Since the pricing is so ridiculously high in Australia as a pre-order (probably due to the high USD exchange rate), I did my homework to save my pennies and came across this bargain. Used OzBargain to check on deals before so about time I contribute something back finally!
Pre-order the Garmin Fenix 3 HR (includes Garmin Elevate wrist heart rate technology, Garmin Part Number: 010-01338-70) from the UK for AU $809 including delivery when it's available end of February/early March. If you register for an account and opt in to receiving their marketing emails you'll get a 10% discount coupon for your first order of full priced items (FIRST10-AU), so the Fenix 3 HR comes down to AU $728.10. Wasn't able to find anything close to that pricing in Australia or overseas. They also have the Garmin Fenix 3 HR Performer Bundle (Garmin Part Number: 010-01338-73) which includes the HRM4-RUN Chest Strap for AU $859 so with the 10% discount comes down to AU $774 including delivery. The HRM4-RUN alone retails for AU $149 here in Oz so for an extra AU $46 is well worth grabbing. If you only purchase a single unit, it's under the AU $1000 limit for customs so there will be no import duty charges. You can cancel your order before it ships if better pricing appears but considering how popular this anticipated model is I don't see that happening.
This is the link for the Garmin Fenix 3 HR Performer Bundle.
http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/au/garmin-fenix-3-sapphire-hr…
Coswold Outdoor seems to be a rather large chain in the UK and feedback seems to be reasonable. They state that if you use a credit card for payment it will only be pre-authorised and not billed until the unit ships (may be delayed by Garmin, it's happened before) but if you pay with Paypal it's debited instantly. Worth keeping that in mind. Not sure how long bargain pricing will be available but I needed an upgrade of my older Garmin Forerunner so bit the bullet this morning, cheapest I found in Australia was AU $984 so it's saving me AU $210. Garmin Australia's warranty terms clearly state "Devices purchased in the United States, Canada, UK, Europe or any other country must be returned to the Garmin Service Centre in that country or to the retail store where the device was purchased. Alternatively you can choose to pay the non-warranty repair rate.". From the Cotswold Outdoor FAQ… Q: Will I be reimbursed for postage costs when returning an item? A: You will only be refunded postage costs if the item is incorrect or faulty.
This is the link for the manual which I came across last night, getting some Smart Watch features for sure but at least this is water-resistant.
smd