Heads up: Stack of February Sports Tech Sales

February 5, 2017 by |Blog|Comments (34)

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Every once in a while the sports tech sales world syncs up.  Kinda like one of those crazy synchronized spin bike performances (yes, you need to check that out if you haven’t).  For whatever reason, today kicked off a wide swath of sales from numerous folks: Garmin, GoPro, Fitbit, TomTom, and Scosche.

So why the sales?  Well, I think we’re seeing some of those companies adopt slightly different sales strategies for 2017 – aiming for less ‘big bang’ type sales, and more frequent smaller sales.  If you look, for example, at these deals, they virtually identically match what was offered over the Black Friday-Christmas sales just two months two.  Like Groundhog Day.  And then there’s TomTom, which is basically perpetually putting products on sale.  They’ve conditioned all of us to never buy their stuff unless it’s on sale (to be clear though, the Spark 3 watch series is a great lineup).

None of these products are considered old, and nobody would expect any replacements of these specific products anytime soon.  This is purely drawing in interest in the traditionally quiet February time period.

In any case, here’s the listing of active sales over the next few weeks – all of which started earlier today.  Note that different companies have different end dates, with the Scosche sale ending soonest, on Wednesday.

ProductSale PriceAmazonOther siteSale Notes
Apple Watch Series 10 - $50 off
$399/$499 (cellular)		$349Amazon
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Black Titanium - $75 off$725AmazonThis is a nice little deal for this unit which just came out.
Fitbit Ace LTE Kids Activity Smartwatch - 22% off$179AmazonThis was just announced this summer, and is their first full smartwatch focused on kids activity tracking and gamification.
Fitbit Charge 6 - 38% off!
$159		$99AmazonThis is the go-to sale price for the Fitbit Charge 6. It happens often, but it still doesn't take away from the fast that it's argueably the best bang for your buck fitness tracker out there.
Fitbit Inspire 3 - $30 off$69Amazon
Fitbit Sense 2 - $70 off$179Amazon
Fitbit Versa 4 - $40 off$119Amazon
Garmin Edge 1040 Cycling GPS - $100 off!$499AmazonThis is a good deal, especially since it's gotten virtually all of the Edge 1050 updates, and then a boatload more. That said, it wouldn't surprise me to see this drop further to $449, as it did this past summer.
Garmin Edge 540 - $100 off$249AmazonREI⚡⚡This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 540 to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well. This is kinda an insane deal for this unit.
Garmin Edge 540 Solar - $100 off$349AmazonREIThis is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 540 Solar to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well.
Garmin Edge 840 - $100 off$349AmazonREI⚡⚡This is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 840 to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well. This is one of my main units I use daily.
Garmin Edge 840 Solar - $100 off$449AmazonREIThis is the lowest price we've seen on the Garmin Edge 840 Solar to date, which has gained virtually all of the new Garmin Edge 1050 features as well.
Garmin Edge Explore 2 - $40 off
$299		$269AmazonCompetitive CyclistThis is a great little unit, though, with the sales on the Edge 540 and 840 series, you might want to look at those instead.
Garmin Epix Pro Series - 20% off!
$899/$999		$649AmazonREI⚡ This is the lowest price to date for the Garmin Epix Pro series, likely due to the Fenix 8 coming out a few months back (Epix as a brand was merged into the Fenix 8 branding). Still, if you don't care about diving or voice bits, this is an incredible deal.
Garmin Epix Sapphire/Titanium (Gen 2) - $400+ off!$449Amazon⚡⚡⚡ This is a crazy super strong deal. Note the Epix received all of the software updates of the Epix Pro. While we saw a slightly better deal at $399 for a day back in October, this is otherwise the lowest price we've seen it sustained at.
Garmin Fenix 7 Pro - 31% off (All Variants)
$799+		$549+AmazonREI⚡ This is the lowest price to date for the Garmin Fenix 7 Pro series, likely due to the Fenix 8 coming out a few months back. Still, if you don't care about diving or voice bits, this is an incredible deal.
Garmin Forerunner 165 Music - $50 off!$249AmazonThis is the first time we've head a meaningful sale on the Forerunner 165, released earlier this year, down to $249 for the Music edition, and $199 for the non-music edition.
Garmin Forerunner 255/255S - $100 off$249AmazonThis is Garmin's mid-tier running watch, and is a very polished option with good multi-band GPS, and of course, a boatload of running metrics.
Garmin Forerunner 255/255S Music - $100 off!
