Latest news with #Fenix8
Tom's Guide
6 days ago
- Business
- Tom's Guide
Garmin Fenix 7 Pro hits lowest ever price for Prime Day — here's why I'd get it ahead of the Fenix 8
The Garmin Fenix 7 Pro is a regular in sales, having been released two years ago and since superseded by the Garmin Fenix 8. However, I've never seen the price of the sapphire solar model of the watch drop as low as $499, which it's going for on Amazon right now just before Prime Day technically starts. That's a $400 saving on its full price and half the price of the equivalent model of the Garmin Fenix 8. The Fenix 7 Pro might not be the newest option in Garmin's range, but there's no better sports watch available for $499. The Fenix 7 Pro has crashed to its lowest ever price just ahead of Prime Day, with this deal on the sapphire titanium model of the watch making it half the price of the equivalent Fenix 8. You won't find a better sports watch for $499, with the Fenix 7 Pro offering top-tier sports tracking, training analysis and navigation features, plus outstanding battery life, all in a durable and attractive watch. The Garmin Fenix 7 Pro was once the flagship watch in the brand's range, and it still has almost all of the key sports tracking features you get on the best Garmin watches. It offers precise tracking, the best navigation tools available from any brand including offline maps, detailed training analysis and a rugged but lightweight design. Compared with the Garmin Fenix 8 Solar model, you don't get the mic and speaker and diveproof design of the new watch, and you also miss out on some running analysis features like running economy estimates, but the core tracking experience is still the same. This deal is on the sapphire titanium model of the Fenix 7 Pro, which has a more scratch-resistant screen and durable bezel than the standard steel watch. This deal is on the sapphire titanium model of the Fenix 7 Pro, which has a more scratch-resistant screen and durable bezel than the standard steel watch, which actually isn't available in a deal for less than the sapphire watch right now. I wore the Fenix 7 Pro for over a month during my testing and the key advantage it offers over Garmins with an AMOLED display like the Epix Pro is battery life. The Fenix 7 Pro has a memory-in-pixel display, which means it lasted three weeks on a charge for me even when running 60-70 miles a week. That battery life can be boosted significantly in sunny conditions too, with the solar panels that run around the watch face able to add several days of battery life if you're out in the sun for three hours every day. To put this deal price into perspective, right now the Fenix 7 Pro is cheaper than the Garmin Forerunner 570, a mid-range watch with far fewer sports features that also doesn't have maps. It's a fantastic deal and a price I doubt will be bettered even when Prime Day gets into full swing.
Tom's Guide
25-06-2025
- Tom's Guide
Garmin Fenix 8 and Enduro 3 get 28 upgrades in free software update — here are the 6 best new features
Garmin Fenix 8 owners are unlikely to have had any interest in buying the new Garmin Venu X1 and Garmin Forerunner 970 watches — they already own one of the best Garmin watches, after all. They should have been paying close attention to those new launches, however. Both the Venu X1 and Forerunner 970 arrived with new features that weren't yet on the Fenix 8, like running economy measurements and a smart alarm. Those upgrades are now heading for the Fenix 8, along with the Garmin Enduro 3 and Fenix E, courtesy of a free software update that is now available as part of Garmin's Public Beta program, and will go on wider release in due course. There are 28 new features in total in the software update, along with 30 fixes and other improvements for the watches. You can see the full release notes on the Garmin Forum, and if you're signed up to the Public Beta program you can get it now by hitting 'check for updates' in the settings menu on your watch. The flagship sports watch in Garmin's range now has the features introduced on the Forerunner 970 and Venu X1. It's a fantastic sports and adventure watch that lives up to its high price, and should start to appear more regularly in sales in the second half of 2025. I've been testing the Forerunner 970 and Venu X1 since they launched and have tried the new features heading for the Fenix 8/E and Enduro 3. Here are the ones you should be most excited about. This is my favorite new feature from the Forerunner 970. Running tolerance estimates how much mileage your body can handle in a week based on recent training, and takes into account how hard your runs actually are. For example, when I did a flat-out 10K race, and the impact deemed to be 15km of running. So my acute impact load for that week was higher than my actual mileage — a helpful reminder that hard runs have more of an effect on the body. