Garmin vs Athlon Chrony

[LongshotFan]

I picked up the Garmin Xero and the Athlon Rangecraft to test this week. I took it to the range and here are my thoughts.

I shot a string of 69 and both picked them up with no misses.

The difference between the two units were much closer than the YouTube video comparions I've seen. The two units were only about 4 fps off from each other.

From the unit itself, the Garmin was slightly easier to use. I think having all the buttons at the top made it a little more intuitive for me rather than the up down controls on the side of the Athlon.

When comparing the data, both have roughly the same information.

I think the Athlon screen is brighter and the text is easier to read vs. the Garmin.

In this area, they are very similar.

When I connected the APP's, they have much bigger differences.

The Garmin is very focused. It pulls in your shot strings, displays it very clearly and large and that's about all it does.

The Athlon can pull in weather data directly from the phone, wants you to add wind speed, direction and more information about your target to assist with target calculations.

The Athlon APP wants (optional) to pull in a gun profile as well as a bullet profile. I find the text on the shot data smaller than I would like.

When I looked at the app reviews, there were complaints about missing shot strings being transmitted from the unit to the app for the Athlon. I didn't confirm this as I only shot one session. The app has a rating of 2 stars.

For the Garmin, it has a rating of 3 stars. It doesn't do a whole lot. It's accurate and folks export the data to do any calculations. It doesn't pull weather or any other data about the session

 

[kwaping]

I just received my Athlon on Friday. I've been using it a lot since then. I think the unit itself is great, but the app is a bit funky. Fortunately, app updates are easier to do than firmware (or hardware!) updates, so I'm not too worried.

I did experience faulty transmission of shot strings from the unit to my phone. My sessions all appeared with 0 shots on the phone. I believe the issue is with selecting the Air profile when starting a quick session, instead of a rifle. All of my Rifle profile sessions transferred perfectly. Rifle is available in the 600-1200(?) fps range, so it's perfectly fine for most PCP guns.

I'm happy with my purchase, especially at the Athlon price.

 

[LongshotFan]

@kwaping I'm honestly torn about which one I will return.

 

[kwaping]

@kwaping I'm honestly torn about which one I will return.

Understandable! I would have a hard time too. In the end, it came down to just price for me. That's a pretty big difference. If they were the same price, I think I would be paralyzed.

 

[maxtrouble]

The Garmin has been very reliable and trouble free. I like the minimalist approach.

 

[LongshotFan]

Understandable! I would have a hard time too. In the end, it came down to just price for me. That's a pretty big difference. If they were the same price, I think I would be paralyzed.

I just noticed an issue with the Garmin App. I expected it to auto adjust the date, but it still has a 2024 date.

 

[kwaping]

Report it, that should be an easy fix. My Athlon app just had an update today. I don't know what's in it, but at least there's signs of life from the dev team. That's good news.

 

[igolfat8]

I used an Athlon during a N50 match and it recorded my shots PLUS the gun next to me. That was very frustrating. The next day I bought a Garmin and it’s worked as expected with no surprises.

 

[jccams]

The Garmin has been very reliable and trouble free. I like the minimalist approach.

Yep, I'm with ya. My Garmin does everything I need it to do.

 

[bchannell]

I've had a Garmin for several months now, and use it a lot. I've had some issues, but really, nothing that would cause me to throw up my hands.
The best part of the Garmin is no settings for sensitivity, return, blah, blah, blah, just tell it airgun, input pellet weight if you like, or leave it out, it's up to you and start shooting. I never have to worry if it's going to pick up a shot or not.

The physical use:
* it NEVER misses a shot, and I shoot with plenty of obstructions, from inside my garage, with a car beside me or a car in the driveway, etc, and no problems ever.
* it tracks with the four or five chronos I've had or borrowed recently, so I trust it. Never a funky reading.
* the screen can be hard to read inside the garage. The more light the better it is to see. I wish they could do something with that, or even transmit to phone in real time, so it could be the display.
* all the stats and info are easy to navigate and perfect.

The app:
* easy to read and has all the info I would ever need.
* transfers to the phone very fast, usually before I can pick it up and mess with it.


Issues:
* The first unit I had, had a problem with saving strings. It would display all shots during shooting, and then when you ended the string, boom! it was gone. I called Garmin and the very knowledgeable fellow had me run thru some tests and told me to call back if it happened again. It did and on the second call, he immediately said he was shipping me a new unit and tag to return the old one. Now that's service!

The new unit has been pretty much flawless, I think a time or two I went through the button pushing too fast and didn't actually save a string, but if I make sure I do it right never a problem.
I would definitely buy the Garmin again, it is so convenient and I use it soooo much more than any of the "lights" chronos I've ever had simply because it is EASY to setup and use. I made a magnetic stand on my shooting bench so that I can turn it on and pop it on the magnet and start shooting.

I'll probably not try the Athlon, as I have no need to change, and I can't imagine the Athlon being any more reliable. Had the Athlon come out before the Garmin, maybe I would have never bought the Garmin, who knows.

 

[JDR]

Here is a link from an outdoor website I visit often on the subject.

https://forum.gon.com/threads/athlon-rangecraft-chronograph.1072055/#post-14728430

 

[Joedirt199]

The powder burner guys are reporting the Garmin missing shots after a couple of updates. Some were trying to keep the software in factory setting but once you sinc it with a phone, it auto updates. It was not very many shots but missing some all the same.

 

[kwaping]

The powder burner guys are reporting the Garmin missing shots after a couple of updates. Some were trying to keep the software in factory setting but once you sinc it with a phone, it auto updates. It was not very many shots but missing some all the same.

If a software update can break it, then a software update can fix it. I'm just happy that they're actively working on it.

 

[kwaping]

I sent an email to [email protected] yesterday with feedback about the missing shots in Air mode. I just got a reply this morning saying this will be fixed in an update soon.

 

[CoyoteGod]

I went with Garmin way before Athlon released its product. I originally went with Garmin because of my frustration with FX radar chrony, which always missed shots. My Garmin has been very consistent not just with my Airguns but also my powder burners. Very good buy. If I had it to do again I would still go with Garmin, go with the established product. I am an Athlon fan, but I would stay with the proven product in the radar chrony game given my prior frustrations.

 

[kwaping]

Someone's gotta do it, right? I'll be the early adopter for you all and share my findings. So far it's positive but I haven't used it at the range yet.

One thing I can say for sure, Athlon is doing a great job with putting resources behind this product. I am very encouraged by the app updates and fast, direct responses from customer service.

 

[kwaping]

I asked Athlon support about the product picking up shots from other shooters. They said this is the first they've heard of it. If this has happened to you, please send a report to [email protected] with as much detail as you can provide! This might help get the issue resolved.