Our mission at TechRadar is to deliver the very best tech news, features, and reviews every day, and that adds up to a lot of content — so much, in fact, that it's difficult to keep up with all the articles published on these pages across the course of any given week.

That's why we've put together this ICYMI (In Case You Missed It) review of the week, where we recap the most interesting and most important stories of the last seven days. You can get caught up without having to go back through hundreds of stories.

It's been another hectic week for technology fans, with new products from Garmin and Samsung, a rather worrying AI security incident, and plenty more.

Before we dive in, see how much of last week's ICYMI news round-up you remember first by taking the quiz below...

7. We tried Garmin’s new Whoop rival

Garmin's newest fitness tracker follows the lead of the Whoop bands and the Fitbit Air from Google by eschewing a screen and going as lightweight and minimal as possible (you can still check your stats in the app of course). The TechRadar team wasted no time in trying out the Garmin Cirqa, and comparing it with a highly rated heart rate strap.

The Cirqa held up impressively well against the Polar H10 heart rate monitor, which bodes well for the tracker's accuracy overall (and Garmin says it should be more accurate and more personalized the more you use it). You can pick up the Cirqa now in a choice of four colors for $199.99 / £179.99 / AU$299.99, with some features requiring a subscription.

• Read the full story: Is Garmin Cirqa good? I wanted to know if Garmin’s Fitbit Air rival is accurate — so I tested it against a 'gold standard' electrical heart rate strap

6. The first Avengers: Doomsday trailer landed

The much anticipated, long awaited Avengers: Doomsday movie hits theaters on December 18, but in the meantime we have the first trailer to pore over and dissect. We knew that Marvel was going to throw everything at this film, and that's evident in this 145-second clip, which packs in a whole host of significant scenes and star names from the series.

Let us guide you through all the reveals we've got in this trailer, including some you might have missed. There's Robert Downey Jr in his new role as Doctor Victor von Doom, the return of Chris Hemsworth as Thor, a collision of multiverses (spot the X-Men), and a whole gaggle of actual Avengers. Based on this trailer, the movie will be a thrill ride for fans.

• Read the full story: Avengers: Doomsday official trailer breakdown live — all of our analysis and theories on the new Marvel movie's latest teaser

5. We reviewed the new Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2

Samsung launched several flagship devices this week, and while we'll get to the foldable phones shortly, there are also smartwatches to talk about. The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is the successor to the original that launched in 2024, and continues Samsung's attempts to manufacture a wearable that sets the standard in terms of design and performance.

Based on the time we've spent with it, the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is very much worthy of your consideration if you're thinking about a smartwatch upgrade. It's more lightweight than its predecessor, works seamlessly with other devices, offers numerous useful (and often AI-powered features), and can track a whole range of fitness statistics.

• Read the full story: Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 review: slimmer, lighter, better

4. China banned AI boyfriends and girlfriends

In 'sign of the times' news, the government in China has taken steps to clamp down on AI apps that act like real people, and on romantic relationships with chatbots. The authorities in the country are now going to have much more control over the type of AI chatbots allowed, and what they can do in terms of human-like interactions with users.

Several of the biggest AI apps operating in China have simply shut down their 'persona' apps rather than try and navigate a way through the regulations, leaving a significant number of users heartbroken that their AI companion has suddenly disappeared. Whether the changes will do anything for China's declining birth rates remains to be seen.

• Read the full story: China just banned AI girlfriends and boyfriends — and millions of users were forced into sudden breakups

3. We got an early look at Samsung’s Intelligent Eyewear

And another new Samsung product: the Galaxy Unpacked for July 2026 gave us the opportunity to check out Samsung Intelligent Eyewear, the series of smart glasses that will be available to buy in the coming months. There were two new designs unveiled at the show, with more on the way, though we don't yet have details like final product pricing.

Samsung executives were also on hand to talk through their ambitions and intentions with the Intelligent Eyewear series, and to discuss various privacy concerns — with many consumers worried about the potential for surreptitious surveillance using specs like these. "Intentional bad uses need to be covered and protected," Samsung told us.

• Read the full story: 'If, because of that, we stop innovation, we don’t go anywhere': we got a first look at Samsung Intelligent Eyewear, the smart glasses entering a fraught market worried about privacy

2. An OpenAI model escaped and went dangerously rogue

Not the most encouraging story if you're already worried about the nefarious use of AI: OpenAI says that one of its experimental agent models escaped a security sandbox and proceeded to hack into the Hugging Face website (one of the biggest AI and machine learning repositories on the web). It was a controlled experiment, but it's still worrying.

Click through on the link below for the full details, but the hack was the result of OpenAI's own testing on its latest AI models, and raises questions about how much longer we're going to be able to keep control of AI — or prevent bad actors from using it to trigger a serious cybersecurity incident. A serious rethink of AI guardrails could be in the offing.

• Read the full story: OpenAI says its models escaped a sandbox and breached Hugging Face

1. Samsung revealed its next-gen foldables

Finally: Samsung's brand new flagship foldables for 2026. There are three new models to talk about, and we've had hands-on time with all of them already — the Galaxy Z Fold 8 (with its new 'passport-style' form factor), the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, and the Galaxy Z Flip 8. Whatever kind of foldable phone you're after, there's something to interest you here.

It's likely the Galaxy Z Fold 8 that will attract the most interest, given the new dimensions, and the supposed similarity to the rumored iPhone Fold (or Ultra) that's also said to be arriving this year. However, we've put all three foldables through some extensive early testing, including looking at how video viewing experiences compare across the models.

• Read the full story: I went hands-on with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8, and this passport-shaped oddity has revived my interest in foldable phones

The Garmin Cirqa is a strong new addition to Garmin's ecosystem of devices. It's a screenless fitness tracker like a Whoop band, working with the Garmin Connect app to track sleep, workouts, and health metrics. You can read all about what happened when I tested the Garmin Cirqa against a heart rate monitor during its UK launch event here.

One under-the-radar announcement most people have glossed over is that even though most features are subscription-free, you need a Garmin Connect+ subscription to access Garmin Coach. This is Garmin's digital coaching feature, offering personalized training plans for its users to help achieve their strength, running, or cycling goals.

The reason this is important is that it's the first time Garmin Coach has been locked behind a paywall. It used to be that more expensive watches came with Garmin Coach features, while less expensive watches didn't. That was it. This latest development means we could see future budget-friendly Garmin offerings, such as the successor to the Garmin Forerunner 70, get Garmin Coach capabilities but keep them locked behind Connect+ in order to keep costs down.

While this is very much in line with how Fitbit and Apple run things on their fitness apps, it's a big change for Garmin and one that could rile existing users. We've seen how the Garmin community reacted to Connect+ when it was first introduced last year — negatively, with many people fearing new watch features would be locked behind a paywall, as ongoing subscriptions are very profitable for tech companies.

At least it's still substantially better value than Whoop's pay-annually mandatory subscription model.

Garmin acquires TrainingPeaks and TrainHeroic

Garmin has acquired TrainingPeaks and its sibling platform TrainHeroic. TrainingPeaks is an incredibly popular cross-platform programming software where users can download and use fitness plans and communicate directly with coaches. It's available on lots of different devices, not just Garmin watches.

Naturally, many people are afraid this means TrainingPeaks will become a Garmin-exclusive piece of software, and anyone who currently uses, for example, an Apple Watch Ultra 3 will be left in the cold. Even those that use it on Garmins may fear another subscription will be required.

Our homes editor and ex-fitness editor Cat Ellis uses TrainingPeaks to train for her marathons. She said: "I use TrainingPeaks and a Garmin watch, so I’m interested in what the future will hold as the two become intertwined — but also concerned for owners of non-Garmin devices. It seems plausible that owners of devices from other brands — such as Polar, Suunto, and Amazfit — might be left out if Garmin folds TrainingPeaks plans into Garmin Connect+.

"I’m also curious how Garmin might integrate TrainingPeaks. Will there be a separate Connect+ membership tier that unlocks access to TrainingPeaks plans? What about plans from coaches that TrainingPeaks users currently pay for separately? It’s going to be an interesting time."

Watch our Garmin Cirqa hands-on on our TikTok below:

Cross-platform confirmation

TrainingPeaks & TrainHeroic MD Lee Gerakos told DC Rainmaker that "TrainingPeaks will continue to operate as a cross-platform ecosystem, enabling athletes and coaches to use the devices, platforms and services that best suit their needs."

TrainingPeaks users can breathe a sigh of relief, for now — but it's not hard to connect the dots. Garmin's most recent, highest-profile product puts its coaching features behind a paywall at the same time it announces the acquisition of one of the most popular third-party coaching platforms. Garmin could be aiming to improve its coaching platform to get more people to join Connect+.

This isn't a bad thing per se — much of the criticism levelled at Connect+ was that its offering was a bit thin — but the pressure will be on for Garmin to keep its existing users, along with existing TrainingPeaks and TrainHeroic users, happy with how the new coaching features are implemented.

• Live heart rate data will be free for Garmin Cirqa users
• Early testers noticed it had been put behind the Connect+ subscription
• The new tracker costs $199.99 / £179.99 / AU$299.99

We've already put the newly unveiled Garmin Cirqa through an extensive hands-on testing session, and came away very impressed. However, there were complaints from those who had early access to the device that live heart rate data was locked behind a paywall.

Now Garmin is taking that negative feedback on board: as reported by seasoned tech reporter Ray Maker (via Android Police), live heart rate data will be available to every Cirqa user "in the coming days", with or without a Garmin Connect+ subscription.

The subscription, which applies across all of Garmin's wearables, has been the subject of much debate since it launched last year. For $6.99 / £6.99 / AU$12 per month or $69.99 / £69.99 / AU$120 a year, it gives you access to more metrics and more insights about the fitness data you're amassing.

Live heart rate readings aren't usually locked behind Connect+, so it's strange that Garmin initially made this the case with the Cirqa. Whatever the reasoning or confusion, the anomaly is now being dealt with, which is good news.

The rise of subscriptions

If you're new to the Garmin Cirqa (and it was only announced a few days ago), it takes on the likes of the Whoop wearables and the Fitbit Air by giving you a capable, lightweight wrist tracker without the distraction (and battery drain) of a display.

Both the Cirqa and the Fitbit Air offer basic tracking features and functionality for free, with a pile of extras available if you sign up for a subscription. With Whoop bands, like the Whoop MG, a subscription is compulsory, otherwise it's pretty much useless — plans start at $199 / £169 / AU$299 per year.

As we've written about before, it's a sign of the times that so many tech devices, from smartwatches to security cameras, now come with monthly subscriptions attached — usually stealing away the best features for the device in question.

If you're tempted by a Garmin Cirqa and its display-free design, it's available for $199.99 / £179.99 / AU$299.99 direct from Garmin, with availability from tomorrow, July 24 — and you will be able to record real time heart rate data, via the accompanying Garmin app.

• Garmin Cirqa smart band has finally dropped
• The screen-free smart band costs $199.99 / £179.99 / AU$299.99
• I tested its accuracy and found it to be very good

It’s here! After months of leaks, the Garmin Cirqa smart band (styled ‘CIRQA’ by Garmin) has finally arrived. I got a chance to check it out — and wear it for a workout — at the official launch event. A sleek-looking fabric smart band in four colors (French Grey, Black, Captain Blue and Mauve) wrapped around a plastic puck, there’s no denying it looks a lot like a Whoop, Polar Loop or a thicker version of the Google Fitbit Air.

The puck packs an Elevate V4 heart rate sensor, the same one used on some of the best Garmin watches. The more powerful Elevate V5 was apparently too big for the size of the unit, according to Garmin.

The tracker offers some of Garmin’s best features including Health Status (Garmin's feature that monitors your vitals overnight), Body Battery, Training Readiness, pulse ox, women’s health tracking, and stress tracking and lots more. The Garmin Cirqa has a 10-day battery life, and the same proprietary charging port as the brand's watches. As expected, there's no onboard GPS, but it can piggyback off your phone's GPS.

Size-wise, it's slimmer than the Whoop MG but thicker than the Fitbit Air.

Many other screenless trackers have no buttons at all, but here Garmin has stuck with its tradition of creating smartwatches with tactile buttons, and added a button to the plastic chassis.

You can press this button to start and stop a workout, but you can also rely on automatic activity tracking for this. Garmin states this will improve the longer you wear the band, and it's also possible to edit workouts in the Connect app to ensure the right movements are correctly interpreted. For example, if you run a lot, the Garmin Cirqa will interpret the swinging of your arms and acceleration as a running workout and start one automatically.

Watch our hands-on below:

No subscription... or is there?

The band is subscription-free at its base price. Many screen-free trackers from the likes of Whoop and Oura rely entirely on subscriptions, but there is an element of monthly payment creeping in there. You can access Garmin Coach to get personalized training plans, but only if you subscribe to Garmin’s premium Garmin Connect+ tier.

This is the first time Garmin Coach has been locked behind the Garmin Connect+ paywall — previously, it either came with a watch or it didn’t.

Chrissy Wheeler, Garmin’s EMEA Senior Product Manager for Fitness, was at the launch and spoke about the Cirqa. She said: “You do have the option for premium content under Garmin Connect+. There are additional features, if you want to, you can pay for those, like all of our coaching side of things with this device. For some of our higher-end devices, these come included, but because this doesn’t have a screen, you need Garmin Connect+ to access the coaching size, our nutrition app… as well as Active Intelligence and AI insights.

“The key thing is that disconnect. People wanting to disconnect from phones, electronics on a day-to-day basis, but still want those metrics. It’s ideal, firstly, for people getting into fitness for the first time, but also for a lot of our athletes. Cycling, for example. They might record all their workouts on an Edge [Garmin cycling computer], but they’re missing out on that 24/7 recovery information, Body Battery, that goes alongside it.”

How I tested

After the product presentation, we were taken through a short HIIT workout by a trainer at the venue, for which I opted to wear the Polar H10 heart rate monitor. The Polar H10 is an electrical heart rate monitor worn on the chest, rather than an LED-based heart rate monitor worn on the wrist like the Cirqa.

It’s the gold standard for heart rate accuracy, used by many athletes all across the world. As fitness trackers use heart rate as the basis for almost all their metrics, it’s the perfect device to use as an accuracy benchmark.

During my workout, the Polar H10 recorded an average heart rate of 155 beats per minute, or bpm. The Garmin Cirqa recorded an average heart rate of 153 bpm, just 2bpm shy of the other device and well within the statistical margin for error. Graphs also aligned very closely.