$349/$399		$299AmazonThis is Garmin's mid-tier running watch, and is a very polished option with good multi-band GPS, and of course, a boatload of running metrics. This model also includes offline music such as Spotify and Amazon Music.
Garmin Forerunner 265 - $100 off$349AmazonREIThis is the first time we've seen the Forerunner 265 on sale, and it's solidly priced right now at $349
Garmin Forerunner 265s - $100 off$349AmazonREIThis is the first time we've seen the Forerunner 265 on sale, and it's solidly priced right now at $349
Garmin Forerunner 955 - $100ish off!$399AmazonThis is one of Garmin's most popular running watches, and it's down to a very strong price. I often use this in my accuracy testing comparisons when validating other watches, due to it's very strong GPS performance. Note this is the base edition without solar. It'd be hard to find any better deal in sports watches today, from any company (given this has full mapping, tons of new features even this week, etc...). I say '$100ish', because it's usually been on forever sale at $499, so $399 is a strong price, though, it dipped to $319 for Amazon Prime Day.
Garmin Forerunner 965 - $50 off!$499AmazonREIThis is the lowest price we've seen ever on the Forerunner 965, since it's launch. It's still Garmin's top-end Forerunner watch, and I expect it to stay that way for a while. It's one I often use in comparative testing as a reference device.
Garmin Instinct 2X - $100 off!$349AmazonREIThis is a solid deal. Garmin Instinct 2X - $100 off!It's best thought of as an Instinct 2.5, as it has almost enough features to really be more of an Instinct 3 (which doesn't exist at this point).
Garmin Tactix 7 Pro - 20% off$1,049AmazonThis is the largest discount we've seen to date on the Tactix 7 Pro unit. Note the other Tactix 7 Pro units/variants are also on sale for 20% off too (this link takes you to all of them).
GoPro Hero 12 Black - $100 off!$299AmazonThe new Hero 13 just came out, which mostly just adds a bunch of new accessory options. If you don't plan to purchase those accessories, then this is a solid deal.
GoPro Hero 13 Black - $60 OFF!$399AmazonREIThis is the first time we have seen the newly announced GoPro Hero 13 Black on sale. Solid deal, this is my daily use action cam!
Google Pixel Watch 3 (41mm) - $70 OFF$279AmazonClick to add $70 coupon into the cart. Bringing price down to $279!
Insta360 Ace Pro Action Cam - $50 off$299AmazonThis is the previous edition, as the Ace Pro 2 just came out a few weeks back, but this is still a very solid camera from a year ago.
Insta360 GO 3S Tiny 4K Action Camera - $60 off!$239AmazonThis is a great deal for this tiny little thing, which should really be named the Go 4, given how many new features it has (including 4K). It also has all the Insta360 sport integration features with Garmin & Apple, to overlay your Garmin/Apple data automatically on your footage.
Jackery Portable Power Station - $60 off!$199AmazonThis is something I use frequently when shooting out and about and I need to re-charge a crapton of drone batteries, action cameras, or just cameras and such. I also use it on trips to Eurobike and elsewhere to keep equipment charged. I've even bought a solar panel to hook up to it (surprisingly effective). Heck, I've even powered a KICKR trainer ride from it!
Tacx Flux 2 Smart Trainer - $200ish off
$899		$499N/AREII mean, I guess. Really, I don't see why anyone would buy this trainer at any price above $299. With the JetBlack Victory at $399 being more accurate, quiter, including WiFi, including Zwift Cog support (or mechanical cassette), including dual-Bluetooth, including Race Mode, and...one could go on and on.
Tacx NEO 2T Smart Trainer - $200-$300 off
$1,399		$899AmazonThis is the go-to sales price for the NEO 2T, though has become more frequent over the past year. It's still an incredible trainer, and is the top-end non-moving trainer from Garmin/Tacx.
Wahoo KICKR CORE Zwift One (COG V2) + Play Controllers
$499		$499N/AZwift.comThis package includes the KICKR CORE with the Zwift V2 Cog, but notably now also includes the Zwift Play controllers. Basically, this saves you about $100 or so, and is the first time we've seen them bundle it.
Wahoo KICKR MOVE - $300 off!
$1,599		$999N/AREI⚡⚡ This is actually a very solid deal, and the first time we've seen this discounted. In fact, frankly, this is the first time in years it feels like Wahoo is actually doing a legit sale on something. Kudos.
Wahoo KICKR ROLLR - $100 off
$599		$499N/AREI
Wahoo KICKR SNAP - Lowest Price Ever
$499		$199AmazonREIThis is lowest we've ever seen the KICKR SNAP priced. While the trend has moved towards wheel-off/direct drive trainers, this is still really solid deal if your budget it tight. That said, if you're in Europe, Decathlon has the D100 on sale for $199 also, and in my testing, I'd go with that almost every time.

