Garmin Fenix 7 assessment | TechRadar
Editor’s Word
• Authentic assessment date: October 2021
• New Fenix 8 launched September 2024
• Launch worth: $699.99 / £599.99 / AU$1,049
• Official worth now: $699.99 / £599.99 / AU$1,049
Replace: November 2024. The Garmin Genix 7 was not too long ago supplanted by the Fenix 8 on the very high of Garmin’s vary. The brand new mannequin for 2024 packs superior GPS and a brand new coronary heart charge sensor, however it’s very costly. The Fenix 7 wasn’t low cost in its heyday both, however you may usually discover a fairly whole lot on one nowadays, making it a horny decide.
Financial savings of practically 30% off make the Fenix 7 an attractive decide over a few of Garmin’s mid-range fashions, or an incredible cheaper various to the Fenix 8. In truth, in case you discover the proper deal, you would possibly find yourself paying as much as 50% much less on your Fenix 7 in comparison with the newer mannequin, which is a saving to not be sniffed at.
Stephen Warwick
Two-minute assessment
The Garmin Fenix 7 is designed for anybody who will get a thrill from the competitors and needs to push themselves to hit a brand new excessive – whether or not it’s a biking sportive, a half marathon, an Ironman, or the gruelling sweat of a CrossFit competitors. The Fenix 7 doesn’t assume that you simply’ve already nailed down a full coaching plan and know precisely how you can stability work and restoration, although – it provides you instruments that may allow you to perceive your present health degree, set a sensible aim, and practice in a method that may allow you to obtain it.
It packs the identical superior exercise monitoring and coaching instruments that made the Garmin Fenix 6 one of the best multi-sports watch round again in 2019, but in addition introduces some new options that make all of it extra accessible to new customers.
The obvious improve right here is the introduction of a touchscreen. The watch nonetheless has the 5 bodily buttons of earlier Fenix watches (together with a newly bolstered begin button), but it surely’s an enormous assist for panning throughout maps. It has been rigorously carried out, although; the display screen is locked by default throughout exercises to forestall unintended button presses, and Fenix purists can decide to deactivate contact totally if they like.
The show remains to be memory-in-pixel reasonably than AMOLED just like the Garmin Epix (Gen 2) or Garmin Venu 2. It is readily legible in most lights however lacks distinction, and the usage of a blue reasonably than white backlight means its colours are typically muddy. Nonetheless, it is a part of what makes the Fenix 7 so frugal with its energy utilization. This can be a watch that may preserve working for weeks in the proper circumstances, and even the non-solar variations provide spectacular longevity.
On the software program facet, there is a new real-time stamina meter that exhibits how your vitality declines throughout a exercise so you may alter your effort accordingly. That is the primary time it has been doable to see adjustments in stamina in a chart which you could learn at a look.
There’s additionally a brand new on-screen race predictor that estimates how your present coaching regime will have an effect on your 5k, 10k, and half marathon race instances. This information was already accessible within the Garmin Join app, however the brand new chart in your wrist permits you to see how your instances are trending – and hopefully dropping – due to your efforts.
Should you’re already completely satisfied together with your Fenix 6 then we would not suggest speeding out to improve instantly, however the Fenix 7 is full of thoughtfully crafted new options and refinements that make an actual distinction in on a regular basis coaching.
Garmin Fenix 7: Worth and launch date
- Out there to order now
- Prices greater than Fenix 6
The Garmin Fenix 7 sequence launched on January 18, 2022, and is that can be purchased direct from Garmin. Costs begin at $699.99 / £599.99 / AU$1,049 for the usual model. The highest-tier Fenix 7X Sapphire Photo voltaic is $999.99 / £859.99 / AU$1,499.
That’s a big enhance from the Fenix 6, which began at $599.99 / £529.99 / AU$949 when it launched in 2019. Nonetheless, it’s a lot lower than the Garmin Epix premium on a regular basis watch, which launched the identical day, beginning at $899.99 / £799.99 / AU$1,399. When you’re figuring out how you can save, take a look at the Garmin promo codes at the moment accessible.
