Garmin - Swim 2
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Reddit Reviews:
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Based on 1 year's data from Jan 28, 2026 How it works
Liked most:
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73
"especially because of the battery life. ... The mouse I had right before this was the steelseries super light one, that was an every other day charge at minimum. Whereas this one is like once a week at most - and I work from home and game all night."
"offers significantly better battery life ... insane battery life"
"Oh, and the battery lasts days even when exercising a lot (weeks without excercise)."
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"I had mine staked down in packed sand during a rainstorm that dropped 1.5”-2” per hour for 3 hours according to a ranger station nearby and it took it like a champ."
"My old Breville lasted 10-11 years ... I got the new one 3 years ago with the air fryer option … if it breaks tomorrow I would figure out how to get it again - I seriously love it."
"after heavy and extreme and I mean extreme use in a very dirty environment, after a year the range suddenly cut down... I felt like I'd gotten my measly 20ish buck worth from them and didn't fault jlab due to the extreme circumstances I used them in daily. ... I work in a hot asa filthy steel mill and the fact they lasted a year was impressive to me."
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"for the price it's everything I need :)"
"The Swim 2 was cheap enough that if it failed at least I wasn’t out $600+."
"It’s relatively cheap ($200 new, I got mine used for $150)"
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"I'm in an ocean swimming group of about 30 regulars. EVERYONE is on garmin. Those that were on Apple have switched, because they never got accurate distances."
"Improved swimming mode allows you to monitor your progress as you swim. ... The app syncs well with Health Connect (Google Fit) and actually syncs my swims as swims, not walking. ... The swim tracking seems accurate and the device is responsive immediately after getting out the pool."
"Next day and ever since it has been spot on mate."
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"I particularly like that there is no touch screen and it's all button operated. ... Touch screens in the water are the devil."
"no touch screen"
Disliked most:
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"GoPro enduro batteries were dying quite fast when it was cold outside (snowboarding at -15 C/ 5F). ... Maybe that’s because of their age, but I didn’t use it that much. ... And 1 of 2 batteries is already swollen."
"My Hero 11 Black Mini's battery can only last ~20 min of footage. ... whats the point if it just runs out of battery mid run?"
"Refreshing to see that action camera can actually be reliable and not crash and overheat all the time ... Gopro has always had a lot of overheating issues, corrupt files, crashing issues, super unresponsive UI, and horrible battery life. ... Constantly got those issues with gopro."
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"absolute shite at tracking intervals and stroke detection"
"I stopped using my Garmin Swim 2 because it would routinely add or subtract a lap or two on auto lap count. Maddening. ... My swim should be the easiest: all kick turns, freestyle only. My hand never touched the wall until the end. It made me suspicious about the other data it was gathering, like stroke, if it couldn't even get the laps right."
"it cant even get the basic strokes down"
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"if you want to do others sports than is lacking a lot."
"Where as the swim 2 from memory you can track swimming and running and nothing else l."
"Outside of the water it's a very limited smartwatch - no nfc payments, no short reply functions, smaller screen etc."
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"I refuse to sit and fiddle with starting and stopping the clock in between intervals"
"it’s too fiddly"
"I can’t go back in and edit it once it’s complete. ... I wish I could do that purely because I don’t know what workout I’m doing until I’m in the water and the coach tells me what to do"
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"My only gripe with Garmin Swim 2 is the small wrist band, doesn’t fit average guy wrist. ... I had to buy the special larger band for $40usd. ... Special band, a regular watch band not an option"
"I did have some issues is very cold open water, where it temporary stopped working."
"Swim 2 does not work in very cold water- it shuts off. I'm talking about 32-55 F."
a1n3 1.0There is Garmin Swim (IMHO essentially it is a ForeRunner, but swim has been put in focus; review here https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2019/10/garmin-openwater-review.html). However, modern Garmin watches are all able to track pool swim as well as gym workouts (you might have to set exercises later in the app if you want to track muscle groups affected). Essentially ForeRunner is for runners mostly, Forerunner 9xx is focused on triathlon, Fenix is mostly for outdoors - but again, all of them can do almost the same. I’d go with Fenix if budget allows.
Agreeable_Ad4156 1.0Garmin swim 2. Gives you pretty accurate yards that you can see while swimming. My Fitbit charge wouldn’t show distance until I stopped and synchronized with my phone after. Also, wet touchscreen on the Fitbit is useless.
Using Garmin Swim 2. Happy with its function for tracking laps in indoor pool, took a little getting used to for accuracy. I have to be deliberate and smooth on my turns. Original band was tight on my large wrist, larger band was expensive, around $40.
BBorNot 1.0I stopped using my Garmin Swim 2 because it would routinely add or subtract a lap or two on auto lap count. Maddening.
Bilateral-drowning 1.0Plus one for the swim 2.. It's a basic watch that really only does swimming but it does swimming well. Both in the pool and open water. I particularly like that there is no touch screen and it's all button operated. Touch screens in the water are the devil.
Blugrl21 1.0I've had a Swim2 and upgraded to a 265 (which has a better accelerometer). Stroke detection probably won't get much better with an Apple. My watches sometimes confuse sprint free and fly, but otherwise it mostly gets it right. I find stroke detection matters a lot less than being able to count laps anyway. Auto lap counting on all watches is about the same.... all are 95%+ but if you want 100% you need manual stop/start and only Garmin has that
Brambleline 1.0I've a Garmin swim 2 the battery lasts about a week. I only use it to swim, in the pool & open water plus to count steps.
Bscorp800 1.0My Swim 2 is pretty accurate here. I use the option GPS+ GLONASS in my first ow races/workouts and it gets the distance fairly well, comparing with my pairs’ watches. It even catches the moments where I got on my swim buoy to clean my goggles’ fog hahahahaha
Commercial_Coach_935 1.0Don’t insult my push offs like that. Just kidding lol. I’m still getting used to the watch and absolutely use the auto interval feature. May just need to turn it off! Seems to be the advise
Ohhh yea I have that issue with the garmin 2. Meaning, I can’t go back in and edit it once it’s complete. I wish I could do that purely because I don’t know what workout I’m doing until I’m in the water and the coach tells me what to do
CreteSwim 1.0You could use Google Earth to check the straight-line distance from the beach to the dam. If your track wasn't straight, the Garmin will show a greater distance. I also find that my Garmin Swim 2 is more accurate if I always pause the tracking if I happen to stop in the water and keep the watch above the water if I'm stopped so the GPS signal isn't lost.
C_W_Stevens 1.0Swim 2. It does pool and open water, and syncs with swim.com, Strava, and usms.com tracking sites. I've had mine for about 2 years.
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