So basically – consider the above some Valentine’s Day sales or something.  Just to provide some brief insights on a few of these products:

Garmin: This sale is somewhat modest, though does touch on more of the broader reaching products for them.  The Vivofit 3 being the baseline Garmin activity tracker, whereas the Vivosmart HR+ is their GPS-enabled activity tracker band with full smartphone notifications, music control, etc…. The Vivofit Jr. is the kids variant, which is surprisingly cool (and the feedback I’ve been getting from parents with kids old enough is also surprisingly strong).  Unfortunately, The Peanut is still a bit too young at 7 months to be using it.  The best deal here, in my opinion, being the Vivosmart HR+.

TomTom: I wrapped up testing of the Spark 3 over the last few weeks, and just need to write up my thoughts and take some pretty pictures.  But overall I’m pretty happy with the usage of it.  The new 24×7 HR pieces added with a firmware update last year are much cleaner now with the updated app.  The optical HR seemed OK at a glance, but I haven’t run the numbers through the analyzer yet to dig into any nuanced issues.  More on that in my in-depth review.  Still, the baseline watch especially is really the best deal out there in sports tech at $99.

GoPro: These deals are ‘credit’ deals, meaning you get back credit at a retailer.  GoPro isn’t a fan of straight-up discounts on their products.  Out of the three cams on offer, my favorite here being the Hero5 Black.  It’s more or less my day to day action camera, except when I’m shooting something with data overlays (in which case I use the Garmin VIRB Ultra 30).  The reason for siding with GoPro as my daily driver? Simple: Fully waterproofed without a case.  I just don’t have to think about it.  Though, from a sports-focused standpoint, the VIRB Ultra 30 pretty much slaughters it in functionality.  In any case, you could pick up that Hero5 Black and then with the $60 credit you’d only be a couple of dollars short in picking up my favorite GoPro 3-way Pole, or three extra Hero5 batteries.  Not too shabby.

Fitbit: The Blaze got some nice updates over the past little while, including legit smartphone notifications (finally!), as well as a pretty solid update on the mobile app side.  Both of which are worth noting.  Of course with the Blaze you’re really buying into the Fitbit social ecosystem more than anything else.  Do keep in mind the Fitbit Blaze doesn’t have GPS built-in, but rather uses your phone’s GPS (which Fitbit cleverly calls ‘Connected GPS’).  In either case, if you pick up a Fitbit unit, the winner deal here is that accessories are 50% off for both the Blaze and Alta.

Scosche: This is simple – it’s $20 off, and remains my ‘most favored nation’ status for an optical HR sensor.  The fact that it’s dual ANT+ & Bluetooth Smart means it works with basically everything out there these days.  And the accuracy is unbeatable from an optical HR standpoint (in part because it’s typically strapped on your upper arm).

