I use an old venue SQ. I got it on marketplace for $40 and it's been great for several years now. The latest and greatest is neat, but certainly not mandatory.
First, do not purchase the "old" model, because this piece of hardware (the watch) doesn't live forever, but has clear lifespan. So I would filter Venu sq at all from the list. In my mind Instinct 2s solar is the best option, because of longer battery life and the most recent model.
My first garmin was a Venu sq and I really liked it. Have a Fenix now, and decided to try the Venu X1 since it was getting a nice discount.
The screen is great, bright and durable. I'm not missing any features on the Fenix when I'm using the Venu X1, and it is amazingly light and comfortable. Apparently it isn't popular, so the discounts are here to stay lmao, making it a nice, cheaper alternative to the Fenix. And also a possibly fancier Venu for those who like the range.
I have a Venu SQ (super basic) from ~2022. Battery life is great still, if I have Bluetooth off and don’t record activities (off the grid somewhere/etc) it lasts >7-10 days. Usually have Bluetooth on and record a run/workout ~4x/week, I charge it maybe every 3-4 days.
My watch does RHR and Body battery, seems like nearly every other garmin watch shows HRV and other advanced stats (incl the Venu 4 I believe). I mainly ride bikes, and use my garmin edge bike computer when I ride.
I scratched my watch face pretty good while rock climbing once, and got a screen protector (silicon/something and easy on/off) would reccomend that for activities like climbing but I don’t have issues with much scratching on regular rides. 10/10 would reccomend the switch. Also music controls are super easy, I have the “shortcut” on my watch as my music playback so super easy to play/pause/change volume/skip with just a few touches. You can read notifs easily, but no replying ability like Apple.
Top Fitness Trackers on Reddit
1
Garmin
Forerunner 255 Series
86% positive of 466 users
Long battery; but wrist HR tracking is inconsistent.
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