Garmin Fenix 7: Design
- Touchscreen and bodily buttons
- No enhance in weight
- Premium supplies
Design rating: 5/5
The Fenix 7 is available in three sizes (42mm, 47mm, and 51mm), with customary, Photo voltaic, and Sapphire Photo voltaic variants:
| Header Cell – Column 0 | 42mm case | 47mm case | 52mm case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Row 0 – Cell 0 | Fenix 7S | Fenix 7 | Fenix 7X |
| Row 1 – Cell 0 | Fenix 7S Photo voltaic | Fenix 7 Photo voltaic | Fenix 7X Photo voltaic |
| Row 2 – Cell 0 | Fenix 7S Photo voltaic Sapphire | Fenix 7 Photo voltaic Sapphire | Fenix 7S Photo voltaic Sapphire |
We examined the usual 47mm Sapphire Photo voltaic version, which is the primary watch that mixes the benefits of its sunlight-harvesting Energy Glass with powerful crystal.
Our assessment watch had a graphite grey titanium case and a black silicone strap, however varied different colorways can be found. The silicone band is an efficient selection for sport and is simple to scrub, however you can too select a watch bundled with an extra leather-based or woven strap for on a regular basis use.
The watch makes use of Garmin’s QuickFit bands, that are launched from the case housing by pushing down on a plastic clip. They’re extraordinarily straightforward to swap, however aren’t interchangeable with the old-style quick-release bands, that are eliminated by pushing a pin to the facet. The Fenix 7 Sapphire Photo voltaic weighs 73g with the silicone strap hooked up, and 50g with out.
That’s nearly precisely the identical because the Fenix 6 Photo voltaic, which is available in at 72g with its strap, and 49g with out. It’s spectacular that Garmin has managed to maintain the burden constant whereas rising battery life considerably, and enhancing the display screen know-how.
The Fenix 7’s interface might be instantly acquainted to Fenix 6 customers, and consists of 5 bodily buttons along with a touchscreen that locks robotically throughout exercise monitoring to keep away from unintended pausing or cancelling of actions. Should you’d desire to stay with simply the buttons, you may select to disable the touchscreen fully. It’s additionally doable to modify it off throughout sleep to keep away from unintended touches at evening, however we didn’t discover this to be an issue.
Quite than equipping the Fenix 7 with an AMOLED display screen like that of the Venu 2 and Epix watches, Garmin has caught with a transflective memory-in-pixel show. It’s a good choice that helps preserve battery life, although it’s not as vibrant as we’d have preferred.
It is easy to learn in most lighting circumstances, however we discovered it slightly missing in distinction in comparison with watches just like the Garmin Intuition Photo voltaic (proven under on the left) and sometimes wanted to make use of the backlight. The truth that this gentle is blue reasonably than white implies that the display screen colours can typically look muddy; notably pink and purple shades.
In the case of charging, the Fenix 7 makes use of the identical proprietary USB cable as all different Garmin watches launched over the last couple of years. This may increasingly come as a disappointment to anybody hoping for contactless charging this time round, however the cable is simple to make use of and plugs securely into the again of the watch.
The Fenix 7 is waterproof to depths of 100m, making it appropriate for pool and open water swimming, plus actions like kayaking, windsurfing and stand-up paddleboarding (all of which have their very own profiles), however for diving, you’ll need a specialised swimming watch just like the Garmin Descent Mk2.
Garmin Fenix 7: Battery life
- Largest mannequin lasts as much as 5 weeks
- Customizable battery saving settings
- Photo voltaic and Sapphire Photo voltaic variations accessible
Battery life rating: 5/5
Battery life has at all times been one of many promoting factors of Garmin’s sports activities watches, and the Fenix 7 vary actually delivers. First, although, it is vital to notice that the life of every watch within the vary will depend upon the dimensions of its battery, whether or not it has a photo voltaic cell, and the dimensions of that cell.
The Fenix 7 Sapphire Photo voltaic we examined is provided with the Garmin’s Energy Glass, which harvests vitality all through the day to maintain the watch’s battery topped up. You’ll nonetheless must plug the watch in sometimes, however the photo voltaic cell extends its battery life considerably.