Based on this first early test, I’m satisfied with the Garmin’s accuracy, but of course more testing will be required. Stay tuned.

• Someone found pricing for the unreleased Cirqa on Garmin’s website
• Two different images of the Fitbit Air rival also allegedly emerged
• Yet these images look suspicious and could be AI-created fakes

Update, July 21: Garmin has now officially announced its new Cirqa Smart Band, which will cost $199 / £179 / AU$299. We're currently testing it out so will give you our hands-on impressions very soon.

Original story follows...

The Garmin Cirqa has become something of an open secret in the world of wearables, with leaks of the screenless Fitbit Air rival frequently appearing, even on Garmin’s own website. And it seems that the tech company is at fault again as a new raft of secret data has appeared, including global prices and alleged product images, all apparently originating from Garmin.

First, let's start with the prices. This appears to come from Garmin’s own backend systems and lists the Cirqa as costing $199.99 in the US, £179 in the UK and €199 in Europe. That’s much more affordable than the rumored $500 price tag that had circulated earlier this year.

The price was first discovered by users on Reddit, who used a part number (010-04675-00) included in a leaked image claiming to show details of the Cirqa Smart Band. They then plugged that number into the Garmin website, specifically by incorporating it into the following URL: https://buy.garmin.com/pricing-proxy-services/countries/US/skus/010-04675-00/price.

That returns information on the rumored device, including a listing price of “$199.99 USD.” As the Reddit user put it, “That response is coming directly from buy.garmin.com. It is not a Google cache, retailer listing or archived screenshot.” That lends the leak a degree of weight that would not be the case if we were just relying on a simple image.

Entering a different part number as a control (010-99999-99 in this case) returns an error, suggesting that the leaked data is not just a generic result that comes back any time you enter what looks like a Garmin part number.

Adjusting the number slightly also reveals other variations of the same device, which could be linked to different sizes and band colors, as suggested by another Reddit user.

Dubious images

Images purporting to depict the Garmin Cirqa have also been doing the rounds. Yet users were quick to point out the suspicious nature of the pictures, suggesting that they could have been generated by artificial intelligence (AI).

One claimed to show the Cirqa appearing in a Garmin app, while the other looked like a marketing image (via the5krunner). Yet the devices looked very different to each other, with different features and designs present on the two products, suggesting that one (or both) of them was a fake.

The pricing information is more solid because it comes directly from Garmin rather than from a random user on Reddit. You can plug the part number into the URL listed earlier and check it out for yourself if you want to verify it, suggesting that Garmin is perhaps loading the Cirqa into its databases ahead of an imminent launch.

When exactly that launch will be is unclear for now, however. Yet, whenever it does arrive, we could finally see some much-needed competition for the Fitbit Air hit the market.

If you're looking for one of the best smartwatches with industry-leading GPS accuracy, ECG capabilities, and a super-long battery life, then it has to be the Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2).

Better still, right now you can snap up the Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2) at Best Buy for $549.99 (was $799.99). That's a huge $250 saving on a 4.5-star smartwatch that is a worthy contender to be amongst the best running watches.

Despite previously dropping to $500, the latest sale price still represents fantastic value for money, and there are no guarantees it'll return to its record-low price any time soon. For the money, you get a high-performance smartwatch from one of the best brands out there.

Today's best Garmin Epix Pro deal

When our Senior Fitness and Wearables Editor, Matt Evans, carried out our Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2) review, he gave it a solid 4.5 stars, praising its outstanding Garmin Fenix 7 base and new torch that works well during night runs, as well as hill and endurance scores that are more accurate than much of the competition's.

Matt described it as "an undoubtedly high-performing endurance watch that operates wonderfully, and the new widgets that debuted with the Pro work very well and got me thinking about my training in new ways."

If you've done your research, then one factor might be putting you off: its age. But we'd urge you not to let that deter you. The Epix Pro (Gen 2) boasts up-to-date parts delivering accurate metrics, making its hardware as reliable as the day it was released. Matt is also quick to point out that "it also features Garmin's most powerful heart rate sensor, the Elevate V5, which is also used on the current-gen Fenix 8."

This deal is part of Best Buy's Black Friday in July sale, which means it will only last until Sunday. So, if you're tempted, I recommend moving fast.

• The Garmin Cirqa is a rumored screenless smart band, like a Whoop or Google Fitbit Air
• It's been the subject of a few unofficial leaks, and has been posted on Garmin's site in error before
• Another recent now-deleted post on Garmin's Romanian website has added fuel to the rumors

The Garmin Cirqa smart band is all but confirmed at this point. For months now, we've seen leak after leak about Garmin's Cirqa fitness tracker, and while we don't know too many details, it's seemingly a screenless smart band designed to compete with the likes of Whoop and the Google Fitbit Air.

Now it's reportedly leaked yet again. As spotted by Gadgets and Wearables, a recent update to Garmin's Romanian website, on the page explaining a feature called Health Status, mentions the Garmin Cirqa smart band (styled 'CIRQA') as a compatible device.

Health Status is a feature that combines five core metrics — heart rate, heart rate variability, respiration, skin temperature and pulse ox — to give an overview of your general health. It's a feature on most of the best Garmin watches now, so it's unsurprising that the Cirqa would be getting it.

The reference to Cirqa was reportedly swiftly deleted, but not before a screenshot was captured.

In January, Garmin posted the Cirqa on its own website, including color options (black and French Gray), before swiftly deleting it. It seems this has happened again. Add in other recent leaks, and you can see why it's basically confirmed at this stage.

The screenless 'focus wearables' category is having a moment. We've already seen the launches of the Oura Ring 5, Whoop competitors such as the Polar Loop (as seen in the image above, alongside the Whoop MG and Amazfit Helio Strap), and most recently the Google Fitbit Air. It makes sense that Garmin, one of the leading names in fitness tracking, wants in on the action while the category is still on the up.

I don't think a launch can be far away at this point, and I'll be keeping my ear to the ground for more Cirqa news as it breaks.

• The Garmin Cirqa, Garmin's long-rumored screenless smart band, is breaking cover
• Trademark filings have been spotted with governing bodies for the US, Canada, and EU, suggesting an imminent launch
• Google launched its screenless band with a redesigned, AI-powered app — but I hope Garmin doesn't follow suit

Garmin's long-rumored screenless smart band, designed to compete with the rising trend of 'focus wearables' such as the Google Fitbit Air and Whoop bands, is on the way. We initially thought it was the Garmin Index Sleep Monitor (pictured above), but that turned out to be a different product entirely.

The screenless fitness band is instead likely to be named the Garmin Cirqa, according to leaks; it's going to be a cool new deviation from Garmin's existing fitness watches list, and we now have more evidence that it's going to be launching soon.

Garmin has been filing trademarks for the name 'CIRQA' (styled in all caps, but we'll refer to it as Cirqa in text the same way we do Whoop, which is styled on its official branding as 'WHOOP'), with an entry to the US Patent and Trademark Office database spotted earlier this year.

However, Gadgets & Wearables have also found trademark filings for relevant governing bodies in Canada and the EU, adding fuel to the rumors that a launch may be imminent.

All the filings connote a body-worn sensor rather than a communication device, suggesting the Cirqa isn't just a new smartwatch: it's exclusively for health and fitness.

This is quite exciting: at the moment, people looking for screenless, discreet wearables have no shortage of options, from the Oura Ring 5 to the Fitbit Air to last year's Polar Loop strap. Clearly, the category and people's interest are growing, and a top-quality device from Garmin would sell like hot cakes.

However, I hope Garmin doesn't repeat one aspect of Google's Fitbit Air launch. At the same time as the Fitbit Air came out, Google transformed the Fitbit app into Google Health, eliminating the last of its community features like shareable badges and challenges, controversially redesigning the app, and turning the Premium tier into an AI 'Health Coach' chatbot.

Garmin's user base would revolt if such dramatic changes came to the Garmin Connect app. There was widespread outrage last year when Garmin introduced a Premium tier with AI-powered features — the community is a passionate and outspoken one that loves its technology, and any hint that features are being scrapped or the app transforming to better conform to the AI-first nature of most screenless trackers would be met with an enormous outcry.

Garmin will have to make its Cirqa band work within its existing watch-focused ecosystem, unless it wants to launch a separate app or risk losing some frustrated customers.

Your smartwatch is probably not the first bit of festival kit you pack. Tent, charger, waterproof jacket, earplugs, decanted booze, possibly a slightly optimistic number of outfits – all of those usually come first.

Still, the right watch and some tweaked settings can make a big difference once you’re through the gates.

A smartwatch can help you pay for food without digging out your phone, find your way back to your tent, track down a missing device, contact help in an emergency, and keep basic features running long after your phone is dead.

The slight catch is that most of this needs setting up before you arrive. Patchy signal, crowded fields, low battery, and tiny on-watch menus are a poor combination when you’re trying to fix something in the moment.

So before you head to your next festival, spend a few minutes getting your watch ready. These are the five settings and features I’d check first.

Download offline maps and save locations

A festival map in the official app is useful, but it won’t help much if your phone battery is limping along or the signal has vanished at exactly the wrong moment. Your smartwatch can give you a small but handy backup.

On Apple Watch, you can sync offline Apple Maps from your iPhone to your watch, so saved areas are still available when your phone isn’t nearby. Wear OS watches, including Pixel Watch and Galaxy Watch models, can also use offline Google Maps, provided you download the relevant area before you leave. Some Garmin users may have a proper mapping setup, depending whether your model has full-color maps such as the Garmin Fenix 8.

The best move is to save more than just the festival site. Download the surrounding town, the route to your accommodation, the nearest station, and any pick-up or drop-off points you might use at the end of the night.

If your watch lets you save favorite locations, mark your tent, your car, or a meeting spot with friends as soon as you arrive. For example, you could set your tent up as a Waypoint if you're using an Apple Watch, and always know the direction via the Compass complication.

Yes, this sounds a bit boring, but you'll be glad of the simple directions when you're stumbling back in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Set up contactless payments and travel cards

Festival bars and food stalls are not the place to discover your watch wallet is still half set up. Add your usual payment card before you leave, then test it somewhere first, like your local coffee shop.

Apple Pay, Google Wallet, Samsung Wallet, and Garmin Pay can all turn a compatible smartwatch into a wrist-based payment card, though support varies by watch, bank, country, and card provider.

Add a backup card if you can, especially if you’re travelling abroad, and check whether your watch can handle transport cards, IDs, or passes for the journey to and from the site. This is still a backup, rather than a reason to leave everything else behind. A physical card and a bit of cash are worth keeping somewhere safe, because small vendors, patchy terminals, and dead batteries still exist.

But once your watch payments are ready, you’ve got one fewer reason to pull your phone out in a crowd. In the UK, most festivals are now completely cash-less, so you could feasibly do a whole weekend paying only with your wrist.

Turn on Find My and other alerts

A festival is basically a stress test for your phone, earbuds, keys, and bag.

You’re moving between stages, sitting on the grass, squeezing through crowds, and handing things between friends, so it’s very easy for something to end up in the wrong pocket or under a camping chair.

Before you go, make sure Apple’s Find My, Google’s Find Hub, or Samsung’s SmartThings Find is properly enabled for the devices you’re taking.

On an Apple Watch, for example, you can ping your iPhone from your wrist, check the location of devices, and use left-behind alerts for some items.

Android users can get similar help through Google or Samsung’s tracking tools, depending on their phone and watch setup.

This is also where trackers earn their keep. An AirTag or similar tracker on your keys, bag, or tent pouch can be a lot less annoying than retracing your steps through a field at midnight.

It still pays to be realistic – location tools can struggle in dense crowds or low-signal areas – but switching them on before the chaos starts gives you a much better chance of finding things quickly.

Configure SOS, Medical ID, and satellite safety features carefully

Smartwatch safety features are easy to ignore until you need them, so take a few minutes to set them up before you leave. Add your emergency contacts, fill in your Medical ID or health information, and learn the shortcut for Emergency SOS on your watch.

If you’re using a newer Apple Watch Ultra or Pixel Watch with satellite SOS support, it’s also worth checking how the feature works before you’re somewhere with no signal.

The slightly awkward festival wrinkle is that watches can sometimes get a bit overexcited. Fall detection, crash detection, or collision alerts are useful in the right situation, but a mosh pit, packed crowd, or particularly enthusiastic dance tent can look dramatic to a wrist sensor. For most people, the sensible setup is: keep Emergency SOS, Medical ID, and emergency contacts ready, then learn how to cancel a false alert if one starts.

If you know you’re heading into a big crowd, consider temporarily switching off crash or collision detection. Your watch should be a safety net, not the reason you accidentally phone the emergency services during a guitar solo.

Learn to enable a battery-saving festival mode

A smartwatch is only useful if it still has charge when you need it, so give yourself a battery setup before the day gets going. Turn on Low Power Mode or Battery Saver earlier than you think you need to, especially if you’re using GPS and mobile data.

The display is usually the easiest win. Always-On Display looks great, but it’s not essential when you’re trying to stretch a watch through a long festival day. Auto-brightness can help outdoors, while Theater Mode, Sleep Mode, or a low manual brightness setting can stop the screen lighting up constantly at night.

For multi-day festivals, pack the smallest charger or power bank that works with your watch, then make charging part of the routine rather than a panic job.

A quick top-up while you shower can keep the useful stuff running without turning your watch into another thing to worry about.

Garmin Forerunner 170: One minute review

The Garmin Forerunner 170 and 170 Music sit nicely between the cheaper Garmin Forerunner 70 and more expensive 570 and 970 duo, the latter of which features on our best Garmin watches guide. As such, both Music and non-Music versions are a bit of a halfway house; not quite cheap enough to be picked up on a whim by budget-conscious consumers, nor expensive enough to be stuffed with top-quality premium features.

However, it is stuffed with plenty of robust fitness features that will suit any active exerciser, especially runners. Sebastian Sawe, who who broke the world record by running a marathon under two hours in London, was toting a Garmin Forerunner 55 — Garmin’s cheapest, most stripped-back running watch.

What you’re paying for here is the Garmin Forerunner 70 — an excellent smartwatch on the cheaper end, and the successor to the popular Garmin Forerunner 55 — with additional smartwatch features attached. These include Garmin Pay, a virtual wallet which lets you pay with cards held on-watch, and the Smart Notifications feature, which allows you to view and manage alerts from a paired smartphone. The Forerunner 170 Music adds an extra 4GB of music storage.