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. You can use this feature to build up your mileage gradually and safely, and ensure not doing more running than your body can handle in total. While avoiding excessive fast or hard running, which increases your risk of injury. Each evening your watch will now give a breakdown of your day's activities and things like your stress levels throughout the day, and give a sleep suggestion from Garmin's Sleep Coach feature, which basically amounts to saying you need more or less sleep than usual. The report also shows upcoming weather and appointments, along with your suggested workout for the following day. It's a handy way to get your data from the day shown to you without digging through a load of menus or widgets. To get these new stats you'll need to use your watch with the Garmin HRM600 chest strap, which enables measurement of your step speed loss during runs. This shows how much you slow down with each step, with a lower number being better as it takes less effort to then speed up again during a stride. These step speed loss measurements feed into an overall running economy estimate, which says how efficient you are as a runner. It takes a few runs to get the running economy measurement on the watch, but once you do it's another handy way to look at the impact of your training in making you a better runner. In general, running more and doing structured training will help to improve your running economy, and a more efficient runner is a faster one, because it takes less effort to maintain higher speeds if you're running more economically. The smart alarm feature initially launched on the Garmin Vivoactive 6 and is also on the Venu X1, and basically involves the watch tracking your sleep and waking you up when you're not in deep or REM sleep so you don't feel groggy. You set a 30-minute window when you want to be woken up, and your watch will then detect when you're in light sleep and buzz to wake you. As someone who has two young children I haven't needed an alarm in years, but lately my youngest has decided to sleep in on rare occasions — usually when I need to be up early myself — so I've tried the smart alarm. I wouldn't say I've felt less groggy while using it to wake up, but that could be because it's summer and I'm generally waking up early naturally as it's lighter. Once the dark days of winter arrive it should be a handy addition to my watch, and it will be more useful for those with less consistent sleep schedules. Turning your $1000 smartwatch into a retro Casio calculator watch is surprisingly enjoyable, and the calculator app available in the update also includes a useful tool to work out tips and split bills between people. Focus modes allow you to say which notifications you want coming into your watch at certain times, if any. Standard focus modes on Garmin watches include sleep and activity, and since this update you can now create your own modes to turn on in certain situations, like when you're watching a movie. To get the update now you have to enroll in Garmin's Public Beta program through the Garmin Connect website. Navigate to your device page there and click 'Join Beta Software program'. This will give you access to early updates, but it does also mean that you won't be getting the finalized versions of that software, so it can mean less stable performance, though I haven't had any real problems using the program myself. However, there is a downside if using the program as a Fenix 8 user. The watch's ECG and Dive features are disabled when using the current beta software, so you'll have to wait for the full update if you want to keep those features.
Tom's Guide
19-06-2025
- Tom's Guide
I used the Garmin Epix Pro for a year and it just hit its lowest ever price on Amazon
While I love testing out the latest Garmin watches like the Fenix 8, the high price of new sports watches means there is always value to be found in hunting for deals on older models. That's made abundantly clear by this incredible discount on the 51mm model of the Garmin Epix Pro, which is reduced to $689 at Amazon right now, a $410 saving that brings the watch down to the lowest price I've ever seen it. LOWEST PRICE! This deal reduces the 51mm Epix Pro to its lowest ever price, and for $689 you're getting an incredible AMOLED sports watch that has best-in-class navigation tools on top of the tracking and training analysis it offers. As this is the largest watch in the Epix Pro range, you also get excellent battery life, and the titanium case and sapphire crystal screen mean that it's light and durable too. The Garmin Epix Pro is the predecessor to the Garmin Fenix 8, which is undoubtedly a fantastic sports watch but costs over $1000. As someone who has used both watches extensively, running marathons with both and using the Epix Pro for a year, I'd say the older model definitely offers better value right now. That's especially true because this deal is on the titanium model of the Epix Pro, which is lighter and more durable than the standard steel watch, and it has a scratch-resistant sapphire screen, so you can be sure it will last you many years of heavy use. My Epix Pro barely has a mark on it after a year of everyday use, and I preferred using the larger 51mm model of the watch because of its bigger screen and impressive battery life — even with the always-on AMOLED screen enabled it lasted me 10 days on a charge when running 70-80 miles a week. Newer Garmin models like the Garmin Fenix 8 and Garmin Forerunner 970 have some upgrades like the addition of a mic and speaker and some new training analysis, but the core experience of using the Epix Pro is similar, and it's just as accurate a sports tracker. It also has Garmin's latest heart rate sensor on board, which is one of the most accurate optical sensors I've tested on a sports watch, and a built-in flashlight, which I've found incredibly handy throughout testing. If you'd prefer a smaller watch the Garmin Epix Pro 47mm is reduced to $699 in the Amazon sale. It has a slightly smaller display and shorter battery life than the 51mm watch, and is $10 more expensive, but that's still a great price if you feel the 51mm is too large for your wrist.
