Garmin Fenix 8 is Out. Still Worse Than Apple Watch Ultra?

#Gadgets

Some time ago I was making a hard choice between Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Garmin Fenix 7 / Epix Gen2: Apple Watch Ultra 2 vs Garmin Fenix vs Garmin Epix Gen 2

What has changed?

There are quite a lot of changes. First of all, they decided to merge Fenix & Epix into basically a single model with different screen options: AMOLED or transflective.

They've revamped the UI and added diving features. That's what I would call essential changes. The UI finally looks good. Well... looks good for a 2024 device in general, but if you have a sharp eye on details from a design standpoint you will not probably have much of a pleasure.

Fun fact: the new Fenix E has an identical hardware as the old Epix Gen 2. But the Fenix E will be running on the new software while the Epix will not. WTF?

Accuracy Improvements

Based on the only scientific-looking test on the whole internet we made a conclusion that Fenix 7 was making inaccurate HR & sleep stages measurements.

Rob ter Hors hasn't made a Fenix 8 test yet. Hopefully, they will perform better thanks to the sensor upgrade. We'll see.

What if it turns out that Fenix 8 is as accurate as Ultra 2? What would I have picked then?

I think I would pick the Apple Watch again. I still don't walk in the forests for weeks. I came across a few Apple ecosystem use cases that are impossible to cover with Garmin.

UPD: it looks like Garmin8 is very close to Apple Ultra 2 but not in the case of strength training where it deviates significantly:

UPD2: Garmin Fenix 8: In-Depth Scientific Review - YouTube TLDR: No fairy tales this year. Sadly, Garmin 8 has mediocre accuracy compared to other wearables.

Garmin UX/UI: First Impressions

I've watched a bunch of reviews on Fenix 7 and I've always been quite disappointed because the UI feels a bit off. It didn't even look like a retro-futuristic device. Fenix 7 looked like a device that didn't match its price.

They've fixed a lot in Fenix 8 and according to reviews, it looks much better.

Unfortunately, 99% of offline stores, I've been to had some weird mockups as display samples. Finally, I've managed to find one with real devices and had a chance to play with it for a while.

You know what? The UI feels exactly like my Xiaomi Smart Band 6 from 2021. Well. At least it's a device from that age...