Garmin is known in the smartwatch industry as one of the companies that offer the best options for tracking activity, sports and health, with numerous models specialized in obtaining precise and advanced metrics on nautical, navigation and more. This is something that he demonstrates with each and every one of his smartwatches, and what, therefore, he does with the Forerunner 745 and Forerunner 945, two of the most complete that it has in its catalogue to offer and those that we compare in this new opportunity.
To begin with, the Forerunner 745 is a smartwatch that differs little from the Forerunner 945. Both share many of its qualities, so much so that the new watch is, rather -or it seems-, a renewal of the second, which was launched in April 2019. Everything indicates that Garmin has used the same formula of the Forerunner 945 to mould it and give it a slightly different twist with the Forerunner 745.
Overview
| Garmin Forerunner 745 | Garmin Forerunner 945 | |
| $ | CHECK PRICE | CHECK PRICE |
| Brand | Garmin | Garmin |
| Model | Garmin Forerunner 745 | Garmin Forerunner 935 |
| Release date | September 2020 | April 2019 |
| Compatibility | Android + iOS | Android + iOS |
| Colors | Black, Blue, Red and White | Black, Blue |
| Availability | Available | Available |
This is something that we thus assume due to several things. The first thing is that the two have the same panel, which is one of MIP technology in color and touch that has a diagonal of 1.2 inches, in addition to being a circular format. The second thing is that it has protection provided by Corning’s Gorilla Glass DX glass, apart from also producing a resolution of 240 x 240 pixels.
Technical Specifications
| Garmin Forerunner 745 | Garmin Forerunner 945 | |
| Type Size | 1.2-inch colour panel, visible in sunlight, transflective, pixel-level memory (MIP) | 1.2-inch color panel, visible in sunlight, transflective, pixel-level memory (MIP) |
| Screen Resolution | 240 x 240 pixels | 240 x 240 pixels |
| Screen protection | Corning Gorilla Glass DX | Corning Gorilla Glass DX |
| Touchscreen | Yes | No |
| Internal memory | 200 hours of activity data, Up to 500 songs | 200 hours of activity data, Up to 1,000 songs |
| Ram | 1 GB | 1 GB |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi – Bluetooth Low Power (LE), ANT+ GPS, GLONASS – Galileo – NFC | Wi-Fi – Bluetooth Low Power (LE), ANT+ GPS, GLONASS – Galileo – NFC |
| Sensors | Accelerometer, Altimeter, Gyroscope, Compass, Heart Rate Sensor, Thermometer | Accelerometer, Altimeter, Gyroscope, Compass, Heart Rate Sensor, Thermometer |
| Battery | Smartwatch mode: up to 7 days, GPS mode with music: up to 6 hours, GPS mode without music: up to 16 hours, UltraTac mode: up to 21 hours | Smart watch mode: up to 2 weeks, GPS mode with music: up to 10 hours, GPS mode without music: up to 36 hours |
| Material | Bezel Material: Fiber Reinforced Polymer, Box Material: Fiber Reinforced Polymer, Strap Material: Silicone | Bezel Material: Fiber Reinforced Polymer, Box Material: Fiber Reinforced Polymer, Strap Material: Silicone |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Water resistance | 5 ATM (50 meters) | 5 ATM (50 meters) |
| Dimensions | 43.8 x 43.8 x 13.3 mm | 47 x 47 x 13.7 mm |
| Weight | 47g | 50g |
If we talk about internal storage space, the two are capable of recording up to 200 hours of activity, as well as saving songs for independent playback, but in the case of the Forerunner 745, it is only up to about 500, while in the Forerunner 945 it is of up to 1,000 songs. Point in favor of the second.
However, when it comes to connectivity options, they are even. Here we find options such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth low consumption, NFC for making contactless payments via Garmin Pay and independent GPS (+ GLONASS and Galileo). The same can be said of the sensors they presume, which are the same; here we have an accelerometer, altimeter, gyroscope, compass, heart rate monitor and thermometer, all arranged to obtain various activity, health and environment metrics.
