Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

I have the Suunto T6 and T6C and Garmin 405 and 405cx and Garmin 610. I don't use the old ones any more; I wear the 610 as a daily watch and I run 40-50 miles a week with it.

I liked the idea of a really awesome all-in-one watch/computer to replace my 610. I hoped it would GPS sync up faster and stay connected more consistently, as I've had intermittent issues with the 610. It does. The fenix syncs up faster and didn't drop in places the 610 does.

I expected it to be completely as awesome as the 610 for running... and better. It isn't. The foot-pod is an either-or thing with the fenix, versus an either/or/and with the 610. The 610 will use the footpod as cadence if it has GPS and switch over if it loses sats. (It never seems to switch back, but that's partly why I wanted the fenix.) If the fenix has the foot pod set to cadence, it does NOT back up the GPS. And if it's set to speed, it doesn't record cadence.

There were other issues that make it a not-great-for-running device. I returned it. As nice as it'd be to have that long battery life for hiking and such (the 610 didn't last through a Half-Dome run last year), it's not awesome enough to keep both.

Still a great device. Just not for running.

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

My primary use for Garmin watches is for running. I've had all of their watches and they all are good products. I bought the Fenix because it seemed really cool and I was having some issues with the instantaneous readings on the 910 I was using (although in fairness, I never updated the software). The Fenix works great for running, but it's kind of like bringing a gun to a knife fight...I don't use most of the features available. My favorite aspect of this watch is that I can now wear my GPS watch as a daily watch since the battery lasts so long (weeks) between charges.

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

I have owned both the Suunto Ambit and Garmin Fenix and can say that while both are exceptional, they serve different needs. The Fenix is definitely geared more towards the backpacking and outdoor enthusiast. Provides easy to use GPS for position, navigation, and waypoint use. Other great features include sunrise/sunset times, excellent backlight, routes features, and vibrating alarm for us heavy sleepers. Excellent watch and cant wait to see what Garmin does with the software updates.

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

First, I am an outdoor enthusiast - I hike, bike, kayak, ski. I've been using Garmin GPS units since 2000, the Fenix is my fourth Garmin GPS. I like to collect tracks everywhere I go and they become a digital diary of my life. I also like to plan trips on the computer and then download the tracks to the device as a trip plan. When I saw the Fenix I thought, wow, this is great, all the basic GPS functions on your wrist. Compact, low weight.

For me, the Fenix is half way there, but I'm not convinced it is really 'guide ready', yet.

All the good stuff:
- It has all the basic functions I need from a GPS. You can download tracks and waypoints to the unit. It records tracks and waypoints which can be uploaded to your computer.
- The compass and altimeter function reliably and appear quite accurate against known elevation points
- I love the wireless connection to Basecamp via my iPhone to transfer data back and forth.
- OK, it is a little big and bulky as a 'watch' but considering it is a full function GPS on your wrist, I think it is quite compact
- Once you get used to the menu structure the Fenix is pretty simple to use - not intuitive, but a reasonable learning curve.

OK, the not so great:

- It takes a long time to lock, typically 5 minutes under clear, unobstructed skies. Sometimes it will lock in less than a minute, I've had a couple of days with over 20 minutes. I've waited several weeks to write a review because I know from past experience with new GPS units, they get more reliable and faster with use as the almanac gets updated. I'm up to about 30 hours of field use at this point and no more improvement.
- Tracks are reasonably accurate. About as accurate as the tracks I record on my iPhone but no where as detailed as I get on my Garmin 60csx.
- Tree cover can be a problem and it's still winter.
- I would like to be able to wear the Fenix on the outside of my coat and gloves in winter and while skiing so I don't have to pull my glove down and my shell sleeve up to see the screen. Alas, for me the strap is a little too short for this to work well.
- This is a little picky, but the haptics of the buttons feel pretty cheap. They don't always register, especially with gloves.
- Battery life is about 8 - 10 hours, not the advertised 16 hours. I'm still using the unit as it came out of the box, recording gpx tracks. For me, short battery life completely discounts the Fenix as a true back country tool. I haven't tried UltraTrack setting yet to see how much this extends battery life, but for me this defeats the primary value of a GPS - to see where I went, how far, how fast, how high. I want more detail, not less.

So, for a day of skiing, a day hike or ride, trail run, (I can't wait to go paddling with the Fenix), the Fenix does a reasonable job. You trade off some data accuracy for a small form factor. The wireless iPhone interface is really great. I would not recommend it for multi-day trips and would have much less confidence in the Fenix for serious back country work compared to Garmin's hand held units.

Happy Hiking!

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

I bought this watch for myself about 5 months ago. I love it. I wear this as a watch every single day. Whenever I go hiking I love to bring it with me and set a waypoint at my car, turn on the GPS and go! It is an excellent tool to have when hiking because if you have other information about your hike (final altitude, distance, etc.) you can see how close you are to finishing and how far you have already come.

Battery Life:
I have found that Garmin's specs were just about right for me. Garmin claims that it will last, in GPS mode, for about 16 hours, and I would have to agree with that. They also claim that it will last, with GPS turned off, for about 6 weeks. I would say this was right for me at first, but I would have to say that the battery drains a little faster now, it would probably only last 5 weeks for me now, but really this is not a problem, it charges very quickly so not wearing it for a half-hour every couple of weeks is not a big deal.

