Haven't posted a deal in 5-10 years. Just got the White one for 699 on sale at rebel sport Melbourne Emporium.
Before you ask I confirmed it says sapphire on the box.
its all stores and also remember to get 10% off gift cards via woolworths (https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/833242#comment-15015300) or 10% using online entertainment book (1.25% admin fee). You also get $34 in reward points - rebel sport
In February 2024, what's the best overall smart watch on the market…is it this?
If you have an iPhone and aren't too sports focused, it's pretty hard to argue for anything but the Apple watch.
If you are really into sports like hiking, trail running, cycling etc. this is hard to pass up.
If you're not doing the extreme outdoor sports, this is a very big watch with a lot of features you may never use, you may be better off looking at one of the new Huawei, OnePlus or Samsung watches.
What this dude said.
The way I'd put it is
Garmin watch is a sport watch that happens to have some smart features
Apple/Android watch is a smart watch that happens to have some sport tracking features
Bear in mind Garmin Pay does not accept as many bank's card as apple/google wallet
Really appreciate the information. Not a young dude so I don't see myself using all the extreme sport type functions. I've never had an iPhone. I'm a S24 Ultra kind of guy. (though we have S22 Ultras rn).
I do love me some bells and whistles. Also love come Christmas going to our other home in the Philippines and riding my motorcycle all over the countryside, pretty remote area/s so this is where I wanted the best of GPS to absolutely shine.
If you simply need GPS for navigation, why not just mount your phone?
Surely phone with larger screen is better suited for the job.
For your use case, Galaxy Watch Pro 5. It has 3day battery and does most of what Apple Watch Ultra would do with titanium build. Otherwise, Galaxy Watch 6 classic for dress ups and rotary dial or normal Galaxy Watch 6 for day to day use but Watch 6 models have half the battery life.
@RandomDealHunter: Just looking at the battery aspect, the Garmin Epix 2 has a battery life of 6 days. If you use the low power mode (screen stays off unless you move your wrist to look at the watch) then it claims 16 days, or at least mine does, never tested that claim though.
@banana365: Yep. Can’t argue with Epix’s battery when compared to other smart watches. I use Fenix 6 pro and I get about 10days still.
However, the requirement were around using maps in Phillipines. Garmin only provides maps for one country and you might need to purchase other maps. Also, while Epix is great sports watch, it is not a smartwatch (bells and whistles) :)
Galaxy Watch, like Apple Watch, can provide Nav directions from Google Maps. I find this extremely handy feature myself on my Apple Watch especially when you are in another country and using Taxis services to ensure you are not taken for a ride (pun intended)!
@RandomDealHunter: Surely if you're in a taxi in another country, and want to check where you're going, using your phone to view the maps would be MUCH more appropriate than a watch? Bigger screen, more battery, you can bring up the web browser to check other details such as hotel address etc. And finally, you'd be much more likely to be holding your phone in a taxi, so I really can't understand your example use case of maps on a watch. Sorry!
The problem with parent's question is it's too basic: "what is the best smartwatch" is a terrible question! Given the huge amount of features, the answer depends on many factors and reasons for wanting a smart watch.
Depends, I rate battery life highly, and having physical buttons (easier to use when driving, cycling or even walking) so I vastly prefer Garmin watches over all other alternatives. 10 day battery life, torch, music, notifications, maps etc on my Fenix are all great features before the fitness stuff
Yeah look i agree with the comments. I've had both garmin forerunner and pxiel watch and i find myself looking to go back to garmin. The battery life of the smart watches get painful real quick. My pixel is 14ish months old and i have to charge it every day painful.
Sold the Garmin fenix 6 pro to get a pixel watch 2 and I cannot believe how much I miss the Garmin so i am lurking here. Just waiting to get my hands on some discount gift card so I can buy this. Smart watches can't tie the shoe laces of Garmin. I've had Samsung watch too before. But Garmin's the best overall for me.
any tips for my garmin watch face. haha i spent 20 min searching through them but think ill have to make my own. I want heart rate and steps there but the ones that automatically show them arent the best
@AussieMark: Follow garmin on Reddit and people post all the findings there.
There are many interesting ones in the connect IQ store, have you downloaded the connect IQ store ?
As great a price as this is I don’t think I could do white.
Can you swap / change straps?
You can, but the watch has silver bezel and a white case so anything but a white band adds an extra colour which IMO looks odd.
I've tried black and grey silicone which both look shit. I'm going to try some fabric bands next but I'm not optimistic.
Deep blue goes well with the silver bezel but not sure about the white casing.
These newer Garmins have what's called a "quickfit" band system where you can just replace the band in under a minute flat using no tools. And many aftermarket manufacturers make them so you literally have thousands of options (see ebay, amazon, aliexpress, etc).
I had wanted white initially, but then thought I couldn't do the 'military' look with it so opted for black. Another option you might have is to buy a skin for it so it covers all the silver and white.
Solid price for an Epix Gen2 sapphire. Surely this is an all time low?