In terms of advanced and specific functions, both smartwatches are among the most complete, as we have already pointed out. These offer to monitor sports such as cycling, swimming, running and outdoor leisure activities. The Forerunner 745 stands out as being able to monitor training, planning and analysis functions, while the Forerunner 945 does so as being ideal for golf monitoring, with up to 41,000 maps of courses from around the world.
When it comes to battery life, as in other smartwatches of the brand, is one of the strengths of these two wrist terminals, although the one that the Forerunner 945 can offer in its smartwatch mode is more attractive, which is up to 2 weeks, compared to the week the new watch can deliver. With the GPS mode with music it is up to 10 and 6 hours, respectively; with GPS mode without music, up to 36 and 16 hours.
Activity Monitoring
| Garmin Forerunner 745 | Garmin Forerunner 945 | |
| Step counter | Yes | Yes |
| Calories burned | Yes | Yes |
| Distance travelled | Yes | Yes |
| Floors up | Yes | Yes |
| Sleep monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Measuring stress levels | Yes | Yes |
| Heart rate measurement | Yes | Yes |
| Calorie intake | No | No |
| Hydration levels | No | No |
| Running | – Available running profiles: Running, indoor running, trail running – GPS-based distance, time and pace – Running – Vertical oscillation and ratio (with compatible accessory) – Ground contact time and Balance (with compatible accessory) – Stride length -real-time- (with compatible accessory) – Cadence – Performance condition – Lactate threshold (with compatible accessory) – Running training sessions – Pacing strategies by PacePro – Speed and Cadence Sensor Compatible | – Available running profiles: Running, indoor running, trail running – GPS-based distance, time and pace – Running – Vertical oscillation and ratio (with compatible accessory) – Ground contact time and Balance (with compatible accessory) – Stride length -real-time- (with compatible accessory) – Cadence – Performance condition – Lactate threshold (with compatible accessory) – Running training sessions – Sensor compatible speed and cadence |
| Cycling | Cycling profiles available: Cycling, indoor cycling, Mountain Biking, Journeys (competition against previous activities), Bike ride and maximum lap power (with power sensor), Compete in an activity, Time/distance alerts – FTP or Functional Power Threshold (with compatible accessory), Vector Compatible, Compatible with power meters (shows power data from third, Party ANT+ Sport power meters), Compatible with Varia Vision (screen with head support), Compatible with Varia radar (rearview radar), Compatible with Varia lights, Cadence | Cycling profiles available: Cycling, indoor cycling, Mountain Biking, Journeys (competition against previous activities), Bike ride and maximum lap power (with power sensor), Compete in an activity, Time/distance alerts – FTP or Functional Power Threshold (with compatible accessory), Vector Compatible, Compatible with power meters (shows power data from third, Party ANT+ Sport power meters), Compatible with Varia Vision (screen with head support), Compatible with Varia radar (rearview radar), Compatible with Varia lights, Cadence |
| Swimming | – Available swim profiles: Pool swim, open water swim – Pool swim metrics (lengths, distance, pace, stroke count/rate, calories) – Stroke type detection (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly ) – Effective swimming – Exercise Log – pace alert (only in pools) – Training swim – Metrics open water swimming – Metric type armrest (freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke) – Underwater heart rate sensor – Rest time with Repetition enabled – Heart rate (with HRM-Tri and HRM-Swim) | Swimming profiles available: Pool swim, open water swim – Pool swim metrics (lengths, distance, pace, stroke count/rate, calories) – Stroke type detection (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly ) – Effective swimming – Exercise Log – Training swim – Metrics open water swimming – heart rate (with HRM and HRM-Tri-swim) |