Accuracy:
This is a GPS, altimeter, and barometer(plus a bunch of other things too: sunrise/set, best fishing times, etc.), in other words it can tell you where you are, your altitude, and the air pressure. Now I have to say this, if your goal is to plug in a set of coordinates and to land within a foot of this point, this is not what you're looking for; you need a $700+ gps specific device. But what this WILL do for you is show you where you are, your altitude, and air pressure to a close enough range that it doesn't really matter. You this will get you within 10-20 feet of your car, easy. If you are coming back down the trail and "Uh-oh! Which one did I take?" happens, you will know where to go. If you are hurt and you need to tell people where you are, this will do those things. Like I said, I love it.

Performance:
I have had one issue with this watch, where I was zooming out on the map very quickly and I ended up freezing the watch and having to restart it (not a problem- simply hold the backlight button for about 20 seconds) but after restarting I was right back to where I needed to be, still in GPS mode, and still tracking. The only negative effects I had were later when reviewing my hike, I had one spot in the hike that I was non-existent for a brief moment.

After-Hike Features:
If you buy this watch, you have to download Garmin's software "Basecamp" too, you don't HAVE to, I just recommend it becasue it is really cool, it allows you to store your hikes, bike rides, runs, etc., and let's you name them and save them on your computer. You can review the hike, watch it on a map, and look at all sorts of chart data from your trip.

In conclusion, I highly recommend the Garmin Fenix, it is a great thing to have. It is an excellent watch, a great GPS, and a fantastic tool to have with you. It may seem bulky but you get used to it very quickly. Also, I was deciding between this GPS watch and the Suunto Ambit, I ultimately chose the Garmin becasue it was a little cheaper, it seems to fit my wrist a little better, and it can also share waypoints between some other Garmin devices (I also have a Garmin 450T for longer hikes and as a back-up for short ones). I am very, very happy with my purchase.

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

I've used this watch to record some bike rides of 3-20 miles, and a few mountain hikes (Rattlesnake, Lake Serene, Elwha River, Hurricane Ridge).

Good:
When it works, it works well.
Once you understand the menu setup, it can be setup to work pretty easy.
Map is good enough to understand where you are in relation to where you've been.
Has a bunch of profiles for different kind of activities, and synces to most garmin ANT+ devices
recognized by strava as a device you can directly upload from
fairly good battery life (did 5 miles on hurricane ridge + 8 miles on elwha and had 50% left)

Bad:
It can be slow to get a signal, sometimes 2-3min (in the mountains).
On my Lake Serene trip, I lost the sat once and the tracks added a couple small loops that we definitely didnt hike.
Not easy to use on your wrist while biking compared to a mounted bike computer; also, harder to manipulate while riding

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

I bought this watch to serve as a way to track my training for my first marathon. I practice a lot of sports and I always like to know my total vert, total mileage, calories, HR zone, speed, etc. I was looking for watch that had the basic functions for cycling swimming, and running. This watch did all those and so much more. I have been so impressed at the amount of things it can do.
It is a bit complicated to use at first. Like any tool or gadget that has limitless functionality, they come with a learning curve. I have not yet learned everything about this watch, but if you have some patience and play with it, you can customize it so much to your personal preferences. Expect to spend some time learning it before you go off into the woods. don't buy it the night before you go on a trip.
Battery life is great, It would last enough to do an Ironman and a multi-day backpacking trip if you are carefull with the GPS tracking and sharing data.
If you are looking for a watch that will give you all the endurance sports data you need but also has hiking and backpacking capabilities, this is the one for you. One thing I love about this watch is its ability to wirelessly connect to your computer and instantly plot all your data on top of each other so you can see your performance at various points in your outting. Like compare HR with elevation and speed etc. And it plots it all on a map or google earth.
If you only do endurance sports and all you need is pace, HR, speed, elev, calories, dist, etc, then you are probasbly better spending your money on a sports specific watch like the 910, but if you want all of this and much more, get the Fenix. Besides REI gives you 40 bucks back on this watch on your membership return. Be sure to upgrade the firmware to fix some of the issues older models have.

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

I love this watch compare to Suunto Ambit, but I returned this watch and bought an Ambit. It is great watch until I went into sauna, which was pretty hot about 110F to 120F and this watch's lense was fogging up. Like I said, the feature of this watch is great but the expectation of the adapting climate does not meet my demand.

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

I use this mostly for backpacking on well marked trails and for 2-4 days. In Ultratrack mode i can record up to 50 hours of hiking. It leaves a point every 1 minute. This replaces the watch I always wear, and a gps unit saving some weight and providing me the data I need. I really like being able to look at the pressure to know if bad weather is coming. The battery life is very good in Ultratrack mode, but it will eat the charge in normal mode. Most important to any gps is that you learn it before you use it for actual backpacking.

Comments about Garmin fenix GPS + ABC Watch:

In comparison to other watches in this price range, having the same functionality, the watch performs great. Gps acquisition and calculations are very quick (comparatively). The tracking, mapping and waypoint accuracy is as expected, reasonably accurate and reliable.
Basicly, it performs as it would reansonably be expected to perform within the price range that it is in.