I was in the exact same shopping dilemma as yourself about 2 weeks ago.
I opted for the Fenix Solar 47mm. More expensive than the Endruo3 but I didn’t want the larger sizing. I had a Fenix 5 47mm and wanted similar sizing.
On a pure practicality basis - Enduro3 is the clear winner. I wear my F8 Solar 47mm to the office, gym, beach and it’s never looks out of place. Personally the 51mm of the large Fenix and Enduro don’t sit nicely under a closed cuff of a shirt.
I also have slim/medium wrists, so the 47mm works better for me
Just don’t touch the F8 Pro, waste of money .
Another really good option is the F7Pro. Personally too, I deliberately at length over the AMOLED screen vs MIPS. As others say the AMOLED feels too much like a device and gadget. F8 Solar MIPS is certainly bright enough and in “gesture” mode, disappears into the background when not “using”
Good luck shopping
I was in the exact same shopping dilemma as yourself about 2 weeks ago.
I opted for the Fenix Solar 47mm. More expensive than the Endruo3 but I didn’t want the larger sizing. I had a Fenix 5 47mm and wanted similar sizing.
On a pure practicality basis - Enduro3 is the clear winner. I wear my F8 Solar 47mm to the office, gym, beach and it’s never looks out of place. Personally the 51mm of the large Fenix and Enduro don’t sit nicely under a closed cuff of a shirt.
I also have slim/medium wrists, so the 47mm works better for me
Just don’t touch the F8 Pro, waste of money .
Another really good option is the F7Pro. Personally too, I deliberately at length over the AMOLED screen vs MIPS. As others say the AMOLED feels too much like a device and gadget. F8 Solar MIPS is certainly bright enough and in “gesture” mode, disappears into the background when not “using”
Good luck shopping
I had the Enduro 3 for a month, but I sold it and got an F8 Solar 47. I also tried AMOLED displays, but I can't stand them and I don't like them. The Enduro 3 had an exceptional battery, but I also found some issues. I didn't like the aesthetics and felt it was too big and thick for my wrist: it was comfortable to wear but really overly bulky. Another thing I didn't like were the buttons, which were really hard to press compared to any other Garmin: much harder than the Fenix 7. The speaker and vibration are very weak, and I didn't feel it in the morning when I use the watch's alarm.
It all depends on your personal attitude towards the issue. I personally am leaning towards buying the watch when I need it and not not when the new models will be issued and nobody knows when. That's because I desire to take an advantage from my watch right now, not sometime in the future. If the release of 9 would be tomorrow and for sure, this can justify the delayed purchase, but this is definitely not a situation.
Yes, I forgot to say, I am very happy with my fēnix 8. Great purchase.
As far as I understand F8 have more features. Such as longer battery life, additional features for golf, quite better look. These options costs £250 more. You just have to cut if these features justify an extra payment. In my opinion they definitely do. But that's should be your decision.
BTW if you ask me, only longer battery life justify a purchase of F8 instead of FR970
Little disclaimer. I have F8 Solar for more than a year and I love it. I activate GPS for 1-1.5 hour per day every day and the battery lasts for about 12 days (from 100% to close to be empty). If I wouldn't activate GPS it lasts up to 27 days - GPS is a battery killer. Take it into your considerations. That's why I stated that longer battery life only worth to go for F8
I personally didn't find Elevate 5 more precise nor accurate than the 4. I've upgraded fenix 7x to fenix 8, so I had a chance to compare. Actually the main purpose of this switch was to improve the accuracy of hr tracing. I also was convinced that results of chest strap and elevate sensor are very different from each other.
Bright and straight daylight is where MIP really shines. If you mountaineer, outdoor wanderer I think MIP will be preferred both by visibility and autonomy arguments
Depends on your preference, I'd go to a Garmin store first and play with a bit. The Fenix 8 MIP solar is also an option. I picked the Fenix 7 Pro because of a very silly reason, I see it as my "zombie apocalypse" watch. Let's say your watch totally runs out of battery and you are stuck in some woods. On the Fenix 7 Pro, you can leave it in the sun and after some time the watch will charge via solar charging enough to check the map quickly. On the Fenix 8 MIP solar, if the watch turns off, it will not charge via solar (it SHOULD, but on forums people are complaining it doesn't) so you have to make sure you never run out of juice. The Fenix 8 MIP display is a little bit better than Fenix 7 Pro, but I don't really care about that. The buttons on the Fenix 8 are more waterproof but I don't dive so I don't need that either.
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