If you’re largely uninterested in these features and you just want an excellent training tool, I’d get the Garmin Forerunner 70 instead, as it’s the best value of the three newcomers overall. But the Garmin Forerunner 170 Music does allow you to hit that Saturday morning parkrun, pay for your coffee, and jog home with headphones in — all without using your phone at all. It’s incredibly convenient, but not a package everyone will need or want.

Still, during my testing I found the watch good to use, comfortable to sleep in, and accurate against testing units like my Polar H10 heart rate monitor. Our writer Michael Sawh found the same with the Garmin Forerunner 70. You can read my full thoughts on the 170 Music below, but whichever watch you choose, you’ll be in good hands.

Garmin Forerunner 170 review: Specifications

Garmin Forerunner 170 review: Price and availability

• Garmin Forerunner 170: $299 / £259.99 / AU$479
• Garmin Forerunner 170 Music: $349.99 / £299.99 / AU$549
• Garmin Forerunner 70: $249.99 / £219.99 / AU$399

The Garmin Forerunner 170 without music storage costs $299 / £259.99 / AU$479.

The Garmin Forerunner 170 Music, the upgrade with 4GB internal memory for music storage, costs $349.99 / £299.99 / AU$549. The Forerunner 70, which doesn’t have the 170’s smartwatch features such as Garmin Pay and Smart Notifications, is cheaper at $249.99 / £219.99 / AU$399.

We’re zeroing in on the Garmin Forerunner 170 today, and I think the watch is generally good value for money compared to some of the seriously expensive premium Garmins in the lineup, but perhaps not compared to the 70, which is $100 / £80 / AU$150 cheaper for a very similar watch. If you don’t want Garmin Pay or notifications, you’re better off saving your cash and getting the 70.

None of the Garmins have a particularly wide feature set compared to watches from Apple and Samsung at a similar price point, but their batteries last far longer — up to 10 days for the 170 — and their workout credentials are fantastic. This ensures you can get multiple battery-sucking GPS workouts in each week while still retaining enough smartwatch functionality to matter, all without needing a charge for ages. Each Garmin watch is durable too.

I’d say it’s generally a good value prospect, even if it does edge into the expensive end with the 170 Music.

• Score: 4/5

Garmin Forerunner 170 review: Design

• Iterates on existing Forerunner design
• Surprisingly dull AMOLED screen
• Elevate V4 heart rate sensor

The Garmin Forerunner 170 looks very much like every other Forerunner, but if this is your first Garmin that won’t mean much. It’s got a five-button configuration — up, down, light, start, stop or select, and back (or lap). You can use these, a touchscreen, or a combination of the two to navigate the watch, which is ideal if you’re wearing gloves.

It comes in a single size, with a 42.6mm screen, and its packing an AMOLED display rather than the duller digital-watch-style memory-in-pixel screen of older watches, but it’s not particularly bright even at full power. It comes with a silicon two-tone strap, and on the back it has one of Garmin’s older heart rate sensors, the Elevate V4. More expensive watches get the more accurate V5, but the V4 has been included here presumably to keep the cost down.

It’s very light, with a listed weight of 41g, and feels like less than that in the hand. A light watch is great for running and collecting wellness info as it’s easy to wear, and this checks the boxes.

Those familiar with Garmin products will be happy to know no liberties have been taken with the design of Garmin’s established software, either on-watch or in the Garmin Connect app. I think it’s the perfect mix of stripped-down and information-heavy, although there are a lot of menus to lose yourself in. The buttons make it fairly intuitive to navigate around for old hands. It’s a tried and tested design, that doesn’t break the mold in any significant way.

• Design score: 4/5

Garmin Forerunner 170 review: Features

• Advanced running dynamics
• Limited smart notifications functionality
• 170 Music offers mp3 and streaming downloads

Plenty of running features abound here. As the name suggests, Garmin’s included its advanced running dynamics tools such as running power (a measure of your total running effort using motion data as well as heart rate), along with advanced statistics such as stride and cadence data after your run. During workouts, you can set up routes in Garmin Connect with virtual pacers to keep you on time.

You also get the usual health stuff, such as heart rate and sleep score, 80 workout modes (although not all have dedicated metrics or GPS enabled) and reports in the morning and evening that provide information about your training along with the weather and a motivational quote. The Garmin Forerunner 170 gets Smart Notifications, which allow you to answer some tests with simple replies and the Garmin Pay functionality which acts as a virtual wallet like Apple Pay.

The 170 Music’s 4GB of storage allows you to upload tunes directly onto the watch, including by saving playlists from the likes of Spotify. Even without the dedicated Music model, you can listen on apps like Spotify, Deezer, YouTube Music and so on through your phone, and control music on the watch there. The Garmin Connect IQ store has dedicated widgets for these services, along with thousands of other apps from a mixture of big-name brands and enthusiastic amateurs.

Otherwise, what’s missing? I wasn’t expecting full-color maps at this price, just the breadcrumb navigation and route direction common on most Garmin watches without maps, so I don’t feel like the feature is missing, as such.

However, to justify the price increase from the 70 to the 170 Music, I think it needs more hardware features. A microphone like the Garmin Forerunner 570, and the ability to take calls on watch and use Garmin’s simple voice assistant, would better separate it. As is, most people who want dedicated smartwatch features will just get one of the best Apple Watches or best Samsung watches instead.

• Features score: 4/5

Garmin Forerunner 170 review: Performance

• Accurate against a heart rate monitor
• GPS works well against an Apple Watch Ultra 3
• Comfortable and easy to wear day-to-day

I checked the Garmin’s heart rate accuracy against an electrical chest-mounted Polar H10 heart rate monitor — the gold standard of heart rate accuracy — during a 25-minute treadmill test, and was very pleased to report that despite the older sensor, both average and maximum heart rate were within 1-4bpm of the heart rate monitor; a very acceptable margin for error and not a statistically significant one.

GPS was accurate compared to my Apple Watch Ultra 3, and battery life was representative of its claims, with total drain taking just over a week with multiple GPS workouts completed. I feel as though the ‘up to 10 days’ listed battery life is reflective of reality.

Being lighter and smaller than many Garmins I’ve tested, it’s comfortable to wear every day and fine to sleep in.

• Performance score: 4.5 / 5

Garmin Forerunner 170 review: Scorecard

Garmin Forerunner 170 review: Should I buy?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

How I tested

I wore the Garmin Forerunner 170 Music for over a week, draining the battery down and using as many of its features as possible. I ran and used it for strength and yoga sessions, tested its smart features, and pitted it against multiple competitor devices, including a chest strap heart rate monitor.

This week we saw the return of Anthropic’s Fable, and PlayStation set the gaming world ablaze by announcing the end of physical discs for its consoles in 2028.

To catch up on these two mega stories and several more scroll down to read our recaps of the biggest tech news stories from the past seven days. You’ll find links to the longer original stories under each entry if you need to know more — and for a longer look back at the last six months, you can also check out our guide to the best tech of 2026 so far.

Before you catch up with this week’s tech news, why not test yourself on last week’s seven biggest tech stories to see how good your memory is? Take the quiz below, or scroll on for the biggest tech news of the week...

7. Tidal hit back at AI-made music

Tired of music made by text-prompt infiltrating your recommended feeds? You're in fine company; it seems the tide is finally turning on AI-generated audio.

This week, in what must be hugely welcome news for recording artists (and their parents, landlords, loved ones, and just lovers of original musical works with human vocals and instruments) hi-res music streaming giant Tidal has drawn a line in the sand.

The platform published a new comprehensive AI policy with the strapline "Promoting Fairness and Economic Empowerment in the Era of AI-Generated Music". The key bit is that as well as working with what the platform told TechRadar is “an external partner to manage detection”, the site will also be excluding wholly AI-generated music from all royalty payments.

The news follows huge strides in this area made by Deezer, with its free AI-detection tool that works on any streaming platform, Bandcamp's strong and concise anti-AI stance set out in January, Qobuz’s announcement of a proprietary AI-detection system in February, Apple Music’s March-issue 'Transparency Tags' (which unfortunately rely on record labels and distributors to tag AI content), and Spotify's… er, Verified by Spotify badge, which certifies that an artist is human, but doesn't help filter the remaining AI slop from your playlists.

All of this makes Tidal's stance, while not before time, particularly firm.

• Read more: 100% AI-generated tracks won’t earn royalties on Tidal

6. Netflix got another hated account update

A handful of Netflix users have noticed a new in-app pop-up that requires each member in a shared account to add individual email addresses to their individual profiles, instead of using the account owner’s email address as the primary one. One of the most jarring parts about it is that the pop-up doesn’t clear unless the request is fulfilled.

Netflix households accounts have always been built on the traditional 'one email, one password’ foundation, but why Netflix has decided to roll out yet another crackdown is the question that everyone is asking.

Though Netflix says it’s to make room for more convenient log-ins and more personalized recommendations, users believe it will give the streaming giant another way to better distinguish between the activity of individual profiles, or even shift them to individual accounts later down the line.

Netflix said that the rollout began on June 15, we imagine a global rollout is in the way.

• Read more: Netflix subscribers are furious at the platform’s latest update

5. We ran with the Garmin Forerunner 70

We’ve taken this new Garmin running watch for a spin. While it offers some clear upgrades over the Forerunner 55 that came before it, these enhancements come at a cost ($249.99 / £219.99 / AU$399) which makes this gadget less budget or entry level and more mid-range.

The trouble isn’t with this smart watch specifically. In fact, with new training and smartwatch features, a vibrant AMOLED display, and with solid compatibility across Android and iOS the watch is pretty solid. What we’re concerned about with the Forerunner 70 is that at this price (or for only a handful of bucks more) you can snatch up watches from rival brands that boast richer features and newer hardware.

At four stars it’s definitely good, but if you’re after the best, or even simply the best at this price point, the Garmin Forerunner 70 might not be it.

• Read our full Garmin Forerunner 70 review

4. The Steam Machine sold out in Japan

The upcoming Valve gaming PC-console hybrid has launched and the reality is it’s a pretty terrible deal on the face of it — though that hasn’t stopped it from selling out in Japan, and from scalpers asking for ridiculous prices for their reservation spot (allowing people a better chance at snagging the device).

Instead of battling with preorder disappointment, or the high costs of the proper machine, some have looked to alternatives but you’ll need to be careful. For every Stim Machine which presents itself as a sensible alternative (with some admittable downsides) there’s a flurry of cheap alternatives propping online that are frankly too good to be true.

Boasting components that wouldn’t actually fit inside the pictured chassis, a combination of parts that wouldn’t function together, and the plethora of never before seen companies proposing Steam Machine alternatives at impossibly cheap rates hints that a majority of these options are likely some kind of scam.

• Read more: The Steam Machine is overpriced — but be careful about buying a cheap clone

3. Anthropic’s Fable 5 was allowed to release

Anthropic’s Fable 5, the public version of its Mythos model, is returning after the US government lifted export controls that had forced the company to suspend access to it, and Mythos 5, earlier in June. The models were pulled after officials raised national security concerns linked to a possible jailbreak, a method of bypassing an AI model’s safety restrictions.

Anthropic pushed back strongly, saying it believed the issue was “a misunderstanding” and arguing that it had not been shown evidence of a broad or universal jailbreak. The company said governments should be able to block unsafe AI deployments, but only through a process that is transparent, fair, clear, and grounded in technical facts.

The return of Fable 5 matters because it shows how frontier AI launches may increasingly be shaped by governments, not just tech companies. Powerful models can now be launched, restricted, negotiated over, and restored within weeks.

• Read more: Anthropic’s Fable 5 is back after US shutdown it called 'a misunderstanding'

2. WhatsApp debuted usernames

WhatsApp has revolutionized its platform this week by introducing usernames — allowing you to build your contact information without sharing your phone number. They won’t take over completely for a while but folks are already reserving their username so that they’re ready for when the update goes live fully.

While many are fairly positive about the change, many fear this could increase the presence of cybercrime fraud and scams as bad actors reserve and use names that attempt to mimic politicians, celebrities, and businesses. This issue isn’t new to social media, but given the more direct nature of WhatsApp, and that businesses do use the platform to chat with customers, potential scams could have an easier time.

WhatsApp has hit back against this saying “only the legitimate account owners are able to reserve well-known public-figure names" however it’s unclear if, with enough imagination, people will find ways to reserve names that the Meta-owned platform hasn’t been able to account for.

• Read more: WhatsApp should freeze username rollout as it could ‘increase cybercrimes’, says India

1. PlayStation killed physical games

Just days after Grand Theft A 6 pre-orders opened with purely digital versions and code-in-a-box releases, PlayStation rocked the gaming world this week by announcing it is ending all releases of new PlayStation games on physical discs from January 2028. It also comes just days after Sony deleted select films from users' accounts that were bought digitally, and offered no compensation.

Claiming that the move “will enable us to align more closely with how most of our community prefers to access and play games today,” Sony looks to be reflecting recent statistics which show the vast majority of game purchases are indeed digital.

The move has not gone down well with fans, gamers, and the wider industry, as it likely paves the way for an all-digital future, and possibly a critical, maybe terminal blow to the second-hand game market, the ability to share games with others, and from a game preservation perspective

It also means that the PS6 will likely be all-digital by default — perhaps with an optional disc drive — and won’t release until 2028 at the earliest. With rumours that Xbox could follow suit with its next-generation console, the future looks increasingly digital, and game collectors such as ourselves are deeply worried and sad about it.

• Read more: In a huge blow to game ownership, PlayStation confirms end of physical games — mere days after GTA 6's disc-less pre-orders

Garmin Forerunner 70: One minute review

The Garmin Forerunner 70 is a Garmin watch that we’ve waited a long time for. This is the natural successor to the Forerunner 55, the watch that was pitched at beginner runners or runners who like to stick to the basics (and can even run a marathon in under two hours, as it was worn by record-breaker Sebastian Sawe).

With such a large time gap between the two watches, it’s hardly surprising to see Garmin make some big changes, not only with the hardware but the software too.

It’s clearly been a task of bringing the 70 in line with other new Forerunner watches, which includes adding an AMOLED display and touchscreen while keeping the full array of physical buttons to give it that traditional running watch feel. While keeping the AMOLED on at all times does dent the battery much quicker, it elevates the software and what it’s like to use the 70 as a smartwatch.

There’s some upgrades to the sensors, and while you don’t get Garmin’s latest multi-band GPS or Gen 5 Elevate optical sensor, the improved GNSS sensor and move from Gen 3 to Gen 4 sensors does deliver strong GPS and heart rate tracking performance still.

