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Garmin Reacts to Apple Watch Ultra: 'We Measure Battery Life in Months. Not Hours.'
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Didn't use the GPS much (the boat has its own) but did use it to control the auto pilot and display instrument data. Had repeating alarm to wake me up every 30 mins/2 hours and also tracked my steps and sleep.
While Garmin's tweet is at least let's say inaccurate, they have some point.
Garmin has reacted to Apple's new rugged Apple Watch Ultra, saying in a tweet following the iPhone 14 and Apple Watch event that it measures battery life in "months" and "not hours," promoting its latest Enduro 2 watch for athletes.
While the Apple Watch Ultra has the longest battery life of any Apple Watch to date, with Apple promising up to 36 hours of normal use and up to 60 hours with watchOS 9's new Low Power Mode setting and other optimizations, the Enduro 2 can last significantly longer depending on usage scenarios.
Despite Garmin's claim that it measures battery life in months, the company actually advertises the Enduro 2 as having "up to 150 hours of battery life in GPS mode with solar charging" and "up to 34 days of battery life in smartwatch mode." The Enduro 2 has a 1.4-inch solar-powered display, compared to the nearly 2-inch display on the Apple Watch Ultra that can reach a peak brightness of 2,000 nits, the brightest ever in an Apple Watch.
The Apple Watch Ultra also has a wide range of advanced sensors, including the ability to take an ECG, measure blood oxygen level, alerts for high and low heart rates, and a new body temperature sensor focusing on women's health.
The Apple Watch Ultra is offered in a 49mm case and costs $799, while the Enduro 2 costs $1,099. The Apple Watch Ultra was made available for pre-order earlier this week and will begin shipping on Friday, September 23.
Article Link: Garmin Reacts to Apple Watch Ultra: 'We Measure Battery Life in Months. Not Hours.'
My Epix 2 titanium lasts for over a week (without always-on screen). That's with several workouts a week, including at least a multiple hour hike. I keep the ultra-precise GPS on. I have super detailed offline hiking maps.
Then I get superb integration with the chest strap (I have the HRM Pro), which works seamlessly with the watch. I do Crossfit and it's great, works perfectly. I do martial arts where I cannot wear the watch because of potential injury, and the chest strap simply uploads the workout into the Epix, no messing about - just start and stop using the watch, everything else is seamless.
It gives a lot of workout info, recovery, sleep etc. I like the software.
A different product. With 5 buttons. And a round screen, which is a must-have look for me.
This Apple Ultra watch seems cool to be sure but quite limited for sports, and the battery life is simply terrible.
The thing my AW is best as it 2FA where I don’t have to open my phone. Really not too terribly many things I can think of that the AW can do that Garmin can’t. Garmin has significantly more “health” features that go along with exertion, “body battery” training load, OH and V02 and other metrics with cycling actually matter, as opposed to apple still doing running only.
Sorry bud, it isn’t just the Enduro 2. The Solar Fenix 7 is also $799. Please know products you’re going to compare, or look like you’re Samsung 😂😂😂. Also triathlons would be a nightmare with a AW compared to a Garmin. The slightest bit of water, sweat, etc and the AW screen is unresponsive to touch, and doesn’t have enough buttons to actually be useful. $800 for 36 hours is honestly indefensible. Wouldn’t even cover some of these ultra races. 🙈
Please note: positioning the AW Ultra at the high end adventure market, does not mean Apple is only aiming for the high end adventure market. The "high end adventure market" is tiny, so most of the AW Ultra sales (or Garmin sales for that matter) will be to folks who just like the idea of a watch competent for the high end adventure market.
IMO Apple will not start to get a little market from Garmin just because of the button and Apple will not have a long way to go to compete. Odds are that Apple will start to kick Garmin's butt almost immediately, probably within the first year of Ultra sales.
Sorry I don't understand your reference to Samsung or the Enduro 2. I personally have the Epix 2, which is like the mid-size Fenix 7 but with AMOLED, haven't seen the Enduro.
I 100% disagree, and consider $800 for 36 hours a huge bargain, given that one gets the well established best-selling Apple Watch capability (including cellular radio) plus a built-in dive computer.
The number of folks exceeding five hours in events is tiny; only those folks participating in the ultra (lower case u) events category. I have trained for and run multiple marathons and all kinds of tris (no ultras) and open water swims with a much lesser watch than the Ultra appears to be. We will see, because I have ordered one.
A huge bargain it is not for sure, but such are the prices for these high end smartwatches.
But with 36h you have to be very disciplined with charging your Ultra, particularly if you want sleep stats.
This is the luxury I got with my Garmin: I just charge it now and again, whenever I remember. Very little stress, never ran out of charge, and I use it a lot, day and night.
As for diving, my understanding is that the Ultra unfortunately doesn't connect to the tank. So that's that.
The display is the largest component for power. Compared to an OLED Epix the Ultra battery life is similar or better if you normalize for battery size. After the display the components which consume the most power are the SOC and radios. The custom designs from Apple will be superior to anything Garmin has and the lead will increase when Apple moves to 3nm. In short, Apple could easily make the Ultra last as long as Fenix by simply increasing the size and putting in a crappy transflective display. However, Garmin cannot not match Apple's features and efficiency by designing custom SOC's in 3nm. Pretty sure Garmin is getting Nuvi deja vu when smartphones offer turn by turn GPS with online google maps and voice assistant.
Sure I see the Ultra as an adequate standalone dive computer if the readability works real-world. Especially for good viz warm water diving.
Solar power and gps directions on your wrist? Yeah I'm pretty sure that's more than Casio features.
From now on, instead of bringing new features to the product, they're going to make a new tier and call it Pro-Plus-Maximum and up-charge it!
Love all the hardos in here that essentially keep saying “if you don’t wear a Garmin, you’re not a real athlete”
The fact of the matter is, the Ultra is good for most people and for most athletes. I’m an avid Garmin Forerunner 245 user, marathon runner (#humblebrag), and I’ve hated the fact I’ve needed to wear two watches during my races. If I can combine both with the AWU, I’ll be happy to do that. I just need to read the reviews to make sure it really fits my needs
The AWU could represent the best of both worlds. 36-60 hours is good for people/athletes like me. And yes I’m still an athlete for thinking about jumping to an AWU.
The fact of the matter is, the Ultra is good for most people and for most athletes. I’m an avid Garmin Forerunner 245 user, marathon runner (#humblebrag), and I’ve hated the fact I’ve needed to wear two watches during my races. If I can combine both with the AWU, I’ll be happy to do that. I just need to read the reviews to make sure it really fits my needs
The AWU could represent the best of both worlds. 36-60 hours is good for people/athletes like me. And yes I’m still an athlete for thinking about jumping to an AWU.
Strange thing for them to say when their watch lasts a small fraction of one month (150hrs) with comparable features (I.e gps on). Not even a week. More than 1.5 days of the apple watch ultra but still measuring in days.