Which health tracker do you have to purchase?
Garmin just lately launched its Fenix 8 sequence which is much less targeted on ultra-endurance athletes, just like the Enduro 3 smartwatch, and as an alternative guarantees to supply one thing for everybody.
With its premium price ticket, the Fenix 8 sequence is way more costly than current launches such because the Google Pixel Watch 3, however how does it evaluate to Apple’s premium smartwatch the Watch Extremely 2?
We’ve in contrast the specs of the Garmin Fenix 8 sequence to final 12 months’s Apple Watch Extremely 2, so you possibly can resolve which smartwatch could be higher suited to you.
| Garmin Fenix 8 | Apple Watch Extremely 2 | |
| UK RRP | £869.99 | £799 |
| USA RRP | $999.99 | $799 |
| Battery life (GPS Mode) | As much as 95 days (149 with photo voltaic) | N/A |
| Battery life (Smartwatch Mode) | As much as 30 days (48 with photo voltaic) | As much as 36 hours (72 hours in Low Energy Mode) |
| Display screen Dimension | 43, 47 or 51mm | 49mm |
| Waterproof | 10ATM | 10ATM and IPX8 |
| Dimension (Dimensions) | 47 x 47 x 13.8 mm (47mm model) | 49 x 44 x 14.4mm |
| Weight | 64g or 74g | 59g |
| Launch date | 2024 | 2023 |
| GPS | Sure | Sure |
Worth
The Garmin Fenix 8 has a beginning RRP of £869.99/$999.99 for the 43mm mannequin with an AMOLED display. This worth rises in accordance with the specified measurement of the smartwatch and whether or not you go for an AMOLED or photo voltaic charging show, with the costliest providing being the 51mm-sized, photo voltaic mannequin which is £1039.99/$1199.99
Click on right here to purchase the Garmin Fenix 8
The Apple Watch Extremely 2 has a less expensive RRP of £799/$799 and, in contrast to the Garmin Fenix 8, is available in only one 49mm measurement possibility.
The Garmin Fenix 8 has AMOLED or photo voltaic always-on shows
As talked about earlier, the Fenix 8 sequence has two completely different show choices so that you can select from. There’s the AMOLED display which is accessible in three sizes: 43mm, 47mm and 51mm, and the photo voltaic display which is available in simply two sizes: 47mm and 51mm.
Whereas the AMOLED guarantees to be a brilliant display with improved graphics from its predecessor, the photo voltaic possibility is an always-on show with a photo voltaic charging lens that lets you prolong your battery life once you’re outdoors. Whereas each supply spectacular battery life, the photo voltaic possibility can final for as much as 48 days whereas the AMOLED affords as much as 29 days of energy.
The Apple Watch Extremely 2 doesn’t have a solar-charging possibility, so must be recharged both by way of mains or by way of wi-fi charging. Nonetheless, it does have an All the time-On Retina show which may attain as much as a whopping 3000 nits at its peak.
The Garmin Fenix 8 is appropriate with Android smartphones
This might arguably be the largest deciding issue between the 2 smartwatches. Whereas the Garmin Fenix 8 sequence is appropriate with each iPhones and Androids, the Apple Watch Extremely 2 solely works with the iPhone XS or later fashions that run on iOS 17 or later.
If you happen to’re already within the Apple ecosystem then most of your favorite Apple instruments will likely be synced instantly throughout all of your gadgets, together with the Apple Watch Extremely 2. This contains Siri, entry to the App Retailer and Discover My connectivity, which lets you find any misplaced Apple gadgets. You can too sync and entry your most-used iOS apps, akin to Calendar, Mail and Climate out of your Watch Extremely 2.
In any other case, the Fenix 8 makes use of Join IQ, Garmin’s personal app retailer by way of which you’ll obtain apps, watch faces and widgets onto your smartwatch. Very similar to the Apple Watch Extremely, Fenix 8 customers can entry their calendar and test the climate. Plus, they’ll obtain a Morning Report.
Just like Google’s Morning Transient, the Morning Report reveals a rundown of how properly you’ve slept and shows your readiness rating, a function lacking from the Apple Watch Extremely 2.
Each have preloaded exercises and actions
Naturally as smartwatches, each the Fenix 8 sequence and Apple Watch Extremely 2 include quite a few exercise profiles and exercises for customers to participate in and observe their progress and very important stats whereas doing so.
The Fenix 8 sequence has a 10ATM water resistance score, whereas the Watch Extremely 2 has a score of 100 metres below ISO normal 22810. Which means each wearables supply the power to trace your metrics whereas swimming and even when recreationally scuba diving.
The Apple Watch Extremely 2 features a depth gauge and performance required by scuba and freedivers for descents all the way down to 40 metres. It’s even EN13319 licensed, which is an internationally recognised normal for diving equipment. The Fenix 8 sequence can be 40-metre dive-rated and affords options for each scuba and apnea dive actions.
The Apple Watch Extremely 2 has a gestures function
The Apple Watch Extremely 2 has a double faucet gesture which permits customers to regulate their smartwatch with out touching the show. All they should do is faucet the index finger and thumb of their watch-wearing hand collectively.
The double faucet gesture can be utilized for numerous shortcuts together with stopping a timer, controlling music, answering cellphone calls and even taking a photograph. It’s enabled by the Apple Watch Extremely 2’s neural engine which makes use of information collected from numerous on-device sensors to detect when the gesture is made.
The Garmin Fenix 8 has an extended battery life
The Fenix 8 sequence boasts a formidable battery life, although the photo voltaic mannequin does supply extra days of use. Garmin claims the 51mm AMOLED mannequin can supply as much as 29-days of battery when in smartwatch mode whereas the 51mm photo voltaic mannequin with always-on show affords up to an enormous 48-days.
The Apple Watch Extremely 2 falls brief on this space in comparison with the Garmin. The smartwatch affords as much as 36 hours throughout regular use or as much as 72 hours when Low Energy Mode is switched on.
Early Verdict
If you happen to’re firmly cemented within the Apple ecosystem, then it’s comprehensible that you just’d need to go for the Apple Watch Extremely 2 as all of your information, from well being and health stats from the watch to your appointments in Calendar may be synced seamlessly throughout all of your Apple gadgets.
Nonetheless, when you’re an Android person otherwise you simply need a smartwatch that has the power to final for weeks slightly than days, then the Garmin Fenix 8 sequence could be the better-suited possibility. That mentioned, we haven’t reviewed Garmin’s claims ourselves but so bear in mind that our verdict relies on the specs and data Garmin has shared as of publishing this comparability.
