I know I have an agenda. I want to see technology on every runner out there. I won’t really be happy until I see everyone wearing heart-rate monitoring headphones, a snazzy watch and drinking from smart water bottles.
Maybe even throw in a heads-up display there too, if you’re feeling fancy.
But… I also know that this idea is mental. Most runners barely want one piece of technology adorning their ever-svelter bodies, so my dream may not be the easiest to achieve.
- The Garmin Forerunner 35 is at least £25 cheaper on Amazon than anywhere else
- The Garmin Forerunner 235, one of our favourite running watches, is the cheapest ever at £175
- The TomTom Spark 3 with the full heart rate, music and headphones bundle is under £160 (until 1.20PM)
That said, I do think a lot of runners could benefit from a dedicated watch at least - and this Amazon Prime Day there look to be some pretty tasty deals out there to get started with the tech (do remember that these are only available for those who have Amazon Prime - if not, then you’ll need to sidle up lovingly to someone who does, or subscribe yourself).
I’m writing this piece as I’m seeing some genuinely good discounts out there today, and I’ll probably be spamming my running club’s Facebook page with them later… which may, or may not, get me kicked off. But I’m here to spread the word of running tech.
- Free 30-day trial: Amazon Prime
It’s hard to predict which watches will come down in price for short times today, but we've already seen the Garmin Forerunner 235, which was a big deal last Black Friday, drop to its cheapest ever and we’re hoping for the same with popular watches from TomTom and Polar.
Garmin Forerunner 35
The day's savings started with the Garmin Forerunner 35, and it’s a whopping saving on a great device for the new runner (or someone wanting a very cheap upgrade from the mammoth device on their wrist… I still see some absolute tanks from the early 2010’s adorning some wrists).
It’s got an integrated heart rate monitor, clear screen, LiveTrack… whatever, check it out for yourselves as it’s down to just £109 today, which is £25 cheaper than I can find it anywhere else.
Garmin Forerunner 235
But the better option - in my eyes at least - is the Garmin Forerunner 235, which has dropped to its cheapest ever on Amazon for Prime customers, down from £220 to £175.
It's got all the features from above, but a larger and more dynamic screen, the chance to customise things better and a longer battery. In short, it's a more running watch-y running watch.
Lightning deals
These ones are more infuriating for me to list, because they don’t last that long. But they do kick around for a few hours (or until they’re gone) and often stay discounted over other sites for a little while after.
TomTom Spark 3 / Runner 3
Next up is the TomTom Spark 3 - and I get the feeling TomTom is going to figure heavily in today's deals.
TomTom Runner 3
This option is for the FULL WHACK - namely, a heart rate monitor, music playback and bundled headphones, whereas you can buy the watch with variations on what's actually included.
The key thing here is that this watch is offered for £159.99, which is cheaper than I'm seeing the version that doesn't offer headphones elsewhere. I'm not saying they're the world's best Bluetooth headphones (although they're just fine, in my experience) but you've got everything you need out of the box to head out on a run, listen to tunes and monitor your heart rate.
TomTom Spark 3
The deals for the Spark are drying up - there were far more this morning - but there are still some good ones left.
My top choice is this one: £129.99 for the heart rate monitor and music playback. It's not the cheapest we've seen all day, but for what you get it's stellar value compared to the rest of the internet's pricing.
Jabra Elite Sport
OK, these aren't a running watch. But paired with a phone they'll do the same thing and more, as they feature a heart rate monitor (which can pair with your watch to serve as a replacement chest strap) and a gyroscope to count reps during high intensity interval training.
I use the Jabra Elite Sport earbuds almost every day on the way to work and when out running - if I want something that's going to be noise isolating, these are my go to. I don't find the heart rate monitor as accurate as some, but the amount of things you can do with the Jabra Sport app in terms of fitness and workout makes them a great, great buy at £159.99 - the same price as the Apple AirPods.
Still not convinced? Bookmark this page and check back to see which watches and other fitness gadgetry is popping up throughout the day.
I’ll be keeping a laser eye on the category and tweeting out anything decent on @superbeav too, so give that a cheeky follow (don’t worry, you can unfollow me tomorrow) if you want to stay up to date.
- Gareth Beavis is TechRadar's Running Man of Tech, testing the latest in fitness technology in a never-ending quest to run further and faster and bringing you the results in this column.
- If you want to say hi, he's @superbeav on Twitter
- You can see his stumblings on Strava
- And for more data, follow him on Smashrun
- And if you want to get the full lowdown on the latest and greatest running tech, read the rest of the Running Man of Tech story here
