Garmin  Instinct 3 Solar - Tactical Edition

I decided to ditch my Apple Watch in favor of trying out the Garmin Instinct 3 Tactical Solar, and couldn’t be happier. The main selling point for me on this watch was the battery life, which is absolutely incredible. I got this watch three weeks ago and I’m still around 30% battery life without any recharges. The data on the watch face is easy to read, even with so much information readily available. On my standard face, I can see the temperature, windspeed and direction, step count, heart rate, time, miles walked, number of unread notifications, the day and date, my battery life, and my solar recharging status. It took a while to configure everything just how I wanted it since everything is fully customizable, but that that’s a good thing in my book. There are a lot of different accessories available, and I am currently using a classy looking metal watch band and have a glass screen protector on the face. I use the flashlight feature all the time, and it’s incredibly bright and convenient. The unexpected feature that I have found myself most grateful for is the body battery meter. The watch uses health, activity, rest, and sleep data to come up with a figure that shows my body’s energy level as a battery percentage. As a member of the grind culture working a physically demanding job 40 to 55 hours a week and with lots of extracurricular activities, I am used to pushing through fatigue and working myself to the bone. Having a numerical value to represent how much energy I have left has helped me decide when I need to rest and when I have a little bit more energy to give. I am not usually one to listen to my body, but I do listen to hard data. The watch helps with that. I couldn’t be more pleased with this watch and have already convinced two friends to buy one as well!

This watch has turned out to be even more awesome that what I thought it would be. The tactical looks very sleek and with the all black I've been wearing it with all of my outfits so far. I feel most people would be able to use it easily as the buttons are very straightforward compared to a traditional smartwatch that can be very gesture heavy. There are so many features that it may take a while to know how each works and when to use them but thats the same for any technology nowadays. The health metrics are a great tool as well and so far seem to be quite accurate. I will keep this watch for as long as I can and im sure I'll be with the Garmin family for a while.

I got the original instinct 1 (not solar) years ago and ended up trading it for an Apple Watch last year. After a year of using the Apple Watch I found myself HATING the battery and missing the garmin functionalities. I got the solar tactical model and am so glad I did. The battery is incredible..I’ve worn this watch tracking for 8+ hours and with solar capability it’s charged afterward. The watch itself is very durable and comfortable for everyday wear. The app is easy to use, the watch face is customizable, and tracking is pretty accurate. It’s a great watch for tracking sleep, physical activity, etc. Highly recommend.

I bought this watch as a replacement for a Garmin watch that I had for 20+ years that broke. As a Military Veteran and a current Truck Driver this watch has so many features (some I’ll probably never use!) that are great, it’s worth the price. The options available to customize the watch to one’s liking are great. In the short time that I’ve had this watch I haven’t had the time to tap into all of the features yet but the battery life is phenomenal. Currently I have 11days of battery life left. I haven’t had to charge it since I opened the box! As a truck driver, I cross multiple time zones each week so the GPS time sync is a huge plus and makes adjusting the while driving a breeze. I don’t have to wait until I stop to reset the time, and I can sync the time without taking my eyes off the road. Well worth the price!

This Garmin Tactical Solar Watch, as of this time of use, over many weeks now, it has very accurately shown heart, oxygen, sleep, and many many other aspects which can help a person to keep an eye upon your health, and exercise schedules. It has worked very well with my road bike cycling, and oh, those other tactical options with ballistic operations, with other programs to aid in shooting up to 800 yards, are very nice too. The Solar Operation really does help keep the Watch charged, and if you do stay over three hours outdoors, it is very effective, the 45mm face is more than enough to see clearly, thanks again for a really nice Garmin product.

I’m not a watch or jewelry wearer, so I sat on the fence for years, deciding if I should try one or not. Finally decided to give it a try and I absolutely love this watch. The rubber watch band it comes with is my only complaint. It sticks to your skin and doesn’t breathe, so I ordered a woven band and now this watch is perfection. Love the solar charging, the minimalist style, and the huge amount of functionality. I thought the flashlight was just a gimmick but I actually use it quite often. The insights it provides into your daily routine (my sleep schedule is atrocious) is really interesting and motivates me to push just a little harder for health. The battery last forever, too. This just might be the perfect smartwatch.

This watch replaced a watch and a fitness watch that I was wearing. It has nice features and all, but... ...for a watch that is marketed as a "Tactical" watch, it sure could use a better watch crystal to protect the face. I have had the watch less than a month and the face already has a scratch from everyday wear around the house and running errands. I wore a G Shock for years and not a scratch. C'mon Garmin, for what you are charging, you can do better. That is the reason for only a three star rating.

I've just got into trail running and I've been hiking for over a decade. I was using a very cheap Garmin Vivoactive watch that isn't even produced anymore. It was a good watch but it wasn't very accurate. The GPS would get lost during my runs and hikes thick in the forest. I researched other Garmin watches and found the Instinct 3 solar to give me everything I wanted. I was most excited about the different GPS sources and the fact that is can charge through solar while I wear it. I went with the tactical edition because I like the color, kill switch feature, waypoint features, and the colors of lights and such. Overall, I've used this watch for trail running, hiking, and cycling and it's definitely the best watch I've ever had. I'm getting ready to run my first half marathon trail run with it and I'm excited to see how it performs which will likely be awesome, I'm sure.

I bought this watch because I was a former Recon Marine. Let me tell you, I replaced my Apple Watch with this one because it has every feature the Apple Watch has, and a battery that I don’t have to worry about charging. If you’re looking for a rugged watch that can get you through anything, then look no more. This is by far my favorite purchase made this year. Just buy it and see for yourself.

I bought an earlier version of this watch and have had to replace it under warranty at least 3 times because of battery discharge issues. Garmin has since rolled out a new firmware update and, until they shut down the online discussion thread, there was considerable concern the battery drain issues this caused: https://forums.garmin.com/outdoor-recreation/outdoor-recreation/f/instinct-2-series/425913/fast-battery-drain-on-version-17-07?pifragment-1292=3#pifragment-1292=1 No solution in place and this is basically bricking devices.