Great price, but I'd much prefer the DLC coating on the bezel instead of the the saphire glass. The regular glass is fine, but the stainless steel bezel scratches easily. I have the regular Epix 2 that I got last year and a Fenix 6X Saphire that came with DLC coating, and the Fenix's bezel is still as good as new, which I can't say about the Epix.
Worth upgrading from a Forerunner 255 Music?
I went from a 245 music to a venu 2 to this and I would say that it absolutely was a worth upgrade for me. Zero buyers remorse
Hi @funk44,
I'm currently using 245 music. What do you reckon the screen size difference between this and 245 forerunner?
I did exactly the same about a week ago. No regret except I paid $150 more than this price!
It is definitely bigger but it is not huge by any means. In my opinion, you can't really have a practical touch screen any smaller than this. I have a small wrist but it still looks ok.
@Ridiculous Panda: Tempted, i had a small wrist too.
Will try to rush WW for TCN giftcard tomorrow morning to test my luck :)
@treesseven: Guys I have a very small wrist too. Didn't think this would fit but it looks okay. Thought I might need 42 mm but 47 looks good. I prefer the white over black..can buy black wrist strap if needed
AMOLED vs MIPS .. maybe keep the 255 Music!
90%+ of people reading your comment won't know what you're talking about or why one may be better than the other.
Depends on your use case - the 255 Music has most of the fitness capability of the Epix, has Garmin pay, however it's lighter than the Epix. The Epix has the beautiful Amoled screen, however the MIPS screen can be always on at low backlight with the 255. (Not sure about AMOLED).
Both have great battery life. That's the big "unshackle" from OS smartwatches, only having to charge once a week.
Epix has ability to do always-on at the sacrifice of battery life. It's about a week with it on, so I disable it.
I reckon 90% of people don't use 90% of features on a watch like this.
For me, the killer feature is a chest strap integration, which I use daily, as well as the amazing battery life. I also like the looks, although would have preferred the 51mm version. Everything else is just a bonus.
At this price it's much better value than something like an Apple Watch Ultra, not to mention the regular version, but it depends on your needs, of course.
The biggest drawback is poor quality sleep tracking, especially compared to Apple (this is well documented).
the killer feature
So this watch is dangerous??
FFS jv is multiplying
Can you explain the chest strap integration. Do you mean it sits on your chest or do you mean chest heart rate monitor
A cheststrap HRM. Have been using it (and a Fenix 6X Saphire before that) with a Polar H10 and love it. Optical HRM's used by all watches are notoriously unreliable for weight training workouts.
agree .. but I just want (a) decent battery life and (c) NFC payment, eg garmin pay.
The WearOS battery life is pretty bad.
I ended up buying a 265 with 4 days of battery life.
dont use any health features.
87% of all statistics are made up
love my withings scan watch 2 which is a hybrid health focus watch with no distractions - and yes it is a large slab of sapphire too
Pity about the crappy sapphire with nasty reflections.
Ive broken two non sapphire screens so well worth it
I am wondering if there's a good screen protector that is matte / satin coated so it's not too reflective
Great price. Just a shame it's white.
Haha I was thinking to get white initially then go swap it somewhere or come back later to rebel sport in a week or two and swap to black but obviously couldn't open it
They do sell the skins / armour for these watches but added bulk. It would solve your issue if you don't like white as it will cover the bezel / white areas.
$699? Damn I bought the black one for $849 just last week.
I've held back from jumping onto the smartwatch for many years, but finally made the jump after seeing what the Epix Gen 2 offers and pulled the trigger when it was $849 last week. I thought what's the big deal, won't be using that much, always liked a mechanical watch. But now it hasn't come off my wrist. Mostly it's the battery life of about 16 days that got me, and the amazing screen.
Will I use even 50% of its features? no. Will I have fun with the 20% of features that I will, YES. Seeing how much I run around the tennis court or checking my week's sleep chart is awesome. It syncs with Strava so I don't even have to have strava open anymore when I go on my bike rides.
What's your default clock face? I wanted the weather and steps and date. Trying out a few
you summed it up well. probably wont end up using 80% of its features but its a great price for the watch and added battery life.
Trying to decide between 255 Music and the new 165 Music. For a runner just starting out. Not interested in tons of sports features I won't use, but HRV, Sleep tracking and running is where its at for me
You would be better off saving money and getting the non music version and just getting a running belt so you can bring your phone. That way you can listen to music off it and call someone if you get in to trouble.
I use one of these:
https://www.wildearth.com.au/buy/salomon-pulse-belt-surf-the…
Great tip, thank you will look into these. I have one of those armband holders and I hate it, feels very restrictive, so was looking at the music version.
Black now available Amazon $799
Garmin epix (Gen 2), Carbon Gray DLC Titanium with Black Band, Premium Active Smartwatch (010-02582-12) https://amzn.asia/d/eO7eS7o
Got this on one of the last deals and its a great watch. Got my wife a much more recently released Venu 3S for the same price and the Epix features are way better despite the older model.