The Guardian
19-06-2025
- The Guardian
Garmin Forerunner 970 review: the new benchmark for running watches
Garmin's new top running watch, the Forerunner 970, has very big shoes to fill as it attempts to replace one of the best training and race companions available. Can a built-in torch, a software revamp and voice control really make a difference? The Guardian's journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. The new top-of-the-line Forerunner takes the body of the outgoing Forerunner 965 and squeezes in a much brighter display, useful new running analytics and more of the advanced tech from Garmin's flagship adventure watch the Fenix 8. These upgrades come at a steep cost of £630 (€750/$750/A$1,399) – £30 more than its predecessor – placing it right at the top of the running and triathlon watch pile, although less than the £780 Fenix 8. The 970 is about the same size as the outgoing 965 with a 47mm case and a beautiful, crisp and very bright 1.4in OLED screen. The touchscreen is covered in super-hard sapphire glass similar to luxury watches, while the titanium bezel finishes off the polycarbonate body in a choice of three colours. Quite a lot of the upgrades are trickle-downs from the Fenix 8 and make the 970 a better everyday smartwatch. It has Garmin's new offline voice control system, which allows you to quickly set timers and alarms, access settings or start activities. The watch also connects to your phone's voice assistant and takes calls on your wrist via Bluetooth. A revamped interface speeds up access to notifications from your smartphone by swiping down from the top of the screen. With an iPhone you can view and dismiss text-only notifications but connected to an Android phone you can also see images in notifications and directly reply to them from the watch. The 970 has Garmin Pay for contactless payments, although bank support is limited, and can control music on your phone or download playlists from Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube Music and others for phone-free music on runs. The best new feature is the LED torch built into the 970's top edge. It was invaluable on the Fenix 8 and is my favourite new addition to the Forerunner. It is bright enough to light your way on the street at night or find things buried in dark cupboards but can be turned a dim red to avoid waking everyone at home. It can also be used as a strobe light for running to help keep you visible at night. The battery lasts about six days with general smartwatch usage, including having the screen on all the time, all-day and night monitoring of health, plenty of notifications and copious use of the torch. The screen has automatic brightness but turning it down one notch in settings, which was still plenty bright enough to see outdoors, added a couple of days to the battery life. Turning the always-on display setting off extended it further to about 12 to 15 days. Screen: 1.4in AMOLED (454x454) Case size: 47mm Case thickness: 13.2mm Band size: standard 22mm Weight: 56g Storage: 32GB Water resistance: 50 metres (5ATM) Sensors: GNSS (Multiband GPS, Glonass, Galileo), compass, thermometer, heart rate, pulse Ox Connectivity: Bluetooth, ANT+, wifi Its predecessor was a fantastic running watch filled to the brim with metrics, helpful analysis and buckets of customisation options, on which the 970 only builds. The screen is large enough to be able to clearly see up to eight data fields on screen at once. Maps look particularly good and are easy to use with touch. It has the latest dual-band GPS, while Garmin's algorithms consistently have higher tracking accuracy than its rivals, even with similar systems. The new Gen 5 Elevate heart rate sensor on the back improves pulse monitoring in tricky conditions, and provides ECG (arrhythmia) readings. The 970 has Garmin's suite of industry-leading fitness, recovery and training metrics, which are joined by a few new and interesting statistics, including two that attempt to help you prevent injury. Impact load quantifies how hard a run is on your body based on its intensity and difficulty compared with an easy, flat run at slower speeds. One fast, hard 7km run was rated as equivalent to a gentler 12km run, which felt about right in my feet and legs and made me consider taking a longer recovery time before the next workout. In addition, the new running tolerance feature tracks your mileage over a seven-day period and advises how much more you can run without increasing your chance of injury. Many runners, including myself, have injured themselves when ramping up their weekly distance too fast when training for a race, which this new stat is an attempt to avoid by giving you suggested guard rails. The 970 also has a new running economy feature that tracks efficiency of your form, including how much speed you lose as your foot hits the ground, but it relies on Garmin's latest heart rate monitor strap, the HRM 600 – a £150 separate purchase. Running battery life is a solid 11-plus hours with its highest accuracy settings and listening to offline music via Bluetooth headphones, or about 16 hours without music. Turning down the screen brightness a bit added several hours to the running battery life, while reducing the GPS