To make clear, you may’t cost the watch through photo voltaic charging solely; it merely reduces the battery drain. You’ll be able to’t simply go away the be careful on the solar all day and count on it to be totally charged by the point you accumulate it within the night. Precisely how usually you will must recharge will depend upon how you employ it and which sensors you select to allow. These are the figures given by Garmin itself for this specific mannequin:
| Row 0 – Cell 0 | Mode | Battery life (with photo voltaic) |
| Row 1 – Cell 0 | Smartwatch | As much as 22 days |
| Row 2 – Cell 0 | Battery saver watch mode | As much as 173 days |
| Row 3 – Cell 0 | All satellite tv for pc methods | As much as 48 hours |
| Row 4 – Cell 0 | All satellite tv for pc methods and multi-band | As much as 26 hours |
| Row 5 – Cell 0 | All satellite tv for pc methods and music | As much as 10 hours |
| Row 6 – Cell 0 | Max battery GPS | As much as 289 hours |
| Row 7 – Cell 0 | Expedition GPS | As much as 74 days |
All of these figures are an enormous improve on the equal Fenix 6 Photo voltaic, and real-world efficiency proved even higher. Regardless of us making common use of the backlight, monitoring a median of 1 exercise per day utilizing GPS, and maintaining nocturnal SpO2 monitoring enabled, the watch saved working for 3 weeks earlier than needing a top-up from its charging cable.
We had been additionally capable of strive the non-solar Garmin Fenix 7S, and regardless of having the smallest battery capability within the vary, it retained 56% of its cost after per week of use. That far exceeds Garmin’s steered battery lifetime of 11 days in smartwatch mode alone.
It’s now simpler to see the remaining cost degree; one in all our chief complaints with the Fenix 6 Photo voltaic was that you possibly can solely see energy remaining measured in days, however the Fenix 7 provides you the choice of checking the share as effectively. It’s a small however welcome contact.
You’ll be able to toggle the final Battery Saver mode on and off via the watch itself, or make extra particular tweaks via the Garmin Join smartphone app by disabling sure monitoring metrics.
Garmin Fenix 7: Smartwatch options
- Wonderful GPS navigation instruments
- On-board music storage and Garmin Pay
- No microphone for hands-free calls
Smartwatch characteristic rating: 4/5
The Garmin Fenix 7 options all of the sensors you’d count on from a top-end smartwatch, together with the corporate’s newest era Elevate 4 optical coronary heart charge monitor, altimeter, compass, SpO2 (blood oxygen) sensor, and temperature sensor.
SpO2 monitoring can run repeatedly, in a single day, or solely on demand throughout spot-checks. The Garmin Fenix 6 not too long ago obtained a firmware replace that alerts you in case you transfer your wrist an excessive amount of whereas the watch is taking an SpO2 studying, and that’s a characteristic you’ll additionally see right here with the Fenix 7.
With regards to journey, the Fenix 7’s GPS monitoring and mapping are glorious. The watch recorded our pre-measured 5km take a look at path to inside 50 meters, making it essentially the most correct working watch we have examined up to now.
The Fenix 7 excels for on a regular basis navigation as effectively, eradicating the necessity to have your telephone out and clearly seen in an unfamiliar place the place it could possibly be simply stolen. The Fenix 7 may even spotlight factors of curiosity for you, comparable to shops and cafes. It’s effectively thought via and actually enhances the Fenix 7 as a look ahead to on a regular basis use reasonably than simply sports activities.
Till now, in case you needed a set of maps on your Garmin watch, you’d must pay for and obtain them via the Garmin Join app, however now not. The Fenix 7 Sapphire editions include a full set preinstalled, which is extraordinarily helpful, and customers of the usual fashions can obtain their most well-liked packs instantly via the watch utilizing its new Map Supervisor.
The touchscreen makes panning throughout maps far simpler than utilizing buttons alone, although the MiP show does not refresh as rapidly as an AMOLED display screen, leading to much less easy scrolling, and the blue-tinted backlight means issues aren’t at all times as straightforward to differentiate as we’d like.
Should you’re bored with your ordinary working, biking or strolling routes, you should use the course creation instrument in Garmin Connect with create a brand new one; simply choose a place to begin, a distance, and an total bearing (north, south, east, or west) and the app will generate an appropriate route in a few seconds. You’ll be able to then sync this to your Fenix 7, which provides you with turn-by-turn instructions as you go.