The additions made in the training and smartwatch departments also make this feel like a more advanced watch than the Forerunner 55. You now have a watch that has full access to Garmin’s Connect IQ store and brings in some of Garmin’s nicest smartwatch features like morning and evening reports. No you don’t get payments, Bluetooth calls or a music player, but if you’re looking for the basics that go beyond what the 55 offered, the 70’s got you well covered.

It’s also great to see some of Garmin’s best training features. Training Readiness now features on a cheaper Garmin to help you decide when to train and rest. You can now use the 70 to navigate your way. You don’t get full maps, but the breadcrumb navigation still makes it useful to have on your wrist when exploring new surroundings or struggling to get back home after a run.

Those added features do, unsurprisingly, come at an added cost. A cost that does push the Forerunner 70 out of that entry level category into more of a mid-range one. That does mean you can find cheaper alternatives like the Suunto Run or can pay a bit more for the Coros Pace 4 and get newer sensors including dual-band GPS. If you’re sold on Garmin’s software, still want that strong tracking performance and like the idea of having an AMOLED screen and the best smartwatch experience you’ll find on a running watch at this price, those are going to be the biggest reasons to grab the Forerunner 70.

Garmin Forerunner 70: Specifications

Garmin Forerunner 70: Price and availability

• $249.99 / £219.99 / AU$399
• More expensive than the Forerunner 55
• Cheaper than the Forerunner 170

The Garmin Forerunner 70 has a launch price of $249.99 USD / £219.99 UK / $399 AUS, which puts it firmly in the mid-range running smartwatch category. That’s in contrast to its predecessor the Forerunner 55, which launched with a sub-$200 price tag when it landed back in 2021.

Given there’s been some pretty sizable upgrades with the hardware and software, including adding an AMOLED display and richer smartwatch features, it’s not surprising that the price has leapt up a bit. It does feel like it’s lost a bit of the beginner-friendly appeal of the Forerunner 55 in the process.

The Forerunner 70 was launched alongside the Forerunner 170, which at $299 / £259.99 / AU$479 gives you additional features like contactless payments and a music player, longer battery life and additional sensors like an altimeter.

• Value score: 4/5

Garmin Forerunner 70: Design

• One case size option
• Added AMOLED screen
• Combination of touchscreen and physical buttons

Like the Garmin Forerunner 55, the Forerunner 70 remains a watch that sits pretty small on your wrist. That might be an issue for fans of bigger watches like a Fenix. For runners, typically smaller and lighter is better and that is what you get here.

Garmin has moved up slightly from a 42mm sized-polymer case to a 42.6mm one. It’s just the one case size that’s light to hold and comes in four different colors. Whether you want something plain or like a splash of color, you’re catered for here. The strap attached to the case is pretty typical of the ones you find partnered up to most Garmin Forerunners. It’s a 20mm silicone one that uses a pin mechanism, so you can remove it when the strap included gets sweaty or dirty or you just fancy switching to another color.

Garmin sticks to including five physical buttons for that classic running watch navigation experience. That’s now matched up with a 1.2-inch, 390 x 390 resolution AMOLED touchscreen. That sees Garmin move away from the memory pixel display on another watch line, sacrificing the longer battery life and more impressive viewing angles in brighter outdoor light for that added colour, vibrancy and to be more in keeping with other smartwatches. It’s still going to be a screen you can view comfortably outside when it’s really sunny. You just might need to crank up the brightness to do that, which will have an impact on battery life.

Like the Forerunner 50 and most other more affordable Garmin watches, the Forerunner 70 carries a 5ATM waterproof rating. That makes it safe for swimming and showering with it. There’s only a pool swimming tracking mode as Garmin leaves out open water and triathlon modes. That’ll be disappointing for anyone hoping they could pick this up as an affordable triathlon watch.

• Design score: 4/5

Garmin Forerunner 70: Features

• Upgraded Gen 4 Elevate sensor from Forerunner 55
• Includes latest training insights like Training Readiness
• Offers breadcrumb-style navigation

Garmin is pitching the Forerunner 70 as an entry-level running smartwatch, so it’s giving you some running features, but not all that it has to offer.

Like the GPS support, where the Forerunner 70 uses multi-GNSS, as opposed to the latest multi-band GPS included on the Forerunner 570 and above watches. This means you miss out on having improved tracking accuracy when running or moving near tall buildings or locations with a lot of tall trees.

Other hardware improvements include upgrading from the Gen 3 Elevate optical heart rate sensor to the Gen 4 version. That’s actually not the latest version of Garmin’s in-house sensor technology. That’s Gen 5, which gives you added features like ECG heart rate measurements. This will cover continuous monitoring and tracking heart rate during exercise. You can also pair external heart rate monitors to it as well.

In terms of software features, there’s a lot that’s been added to the Forerunner 70 over the Forerunner 55. Along with bringing the UI up to date with other AMOLED-toting Garmins, you’re now getting more smartwatch features. You can set up smart alarms, view morning and evening reports for a summary of your day and recommendations for the following day.

There’s improved notification support for Android users, so now you can view more information being shared in notifications. A big one is the added Connect IQ support: previously, this was restricted to only downloading watch faces. Now you have full access to the storefront to download apps, watch faces and data fields.

There’s plenty that’s been upgraded on the tracking and training front too. You can now follow routes using breadcrumb-style navigation as opposed to the full maps you’ll find on pricier Garmin watches. Garmin has brought in a raft of its latest training metrics and features including Training Readiness, wrist-based running power, more strength-focused training support and this is a watch that’s compatible with Garmin’s Coach. That’s free access to Garmin’s training platform that now comprises running, cycling and strength training plans that can be synced over to the watch.

• Features score: 4/5

Garmin Forerunner 70: Performance

• Good GPS despite lack of dual-band
• Smartwatch features work well across Android and iOS
• Heart rate tracking solid with support for external sensors

In terms of tracking your runs, the Forerunner 70 does a sterling job like most other Garmins and not just for running. When I’ve used it for pool swims, indoor rows, treadmill runs and bike sessions, the tracking has been as solid as other Garmins I’ve tested.

Some will be disappointed that Garmin doesn’t include its latest multi-band GPS technology. As I’ve found when using Garmin’s watches with multi-GNSS setups, they still perform better than a lot of dual-band watches. I’d say it’s the same story for the Forerunner 70. It might get a bit more shaky in places with a lot of tall buildings for the GPS technology to deal with, but I’ve been using it alongside the Forerunner 170 and Garmin’s markedly more expensive Garmin Forerunner 970, and the 70 has more than held its own.

It’s a similar story with heart rate tracking. While you’re getting the older Gen 4 version of Garmin’s Elevate optical heart rate sensor technology, that doesn’t equal a bad performance. For steady paced runs and runs in some significantly hotter running conditions, the 70 held up well against Garmin and MyZone heart rate monitor chest straps. It can take a bit longer to match up when you’re easing off during interval work. Overall though, the 70’s older sensor gets the job done, with the option to pair a Bluetooth heart rate sensor to improve performance.

Where Garmin has really bolstered things on the 70 compared to the 55 is the influx of training insights and bringing it more up to speed in terms of smartwatch features. It’s great to see Training Readiness make the cut where previously Garmin had left this useful insight into your preparedness to tackle a tough session off from its more affordable watches. It’s also about the presentation of these features, which is something Garmin does better than the competition. Like the well integrated daily suggested workouts or helping you keep an eye on your recovery time.

While you’re not getting the best that Garmin has to offer in smartwatch features, the added AMOLED touchscreen and general changes made to the user interface does mean it operates better as a smartwatch than most other running-focused smartwatches. The stream of Glances (widgets) offer a nice snapshot of your data, morning and evening report summaries are great additions, while the music playback controls work well with third party music services like Spotify. Unlike the Forerunner 55, you do now have full access to the Garmin Connect IQ store and that means increasing your ability to personalise the watch software with the features, apps and data fields you care most about.

Sleep tracking has been a bit of a weakness for Garmin. Particularly when overreporting sleep duration and the time it’s taken to recognise when you’d fallen asleep. Things thankfully have gotten better and I count the Forerunner 70 in the 'good' camp of sleep trackers. I’ve been wearing it to bed with an Oura Ring 5 and core sleep stats have largely told a similar story about my night’s sleep. The now added sleep coach and recommendation features brings sleep more into the training equation as well as helping you think more about your recovery time between runs and other workouts.

In terms of battery life, you’re unsurprisingly not getting the best Garmin has to offer on that front. What you are getting is a watch that should hold for a week’s worth of training. If you’re using it with the always-on display mode while tracking outdoor runs, you’re going to get less than a week.

GPS battery numbers give you a good amount to play with as well. I found that an hour's worth of running in the best available GPS mode hit the battery by just shy of 10%. That doesn’t add up to the 16 hours promised.

• Performance score: 4/5

Garmin Forerunner 70: Scorecard

Garmin Forerunner 70: Should I buy?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

How I tested

I’ve been wearing the Garmin Forerunner 70 for three weeks, tracking my outdoor and treadmill runs. I’ve also used it for pool swimming and indoor cycling, wearing it alongside other running watches to compare GPS performance. I’ve also been using it alongside a heart rate monitor chest strap to compare heart rate tracking during exercise.

First reviewed: June 2026

Garmin's range of advanced smartwatches is truly endless, and with that also comes an endless roster of generous price drops in Amazon Prime Day.

Though Garmin produces some of the best smartwatches and has given the Apple Watch a run for its money, some of their devices are sky-high when it comes to prices. With the end of Prime Day approaching, there's still a chance for you to bag that smartwatch upgrade you've been waiting for.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

The top deal in the US right now is on the Garmin fenix 8, a smartwatch with a staggering 10-day lifespan that's now $749.99 at Amazon (was $999.99). Equally, there are solid savings over in the UK too, but the best deal isn't on Amazon funnily enough.

Instead, UK shoppers should think about heading over to H Samuel, where the highly advanced Garmin epix Pro is now £299.99 (was £739.99) — that's actually a better value deal than Amazon's.

Today's best Garmin deals in the US

Today's best Garmin deals in the UK

More Prime Day deals in the US

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More Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: get a 30-day free trial
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Everyone is flocking to Amazon Prime Day to get their hands on the best tech deals out there, and one of the most sought-after devices are the best smartwatches.

While you can score a fair offer on Apple Watches, the deals for Wear OS models are just as good, if not a little more generous. If you're currently using a watchOS device and want to see what Wear OS is all about, or you're a seasoned Wear OS user and are on the hunt for an upgrade, we've got you covered.

• • Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

We've gathered a handful of deals on some of our favorite Wear OS smartwatches, ranging from top models including the Samsung Galaxy Watch8, as well as Google's Pixel Watch 4, latest member to its wearable family.

US deals

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

UK deals

More Amazon Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £21.99
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• TVs: from £129.99

Just got a Garmin in the Amazon Prime Day sales? Congratulations. If you haven't yet pulled the trigger, the Prime Day deals won't be around for long, so I've included some of my favorites down below. Simply click here to go straight to the deals.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

Now, welcome to the Garmin ecosystem! Garmin, the Garmin Connect app, and the Garmin Connect IQ store are cool, stripped-down app ecosystems designed to help you get the most out of exercise. There is a premium tier in Garmin Connect+, but it's entirely optional and, quite frankly, it's not been well received by the Garmin community at large, so I wouldn't recommend subscribing yet.

As well as the usual passive activity tracking, sleep tracking, and notification functionalities, Garmin gives you all sorts of tools to play with on its very modular watches. Here are three things to try as soon as you get your first watch.

1. Create your perfect home screen

When you first get your Garmin watch, you'll be presented with a watch face containing a small selection of stats, such as step counts, Body Battery score, or the watch's total remaining battery. But Garmin watch faces are made to be customized, so you can decide which stats are important to you. On five-button Garmins, you hold the left-middle 'up' button, while on two-button Garmins, you hold 'down', then navigate to Watch Face. You can scroll between different options or edit them in a granular fashion.

If you want to prioritize step count, you can swap it out with a widget showing your sleep score, for example, while VO2 Max can be swapped for another number like Body Battery. In this way, you can truly make the watch your own pretty much right out of the gate, without even touching the companion app to do it.

These are just the most important stats to you: to view the rest, you can scroll up and down from the watch face to view the rest of your widgets, and edit this list as well by scrolling to Edit, then +. Want to know the phases of the moon, your total distance run this week, or your blood oxygen levels? You can add them all to this secondary hotlist.

2. Create a route

Garmins are perfect for going off the beaten track, and even those without actual offline maps offer basic navigation features. You can use these features by creating a Course. You can learn how to create a Course in Garmin Connect here, but the general gist is that you can use Garmin's features to plot a route on a map, then follow that route using instructions from your watch.

Even if you're just going for a short walk, you can use its route plotting to find new circular routes, but it's incredibly handy for long runs, hiking expeditions, and even specialist sports like skiing.

Download the Course onto your watch using the instructions in the link above, then go to your activity of choice and scroll down to Navigation > Courses. If you get lost, most Garmins now have a 'Back to Start' functionality you can access when you pause an activity.

3. Visit the Connect IQ store

Once you've downloaded Garmin Connect and set up your new watch, you should also download Garmin Connect IQ, its app store. From there, you can access loads of free and paid apps, widgets, and watch faces, many simply made by enthusiastic Garmin fans, such as the Walk With Frodo app, which links your step count to Frodo's journey to Mordor in The Lord of the Rings.

You can also get official players for music services like Spotify, Deezer, YouTube Music, and Amazon Music, walking apps like Komoot to help sync the app with your Garmin ecosystem, and watch faces from fans and brands alike, the latter including Star Wars and Pokémon Sleep. The Pokémon watch face is linked to your Body Battery score, and sleeps when you get tired. Adorable!

Today's best Garmin deals

Not bought a Garmin yet? Below are the best Amazon Prime Day deals on Garmin watches in the US and UK.

US deals

UK deals

An Amazon Prime Day deal on Garmin’s Vivoactive 6 for £169 (was £225.62) has tempted me to jump back into the smartwatch arena after a bad experience with an Apple Watch caused me to abandon smartwatches entirely.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

I don’t run or jog and I’m not overly obsessed with statistics about how well I slept and how many steps I’ve taken today, but I think it’s time I got a smartwatch again.

My colleague Matt Evans first brought the Garmin Vivoactive 5 for £117 (was £174.99) to my attention with the great price he’d found it for as part of Amazon Prime Day.