accuracy mode can last up to 26 hours. The Garmin isn't entirely about running, triathlon and its 30-plus sport tracking features. It also has a comprehensive suite of general health monitoring tools, including good sleep, activity, stress, women's health and heart health tracking rivalling an Apple Watch or similar. Most of Garmin's most advanced training tools also monitor your recovery from exercise during the rest of the day and night, advising you in the morning and during the day how your body is doing. It has a built-in sleep coach, a running or triathlon coach and various advisers for activity, suggesting when to do a hard workout and when to take it easy. The daily suggested workouts are dynamic and based on your sleep and recovery, so it will never prompt you to do a hardcore workout when you've had a terrible night. These automatic workouts can be replaced by a coaching plan, either using Garmin's solid tools or third-party ones placed on a calendar before a race. The watch is generally repairable with options available via support. The battery is rated to maintain at least 90% of its original capacity after two years of weekly charging. The watch does not contain any recycled materials. Garmin guarantees security updates until at least 21 May 2027 but typically supports its devices far longer. It offers recycling schemes on new purchases. The Garmin Forerunner 970 costs £629.99 (€749.99/$749.99/A$1,399). For comparison, the Garmin Fenix 8 costs from £780, the Forerunner 570 costs £460, the Garmin Forerunner 965 costs £499.99, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 costs £799, the Coros Pace Pro costs £349, the Suunto Race S costs £299 and the Polar Vantage V3 costs £519. Garmin continues to set the bar for running watches with the Forerunner 970. It isn't a dramatic leap over the outgoing Forerunner 965, instead adding a few bits to the already excellent formula. The screen is brighter, covered in scratch-resistant sapphire and ringed by a titanium bezel, which gives it a premium look and feel alongside a more modern and responsive interface. The added bells and whistles of voice control and faster access to notifications make using it as a smartwatch alternative much easier. Though wearing it is still a statement about your sporty priorities compared with an Apple or Pixel Watch. The upgraded heart rate sensor helps keep things locked during more difficult exercises and adds ECG readings for more comprehensive heart health tracking. But it is the built-in torch that is the best addition for daily life. Every watch should have one. Meanwhile, the new impact load and running tolerance features could be very useful for avoiding strain and injury, adding to the already excellent training and recovery tracking. Plus it has market-leading running accuracy and detailed onboard maps for routes or if you get lost. If you want a premium running and triathlon watch with all the bells and whistles, the Forerunner 970 is the best you can get. It just comes at a very high cost. Pros: super bright OLED screen, built-in torch, phone and offline voice control, Garmin Pay, extensive tracking and recovery analysis for running and many other sports, full offline mapping, offline Spotify, buttons and touch, most accurate GPS, ECG. Cons: expensive, limited Garmin Pay bank support, still limited smartwatch features compared with Apple/Google/Samsung watches, battery life shorter than LCD rivals.
NBC News
04-06-2025
- Health
- NBC News
Deal of the Day: Garmin's top-tier (and rarely on sale) smartwatch is at its lowest price ever
Garmin is one of our favorite brands for tracking our workouts and fitness. It makes some of the best smartwatches and fitness trackers, especially for anyone focused on exercise, recovery and detailed workout stats. The brand has many different products, but one of its premium options is the Garmin Fenix. It rarely goes on sale, but it's at its lowest price ever right now at 20% off. Deal of the day: Garmin Fenix 8 The Fenix 8 is one of the brand's flagship watches, with every possible feature and spec packed in. It's made with more premium materials than lower-priced models, plus it has hardware like a speaker, microphone and flashlight built-in. It's dive proof up to 100 meters, and it has a battery life that lasts up to 16 days. It has a plethora of software features fit for outdoor adventure and multisport athletics. You can download any route with topographical maps onto the watch and use them even when you're offline. Trail runners, hikers and climbers should know the watch tracks elevation and grade changes, and adjusts pace accordingly. The Fenix 8 also has almost all of Garmin's race and training features, including automatic multisport transitions, detailed running dynamics, training readiness and race-day tools. Multiple versions of the Fenix 8 are on sale, but I've linked the 47 millimeter AMOLED version above, one of the more affordable versions available. Why trust NBC Select? I'm a reporter at NBC Select who covers technology and fitness including recent stories on smartwatches, headphones, cameras and more. For this piece, I checked Garmin Fenix 8 prices and price history across multiple retailers to find the best deal.