There’s additionally Garmin’s extraordinarily helpful TracBack characteristic, which helps you to tag your place to begin after which directs you again there when you’re prepared to complete your stroll, bike trip or run. It’s ultimate for events while you need to go on slightly journey, although in case you’re out mountaineering or orienteering, then it’s best to at all times have a paper map and compass to be protected; the Fenix 7’s multi-band GPS is great, however no machine is infallible.
Sleep monitoring can be spectacular, precisely detecting adjustments between sleep and wakefulness that sports activities watches usually fail to distinguish. Every morning you’ll obtain a sleep rating, along with some tips about how you can get a greater evening’s relaxation, however this information will even be factored into stats comparable to your physique battery, which exhibits the way you’re balancing work and restoration.
There’s storage for music, too (the Sapphire editions of the watch give you extra space for saving maps and tracks), and you should use the Fenix 7 to take heed to songs, podcasts and audiobooks via your telephone’s default media participant.
Once you’re on the transfer, you should use Garmin Pay to make contactless funds in shops and pay for public transport in lots of places. Sadly, most UK-based banks aren’t supported, however at the very least it is also legitimate for a variety of public transport companies, together with Transport For London.
One characteristic that’s conspicuously missing from the Fenix 7 is the microphone featured within the not too long ago launched Garmin Venu 2 Plus, which lets you obtain telephone calls and use your telephone’s voice assistant instantly out of your wrist. It’s a particularly helpful characteristic to have at your disposal mid-workout, and we’ve bought our fingers crossed that Garmin would possibly introduce it at a future date in a Garmin Fenix 7 Plus.
Garmin Fenix 7: Health monitoring
- One of the vital correct GPS watches we have examined
- Actual-time stamina monitoring to assist with pacing
- Coaching load steering for balancing relaxation and work
Monitoring rating: 4.5/5
The Fenix 7’s upgraded coaching instruments allow you to stability work and restoration and make the summary idea of coaching load straightforward to know. It’s nonetheless a watch tailor-made to severe athletes, however Garmin’s superior options at the moment are extra accessible for these taking their coaching to the following degree.
Maybe one of the best instance of this real-time stamina instrument, which exhibits how a lot gasoline you may have within the tank throughout your exercise. This helps you keep away from bottoming out and allows you to extra precisely choose when to show round throughout an out-and-back run.
It’s a sensible addition that’s very simple to make use of and precisely displays your vitality ranges based mostly in your coaching load. Throughout runs on drained legs, our reported stamina drained a lot sooner than after we had been recent, and we had been capable of alter our coaching on the fly accordingly.
The watch’s coronary heart charge monitor is extraordinarily responsive, making this a superb look ahead to high-intensity interval coaching (which is now accessible as an exercise profile). A coloured bar on the high of the watch display screen permits you to see your present coronary heart charge coaching zone at any time, so you may enhance the hassle while you need to push to the following degree and see the consequences instantly.
As soon as your exercise is completed, the Garmin Join app will reveal how your stamina decreased – and whether or not your effort matched your potential. It’s one other helpful perception that allows you to know whether or not you’re pushing your self arduous sufficient or holding again as you begin to tire.
One other new motivational instrument is the race predictor, which makes use of your present efficiency to estimate how lengthy it should take to finish a 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon based mostly in your present health. It’s solely an estimate, however a graph exhibiting how your predicted time adjustments based mostly in your coaching can actually provoke your efforts. It’s all accessible proper in your wrist, so there’s no must delve into Garmin Join to seek out it.
In our exams, Garmin’s predicted race instances had been roughly correct – erring on the optimistic facet – and adjusted quickly in response to your most up-to-date efficiency. We got down to beat our predicted 5k time, and though we did not fairly handle it, the watch set us a harder aim in response.
You’ll be able to see your seven-day coaching load at a look on the watch face, with recommendation on whether or not it’s good to dial up the depth, take your foot off the gasoline, or keep the place you might be for optimum outcomes.
The Fenix 7 isn’t only a runner’s watch, although – it additionally has a powerful set of instruments for cyclists and may be related to the corporate’s line of motorcycle computer systems and lights. Garmin has not too long ago expanded its vary of biking modes and takes components like incline and terrain under consideration when calculating your exerted effort.
