and since the secondhand value is great I did not have to pay much for the upgrade.

The upgrade includes better battery time, Garmin Pay, GPS, compass, barometer and altimeter. On top of that it seem like there are more statistics unlocked in Garmin Connect. I opted for the 255 and not the 265 since the 265 do not have any features I need.

I would recommend the 200-series to any friend who asking for advice about a training watch.

Tip! Buy a screen protection. It does not affect the visuals on the screen, and it keeps the screen in mint condition.

Was unclear after reading the pdf manual if it would retain adjustable manual laps and thought there was going to be a plethora of frivolous features that a runner/ local racer of 13 years is not going to be exited about and was reluctant to give it a chance. After taking a gamble on it, I'm pleased to say it does everything that my old 235 did and more, although I find a lot of the modern attributes to be annoying if not invasive and the heart rate monitor is all over there place w/o a cause?

Old watch from another company broke after a year of use so I wanted something with a reputation of lasting longer. Have only had my garmin watch a month or so, but it does everything I want a running/biking/swimming watch to do. Gives great workout recommendations as well that have been fun to incorporate into training.

I wore both the Samsung Watch Pro5 and my new Forerunner 255 for three weeks and the Forerunner was significantly better, including integration to text messages and other notifications from the phone. I never once had to troubleshoot why something didn't work, however, that is a regular event on my old Samsung. Also, I like that it tells me to have a great day in the daily report everyday.

Bought this to keep track on my running and sleep it is a great gadget to have one

I bought the Forerunner 255 Music and it arrived on a Thursday. I set it up on Friday night and used it Saturday morning. Later that day it completely shut down on its own and I have been unable to turn it back on. I have spent 2-3 hours on the internet trying to troubleshoot. I will return this immediately and will probably never use another Garmin product. For such a pricey item, this should work without a problem for many years. Very disappointed.

I've used this watch for about 5 weeks. It's my first Garmen watch and I really like it. It provides lots of useful feedback to improve performance. It's a good starter watch I didn't want to spend too much for my first one. DISLIKES: the transfer of data (finished workout) from watch to phone take several minutes. You have to open the app via cell phone to refresh or sync information a few times a day. The music feature isn't necessarily needed for the extra cost. I just open Spotify and play my workout playlist from my phone.

This is my 2nd Garmin Watch and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

This watch is an excellent value. It has far more functionality than I would have expected. Once set up, most features operate flawlessly. The range of metrics it automatically tracks and the clear interface for viewing them are impressive. I was surprised it notifies me of push notifications on my phone, but the one thing I wish it did better was sync other audio apps besides Spotify, eg audiobook apps like Audible and SimplyE.

As the CEO of a health/wellness company I had no idea how much better this watch was then my apple watch. The body battery feature is a game changer and I am so impressed with how accurate it is. I am promoting this watch to everyone and anyone.... it will show you and teach you about your health! as a side note I have take a full minute off my mile as well!

I bought this device late last summer and at first was working great. Then, around the end of December, I started having MAJOR GPS issues. Signal would randomly drop. Couldn't follow programmed routes. Had no idea actual mileage or pace. Contacted Garmin support and they helped troubleshoot it mid-January. That worked for a while, but end of March it started happening again. Garmin replaced my device, and so far the replacement one has been fantastic with no issues. I love the features of this device (especially the Open Water and Triathlon options, which is why I bought it). Highly customizable with fantastic battery life IMO. Aside from the issues with my first watch, I am very happy with this purchase.

I love all the features! I previously had the venue and upgraded to the 255 forerunner and after eight months it's never off my wrist. The flash light features definitely my favorite

The music part won't work bc it says it needs an update that you can apparently only do if you hook it up with a cable to a computer. Too much work for a feature that isn't that exciting tbh. We need full smart phone compatibility these days. For a running gps watch it is great and does what I need. Wish it was touch screen.

I have had this a couple weeks now. I wish I had gotten the 255S as this is a tad bigger than the 745 I had, but I knew that going in. Wish the 255 Music had a kayaking activity. It does have a rowing one, but it would have been nice to have kayaking.

I am currently experiencing a problem syncing my devise with Garmin Express and the tech I am working with who was very knowledgable had to open a case for the developers.

Finally, updating the music on the 255 appears to operate differently than on the 745. For some reason, I have had to update each of my playlists individually on the 255. With the 745, I could update them all at once.

I bought it 2 weeks ago and I don't take it off. I use it for all my activities

While selecting the Forerunner 255 Music I was balancing grams and features. I have larger heavier watches with longer battery life and more features, but I was looking for something a bit lighter for day-to-day use. I still wanted to be able to track workouts and maybe listen to music without needing to carry my phone. The Forerunner 255 Music has answered all of those needs. It's light enough that I forget I'm wearing it, and the design is simple enough that it feels appropriate to wear in a variety of settings. It does everything I need it to for regular use and it hold a battery for over two weeks.

I bought it a wee ago and all the functions are very useful and I use it for everything the best monitor.

I upgraded from a 745 to the 255. I like having power and the metrics built in. I'm not disappointed

Battery life is terrific, display and UI is very good. Garmin Connect software is very finicky, it's always an unwelcome adventure in syncing my run data to the phone. Will it stay connected on Bluetooth? Will it take a minute? Will I have to reboot the watch? Do I have to relaunch the Garmin Connect app? Why are you asking these questions billo?