| Outdoor | – Profiles for outdoor leisure activities available: hiking, climbing, skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, paddle boarding, rowing, ergometer exercises, jumpmaster, tactical activities – Point-to-point navigation – Real-time point trail – Back at the start – TracBack – UltraTrac mode – Height profile – Distance to destination – Barometric trend indicator – Automatic ascent on trail – Vertical speed – Total ascent / descent – Compatible with BaseCamp – GPS coordinates – Area calculation – Hunting and fishing calendar – Astronomical information – Barometric trend indicator – ClimbPro slope planning function | – Profiles for outdoor leisure activities available: hiking, climbing, skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, paddle boarding, rowing, ergometer exercises, jumpmaster, tactical activities – Point-to-point navigation – Real-time point trail – Back at startup – TracBack – UltraTrac mode – Distance to destination – Barometric trend indicator – Automatic ascent on trail – Vertical speed – Total ascent / descent – BaseCamp compatible – GPS coordinates – Projected waypoint – Sight N ‘Go |
| Other functions | Physiological measurements: recovery time, lactate threshold, FTP, HRV stress test, VO2 max for running and cycling, training status, training load and anaerobic Training Effect – Running dynamics (with optional accessory) – Display with customizable lap information – Connect IQ compatibility Training, planning and analysis features: – Heart rate zones – Heart rate alerts -Calories based on heart rate -% of maximum heart rate -% HRR – Recovery time – Maximum heart rate automatic – HRV stress test – HR Broadcast – GPS speed and distance – Customizable data pages – Customizable activity profiles – Auto Pause – Interval training – Advanced training sessions – Downloadable training plans – Auto LAP – Manual lap – Configurable lap alerts – Heat and altitude acclimatization – VO2 max – Training status – Training load – Training load focus – Training effect (aerobic) – Training effect (anaerobic) – Main benefit (training effect category) – Customizable alerts – Audio prompts – End time – Virtual Partner – Virtual Racer – Multisport activities in automatic mode – Multisport activities in manual mode – Course-based directions – Segments (real-time) – Strava functions (beacon, real-time segments) – Create function Round Trips – TrendLine Popular Road Routes – Touch or Button Lock – Quick Access Buttons – Automatic Screen Switching – Activity History on Watch – TrueUp for Physiological Data Child Tracking Features: -TOE-TO-TOE challenges | – Physiological measurements: recovery time, lactate threshold, FTP, HRV stress test, VO2 max for running and cycling, training status, training load and anaerobic Training Effect – Running dynamics (with optional accessory) – Display with customizable lap information – Connect IQ compatibility Golf Features: – Display of 41,000 courses from around the world – Distance in yards to D / C / T (distance to the front, center and back of the green) – Distance in yards to approach / dogleg – Measures shot distance automatically (calculates exact yardage for shots from anywhere on field) – Digital scorecard – Statistics recording (putts per course, greens in regulation, fairways, average distance) – Garmin AutoShot – Green view with manual positioning of the flag – Obstacles and course objectives – Compatible with TruSwing – Trip timer / odometer Heart rate functions : – Heart rate zones – Heart rate alerts – Calories based on heart rate -% of maximum heart rate -% HRR – Recovery time – Automatic maximum heart rate – HRV stress test (with compatible accessory) – Records heart rate during swimming (with HRM-Tri and HRM-Swim) – HR Broadcast |
Smart Features
| Garmin Forerunner 745 | Garmin Forerunner 945 | |
| Smartphone notifications | Yes | Yes |
| Wireless payments | Garmin Pay | Garmin Pay |
| Music storage and playback | Yes | Yes |
| Controlling your phone’s music | Yes | Yes |
| Meteorology | Smart weather forecast | Smart weather forecast |
| Other smart features | Find, My Phone, Find My Watch, Windows Compatibility, VIRB Remote Control, Compatible with Garmin Connect Mobile, Connect IQ | Find, My Phone, Find My Watch, Windows Compatibility, VIRB Remote Control, Compatible with Garmin Connect Mobile, Connect IQ |
Spotify and Deezer say “present” on the Forerunner 945, while the 745 does not. Other features that, on the contrary, we do find in both are the 5 ATM water resistance, the meteorology function and the compatibility with Android and iOS smartphones (iPhone). In turn, the price of both is around 580 USD on independent platforms on the official website, because there the Forerunner 745 has been hung with an official label of 580 USD, while the Forerunner 945 stays at 700 USD.