Mapping for cyclists is especially spectacular. The watch will not simply map a route for you; it additionally provides you the choice to keep away from toll roads, slender trails, unpaved roads, and main highways, letting you customise your trip to fit your bike, your preferences, and your degree of confidence. Touches like this actually present that this was a watch developed by folks with a real ardour for his or her sport and who need to make it accessible to a wider vary of individuals.
The watch can detect climbs robotically as effectively; its ClimbPro characteristic identifies while you’ve begun an ascent and presents you with information on the gradient, distance, and elevation acquire of your complete hill so you may handle your effort and keep away from setting out too arduous or maintaining an excessive amount of in reserve.
Garmin Fenix 7: The Garmin Join app
- All information offered clearly and defined
- A number of further instruments together with gear tracker
- Personalised exercises and coaching plans
Companion app rating: 5/5
Like all Garmin watches, the Fenix 7 syncs with the Garmin Join app for iOS and Android. Connecting the watch is a breeze, and the watch syncs information robotically everytime you full a exercise, or open the app.
Should you’re upgrading from an older Garmin machine, all the info might be pooled collectively seamlessly, although deciding on a coaching session will permit you to see which machine recorded it.
Garmin Join is without doubt one of the best-developed health apps and places way more info at your fingertips than the likes of Huawei Well being and even the official Coros app. All of your most up-to-date stats (comparable to coronary heart charge, exercises, sleep, and menstrual cycle) are proven on a central dashboard which you could rearrange and customise at will. Don’t need to see your step depend? Simply slide it to the proper, and it’s gone.
Tapping on any of those stats will permit you to drill down via the info in additional element, and each graph and desk is accompanied by an information panel that explains precisely what the knowledge means and the way you should use it. The app additionally gives options the place applicable so you may enhance your coaching habits.
Open up the app’s primary menu, and also you’ll uncover an enormous array of additional instruments, all particularly designed with sportspeople in thoughts. For instance, there’s a gear tracker so you may preserve observe of how lengthy you’ve been utilizing your varied pairs of trainers and work out when it’s time to switch them, and you may arrange emergency contacts who ought to be alerted if the Fenix 7 detects an accident.
You’ll be able to join with different Garmin customers as effectively, although most customers usually tend to make use of the app’s Strava compatibility as an alternative.
There are customizable coaching plans for runners and cyclists, which set you sure classes to finish in the course of the week and alter based mostly in your efficiency, plus varied Peloton-style instructor-led exercises. It’s all freed from cost, and there’s no indication that Garmin plans to implement a Fitbit Premium-style subscription to entry it.
You’ll be able to obtain third-party apps, new watch faces, and further information fields (that are offered on display screen throughout exercises) via a second app known as Garmin Join IQ.
There isn’t an enormous array of apps to obtain, however lots of these accessible have been created by passionate Garmin customers and resolve an actual want – such because the unofficial Parkrun apps, which show your private barcode, so that you don’t have to hold it on a keychain or wristband. There are additionally apps for standard companies, comparable to mapping instrument Komoot, that are favored by runners and cyclists.
First reviewed January 2022
Garmin Fenix 7: New updates
Since its launch, the Fenix 7 vary has obtained plenty of software program updates, and Garmin very kindly added fairly a couple of options to the watch that had been beforehand solely accessible on newer Forerunners, comparable to coronary heart charge variability monitoring, Coaching Readiness Rating, Race Day widget and extra.
One of the vital vital enhancements is the addition of SatIQ. This method robotically scans for GPS alerts and adjustments the GPS settings in real-time to preserve battery life with out compromising GPS accuracy. Contemplating how good the battery life on the Fenix 7 is, the addition of SatIQ turns the watch into an absolute battery powerhouse, solely overshadowed by the Garmin Enduro 2, a watch that has a battery life that should not be doable on a wrist wearable.
Garmin added different options as effectively, just like the morning report and improved the working energy characteristic, making the Fenix 7 an much more competent multisport watch than earlier than. There actually is not something the Fenix 7 is not good for, from working coaching and outside journey monitoring to biking restoration.
