Garmin - tactix Charlie

If you want to accurately track HR, get a watch that can sync with a chest strap HR monitor. I have the Garmin Tactics Charlie and the chest strapnHR Pro which is waterproof so you can swim with it. It's probably too bulky for you, but check battery life. I charge my watch once every 3-3 weeks.

100% worth it. I've had my Tactix Charlie for 5 years now, and the display still looks brand new. The bezel is pretty beat up, but the sapphire looks flawless

Good lord, what are you planning on doing, ODA level stuff? An Instinct (Solar) tactical is probably all you really need, Tactix is has some serious features - like windage and range finder. Good luck!

Ok, just hear me out for one second before you think I'm crazy. The red light on the Fenix line is AMAZING. I use it every single night multiple times as it makes walking around at night super easy and not at all straining on the eyes. Honestly, it might be my "I'm not giving up this watch for e.g. an Apple watch, ever" feature. The Tactix light is green. I have no idea how well that'll work at night. But I absolutely LOVE the red light.

I went from years of wearing a Garmin Tactix to an Apple Watch Ultra this year. The battery life was a pain to get used to, but the Ultra lasts about two days and I will charge it when I am at my computer and it isn't terrible. I am kind of used to it now. I miss some of the map features and battery life when hiking/camping in the mountains, but overall I am very happy with everything else. The cellular service is a great addition. I actually get quicker gps lock for runs and like it better than the Garmin on my runs. I use the Hevy app for lifting and have no complaints. I love the ability to add so many more apps on the Apple. Even apps like mobile pocket that lets me add bar codes for my gym, Costco, etc. are an added convenience that I enjoy. Apple Pay seems to work better than the Garmin Pay which had issues for me.

I literally did the same thing with my fenix 3/6 and tactix but being able to run without a phone and still have access to emergency services or family through the watch is far superior than battery life during my 20-25 hours/week training.

The Apple Watch is deeply embedded in the Apple ecosystem, and most notably in messaging, and events (events is a surprisingly broad subject). It is a superb smartwatch that happens to have a lot of fitness features. Garmins are sports watches first, that happen to have some smart watch features. Forgetting the software featres, the Fenix and Tactix are highly rugged and that's a feature for them.

Bro, it's literally a fitness tracker first, then 2 miles of data sheets from all that tracking...then all the "smart" gibberish as a barely visible dot on the horizon. At least Enduro/fenix/Tactix/Epix line are like that.

Garmin ecosystem is chocked full of goodness. Since I run and cycle, it’s great for multi sport. A lot of folks who only run seem to love Coros watches and their environment. I think either of those (with Strava integration) would be an improvement over your Apple Watch.

People have to stop comparing these. These are for two different people. I would never wear an Apple Watch based on battery life alone. I specifically got the Garmin for a wrist based gps and mapping tool to track and orient myself. You buy an Apple Watch to use smart features and be connected to your phone. Garmin has never been in that market. It’s a whole company based on gps systems for outdoor activities . You buy an Apple Watch to have Apple ecosystem. you can’t use half the feature of the fenix on an iPhone bc they only want you to use their watch… Garmin are all specifically made for their audience even down the the model . Apple watches are just to keep you plugged into your phone and have no bearing on actual outdoor activities despite calling it ultra. The Millitary has been orienteering with Garmin wrist based gps systems forever. You’d never catch an Apple Watch on patrol in Afghanistan. 😂