So there ya go – just a quick bit of coverage on these sales, in case folks are looking to pick things up following the frenzy of the holidays.  And for everyone else, I return you to your normally scheduled postings.  Except, you know, minus any actual schedule.  I mostly just float with the wind.

Oh – and obviously – if you use the linkage above you help support the site and increase your awesomeness.  And everyone wants to be awesome…especially going into a Monday.

Thanks for reading!

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34 Comments

  1. robert day
    February 5, 2017 at 7:23 pm #1

    I’m looking at the New Balance RUNIQ android watch . Looks interesting . I would be coming from the basic To Tom runner . I was going to grab the Garmin 235 as it would be a great upgrade for me for marathon training . The only reason I held off was because of this New Balance watch . Have you had a chance to see it in Las Vegas ? Any thoughts ? Are you considering reviewing it ? Thanks .

    Reply
  2. David
    February 5, 2017 at 11:17 pm #3

    Ray: is it your feeling that the Vivofit and Vivosmart line is an “update every year” line or since we saw the HR+ and Vivofit 3 we won’t be seeing updates any soon… wondering if this is just clearing inventory for new models…

    Reply
    • Ray Maker
      February 6, 2017 at 7:35 am #4

      I don’t think we’ll see a new Vivofit variant soon. I could see something like end of year (September timeframe). And probably the same for Vivosmart HR+. Basically, at this point they’ve got a pretty competitive product, so waiting a bit makes sense.

      Reply
  3. Adam
    February 6, 2017 at 8:56 am #5

    Target.com is selling the Vivoactive HR+ for $149

    link to target.com

    Reply
  4. Goran
    February 6, 2017 at 10:35 am #6

    This is a US-only sale?

    Thanks!

    Reply
  5. Brian
    February 6, 2017 at 12:03 pm #8

    Still rocking my Garmin 910xt (although the altimeter has gone out on it.) I do use it to race with an because of that I have the quick release kit. I know the 920xt has that same kit but the 735 doesn’t. My question is do you see a replacement coming out for the 920xt that I should wait for or do you think there will be a quick release coming for the 735? Don’t want to put money into something that is just going to be replaced in a couple months. But really like the quick release.

    Reply
    • Ray Maker
      February 6, 2017 at 12:17 pm #9

      The quick release is the tricky part, since it took them forever to create one for the Fenix3, and there’s still no current plans for the Fenix5 (illogical to me, given tri is a big target market).

      I think the bigger question is where/how a FR920XT would fit into the overall landscape.

      Reply
    • Patrick Utrecht
      February 6, 2017 at 5:18 pm #10

      Since Ray doesn’t like to talk about rumors, or he’s under an Non disclosure agreement, let me refer you to some early rumor talk about the 935 (replacing the 920) link to appelmoessite.wordpress.com Mind you, this isn’t official news but it’s likely that an announcement will be coming, seeing this ‘appelmoessite’ had the same early intel about the fenix 5.

      Reply
    • Craig Hoskin
      February 6, 2017 at 6:59 pm #11

      PS. With your altimeter problem … try washing/soaking in warm water with soap, and a brush with a toothbrush, the two small holes for the altimeter on the back of the watch. Worked a treat for mine.

      Reply
    • Brian
      February 7, 2017 at 2:10 pm #12

      yeah the quick release is a killer for me. I may have already been into the 735 otherwise…

      Reply
    • Brian
      February 7, 2017 at 2:11 pm #13

      Interesting Patrick…thanks

      Reply
    • Brian
      February 7, 2017 at 2:13 pm #14

      Thanks Craig I have tried just about everything including contacting garmin and they said I could send it in an have it fixed or received a refurb for $100. The watch still works just don’t get my elevation info and here in MN that isn’t a complete deal breaker…Thanks for the suggestion though.

      Reply
  6. fisao
    February 6, 2017 at 12:39 pm #15

    Every time I come to your site, I learn a little something or other, but your link to the synchronised spin bike thingy…awesome, It made me laugh out loud and I thank you very much for this tidbit :)

    minor rant on/ regional sales suck! / minor rant off

    Reply
  7. Matt
    February 6, 2017 at 8:51 pm #16

    Does the Rythm+ work as a Bridge?

