Lifelong Apple Watch User Switches to Garmin | 1 Year Later

Myself, my wife and my 2 kids were long time Garmin users.
I got the Apple Watch Ultra when it came out and now only 1 of us isn’t using an Apple Watch of some kind.

Battery life aside, everything else is easier and better. I also don’t understand why some say that the Apple Watch data thing is an issue when you have so many more options to choose from like Strava, health fit etc and we’ve had so many issues with garmin connect over the years - and their support is terrible.

The Apple Watch ultra has inspired me to new heights of fitness.

garmin should reduce their product range. instinct - fenix - epix
similar to apple SE - watch series - ultra

can you add pictures on garmin? ppls help me

Great video; thank you for doing this. However, it's worth mentioning that it only connects on 2.4G Wifi and only specific credit cards (i.e., no Amex) are compatible :(

Honestly, I just need the time and notifications lol. I’ll use damn near any smart watch

Lifelong.... Apparently he's 9 years old.

Great video man! I actuually have been using an app called Athlytic lately that turns my Apple Watch into Whoop/Garmin with all those recovery metrics in one hub. $29.99/year

This sounds like my video. I had a 7, a 7X and almost bought a Tactix last week. And still, the simplicity every day for Apple Pay seems so much more easy.

And to use the metrics, I likely would need to wear it more and using two watches all day, every day...

I am torn

Facts

I've been using a Tactix Charlie from Garmin since October 2018. It's still going strong. I haven't noticed a decrease in battery life, probably because charging it every 12 days means that it's not burning up the charge cycles on the battery.
I bought the hook and loop band from Garmin, and like it better overall than the default hard silicone.
I love having topo maps that show my route taken while hiking.
The initial cost was really high, but I've been using it daily for over 5 years, and suspect it will be fine for another 5 or more.

Bruh became a man

Hey, thank you for that great video! I always had the same attendance to Apple as you, but I never liked the Apple Watch. I always used Garmin watches for the same reasons you mentioned and it looks like a watch not like a cycling computer. 😂

But I got a question, which watch face do you have on you Epix, I saw this a couple times now and didn‘t find it until now.

I switch from galaxy watch 5 pro to garmin venu 3 and the garmin is the best for me.

Sweet mama what's the watchface name you rock on the Epix?

I just wear my Apple watch 6 on one wrist, and my Fenix 7 on the other. I see more and more people going that route.

Can you see incoming messages like what’s app and alerts from calendar reminders etc etc I am looking at the Garmin 965 but like you I am long time Apple Watch user

I had an Apple Watch, and since I don’t get a lot of calls or texts, it wasn’t a big thing for me. The Garmin has just about everything I need, nothing more. The battery issue is also a big deciding factor for me. Just gotta get what works best for you.

Had the forerunner 965 and switched to the apple watch ultra 2 ... I cannot live with the music controls of the FR965 .... its not userfriendly ... And I am missing all the other functionalities on the Garmin.

Great video!

What watch face is on your Garmin? Looks very good!

I always used garmin and try an apple watch ultra that i got for christmas. But i prefer the garmin, i dont need text ..call..siri... and for a rund in the moutains the Garmin is way bettr.

Can't live without controlling music from my watch, checking weather, shazaming, using Walkie-Talkie or even camera remote

Garmin might be better for sports, but can it really sub the lifestyle features? Especially with laggy screen?

You’ll switch back

How accurate is it in terms of heart rate and tracking activities?

Apple Watch for going to Starbucks... Garmin for everything else :)

Which watch face are you using?

Just seen this love the comparison. I just want mainly for fitness should I get a Garmin or Apple

I’ve had several Apple Watch for years now, and switched to Garmin a week ago! Best decision ever! I mainly switched because of the battery life of the Apple Watch. It was always a pain to charge it every single day and because of that I never wore my watch - just too much of a hassle! Garmin is just better in so many ways

Garmin Pay support is absolutely fine in Europe. Every serious bank supports it. And if anyone has a problem, there's always a workaround via Revolut or Curve :)

I understand the appeal of not carrying a phone however I just avoid all that mess and just carry my phone at all times when you go for your workouts just use a running belt one of the more popular ones is called fit belt. It's basically an elastic band that hold your phone you wear it around your waist similar to a fanny pack but it's the best way to run with your phone and I'll have to leave it at home. That avoids having to sink your watch and do all of that mess

As an apple fanboy, I got my first garmin and realized how much I dislike apple. Apple wouldn't let me use the text out features on my Garmin, and I just immediately felt so much resentment towards apple. So in 2020 after 11 years of apple, I finally switched to Android and never looked back. Now I'm android/ Garmin. Apple lost me.