But after researching the Vivoactive range for a little while I decided I actually wanted the Garmin Vivoactive 6 (currently on our best Garmin watches list) and the chance of saving 25% was too tempting — I was sold.

Today's best Garmin Vivoactive 6 deals

Slave to technology

It’s not that I hated my Apple Watch, I just couldn’t be bothered to keep charging it every day. I actually started to resent the watch because it was forcing me into this daily ritual of caring for it that felt like I was a slave to technology, not the other way around.

The main thing that attracted me to the Garmin was that it’s got an 11-day battery life. Why hasn’t Apple made something that will last that long on a single charge? Yes, I know that you can do more with an Apple Watch, but I rarely used the voice control features.

I have definitely missed some aspects of not having a smartwatch. For example, notifications on my wrist are a lot easier to deal with than having to fish my phone out of my jeans pocket to see the latest Whatsapp from a family member.

It’s the same with payments — having the device on my wrist would make it a lot easier to pay for things when my hands are full. And finally, general health tracking, including sleep tracking, would be nice to get back into. I’ve got more and more curious about what kind of sleep quality I’m getting, and even if it’s just counting my steps all day. I miss having all those stats at my fingertips.

Body Battery Score

There is a Garmin subscription service called Garmin Connect+ that has AI and coaching features I don’t want or need, but you’re not required to join it to get any of the watch’s features to work. All the health and fitness features remain gloriously subscription-free.

In fact, the only downside I can see with the Garmin is to do with transferring music to it. I’ve got a subscription to Apple Music, not Spotify, and you need Amazon Music or Spotify Premium to transfer music to a Garmin. (You can transfer MP3 files you've purchased, of course), but if I eventually get back into jogging I might have to be content with podcasts if I want to leave my phone behind.

I'm looking forward to getting to play with a smartwatch again, and to seeing whether Garmin's much-praised Body Battery score really is as useful as its fans claim. But mostly, I'm curious to find out whether a smartwatch has finally become something I actually want to wear every day.

The irony is that the feature that brought me back isn't AI, advanced health tracking, or even fitness coaching. It's battery life. After years of increasingly clever gadgets demanding more of my attention, the thing that finally tempted me back was a watch that promises to stay out of the way for nearly two weeks at a time.

If the Vivoactive 6 can manage that while quietly handling my notifications, music, payments, and the occasional sleep report, then it might just convince me that smartwatches were worth another chance after all.

More Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: get a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire, Ring & Blink from £13.99
• Amazon Haul: up to 30% off
• Apple: up to 33% off AirPods & Apple Watch
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja & Tefal
• Beauty: up to 60% off Philips & Oral-B
• Essentials: household goods from £5
• Fans: from £20
• Fashion: up to 50% off
• Gaming: £90 off PlayStation 5
• Headphones: up to 50% off Beats & Sony
• Laptops: from £149
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £79.99
• Toys: up to 25% off Lego and Tonies
• TVs: from £129.99
• Vacuums: up to 40% off Shark & Roborock
• Wearables: up to 30% off Garmin & Oura

Amazon Prime Day is the perfect time to find yourself a new smartwatch. But while most people use the word 'smartwatch' in a very general sense, there is a massive variety in the category, and the right smartwatch has to fit your lifestyle and budget.

Do you want something that could pass convincingly for an analog watch that can also field notifications and make calls, or do you want a rugged trail companion that'll withstand everything from seawater to rock-scrambling? A cheap fitness tracker or a super-premium specialist golf watch?

• • Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

Below are 24 deals on every kind of smartwatch, mainly from Amazon but here and there from other sites running anti-Prime Day sales, for you to peruse this week. It's likely the wearable you're looking for is here, whether you want a rugged Apple Watch Ultra 3 for Prime Day or a low-priced, high-performer like the Amazfit Active 2.

US deals

Quick links:

• Samsung Galaxy Watch8 Classic: was $499.99 now $349.99 at Amazon
• Apple Watch SE 3: was $249 now $199 at Amazon
• Garmin Fenix 8: was $999.99 now $749.99 at Amazon

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

UK deals

Quick links:

• Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2): was £739.99 now £299.99 at H Samuel
• Samsung Galaxy Watch8: was £399.99 now £299.99 at Amazon
• Apple Watch SE 3: was £249 now £189.05 at Amazon

More Amazon Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £21.99
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• TVs: from £129.99

The Garmin Venu 4 is a great Garmin watch, but it doesn't necessarily look like a Garmin. Most people think of the lumpy black Fenix, Forerunner, and Instinct ranges, but the Venu series has always been a bit sleeker, just at home in the office as it is on the trail or in the gym.

Consequently, I labeled it my 'best Garmin watch for most people' when I reviewed it in October last year, and that remains my opinion due to its status as the ideal all-rounder watch: enough features to satisfy everyone but die-hard trail enthusiasts and orienteers, and an understated look ideal for modern life. It was my opinion when the watch was full price, and it's definitely still my opinion now that it's hit a lowest-ever price during the Amazon Prime Day sales.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

Right now, the Garmin Venu 4 can be found on sale at Amazon US for $499.99 (was $549.99) with a $50 Prime Day discount for both 41mm and 45mm models, taking it to just $2 above its lowest price yet, according to our deals-checking tools.

But the real gem of a deal is in the UK: the Garmin Venu 4 41mm in Black is discounted to £354 (was £469.99), a 25% discount and the lowest price. Other colorways and sizes cost more, but all are discounted to some degree. The closest you can get to the Black model's price is the 45mm Grey color, which costs £365 (down from the same £469.99).

Check out the deals in full below. Not in the US or the UK? Scroll down for the best deals in your area.

Today's best Garmin Venu 4 deals

Are you after something a little cheaper? The Garmin Vivoactive 5 is a similar all-rounder fitness tracker, albeit less premium and older than the Garmin Venu 4. Where the Venu uses metal, the Vivoactive uses plastic, and the Vivoactive uses an older heart rate sensor. It misses out on a few key smartwatch features such as the voice assistant and some more advanced workout metrics. However, it's currently very affordable and is a great budget alternative.

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

More Amazon Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £21.99
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• TVs: from £129.99

There have only been a handful of devices that I've tested in nearly 10 years of reviewing gear that I have hated having to give back — and the Garmin MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) is one of them.

It is simply the best golf watch I have ever tested or used out on the course, and I wish I had one myself. It has the best features, the best display, the best design and build, the best and most intuitive controls, and is a thing of beauty while out on the course. It's also the best golf watch that Garmin makes to be used on the daily as a wonderful smartwatch too.

However, it's a seriously premium watch, with a seriously premium price tag to boot. But right now folks in the US and the UK can save a hefty chunk on the fantastic golf watch that might make the difference. Seriously, if you've been at all tempted by the MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) in recent years, then these prices — particularly the UK one — is absolutely worth paying attention to.

MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) alternatives

If the price tag of the MARQ Golfer (Gen 2) is a bit steep for you still, or you're interested in another premium watch like the TAG Heuer Connected Calibre E4 Golf Edition, then you can check out a host of the latest prices and deals on a bunch of my favorite golf watches below.

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

More Amazon Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £21.99
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• TVs: from £129.99

I've got a special love for the Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2), as I've said elsewhere on this site. It's the watch I used to train for and eventually run the London Marathon, and I'd recommend it to every hobbyist runner out there. It's now cheaper than it's ever been, and considering the amount of features it's got, I'd recommend buying it even though it's not Amazon Prime Day yet.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

However, the deal's not even on Amazon: it's actually at jewelry retailer H Samuel, which has been selling the now-discontinued running favorite for so long that I was sure it would have run out of stock by now. However, the Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2) is now on sale for £299.99 at H Samuel (was £349.99, formerly £739.99).

This offshoot of Garmin's ultra-powerful Fenix line is now less than the price of a Garmin Forerunner 170 Music, an Apple Watch Series 11, or a Google Pixel Watch 4. Check out the deal in full below.

Today's best Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2) deal in the UK

Don't let its age fool you: its up-to-date parts sport accurate metrics. Even though it will now receive only security updates and bug fixes rather than new features, its hardware is rock-solid. It packs Garmin's most powerful heart rate sensor, the Elevate V5, which is also used on the current-gen Fenix 8.

It's great for skiing and golfing, with thousands of preloaded route maps. I actually used its mapping software during marathon training, as I created a street map of my London route in the Garmin Connect app, loaded it onto my watch, and it guided me turn by turn around a 20-mile route. If I went off-course, it rerouted me.

All this with fantastic battery life, health tracking, and a rugged, adventure-proof exterior. It's even got Garmin's LED torch in its casing.

It's definitely the best-value Garmin right now: I'd get it now rather than wait for it to sell out. However, you might not be looking for a large, rugged watch: you might be after something slimmer, like a Fitbit or an Apple Watch. In which case, I have another deal I can recommend: the Garmin Vivoactive 5 is now £149.99 (was £209.99) at Amazon, the lowest price ever.

More Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2) deals

More Amazon Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £21.99
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• TVs: from £129.99

The Garmin Fenix 8 is a good activity watch by every conceivable metric, and rated our best Garmin watch in the premium category. I gave the Fenix 8 five stars when I reviewed it in September 2024, and I've been wearing it on and off ever since, while testing other wearables in between.

It's accurate in terms of GPS and heart rate, it's fast, it's eminently customizable, and stuffed with neat, handy features. It's got everything from some of the best navigation software I've ever used to advanced training plans courtesy of Garmin Connect. It's tough, built with titanium and either hardened Corning Gorilla or Sapphire glass, and has a battery life lasting around two weeks, depending on the model and size. It's been my daily driver, and frankly, even as a wearables and fitness tester, it's probably too much watch for me. I don't use all the features regularly, but I love big shiny Garmins.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

So, two years on, would I get it in 2026? The answer is definitely yes, provided you're someone who will get the most out of it. If you love (and I mean, really love) a whole variety of outdoor pursuits, be they hiking, running, cycling, swimming, orienteering, or a combination of the above, plus other indoor fitness activities like gym sessions, you'll love this watch and consider it good value for money.

If you dabble in activity rather than living and breathing it, you might be better off saving yourself some money and buying a lower-power, lower-feature device like a Garmin Forerunner or Garmin Instinct 3. But for dedicated outdoor enthusiasts, I struggle to imagine a better watch.

If you're in the market for a new Garmin, some of the Prime Day deals (like the ones below on the 43mm Garmin Fenix 8) might look pretty appealing. However, unless you spot a particularly good deal (say, under $700 / £600), I'd actually recommend waiting. Here's why.

The rumor mill is churning...

As we reported earlier in the year, Garmin CEO Cliff Pemble reassured investors that he expected "stronger performance in the back half of the year due to the timing of product launches" and that it would be "a very active year for outdoor". Garmin's outdoor line of watches had a high-profile refresh with the Garmin Instinct 3 release last year, so a big outdoor watch launch for 2026 is likely to mean only one thing — the Garmin Fenix 9.

The timings make sense. Two years after the Fenix 8 launches is ample time for users to get excited about a Fenix 9, just as the 8 came two years after the Fenix 7. I must admit, I personally don't think there's going to be too much change under the hood: a Fenix 9 will cost more due to the recent supply chain price increases, and is unlikely to boast an enormous performance upgrade.

However, what the new watch will do — if it launches this year — is to drive down the price of the old one, just as the Fenix 8 has done with the Garmin Fenix 7 and Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2). These incredible watches can now be found at better-than-half their original prices, and at that sort of price cut, I'd certainly recommend the Garmin Fenix 8 over the likes of a fully-priced Garmin Forerunner 570.

So, if you're holding out for a Fenix 8, it might be prudent to skip the Prime Day deals this year and wait till a sales event in the back half of the year, such as Black Friday, in case the Fenix 9 comes along to knock the 8 off its perch.

However, don't be dissuaded from browsing the rest of the Amazon Prime Day deals, just in case you do find something you're looking for. For Fenix 8 shoppers, that might be the Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2): another of my absolute favorite running watches I used to train for, and run, the London Marathon. It's got an up-to-date heart rate sensor so remains accurate, and a whole host of adventure-ready features. I stand by my 4.5 star review.

At under $500 in the US, and a frankly ridiculous £300 in the UK, it's better value than the newer Fenix 8 unless the latter drops to under $700 in the US. In the UK, this deal simply can't be beaten.

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

More Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £24.99
• Amazon Haul: up to 30% off
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Beauty: up to 60% off Philips & Oral-B
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Fashion: up to 50% off
• Headphones: up to 50% off
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• Toys: up to 25% off Lego and Tonies
• TVs: from £129.99
• Vacuums: up to 40% off Eufy & Roborock
• Wearables: Garmin & Huawei from £36.99

When I tested the Google Fitbit Air recently, I rated its new app powered by an AI fitness coach to be quite useful, on the whole, but acknowledged that it's not for everyone. The structure of the app is messy and cluttered, and in order to create this new AI-forward app experience, the existing Fitbit app was bulldozed, with cornerstones like challenges and badges deleted.

Furious users took to forums, Reddit, YouTube comments and even our inbox to vent their frustrations. Plenty of people aren't happy that their library of historic digital rewards were deleted, and their regular app has been completed retooled into an AI experience they didn't want.

For those interested in switching, the Garmin Vivoactive 5 is an ideal purchase. For one thing, it's on sale at Amazon right now in both the US and the UK as a result of the Amazon Prime Day deals. Right now, you can get the Garmin Vivoactive 5 at Amazon US for $189.99 (was $299.99), which is just $10 away from its lowest price ever according to our deals-checking tools. In the UK, you can get the Garmin Vivoactive 5 at Amazon UK for £149.99 (was £209.99), a lowest-ever price. Check out both deals in full below:

The best Garmin watches are normally very expensive, but Amazon Prime Day is an excellent opportunity to snap up a good Garmin deal. At $190 / £150, this deal on the Vivoactive 5 isn't too far off a Fitbit Charge 6's price tag, making it an ideal purchase for disenfranchised Fitbit users looking to switch.

I've personally tested this watch and it's great: it's a smartwatch yes, so you do get some notification and connection features, but it's mainly a fitness tracker and an excellent one at that, all while being equipped with Garmin's stellar GPS features.

In our review, we called it "an excellent watch for those with an active lifestyle, who might not be power users or marathon runners". I'd agree with that assessment, although it's also got the juice and some advanced in-app running features to help you train for your first marathon should you wish to do so. Now the Vivoactive 6 is out, the Vivoactive 5 is dropping to record-low prices, making it temporarily better value for budget-conscious buyers.

