The smart capabilities were exactly what I was looking for, allowing me to see incoming messages, phone calls, calendar events, notifications, weather etc.Īll in all, this was a very good buy and I am happy that I saved myself $300 over the Apple Watch (And I love Apple products). The Connect IQ is a cool feature to download apps and different watch faces. I absolutely love the activity tracking throughout my day to keep me motivated to keep moving. The only complaint I have is depen ding on the activity, it may not always get an accurate reading (rowing, weight lifting etc.) The GPS connects supper fast and has the accuracy you'd expect from Garmin. The heart rate sensor works better than I expected as my previous watch used a chest strap. I have bluetooth, heart rate and activity tracking running at all times. I have been using it non stop for 4 days and it is only at 61% as I write this. The look is great, I have had many inquiries about it in the week that I have been wearing it. The strap is comfortable and has many different sizes to get the right fit. The watch is extremely light, I was very surprised when I took it out of the box. This watch is of course cheaper, and its not a dedicated smart watch but where it comes short, it excels in so many other areas. Like much of Garmin’s downloadable content, the watch faces are created. If you’d like to check whether or not your device is supported you can visit Garmin’s ConnectIQ storefront.
I was a little torn between this and the new Apple Watch Series 2. Some of the Garmin smartwatches that support custom watch faces include Fenix 6, Forerunner 235, Vivoactive 3, Forerunner 45, Forerunner 245 and Forerunner 945. I'm no stranger to Garmin GPS watches, having 2 others in the past. Great Fitness Watch With Smart Capabilities I may have gotten a lemon but I can't recommend the 235. I have tried contacting garmin support but they have not been able to help. The watch constantly reboots and the only way I can get it to stop rebooting is to turn off Bluetooth. Shortly after writing the initial review I started having problems.
I liked my Fitbit and Microsoft Band (until the band broke 2 times), but the forerunner gives you everything they do plus a much better battery life. I turned off the "move" warning feature that reminds you to move if you have been idle for a long time and it hasn't happened since then, but it is frustrating that I had to do this. To fix it I had to go outside and let it connect to gps. I had a few instances where the watch rebooted on its own and had the wrong time when it came back on. My biggest issue has been losing track of the time. After 2 weeks I still struggle to find things. I think it would be a better experience if everything could be configured on your pho ne. There are some things you configure on your phone but most configuration is done by menus on the watch. I have had a Fitbit and Microsoft Band 2 which would die after about 2 days so getting more than 5 days has been huge bonus. I have been recharging after 5 days when it gets down into the 40's. I haven't let it drain all the way down yet, but my guess is it will last over a week. The screen is good (but not a touch screen). The info in the phone app is very detailed. The heart rate monitor has not had any issues.
Good, but not great - UPDATE - Not worth itĪs a fitness tracker it is great.