I see a lot of these comparison videos between Apple Watch and Garmin all the time and I struggle to understand why none of these mention the obvious difference between them. The Apple Watch is a SMARTwatch with some training features, the Garmin is a SPORTSwatch with some smart features.

I see the battery life coming up as a comparison point in a lot of them and most of the videos compare an Apple Watch with the Garmin Fënix which is not fair. The Apple Watch uses an AMOLED display which drains the battery quickly. The Fënix uses a MIP display specifically to preserve battery life. A more fair comparison would be with the Garmin Epix which also has an AMOLED display and the battery life on that is much lower than the Fënix. The gap between the AW and the Epix is therefore not as massive.

As a owner of both an Apple Watch and the Garmin Fënix 6X, I can tell you confidently that the Garmin will disappoint you massively if you expect a lot of smart features like the Apple Watch. At the same time, the Apple Watch will disappoint you massively if you expect the same amount of training metrics and features as the Garmin.

So to summarize:

- If the SMART features are more important to you, go with the Apple Watch. The training features will be more than enough for you.

- If the SPORT metrics, data and features are more important to you, go with the Garmin watches. The smart features will suffice.

Garmin is just better for what we actually use a watch for. Love mine.

Do you wear both your Apple Watch ultra and Epix 2 watch or do you wear one depending on the event/activity?

Lets be honest. Apple quality has fallen. Be honest and tell everyone your experience with you Ipads. Apple used to be good and usability but Tim Cook doesn't value the customer.

I needed this video 👍🏼. I’m thinking of switching this year. Of all the video reviews, no one has really covered the “smartwatch” topic with Garmin watches, (text features, 3rd party app notifications, etc.) Will you be covering any of those topics?

And I regret switching from Apple Watch 4 after 5 years of using it, to Garmin Tactix 7 Amoled.
I cannot understand why Garmin watches don’t have some rocket science feature like locking the watch while keeping it on night stand. It shows all my messages to everybody.
Display is poor, notifications from iPhone are very limited and without possibility to filter them.
No thank you Garmin. Apple watches are better - at least they are smatwatches, not idiotwatches.

Hi ya. Just purchased a Vivoactive 5, and cannot get it to connect to my WiFi, do you have any tips please?

Excellent decision by you! I appreciate the honesty. Yes, Garmin may not have the ability to open your garage door from your watch, but I feel that your health is much more important!

better battery life is great, but their interface honestly still leave a lot to desire, like half the time I've "scrolling" through the menu and won't even know which item is actually currently being hightlighted to be selected because of their weird layout

What Garmin are you using?

I’ve always been an Apple Watch user. Completely agree with the battery life comments. I order a Garmin watch purely for the battery. Having an Apple Watch die amidst a 30km+ run sucks. Garmin are definitely made for the runner.

@Aesthetic_AI
Does garmin watch have emergency contact for low oxygen level? I know it has fall detection but couldn't find anything about low oxygen emergency contact

As a former Pro athelete, when Garmin epix, fenix, put call and text capability on their watches it will be a game changer. I like you bloggers but why isnt Garmin listening. Spend the budget not making more golf course routes and on upgrading to call and text.

Race an activity. Such a simple feature but Garmin seems to be the only watch that has it. (Happy to be proved wrong here).

i have used every smart watch there is. Garmin is king. it really ends there.

The clever thing about the Garmin is the battery life which most people would lean towards. If apple were to switch to a battery saver mode I probably would doubt that the functionality between both watches would be similar. Personally would take on Garmin right now with their long battery life and user experience is not that bad either. Great review though. Thanks 👍

Had Apple Watch and then I went to Garmin but after 2 years , I went back to Apple. Garmin is great but I miss a lot of the conveniences of Apple and its Ecosystem. Now that the Ultra is out, I am using it and for my needs it works out great! The good thing is that there are devices for everyones needs.

You look alot older then 8 ? How can you be a life long user ?