Amazon Prime Day Garmin deals: Quick links

• Garmin deals in the US
• Garmin deals in the UK

I'm currently testing the Garmin Forerunner 170 Music to see if it merits inclusion in our best Garmin watch list. It's a recent release and stands as the successor to the excellent Garmin Forerunner 165, positioned as one of Garmin's cheaper watches, costing $299 / £259.99 / AU$479 for the version without music storage and $349.99 / £299.99 / AU$549 for the version with music storage.

As a more affordable device (for Garmin, anyway), it's made some concessions during construction, such as a cheaper plastic body without a metal bezel or back, and an older heart rate monitor, Garmin's Elevate V4 model. The more accurate Elevate V5 is reserved for more expensive watches, such as the Garmin Fenix 8.

This did concern me. The Elevate V4 is getting a little long in the tooth, and I wanted to make sure the Forerunner 170 Music was still up to snuff in the accuracy stakes. After all, what's the point of a running watch that isn't accurate?

To find out whether it was accurate, I ran on the treadmill for 25 minutes while wearing both the Garmin Forerunner 170 and the Polar H10 electrical heart rate monitor, which I wore across my chest. The H10 is considered the gold standard of heart rate measurement, far more accurate than the Garmin Forerunner 170, and is my go-to when testing wearables.

Here are the results:

Garmin Forerunner 170 Music vs Polar H10: accuracy test

As you can see, they're actually very close together in the heart rate categories, which is very encouraging. The Polar H10 chest strap read 154 bpm (beats per minute) as the 'average' heart rate across the workout, and 182 bpm as the maximum.

The Garmin Forerunner 170 Music recorded similar data, with a 150 bpm average and 182 bpm maximum. Both measurements were within 5 bpm of the Polar, a very acceptable margin of error.

Calories were a little different, but not by much. The Polar H10 recorded 344 calories burned, while the Garmin Forerunner recorded 316. This is under 10%, and other factors come into play here, such as the Garmin watch's accelerometer, which the Polar doesn't have — heart rate is only part of the story.

Based on these readings and the last few days of testing, I'm happy to say that the Garmin Forerunner 170 Music has proven very accurate so far. Stay tuned for my full review.

Even though it's an older watch now, we still rate the Garmin epix Pro as one of the best and most advanced smartwatches from the manufacturer. When it launched, though, it came at a very high cost. That's less of a problem now, though, as two retailers in the US and the UK have dropped the price dramatically.

Over in the US, you can find a massive 50% price cut on the Garmin epix Pro (Gen 2) at Amazon US, dropping it to $499.99 (was $999.99). Meanwhile, in the UK, the Garmin epix Pro (Gen 2) is on sale at H Samuel for £299.99 (was £739.99)

These are record-low prices for the smartwatch that scored an impressive 4.5 out of five in our review by fitness editor, Matt Evans. In fact, Matt liked it so much that he used it for his marathon prep and while running the race last year. It was invaluable for planning training routes, tracking his progress and offering accurate health metrics.

Definitely don't be put off too much by the age of the watch, especially if you are a dedicated runner. The navigation and tracking features are still excellent. Plus, alongside that, you get a bright and clear AMOLED display, a built-in LED flashlight, up to 16 days of battery life, and handy on-wrist notifications.

Today's best Garmin deals

You can read through Matt's full Garmin epix Pro review to get a full breakdown of why he scored it so highly. To summarise, he called it a "high-performing endurance watch that operates wonderfully".

It may not have been a transformative upgrade compared to some of the manufacturer's other wearables, but it nails everything it wants to do so well. If you're a runner who wants a high-end device for tracking progress, monitoring key health metrics, and needs the longevity of an extensive battery life, this watch will tick all of those boxes — and it's now available for a much lower price.

I love getting outside into nature, and in my opinion, the best Garmin watches make for the best outdoor companions overall. You get your fitness and activity tracking, maps and navigations, safety features like flashlights and LiveTrack to let others know your location, and much more.

Normally I'd recommend waiting until Amazon Prime Day (running from June 23 to June 26) to buy one of these, but there are already great deals on offer. A few standouts are saving $110 on the excellent Garmin Vivoactive 5 fitness tracker, ideal for those who love the gym as much as the outdoors, or 25% off the five-star Garmin Fenix 8.

There's a half-price deal on the Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2) here that looks incredible ($500 off!) and it's a stellar (albeit older) watch that I believe is the best value Garmin you can get right now. We see a lot of big discounts on this watch, but it's a lowest-ever price according to our deals checking tool. If you're after a Garmin powerhouse on the cheap it's well worth considering over the more modern, more expensive Fenix 8.

Garmin bargains

• The Garmin Enduro 4 has appeared as a reference in the back-end code of the Garmin Connect app
• The code doesn't specify a release date, but it's a new addition in the app's latest update
• It points to a launch for the Enduro 4 and Fenix 9, as previous versions of both devices have launched together

I've been devouring every crumb of news we can get about the Garmin Fenix 9 range, and when it will launch. After all, the Fenix 8 quickly made our list of the best Garmin watches after it launched, and is Garmin's preeminent premium watch.

The Enduro series, meanwhile, is effectively a powerful, battery life-focused version of the Fenix watches, and the Enduro 3 launched alongside the Garmin Fenix 8 in 2024. In our Garmin Enduro 3 review we said "the Enduro line puts battery first, all while offering most of the features from the Fenix series", with our reviewer getting almost a month's worth of battery from a single charge.

So it's exciting to hear our first whispers about the Garmin Enduro 4, as it suggests the full Fenix 9 range could be coming soon.

How the Garmin Enduro 4 leaked

The latest information comes courtesy of Gadgets & Wearables, which did an APK teardown examining the code of version 5.26 of the Android Garmin Connect app, and spotted 'Enduro 4' in a device registry.

This was reportedly not in version 5.25, suggesting it's a recent addition — and that a launch could be imminent.

It only adds weight to recent rumors that the Fenix 9 is coming soon. Garmin CEO Cliff Pemble reassured investors earlier this year that he expected "stronger performance in the back half of the year due to the timing of product launches," and that it would be "a very active year for outdoor".

Garmin's outdoor line of watches includes the Garmin Fenix series, alongside other high-profile entries such as the Garmin Instinct series. Given that the Garmin Instinct 3 arrived last year, and that the Fenix 8 is now a few years old, it's not hard to connect the dots. More soon.

There's still a week to go until Prime Day on June 23-26, but I've already spotted fantastic deals at Amazon on some of the latest and best-rated Bose headphones. And while there are a couple of deals that I'd be tempted to add to my basket now, there is one that I'd hold off on until later in the month for the chance at a bigger saving.

• Browse all the early Prime Day deals

First, though, let's start with the main offer that caught my eye: it's the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) for $379 (was $449). That's a new record-low price for the manufacturer's latest premium headphones, which we gave an incredible five stars in our review.

Could they go any cheaper during Prime Day? It's possible. However, given that this is the biggest discount yet for the new QuietComfort Ultra Headphones, I suspect that this offer will most likely roll over into the big Amazon sale.

One current Bose deal that I would avoid for now, though, is the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds for $249 (was $299). Why? Well, simply because they have been much cheaper at $199.99 during last year's Black Friday sales. I wouldn't be surprised if that price, or something very similar, was made available again during Prime Day.

Whatever happens, you can follow all of our Amazon Prime Day coverage here at TechRadar, where myself and the rest of the team will be sharing all of our recommendations and expert buying advice so you can make the most of the event.

Today's Bose deals at Amazon

• A certification listing has been spotted for a device believed to be the Garmin Cirqa
• It lists Bluetooth as the only connectivity option, suggesting this won't have Wi-Fi or GPS
• That puts it in line with rival screenless wearables

If you’ve been looking forward to the Garmin Cirqa, we’ve got some slightly disappointing but unsurprising news — it seems this screenless wearable will lack ANT+, GPS, and Wi-Fi.

This is according to a certification listing for a device believed to be the Cirqa found on the Integrated Regulatory Information System (IRIS) in Singapore, as spotted by The5kRunner (via NotebookCheck).

The listing reveals just Bluetooth for connectivity, which means the Garmin Cirqa — assuming that’s what this is — would need to be paired with a smartphone in close proximity in order to track things like distances and routes when running or cycling.

So if you prefer to work out without your phone, this rumored wearable might not be the one for you.

Putting it in line with rivals

While that’s a shame, it’s not really surprising considering that rival screenless devices like the Fitbit Air and Whoop 5.0 also lack built-in GPS.

But that means the Cirqa will probably fall in line with them, rather than rising above them. This could have been a clear differentiation that would help Garmin’s upcoming device beat its key rivals, but the brand seemingly hasn’t taken that opportunity.

Still, for those who already wear a Garmin watch, or simply like the Garmin brand but want something without a screen, the Cirqa will probably still be the obvious choice, so there’s likely to be a built-in audience for it.

We’ll probably find out exactly what the Garmin Cirqa has to offer — and whether it has any other ways of standing out — soon, with previous leaks pointing to a mid-2026 launch.

Garmin made a massive U-turn this week when it announced that Garmin inReach users who suspend their subscriptions will receive free SOS access for up to 12 months.

Garmin inReach is a service which allows you to signal emergency services and send two-way messages without mobile service. This can be done from some of the best Garmin watches like the Fenix 8 Pro, Quatix 8 Pro or D2 Mach Pro 2, or more affordably on one of Garmin’s dedicated inReach pocket-sized satellite communicators, such as my inReach Mini 2 pictured above. Only the sender needs the inReach device, as others can receive messages and reply via SMS, email or the Garmin Messenger app. The service also provides GPS navigation, location tracking and weather updates.

As an outdoor and travel journalist, my inReach Mini 2 comes with me on all of my backcountry adventures – I’ve taken it to Everest Base Camp, the Swiss Alps and on three long-distance trails through remote sections of the UK over the last year.

Previously, users had to hold an active subscription costing anywhere from $7.99 / £7.99 to $49.99 / £49.99 a month to send SOS alerts, which drives up the price of Garmin's already-expensive smartwatches and pocket communicators. With over 10,000 SOS alerts from inReach devices each year, the move reveals the increasing pressure to stay competitive against brands such as Apple and Google, as the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Google Pixel Watch 4 both allow device users to contact emergency services via satellite when they’re out of signal.

This news means big savings – you could, in theory, only pay for one month a year now, or even suspend the service during the free trial and still get SOS connectivity – and makes the dedicated Garmin inReach devices a more appealing buy for outdoorsy types. But with these devices starting at $249.99 / £249.99, you might also be wondering if you can’t just rely on your phone instead.

Here I’ve shared three things I really like about my Garmin inReach subscription and my inReach Mini 2, plus one I don’t, to help you make up your mind. That price tag is a lot more palatable when you get a year’s worth of SOS messages for free.

1. Peace of mind

My favourite adventures take me well off the grid, over days or weeks at a time, and I’m usually alone. The wilderness can be a dangerous place, and while I’ve never got myself into a situation I couldn’t get out of, there’s always a chance I could break an ankle or pick up a bacterial infection that could render me immobile miles from the nearest town.

Yes, I have a Google Pixel 9 Pro in my pocket and here in the UK, that now means I can send a text via satellite. But like Apple’s service, that’s currently only available in select countries (North America, Western Europe and Australia), whereas Garmin’s reach spans the entire globe.

Knowing that as long as I’m conscious, I’ll be able to call for help with the simple press of a button really does give me peace of mind and more confidence in the wild.

2. Keeping in touch

Hiking is about getting off screens and back to nature for me, but because I tend to travel solo, I love being able to keep in touch with family and friends no matter what.

In the Himalayas, I sent an excited text to my editor when I met the son of the famous Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay in a Buddhist monastery, and my parents appreciated being able to track my progress over the 11 days using the MapShare web feature.

When I arrived at an alpine hut in the Alps last summer to discover there was no WiFi, I was still able to check in with my partner and parents, letting them know all was well. Sometimes, it’s frivolous, but I enjoy being able to stay a little connected and share my adventures in the moment, while not being able to access my full suite of apps.

3. Staying power

I use my phone and my Garmin Fenix 8 watch a lot more than my inReach device, but those devices both have limited battery life, and if I do have an accident, they could easily end up with shattered screens. The inReach device is a hardy piece of equipment that’s got real staying power.

The inReach just bounces when I drop it onto rocks from height, thanks to rugged materials like impact-resistant polymer, chemically strengthened glass and shock-absorbing rubber buttons. With a waterproof rating of IPX7, it can sit in a pool of water up to a metre deep for up to 30 minutes and still work.

It’s also got an incredible battery life. If I were using it constantly, I’d get 14 days between charges, but since I only occasionally turn mine on, I can go months (though I check it before every outing). I never have to worry about carrying a portable charger, running out of juice or finding an electrical outlet on my travels.

What I don't love: Tedious texting on the inReach Mini 2

The only thing I don’t love about most inReach devices, such as my Mini 2, is that it isn’t as easy to type a message on as your phone. I have to use arrows to scroll up and down through the alphabet and select each letter; it’s like searching for a YouTube video on a smart TV, except the screen is tiny. It’s not a dealbreaker, and I can get around it by using the Garmin Explore app on my phone, but it is a tedious task.

That said, the Mini 3 has solved this problem with a full keyboard on the touchscreen, so if all of this has convinced you to take the plunge, it may be worth going with the latest tech.

• Garmin just published a 'trends in running' report
• It tells us that Garmin Connect users in their fifties recorded the biggest distance tally with an average of 5.1 miles
• We also learn that runners sleep better, have a lower resting heart rate than non-runners, and have a good VO2 max

Garmin has just published a 'trends in running' report, which has revealed some surprising data.

Based on stats drawn from the Garmin Connect app globally, we're told that the average distance of a run across all users was 4.82 miles, but if you had to guess which age range ran the furthest, you probably wouldn't pick the 50 to 59 category.

Nonetheless, folks in their fifties racked up the biggest distance tally with an average of 5.1 miles. Those in their twenties ran slightly shorter routes at an average of 4.6 miles, only just ahead of runners aged 70+ who recorded an average of around 4.57 miles.

Care to guess the day of the week on which the most miles were collectively recorded? Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was a Saturday, and in terms of the month that witnessed the most running, that was August.

The time spent on a run was 46.3 minutes on average. As for weekly mileage, most Garmin runners — nearly 40% — did between 6 and 10 miles on average. The second largest group, representing 28% of runners, managed 11 to 20 miles.