Bought in December outdated in May with the new garmin 265

I am 63 and run to improve health, loose weight, and train for my local 5K. The Forerunner 255 has been a game changer for me. I can't stop looking at all the great data on my health, training, and sleep that Garmin Connect provides. It took me a week before I figured out all the features. Sometimes I will accidently hit one of the buttons and have no idea what I am looking at on the watch face. The sharp clear and colorful eye popping graphics shown in the Garmin ad for the watch are misleading. You just don't get that vividness that the ad shows. The backlighting is just ok. Band is very comfortable. The morning weather report is so small I can't see it without reading glasses when I wake up so it is basically worthless to me. I use my phone for the weather report anyway so this is a silly redundant feature. The data gathering and feedback from Garmin Connect is the real value with these devices. You will need your smartphone or desktop to view all the rich data. Just use the watch to gather your data and use the Connect app to view the data. The watch does provide good feedback using vibration, and sound alerts to keep you in your training zones while running. The pace speedometer has a tiny line that is hard to see while running. It needs a bigger arrow to show your pace in\out of zone. Connecting to MyFitnessPal has helped greatly in monitoring my calories in\out and keeping my diet and weight loss plan on track.

Loved how practical using this watch can be and also how simple it lows but so powerful.

I think this is a great watch but had to return due to it is not capable with Apple Music. Once they add Apple Music as a service I would buy in a second as it has great features.

Up until the last month, I had been using a different watch for my fitness needs. However, I wanted something that had a longer battery life. This fit the bill. I was worried the lack of touch screen might bother me, but it hasn't. The buttons are easy to figure out and the app is easy to use.

I Got the watch as a gift for valentines and it has been a blessing. It has gotten me to have better sleep, burn calories over all I love it

I replaced my 645M with the 255M and I couldn't be happier. All of the new features and tracking metrics are really fun to keep track of your fitness.

Since my 645 Music broke the case just playing with my godson, I needed a new fitness watch to replace it. In the Garmin line, what made the most sense was the 255 Music for perfectly replacing the functions of the old watch. I've had it for a week and I could see the 4 years of evolution from one to the other: bigger screen, with better resolution, GPS that locks almost immediately, sturdier buttons, more useful training statistics and the music function without crashes during sessions of training. Oh and a bigger battery too, for about the same price as before.

One complaint: the screen could have better contrast indoors and larger fonts on the system.

have had this watch for about a month and really like it so far. The UI is pretty simple to pick up and understand, Features are good for a multi sport watch and am glad I got the music version so I can leave my phone at home! Garmin coach is also a nice touch for my running.

have not tried the music yet, as spotify was taking hours to download, but the watch works well. It does a good job with bike and run workouts....the metrics and data are nice and easy to read. the sleep data is great too. in the pool, not the best , not always accurate in pool swimming, even when pool length is set...and has not saved some swims...not sure if it does not handle water well???? But overall, does a good job

Thought this was an upgrade from my 245 Music. Wish I had the 245 back

Based on online reviews i was expecting this to be an upgrade or at least match to my 5 year old fenix 5 xplus. Battery life and features were disappointing. Also the gps, even though super accurate has a little lag during running to updating your current pace. Very annoying. Also given native power is garbage, some of the options related to the. Stryde power meter are not available as they were in the fenix. I would rather use the stryde for pace but i havent figured how to enable this. Not sure if there is a software firmware glotch but in theory should be possible. The option in the menu is just missing currently.

Anyways for the price definitely a disappointment

I've had this watch for about a month. I am not an advanced runner but I can already tell that this watch gives me all of the metrics to become a better runner. I had a Forerunner 55 and a Forerunner 235. Those were great but this one is even better. Thank you.

Been using the watch for approximately 4 weeks now - initial reaction… great for what I use it for, but still learning all the additional features this watch has vs. my previous Garmin.

This product is everything I need for my fitness goals and my health goals. I have been hesitant to buy a wearable device, but I am glad I bought this because of the health stats and the ability to help me with my training. A big plus is the ability to turn off the bluetooth and wifi and only turn them on when I need them.

I highly recommend this if you are a health and fitness enthusiasts looking for a simple wearable device.

It was difficult learning the Forerunner 255Music, after having an Apple Watch for years. After getting into running, I really appreciate the buttons over a touchscreen, especially when wearing gloves! I like all of the features which Garmin has placed into the 255, as a fitness tracker. Overall, I can do way more with my Apple Watch (turn off/on my home alarm, connect to my Apple music easily, more customizable watch faces, etc). For races, I will always choose Garmin, though!

Es inteligente, me enseña, me acompaña, me saluda, se preocupa por mi, me felicita; es mi mejor compañero a la hora de entrenar. Es excelente reloj!

Nunca había usado un Garmin y apenas llevo 3 semanas usándolo. La mejor inversión!

Received for Christmas 2022! The watch is amazing and has a second-to-none battery life. As a previous Apple Watch owner, I'm fully converted to Team Garmin! Look no further if you want an incredibly versatile and powerful running tool!

P.S., this watch is also great for everything outside of running (ie., cycling, HIIT, swimming etc.)

Overall it works very well. Only issue is the inaccuracy of heart rate monitor on watch.

First time using it and i like it, very simple and easy to understand