Hello again, to you poor souls coming to my review hoping for useful information, and instead getting my extremely biased opinion. As with all my reviews, I'll focus on the things I care about, as opposed to a quantitative, unbiased and standardized review... because other people do that better (Shout out to DC Rainmaker! This guy is even fit. I bet he actually uses all the fancy fitness features), or has an actual pedigree of reviews (Ars hasn't actually reviewed this one, but the Forerunner isn't thaaaat different). But at the very least, I'll try to make my thoughts entertaining, and accessible... and as always, I am open to trying anything and almost everything you want me to (This thing is like $600 CAD, I'm not agreeing to everything).
As I'm feeling exceptionally lazy, you will not be getting any photos at this time. Please direct any and all complaints to my agent.
Edit: It seemed wrong to post a review without photos, so I guilted myself into it.
So what hardware have I managed to convince myself into acquiring this time? A Smartwatch! Of sorts. Some would disagree, saying that the Garmin device's are not smart enough. Others, that they are fitness accessories. But in my mind, I was shopping and comparing it to smartwatches, and that's how I'm using it, so it's a smartwatch. This will be my second smartwatch, after the original Moto360. Needless to say... it's been a while, and the landscape has changed. (And yet, has stayed so very much the same).
As for the device... Drumroll please... I decided to go with a Garmin Venu 3.
The latest in Garmin's Venu line, this smartwatch strives to strike a balance between fitness, and something your wife might actually let you wear to dinner. With a 45mm face, it's of size and thickness to any of my normal watches, and as you can see fits fairly well in amongst it's more mechanical brethren in the watch box (Note: I don't actually keep the smartwatch in the watchbox, who do you think I am?)
(Right to Left: Bespoke Wilk's Watchworks 44mm, Michael Kors, Garmin Venu 3, Timex Expedition (Looks kinda lonely eh), Cheap Nautica, Ancient Guess (If anyone can actually get this thing to show the right time, hit me up)
It does pretty well on the thickness side too:
A bit of a bulge because of the heart rate sensor, but overall not bad at all.
So now, dear reader, you're likely wondering how someone who was a bleeding edge adopter with a Moto360, ended up with a "Almost not a real smartwatch" Garmin Venu 3. Well, it took some soul searching let me tell you. Smartwatches, by their very nature, are devices that (IMO), we don't really need. They tell time like a watch I already have, or my smartphone. They show my messages, like my smartphone. And they cost a shit ton, for the most part.
And every time I tried to pull the trigger on a Pixel Watch, or a Galaxy Watch, or any other smartwatch... I just couldn't get past "Why am I really buying this? What value do I get?". Which brings me to Garmin.
Garmin doesn't advertise showing you your messages, or keeping you connected. This watch doesn't even have LTE! But it has a best in class heart rate sensor, a Pulse Oximeter/ SPO2 sensor that probably isn't telling me anything useful, reminders to drink some water and get off my lazy butt, and tracks my fitness. It's also a $600 CAD commitment that I bought this damn thing so I better get going to the gym. Or around the block. Or even just drop and do a push-up.
And that's what my soul searching really opened my eyes to. I really don't care about smartwatches. But a device that can help me be more fit, and encourage me to improve my lifestyle? Now that, is a selling feature.
With the gooey stuff out of the way, let's get to the review. At this point I've had the watch for 6 days. As mentioned above, it comes with Garmin's most recent Heart Rate sensor (Elevate V5):
It also has GPS, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, a microphone and a speaker. I can download Spotify playlists, connect my earbuds, and head to the gym without my phone. I won't get any messages, or notifications... because I'll be out of BT range of my phone... but I'm honestly not sure if that's a bug or a hidden feature.
Photo of the speaker / microphone
Garmin also has world class leading battery life. I charged the thing Friday, when the battery life hit 25%. I likely could have made it the full 8 days advertised, and that includes keeping the (probably unreliable and definitely uncertified) Pulse Oximeter sensor running all night, so it can warn me if my wife accidentally put the pillow on my head.
In terms of hardware quality, the watch is super comfortable. A major advertised feature is sleep tracking, and for those who haven't followed my Lounge adventures, I currently have a 7 week old newborn at home. Needless to say, I was intrigued at what it would say, but worried that wearing a watch would be extremely uncomfortable to sleep with. Well, while it was definitely novel, it didn't take long to get used to and now I can definitively prove that yes, I am not getting enough sleep, and when I do sleep, the sleep I am getting is constantly interrupted.
Back to build quality: The body is a type of plastic / polycarbonate. It's very solid. The bezel is metal, which is good because that's what actually hits things when your watch hits the wall, radiator, car door, banister, or any other hard object in your house. (Not that I'd know, of course). There are three solid metal buttons on the side, and the band is a silicone, and is fine. It fits nicely, the graduations are enough that you can get comfortably snug without being tight, and because it's a standard 22mm band I plan to pick up a leather option for date night.
