Garmin Tactix 7 user. I see absolutely no benefit over the Apple Watch besides battery life. My OLD Apple Watch was better for heart rate than this Garmin ever as been. I'm only wearing it because work gave it to me for free (and I only wear it while exercising). My wife, who swore she'd never use a smart watch now runs and sleeps wearing my ancient Apple Watch and she gets all the actually useful data that I have.
Complaint about the Garmin: Several times, usually while cycling, it'll read 80-90bpm while my heart is actually 170ish. I won't even use the Garmin while cycling anymore. Sure it has extra bells and whistles that the Apple Watch might not have ...but if you can't be consistent and reliable with something as simple as HR, why waste the time/money?
I'll get hate for this, but I think Garmin is more of a status symbol for "serious" endurance athletes more than it is its own unique and valuable tool.
Yeah next step I to move away from garmin after 6-7 years. Every update eats battery, more issues added less fixed. My tactix 7 can’t even run any other IQ store watchface due to having massive battery drain. Despite full watch reset, reboots and so on it’s not last the 28 day as advertised.
I’ve been using tactix 7 for just over 3 years and never had any issues with it. I’m not bothered by “outdated” software as long as my watch records my sport activities reliably. I do not want advanced smartwatch on my wrist. I want a robust sport watch, hence I prefer Garmin over AW.
Some of the responses are from non-iPhone users, so their experiences will differ. Here is my (iPhone user) response to a different post, same-ish question.
“I didn’t fully switch. I have an Apple Watch Ultra and Garmin Tactix 7.
When I do wear the Tactix I miss the rich notifications from my AWU. My security cameras send screenshots whenever motion is detected. Apple Pay is great, esp using public transit. No need to pull out my phone, just tap and go. Calls/texts can be answered. All of the above can be done without your phone present, assuming you have LTE on your Apple Watch. It’s nice to leave my phone behind for runs/hikes or just a quick trip to the store.”
Both tell the time. Both track steps. Notifications on Garmin will be just plain text. Nothing fancy. You will NOT be responding to text messages as it is not compatible with iOS. If someone sends you a picture, you won’t be seeing that on your watch (for most models I think). As others have said, your list of wants and needs lean towards an Apple Watch.
Edit: Another thing to note about notifications… Apple Watch will receive notifications via Bluetooth, WiFi, or LTE. So you’d have the option to not be near your phone. Garmin will always need to be within Bluetooth range of your phone.
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