    Reply
  8. Scott H
    February 7, 2017 at 12:02 am #18

    Any indication from Garmin they might match GoPro’s promotion with the Virb Ultra 30?

    Reply
    • Ray Maker
      February 7, 2017 at 3:14 am #19

      I haven’t seen anything there. I’d agree that a well-designed VIRB promo could go a long ways. I can’t think of the last time we’ve ever seen any VIRB promo. Maybe in that very first year there was one. In the second year, there were cases where once the products left MAP Policy (Minimum Advertised Price), we saw some crazy good deals. But that’s more on the retailer than Garmin at that point.

      I’d think something like a $299 for 7 day sale would go bonkers. But…what do I know. ;)

      Reply
  9. Peter
    February 7, 2017 at 5:02 pm #20

    Few hours ago our 11,5mo old baby girl Nina made first 10 steps alone.
    As we are Garmin positive family, I think it should be cool to be able to track her progress …
    Do you think buying Vivofit Jr is for birthday is a totally stranbe idea of fanatic Dad? :)

    Reply
    • Molly G
      February 8, 2017 at 12:16 am #21

      The Vivofit Jr is designed for kids aged 4-9 and the band is not adjustable. I would not recommend buying this for a 1 yr old.

      Reply
  10. Marcel
    February 8, 2017 at 3:48 pm #22

    I had the Scosche in my cart… at Clever Training no less (Amazon doesn’t offer the $59 price anymore), and then I hit the shipping cost wall. It has happened more often, but after a while, I forget, and I try again, and I cancel again. A 50% shipping fee, which is what the flat rate amounts to this time, is just silly for such a light item. That is the one thing preventing me from ordering at Clever Training – wish they would do something about it. I don’t mind paying actual shipping costs, but this is nonsense.

    Reply
    • Ray Maker
      February 10, 2017 at 3:04 am #23

      Hi Marcel-

      Sounds like you’re trying to ship from US to Europe or similar. I do agree the shipping fee is a bit wonky for the size of this particular item. Most times the flat-rate works out, but in this case for such an inexpensive and small item…not so much. I’ll poke them about seeing what can be done longer term.

      Note that you can also purchase from CT UK though, which may help a bit. Though no sale there unfortunately right now (but there is still the 10% deal).

      Thanks!

      Reply
  11. Dan Morse
    February 11, 2017 at 4:29 am #24

    I bought the Scosche but find it horribly unreliable. In the 6-7 months I’ve been using my Garmin HR chest strap I’ve only had one ride ruined (from a HR measurement standpoint anyway) by it. In a couple weeks on the Scosche, I’ve lost 3-4 times as many. I let my wife use it, but it literally only works half the time. Thinking of getting a Tickr in order to get ANT+/BLE. Here’s one of the rides my wife did with the Scosche on. It defaults to 72 when the connection drops.

    Reply
  12. Jessica Lister
    February 14, 2017 at 10:47 pm #25

    Any idea if the Fenix 3 or Fenix 3 HR will drop in price with the Fenix 5 hitting shelves soon?

    Reply
  13. Nancy
    February 15, 2017 at 9:14 pm #28

    Hi;
    I am not what one would call a young runner and I like simple-to-use gadgets. I had a Garmin runners watch which I may have used 40 times and now the battery dies after 45 minutes and that is after a full charge. I would like to buy a very simple user friendly watch that has distance, time and pace per mile. Heart monitor would be a bonus but not necessary. Any suggestions. Thanks so much.
    Nancy

    Reply
  14. Tom
    February 16, 2017 at 8:56 am #30

    Just noticed Amazon has the Garmin 235 (Black) on sale for $269 (marked down from the usual $329). Maybe this is old news… but I just noticed it.

    Reply
  15. Pablo
    February 23, 2017 at 8:53 am #33

    There is a better deal on the Scosche Rhythm+ on their website, I think the best deal so far $50.39 using coupon SCOSCHE37

    link to scosche.com

    Reply