Side profile. Note metal buttons, metal bezel, and polycarbonate frame
With all that being said, it's only been a week. I look forward to a few more workouts (so far I've only tried the Squash activity), some travel in the next few weeks (It has a Jet Lag advisor!!!!), and hopefully a good nights sleep in a hotel.
Please let me know if there are any specific things you want me to talk about to review. Otherwise, stay tuned for the wacky adventures to follow!
Edit: It seemed wrong to post a review without photos, so I guilted myself into it.
So what hardware have I managed to convince myself into acquiring this time? A Smartwatch! Of sorts. Some would disagree, saying that the Garmin device's are not smart enough. Others, that they are fitness accessories. But in my mind, I was shopping and comparing it to smartwatches, and that's how I'm using it, so it's a smartwatch. This will be my second smartwatch, after the original Moto360. Needless to say... it's been a while, and the landscape has changed. (And yet, has stayed so very much the same).
As for the device... Drumroll please... I decided to go with a Garmin Venu 3.
The latest in Garmin's Venu line, this smartwatch strives to strike a balance between fitness, and something your wife might actually let you wear to dinner. With a 45mm face, it's of size and thickness to any of my normal watches, and as you can see fits fairly well in amongst it's more mechanical brethren in the watch box (Note: I don't actually keep the smartwatch in the watchbox, who do you think I am?)
(Right to Left: Bespoke Wilk's Watchworks 44mm, Michael Kors, Garmin Venu 3, Timex Expedition (Looks kinda lonely eh), Cheap Nautica, Ancient Guess (If anyone can actually get this thing to show the right time, hit me up)
It does pretty well on the thickness side too:
A bit of a bulge because of the heart rate sensor, but overall not bad at all.
So now, dear reader, you're likely wondering how someone who was a bleeding edge adopter with a Moto360, ended up with a "Almost not a real smartwatch" Garmin Venu 3. Well, it took some soul searching let me tell you. Smartwatches, by their very nature, are devices that (IMO), we don't really need. They tell time like a watch I already have, or my smartphone. They show my messages, like my smartphone. And they cost a shit ton, for the most part.
And every time I tried to pull the trigger on a Pixel Watch, or a Galaxy Watch, or any other smartwatch... I just couldn't get past "Why am I really buying this? What value do I get?". Which brings me to Garmin.
Garmin doesn't advertise showing you your messages, or keeping you connected. This watch doesn't even have LTE! But it has a best in class heart rate sensor, a Pulse Oximeter/ SPO2 sensor that probably isn't telling me anything useful, reminders to drink some water and get off my lazy butt, and tracks my fitness. It's also a $600 CAD commitment that I bought this damn thing so I better get going to the gym. Or around the block. Or even just drop and do a push-up.
And that's what my soul searching really opened my eyes to. I really don't care about smartwatches. But a device that can help me be more fit, and encourage me to improve my lifestyle? Now that, is a selling feature.
With the gooey stuff out of the way, let's get to the review. At this point I've had the watch for 6 days. As mentioned above, it comes with Garmin's most recent Heart Rate sensor (Elevate V5):
It also has GPS, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, a microphone and a speaker. I can download Spotify playlists, connect my earbuds, and head to the gym without my phone. I won't get any messages, or notifications... because I'll be out of BT range of my phone... but I'm honestly not sure if that's a bug or a hidden feature.
Photo of the speaker / microphone
Garmin also has world class leading battery life. I charged the thing Friday, when the battery life hit 25%. I likely could have made it the full 8 days advertised, and that includes keeping the (probably unreliable and definitely uncertified) Pulse Oximeter sensor running all night, so it can warn me if my wife accidentally put the pillow on my head.
In terms of hardware quality, the watch is super comfortable. A major advertised feature is sleep tracking, and for those who haven't followed my Lounge adventures, I currently have a 7 week old newborn at home. Needless to say, I was intrigued at what it would say, but worried that wearing a watch would be extremely uncomfortable to sleep with. Well, while it was definitely novel, it didn't take long to get used to and now I can definitively prove that yes, I am not getting enough sleep, and when I do sleep, the sleep I am getting is constantly interrupted.
Back to build quality: The body is a type of plastic / polycarbonate. It's very solid. The bezel is metal, which is good because that's what actually hits things when your watch hits the wall, radiator, car door, banister, or any other hard object in your house. (Not that I'd know, of course). There are three solid metal buttons on the side, and the band is a silicone, and is fine. It fits nicely, the graduations are enough that you can get comfortably snug without being tight, and because it's a standard 22mm band I plan to pick up a leather option for date night.
Side profile. Note metal buttons, metal bezel, and polycarbonate frame
With all that being said, it's only been a week. I look forward to a few more workouts (so far I've only tried the Squash activity), some travel in the next few weeks (It has a Jet Lag advisor!!!!), and hopefully a good nights sleep in a hotel.
Please let me know if there are any specific things you want me to talk about to review. Otherwise, stay tuned for the wacky adventures to follow!
, yup, the body battery gauge picked him up.