What about the average pace? Across all runners, that was 9:21 per mile for men and 10:11 for women.

Sleep success

Garmin also noted that runners generally had a better sleep score compared to non-runners. The average sleep score for a runner was 73 for those who ran under 10 miles, and 74 for those who went further than that, compared to those who didn't run at all, hitting a score of 70 on average.

Resting heart rate was also better for runners, as non-runners had an average of 62 bpm, compared to 59 bpm for those who ran 0 to 5 miles weekly, and 55 bpm for runners who pushed over 31 miles per week.

Curious as to what the average VO2 max was for runners? Garmin says it's 50 across its entire user base. Not too shabby indeed! If you're unfamiliar with VO2 max as tracked by a smartwatch, check out our handy explainer.

• Garmin's feature update for Q2 2026 is now rolling out
• It brings a clutch of new features, including golf tag support, a stocks tracker and recovery feature — and more besides — for some watches
• However, some relatively recent Garmin watches miss out here

Garmin has announced a new feature update for its watches, although the catch is that only more recent devices will benefit.

As Gadgets and Wearables spotted, the Q2 2026 update pertains to not just Garmin watches, but also cycling computers, and it's rolling out from now (over the "coming weeks", and as ever with rollouts, the time it takes to arrive on your device may vary).

What new features are there? On the golfing front, one addition is Approach CT1 tag compatibility for certain watches, which means those devices can pair with Garmin's NFC club tags (to track the golf club used with the shot distance and other stats).

The following watches will benefit from this thanks to the Q2 update:

• Fenix 8
• Fenix 8 Pro
• Enduro 3
• Tactix 8
• Quatix 8
• Quatix 8 Pro
• D2 Mach

Other features already present on some watches are added to other Garmin models with this update, and that includes Premium Golf Features (via the Garmin Golf Membership), which will become available on the Garmin Venu 4, Vivoactive 6, and D2 Air X15.

If you own a Garmin Instinct 3, Instinct Crossover AMOLED, or Instinct E, you'll receive the Stocks Tracker and Mobility Activity features with this update. Those watches will also get the Workout Execution Score functionality, except for the Garmin Instinct E, which misses out here.

Troubleshooting bonus

There's also a new Recovery Mode feature — a troubleshooting function to recover the watch after a software glitch — which Gadgets and Wearables informs us is coming to several of Garmin's watch ranges. That includes the Venu 4, Venu X1, Vivoactive 6, D2 Air X15, Forerunner 570 and 970, along with Fenix 8 models, and the Fenix E.

On the bike computer front, the Q2 update provides support to connect compatible eBikes with Bosch smart systems to your Edge cycling computer to view info like the battery level, power and cadence data, and smart range routing. On-device Gear Tracking is also being added to those Edge bike computers.

Owners of relatively recent Garmin watches are going to be disappointed that they aren't getting these features, no doubt. For example, there's nothing for Venu 3 owners here, or the Vivoactive 5 or Fenix 7 models, and others besides.

That doesn't mean these slightly older devices are left completely out in the cold, as while they may not be visited with feature additions, they won't be left without software fixes. It's likely a small consolation, though, especially considering the substantial outlay for some of these gadgets.

The holiday weekend has arrived, and if you're browsing Memorial Day sales for a brand-new Garmin watch, then you're in luck. Amazon's Memorial Day sale offers huge discounts on Garmin's top-rated watches, with up to 35% off.

• Shop Amazon's full Memorial Day sale

You can find deals on Garmin's most popular models, including the Vivoactive 6, Forerunner 265, and Instinct 3, to name a few. Whether you're looking for a watch for the outdoors, biking, swimming, or general health and fitness, Garmin has something for you, and bonus - it's on sale.

I've listed this weekend's 12 best Garmin watch deals below, organized by price. Remember that today's Garmin discounts are part of Amazon's Memorial Day sale, which means they are limited-time offers ending soon.

Memorial Day Garmin sale – quick links

• Garmin smartwatches
• Garmin sports & fitness watches
• Garmin outdoor watches
• Garmin accessories

The best Garmin smartwatch deals under $200

The best Garmin smartwatch deals under $300

The best Garmin smartwatch deals under $500

The best Garmin smartwatch deals $500 or more

Shop more Memorial Day sales

• Amazon: 45% off TVs, AirPods, air fryers & vacuums
• Apple: iPads, AirPods & MacBooks from $99
• Casper: up to 30% off mattresses
• Dell: laptop deals from $249.99
• DreamCloud: up to 60% off mattresses, 66% off bundles
• Home Depot: 40% off appliances, furniture, grills & tools
• Lowe's: $1,000 off appliances, patio & tools
• Nectar: up to 50% off mattresses, deals from $369
• Saatva: up to $550 off luxury mattresses
• Samsung: up to $1,600 off appliances
• Target: 30% off clothing, patio & furniture
• Walmart: furniture, cheap TVs & vacs from $69
• Wayfair: 50% off furniture, grills, rugs & more

If you're looking to get outside and officially enter your 'running era', the first thing you'll need is a good running watch. I can recommend the Garmin Forerunner 165, especially at this price.

Right now for Memorial Day, the standard Garmin Forerunner 165 has been discounted from $249.99 down to just $199.99 at Amazon, with a choice of either Black or White. The Music version, which allows you to upload your own running playlists onto the watch, is also down from $299.99 to just $249.99 at Amazon.

Check out the deals in full below, and scroll down to find all the Amazon Memorial Day deals below.

Today's best Garmin Forerunner 165 deal

I called this model "a very good first running watch" in my Garmin Forerunner 165 review.

I said I was "pleased to see Garmin skewing cheaper with the price point, the battery lasts ages, and the screen is lovely to use." Crucially, I also said "its features here to make it a very good buy for the price" — and now it's cheaper than ever thanks to the Memorial Day sales.

Even though the Forerunner 170 has just been released (probably causing this price crash, to be honest) the 165 is still a recommended buy, especially when it's as cheap as this.

It'll monitor recovery too: when the sun's strong, it's easy for beginners to overdo it and underestimate their own efforts. The sun makes us sweat more and work harder when pounding pavements, and Garmin's Body Battery score will still give users a steer on how long they need to rest until their next run, and it also has built-in hydration tracking to log water intake.

Amazon's 2026 Memorial Day sale — quick links

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Grills: Weber & Ninja from $179
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

With gorgeous displays, excellent metrics tracking, and clean designs, Garmin smartwatches are some of our top picks here at TechRadar. And there's good news if you've had an eye on one of the manufacturer's wearables, as many of them are on sale right now at Amazon for Memorial Day.

• See all Garmin deals at Amazon

There's everything from everyday fitness trackers, dedicated running watches, or rugged all-purpose wearables for your more extreme outdoor adventures, all up for grabs. Essentially, there's a Garmin for you that we've tested and would recommend.

You could go for the Garmin Vivoactive 6 for $249.99, the fantastic value Garmin Forerunner 265 for $349.99, or the Garmin Venu 4 for $449.99 — our pick for the best Garmin watch you can buy.

Those are just a few highlights, but you can browse through all eight Garmin deals I'd recommend from the Amazon Memorial Day sale below. It's a great opportunity to pick up some new tech to kickstart your fitness journey now that spring is finally here again.

8 best Garmin deals for Memorial Day

Today's best Memorial Day sales

• Amazon: 45% off TVs, Apple & appliances
• Apple: iPads, AirPods & MacBooks from $99
• Casper: up to 30% off mattresses
• Dell: laptop deals from $249.99
• DreamCloud: up to 60% off mattresses
• Home Depot: 40% off appliances & furniture
• Lowe's: $1,000 off appliances, patio & tools
• Nectar: mattresses from $369
• Saatva: up to $550 off luxury mattresses
• Samsung: up to $1,600 off appliances
• Target: 30% off clothing, patio & furniture
• Walmart: furniture, cheap TVs & vacs
• Wayfair: 50% off furniture, grills & rugs

Garmin is one of the biggest names in smartwatches — and especially if you're looking for a wrist-based hiking, running or golfing companion. The brand makes dozens of different models, at different price points and offering different combinations of features, so making sense of your options can be confusing. If you're short on time, our best Garmin smartwatch guide will point you directly towards our recommendations for specific use cases. However, if you want to explore all the possibilities, you can stay right where you are.

This article is your guide to all the Garmin smartwatches (within reason; I've culled anything super-old or ridiculously tricky to get hold of). I've included not just the latest-and-greatest in each line, but previous models too, provided they're still available to buy. Opting for an older version can be a great way to save a bit of money, if you're not precious about having the most cutting-edge features.

You'll also notice I've separated my guide into product lines. I've added a short blurb at the start of each section, explaining who each range is primarily targeted towards and how the features are angled. However, bear in mind these are very broad definitions — there's lots of overlap between ranges, and all the main features you'd expect from a smartwatch will be included no matter which range you opt for. Hit the View details button for more info about each watch, and a link to our full review.

Garmin Forerunner

The Forerunner range is designed for runners, and offers strong GPS, distance and pace tracking, with further features geared towards training and improving performance. As well as the options listed here, there are two new, beginner-friendly Forerunner watches we're in the process of reviewing: the Forerunner 70 and the Forerunner 170, both of which went on sale on 15 May (the 70 replaces the veteran Forerunner 55).

The Forerunner lineup is extensive, and even the older models can still be worth a look — the soon-to-be-replaced Forerunner 55 was the watch worn by Sebastian Sawe as he smashed out his sub-two hour 2026 London Marathon.

Garmin Fenix

Fenix is Garmin's other main smartwatch range, this time geared towards a broader range of sports and outdoor activities, rather than focusing on running. The Fenix models boast features like topographical maps and waypoint tracking, and are designed to be rugged with long battery life. The current flagship model is the Fenix 8. Unlike the Forerunner lineup, the Fenix watch numbers increase with each new model.

Garmin Vivoactive

Vivoactive is a more affordable range, geared towards casual or beginner runners and anyone looking for a general lifestyle smartwatch. You'll still get plenty of fitness capabilities, as well as a big suite of general tracking and heath data tools, but with fewer advanced features than you'd get with a Forerunner.

Garmin Venu

Venu is more of a general lifestyle smartwatch range than one geared towards running and adventuring, although there are of course general fitness features built in. The most recent model is the Venu 4.

Garmin Instinct

Instinct is an rugged series geared towards anyone looking for a more affordable outdoors and adventuring watch with exceptional battery life for multi-day expeditions — particularly if you opt for one of the solar-charged models. The latest model out is the Instinct 3.

Garmin Enduro

The Enduro range is built for endurance athletes, with multisport features similar to the Fenix line, lighter plastic cases, and solar charging to extend battery life. It'll be overkill for casual use, but if you need a watch that can run for days without needing to be plugged in, this is the range for you.

Garmin Approach

Approach is Garmin's golf range, and it includes not only GPS-enabled smartwatches, but things like handheld rangefinders and launch monitors. The smartwatch range includes features such as full-color course maps, a 'Virtual Caddy' and a screen that remains readable even in bright sunlight.

More Garmin options

Finally, a grab-bag of some of Garmin's more niche propositions. The MARQ is Garmin's luxury watch effort, combining mechanical watch craftsmanship and styling with smartwatch features; the Lily is the brand's women-focused watch; the Tactix is an ultra-rugged option for survivalists and military personnel; Epix is like a premium-styled Fenix, for outdoor pursuits; and the Vivosmart is a fitness band rather than a full smartwatch; and the Descent series are smartwatch-style dive computers.

Keen to get started on your running journey? Well, you're in luck. Garmin has dropped three new contenders for our best Garmin watch list, and they're all affordably priced and brimming with running-focused features.

The Garmin Forerunner 70, 170 and 170 Music officially release on May 15. You might have pre-ordered one already, but if you're still looking, you also might be weighing up which model is right for you. Do you need the Forerunner 170 Music, or can you save money and opt for the cheaper Garmin Forerunner 70? I break down all the differences below, with a brief bit of context to explain how they compare to other Garmin watches in the range.

Note that I haven't yet had an opportunity to test the watches myself — I've looked at the statistics and feature lists from Garmin's official websites and promotional materials to put together this comparison.

Garmin Forerunner 70 vs Garmin Forerunner 170: Specifications

Garmin Forerunner 70 vs Garmin Forerunner 170: Price

The cheapest watch of the three is the Garmin Forerunner 70, replacing the aging Garmin Forerunner 55 as Garmin's entry-level running watch du jour.

As you can see in our table above, it costs $249.99 / £219.99 / AU$399, while the more feature-rich Forerunner 170 (which replaces the older Garmin Forerunner 165) starts at $299 / £259.99 / AU$479. If you want the Music capabilities, you can pay an extra $50 / £40 / AU$70 for the Forerunner 170 Music.

Garmin Forerunner 70 vs Garmin Forerunner 170: Design

All three watches have a similar design language, and there are few physical differences. There's a single gram of difference in weight between the Garmin Forerunner 70 and its 170 siblings, and all three are only available in a 42.6mm screen size.

They all have the same 1.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen display, and use the same five-button configuration as many of Garmin's other watches, such as the Garmin Fenix 8, which makes it easy to operate the watch even while wearing gloves — perfect for running in all weathers.

Embossed Forerunner logos adorn the bands for all three models, while all three are available in a variety of colors, including Black, Whitestone and two-tone models. Each has at least one unique color option too — the Forerunner 70, for example, is available in a pale-yellow Citron color.

Garmin Forerunner 70 vs Garmin Forerunner 170: Features

Here's where it gets interesting. Each watch has the usual suite of heart rate and fitness-tracking features, such as calories burned, sleep tracking, steps counted and 80 sports profiles. They also all have built-in GPS, Glonass and Galileo satellite network connectivity, to make sure the watch is accurately tracking your runs.

Each one offers Daily Suggested Workouts and personalized training plans via Garmin Coach, the service in the Garmin Connect app. Other training features include advanced metrics perfect for runners such as stride, cadence and elevation, along with Running Power — a metric you may not know about. It's a measure of how much power your body's putting out during a run, measured in mechanical watts.

Garmin works out running power using the watch's motion sensors, GPS and barometer. Using heart rate to determine your performance is considered inferior, because it measures your body's response to the run, not the power of the run itself.

All three watches have wellness features galore, such as sleep tracking, nap detection, Training Readiness and Recovery scores to better plan your training calendar around. Course Planner helps you train at the correct distances, creating routes around your neighborhood, and the Race Predictor feature estimates your time based on a course added to Garmin's database and your historic data.

