21 in Fitness Trackers
Garmin - Instinct 3 – 50 mm, AMOLED
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Reddit Reviews:
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Based on 1 year's data from Mar 17, 2026 How it works
Liked most:
10
0
"The Instinct 3 is built tough (rugged, reliable) ... If you’ll drop it, bang it, leave it in harsh places, the Instinct’s durability becomes appealing"
"I love the fact that I don't have to baby the watch at all"
"Can take hard knocks like G-Shock and still function."
4
1
"Buttons instead of touch so it can be used while sweating buckets"
"Basic display with no touchscreen, which I find much easier to view and control when kiting."
"Yep agree, physical buttons are actually a plus! In a world of touchscreens, something tactile is surprisingly something enjoyable."
8
1
"The sleep score and body battery is a game changer - It is insane how much this has helped me with better habits in just 6-weeks. ... I can see the difference in my sleep and body battery even if I have two alcoholic drinks at an event or with dinner, or if I have too much caffeine too late in the day. It is helping me understand the effects of these actions on other parts of my life more explicitly."
"the wearables are nothing more than a data collector for GPS & other monitors (HR strap, cadence, speed etc) - that they excel in. ... Garmin is best at actual training/event data for say a run/ride/tri etc when paired with a HR strap (cadence, speed and power sensors too)."
"The Garmin excels at all of that ... I wear a smart watch to gather my health stats; steps, floors, calories, heart rate etc, and also to get a good measure of my sleep."
23
2
"offers significantly better battery life ... insane battery life"
"I have had it on for 25d and it's still got 6% battery. That's what I'd call a watch!"
"Battery life, even when surfing every day for 2-3hrs a day is around 8 days, 16-18 days if I’m only using the watch as a watch. ... I’m charging once every 10-14 days atm, depending on activity levels."
5
0
"GPS tracking for hikes including good ascent tracking"
"I'd be pretty confident in how well any of them with onboard GPS track. Including the Instinct line."
"provide good map support and tracking ... Here's a preview of after hike mapping."
Disliked most:
2
5
"Garmin surprisingly messy ... Garmin was all over the place with noisy spikes. ... Garmin Instinct 3 really surprised me with how messy the HR data was. I am very negatively surprised with these results. ... I was really surprised with Garmin, and I am thinking it might have been not tight enough. I have the 50mm version and it is quite bulky, which probably causes a lot of movement, that probably interferes with the reading."
"Garmin has been failing at HR data for a while now, you need a chest stra for activities to get good data."
"In my experience the heart rate monitor on the device itself is average at best."
0
1
"not having maps will not be great for hikes."
1
2
"with the always on display on the battery life is horrible compared to any other instinct. ... with a fresh battery the 3 AMOLED will mabey last a week"
"For the record I have notifications and pulse-ox turned off."
0
2
"The lack of music storage is definitely a drawback"
"instinct 3 amoled doesn't have music"
0
3
"But those are a fair bit bulkier."
"50mm i3 is probably to bulky for swim"
"you’ll sacrifice some of the nicer interface and comfort of the 265."
mSants732 0.5Tbf, I sold my AWU2 for an Instinct 3 AMOLED and disliked it, sold it and got an AWU3. I miss the battery life and torch feature but it didn’t do enough with my phone to prefer it over an AWU. I have a Whoop 5.0 and the AWU3 now. Love it
ToutsSnoutsNarks 0.5Tactix 7 MIP for long daytime endurance activities, and Instinct 3 50mm Amoled for my old eyes in the evening!!
FactorSimilar7049 0.4Garmin instant3 or enduro only have to charge it every other week with a lot of gps use
acaciadeadwalk 0.3Instinct 3 amo Getting 10 days with always on display, always connected to phone for weather.
AloneTradition8536 0.3As a gift, I think it is a good choice. Battery life is fair, you can go out for a 5 to 7 days of travel without charger or cable for Venu 3. In the daily life, I usually charge it once every week, but it can definitetly last even longer than one week. I have Venu3, Instinct 3 AMOLED and one Apple Watch, but my favorite is still Venu3.
Alwaysout14 0.3I have the instinct 3 AMOLED and it’s been awesome. I received it on August 14th, starting wearing it the 15th and have yet to charge it since. Battery still shows 6 days left which is incredible
No I do the wrist gesture and have it on low light, which is plenty for me and still able to see just fine outside
ChrisT182 0.3Agreed with many of the folks here- don't buy the newest devices, and if you do, wait for a flash deal. I have the Instinct 2X, but I found the Instinct 3 Amoled for 200$ off...figured why not.
Ctrl-Alt-Pete 0.3Whilst I can’t comment on the differences between the watches you’ve mentioned, I think you’d be mad for NOT going back to Garmin. I went from AW to Instinct AMOLED and would never go back to Apple.
doyouthinkitsreal 0.3I was in the same boat last month; I stretched a little bit and bought the Instinct 3 AMOLED. I'm happy with the purchase. What you will miss is the mobile app UI/UX, as well as the watch's. If your main goal is battery, notifications and health, then go for it.
Few_Organization9619 0.3If your sensor should struggle because of the tattoos you can use white epoxy stickers. Before I discovered that I wore my Suunto, Garmin instinct 2, Epix Gen 2 the other way around. But after my both very dark sleeves were finished 6 months ago the heart rate sensor didn't work. Now for the first time in years I wear the new instinct 3 amoled the 'right way', even works with the old Gen 4 sensor. :)
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