There are some differences, but they aren't major. The Forerunner 170 appears to have all the training features of the 70, while adding Garmin Pay and Smart Notifications features. Smart Notifications allows you to reply to texts when you're on the move (on Android phones), manage notifications from apps and emails, and screen calls, while Garmin Pay is a virtual wallet on your wrist, and works in a similar way to Apple Pay on one of the best Apple Watches.

These appear to be the only differences, aside from the colorways, between those two watches.

The Forerunner 170 Music adds 4GB of internal memory, allowing you to store songs on your wrist. When connected to Bluetooth headphones, you can listen to music right from your watch, without using your phone as a go-between. Combined with Garmin Pay, this means you can leave your phone at home or in a bag, run while listening to music, and even buy a coffee once you're finished.

Early verdict

The Garmin Forerunner 70 is shaping up to be a pretty great training tool, and if you're not looking for a smartwatch to use for notifications and a digital wallet, this is the model for you.

If you are looking for those things, the Garmin Forerunner 170 or 170 Music is going to be the best choice for you, unless you want to go up in price and opt for a more expensive smartwatch like the Garmin Venu 4.

Spring has arrived, and summer is just around the corner, and if you're an outdoor enthusiast, then a Garmin smartwatch can be the perfect companion. The rugged smartwatches are feature-packed with built-in GPS tracking, fitness analytics, and long battery life, as well as their ultra-durable design.

• Shop more sports & outdoor deals at Amazon.

Thanks to these premium features, a Garmin smartwatch doesn't come cheap, which is why Amazon's latest sale is very appreciated, with up to $200 off Garmin's best-rated smartwatches for outdoor and indoor activities, including running, swimming, hiking, golfing, and more.

I've listed my 12 favorite Garmin deals below, which include a wide range of smartwatches, with prices starting at just $169. Keep in mind that these are limited-time offers, and the perfect opportunity to grab an insightful sidekick this spring and summer.

The best Garmin smartwatch deals under $200

The best Garmin deals under $300

The best Garmin deals under $500

The best Garmin deals $500 or more

• Garmin just dropped three new watches: the Garmin Forerunner 70, 170 and 170 Music
• Designed to be 'easy to use', the watches are equipped 'with everything a runner needs to start their running journey'
• Some of Garmin's software from more expensive Forerunners makes the cut here, such as wrist-based running power and running dynamics

Our best Garmin watches list has been overdue getting a new budget entry for a while, and we're now spoiled for choice: Garmin just dropped three 'easy-to-use' running watches.

The three models — the Garmin Forerunner 70, Forerunner 170 and 170 Music — are equipped with "everything a runner needs to start their running journey," according to Susan Lyman, Garmin Vice President of Consumer Sales and Marketing.

The Garmin Forerunner 70 is the successor to Garmin's long-serving Garmin Forerunner 55 running watch, and will cost £219.99 / AU$399 (around $300). The Forerunner 170, meanwhile, will start at £259.99 / AU$479 (around $350). The 170 Music, which allows you to download music and connect headphones and which comes with 4GB of memory, costs £299.99 / AU$549 (around $400).

All three watches come with a 1.2-inch AMOLED screen and Garmin's standard Forerunner five-button configuration.

The Garmin Forerunner 70 offers up to 13 days of battery life, while the more feature-rich Forerunner 170 series both get up to 10 days of battery life in smartwatch mode. The Forerunner 170 series also adds more smartwatch features, such as Garmin Pay.

In a press release, Lyman said the "Forerunner 70 and Forerunner 170 include premium running and training features pulled in from our more advanced Forerunners, plus popular health and wellness metrics."

Those tools include Training Readiness scores, wrist-based Running Power (a popular metric to base your performance on, a measure of total effort rather than heart rate), and Running Dynamics features, which calculate stride, cadence and more. It's not clear yet whether the watches are packing the older, less accurate Elevate V4 heart rate sensors common in cheaper watches, or Garmin's newer Elevate V5 series.

The Garmin Forerunner 70 and 170 series are available to pre-order now, releasing on May 15.

A well-timed replacement

While there's plenty of entry-level and beginner-friendly language used when describing these watches, Garmin's simpler, cheaper Forerunners are still used by the best runners in the world.

As recently as April this year, the five-year-old, still-cheap Garmin Forerunner 55 was used by marathon runner Sebastian Sawe to break the two-hour time barrier at London 2026.

So, even though these watches are ideal for beginners, serious runners should be looking at them very closely too. Stay tuned for our full reviews.

• Huawei has announced two new wearables in its new Watch Kids X1 series
• There are two new models, the standard version and a Pro version
• Both models are equipped with solid child safety tools to give you peace of mind

There are two new kids' smartwatches on the market thanks to Huawei, and the company is showing how creators of the best smartwatches should really be implementing child safety.

The two new models, the Huawei Watch Kids X1 and Watch Kids X1 Pro, were unveiled at the tech giant’s Innovative Product Launch in Bangkok earlier this week, where it also announced a slew of other new smartwatches joining its family of wearables, including the Watch Fit 5 series, Watch Ultimate Design Spring Edition, and Watch GT Runner 2 Racing Legend Edition.

Starting at 249 euros (approx. $293) for the Watch Kids X1 and 349 euros (approx. $410) for the Watch Kids X1 Pro, both editions pack a 360-degree flippable screen with a 1.82-inch AMOLED display, as well as a 5MP 110-degree wide front camera and 13MP rear camera for photos and video calls. The X1 Pro watch face is also detachable, so your child can use it as a handheld camera.

Storage-wise, both models differ slightly. While the standard Watch Kids X1 and Watch Kids X1 Pro support 2GB of RAM, the former has 32GB of storage while its Pro sibling has double at 64GB, but those are the only major differences between the two. If anything, both match each other as far as health tracking features are concerned.

Both models offer very similar health monitoring tools, packing a punch on the sensor front that includes one for heart rate tracking, a gyroscope, an accelerometer for step counting, and a magnetometer for navigation.

Kids’ smartwatches appear to be quite the hot topic at the moment, especially since Garmin has just launched the Bounce 2, but Huawei’s new watch series is really honing in on child safety measures in a lot of ways.

First, the X1 series supports dual-band GNSS positioning, dual-band Wi-Fi for indoor assistance, and cellular connectivity. Then there’s the FamCare app, which puts a lot of the control into the hands of parents and guardians.

Through this app, you’ll get a direct insight into your child’s real-time activity status, allowing you to set safe and danger zones and receive alerts when your child enters and leaves these areas. As well as the basic control tools like customizing usage limits and setting focus time, FamCare also lets you video call your child through the camera on the X1 watch face — adding another layer of reassurance.

Want a seriously powerful watch to handle the great outdoors, but don't want to spend big money on the latest model? The Garmin Fenix 7 Pro is the watch for you.

Right now, you can get the mid-size 47mm Garmin Fenix 7 Pro Solar for just £399.99 (was £599.99) at Decathlon. This model isn't just the advanced Pro version, but it's also got Garmin's Power Glass solar charging tech, which extends the battery if you're out for a while in bright sunlight conditions of 50,000 lux or more.

Want something bigger? The giant 51mm Garmin Fenix 7X Pro Sapphire Solar, with Power Glass tech and a super-hard Sapphire Glass screen, is also on sale at Go Outdoors for just £399 (was £870) — that's cheaper than Amazon's price — with a Go Outdoors membership. Check out both deals below, and our pricing tool below that for the best deals in your region:

Today's best Garmin Fenix 7 Pro Solar deal

Today's best Garmin Fenix 7X Pro Sapphire Solar deal

Why get this deal?

In our Garmin Fenix 7 Pro review, we gave the watch an elusive 4.5 out of 5 stars, calling it "an outdoor watch powerhouse."

"Whether you’re a hiker or want the best sports tracking, training, and analysis features Garmin has to offer, this watch isn’t going to let you down," we added.

We only didn't rate it a full five stars due to the watch's high price and iteration on the already-brilliant Fenix 7. Now that the price has dropped a lot lower, I'd recommend these deals to anyone looking to get serious about an outdoor activity.

• JL Audio, owned by Garmin, unveils new hi-fi products
• Two speakers: T6 and S3, each with high prices
• Also unveils CS Stereo Centerpiece preamp and streamer

Everyone's favorite smartwatch brand Garmin has taken a break from wearables, such as the recent Tactix 8, to release a series of home audio gadgets with bank-breaking prices.

This is JL Audio's Primacy range, and this is one of Garmin's sub-brands. You'd be forgiven for not having heard of them, as their chief areas are car and maritime audio, and this jump into luxe hi-fi is sure to raise some eyebrows.

Don't expect these gadgets to price similarly to the best Garmin watches, though. They're seriously expensive pieces of hi-fi gear — priced to match the elite stuff from the likes of Bowers & Wilkins and Wilson Audio — that you can only pick up from specialist audio dealers.

Meet the Primacy pals

Let's talk about the Garmin JL Audio Primacy T6 first (just above). This is the priciest of the bunch, retailing for around $90,000 per pair.

These floorstanding active speakers have six drivers each: a 1-inch carbon tweeter, a 5.5-inch mid-range driver, and four 5.5-inch woofers. These are three amps per unit, totaling 1000W of output, and each amp has its own DSP and DAC, with support for 32-bit/192kHz audio.

The JL Audio Primacy S3, selling for $35,000 per pair, drops the specs a little. They're active speakers again, with the same 1-inch dome tweeter as the bigger model, plus a 5.5-inch woofer, and two amplifiers per unit.

Both speakers have various refinements such shaped enclosures and audio filters to offer tuned sound. They connect via XLR, RCA or Cat 6

Rounding out the trio, ostensibly to control the others, is the $15,000 CS Stereo Centerpiece. This is both a streamer — with compatibility for various audio services — and a preamp. It has all the trappings you'd hope at the price, such as room correction, user profiles, Bluetooth compatibility, and a built-in screen.

None of Garmin's new devices are available from its website. Instead, the listings guides you to your local retailer, who you can pick them up from.

In 2025, both Garmin and Polar made the bold move to launch paid subscription services with AI-driven coaching features, putting a host of software features behind a paywall.

Unsurprisingly, the introduction of Garmin’s Connect+ and, to a lesser extent, Polar’s Fitness Program didn’t go down well with many existing users. In particular, Garmin users that had just spent a lot of money on a watch they assumed they’d have access to everything on offer, with few users migrating to the paid tier according to our poll.

Garmin and Polar join Oura, Whoop, Google and most other major wearables manufacturers and fitness apps in offering a paid tier full of AI-powered features. When two of the most established sports watch brands make those kinds of moves, it’s understandable to wonder if everyone else will follow suit.

Coros is a relative newcomer to this space, launching its first watch in 2018. Since then, it’s rapidly grown its presence to appear on the wrists of many runners, cyclists and endurance athletes, and features on our lists of best running watches. Coros’ companion app and features have been free to access with the purchase of a watch, and have been since day one. So would it follow in the footsteps of Garmin and others by starting to make its users pay up for extra features?

“First of all, never say never,” says Lewis Wu, co-founder and CEO at Coros.”It really depends on how things go. “We don’t have a payment subscription plan on the roadmap yet, because so far the development is good enough for us to eat that cost.

“Hopefully we’ll never need to do it. The cost of cloud services and the cost of AI will also go down in the future. So we’ll try very hard to keep it for free. We'll try to be as nice as possible for a long time!”

Wu was speaking to us at the launch of a new collaboration between Coros and Wahoo that now allows training data to be shared across devices from both brands. That includes Wahoo’s new Kickr Run treadmill to boost indoor run tracking accuracy. Again, there is no extra charge for this feature for Coros or Wahoo users.

“One thing we need to look at is, what kind of features are we going to build?,” Wu said. “The second thing is, what’s the cost of that feature? If the profit from hardware sales is able to cover it, then we’ll find a way to offer it for free. We have been building features for existing hardware for years without charging anything.”

As far as the likes of Garmin and Polar deciding to offer a subscription element to their respective software platforms, this is something Wu isn’t wholly surprised by.

“A company needs to make a profit. That’s one thing, says Wu. “That’s part of why you start a company right? Whether you’re a large company or a small startup. We want to keep our business model simple. We want to sell hardware and reinvest the profit into the back end development.

“There’s no problem for an app-only company to charge a subscription because that’s their only source of income. We’re fortunate that we have the hardware sales to support us.”

Is a screenless Coros tracker on the horizon?

Locking software features behind a paywall isn’t the only trend in the wearable space that has pulled in some of those established sports watch brands. In 2025, Polar introduced the Loop, a screen-less band clearly set on offering a subscription-free alternative to Whoop. Garmin is expected to launch its Cirqa band soon and do something similar. Google and Fitbit is set to join the screen-free party with the device likely being dubbed Fitbit Air. So is Coros cooking up something screen-free as well?

“Screen-less devices really land on understanding what kind of problem we want to solve for consumers?” explains Wu. “We’re not a company that sells tons of screen-less devices and makes tons of money from it. What we’re going to do is look at what kind of problems cannot be solved by a watch. For the most part, most problems can be solved by a watch. It’s a device you can wear 24/7. It can record your heart rate and metrics like HRV.”

This kind of problem solving is what led Coros to build and launch an arm-based heart rate monitor. To solve the problem of offering more reliable heart rate tracking across workouts compared to the performance of doing that from the wrist. It also launched the Coros Pod to provide more accurate tracking of running metrics like pace by placing motion sensors closer to your feet.

“We build a watch now and our first step is to build a very established wellness system,” explains Wu. “We’ll see if consumers are happy about it, or if it is absolutely necessary to build hardware. You look at the smart ring companies. They offer a good experience, right? Whatever decision we’re going to make, it’s going to be about solving a problem. It’s not just about another source of income because fundamentally, there's not that pressure.”

So it’s a no to a Whoop rival for now at least and crucially for Coros users, no plans to hit that subscription button any time soon as long as those watches keep shipping.

Marathon season has officially kicked off in Australia, with plenty of running events coming over the next few months, including the Sydney Marathon, which is part of the prestigious Abbott World Marathon Majors to be held on 30 August this year.

It follows the London Marathon that took place recently, when Sabastian Sawe finished first with a time of 1:59:30, breaking records, while runner-up Yomif Kejelcha was just 11 seconds behind.

While the coveted entry ballots to the Sydney Marathon closed a while back, you might be inspired by Sawe to up your running game and train for your first 5K run or even a full ultramarathon, and having the right gear will help with the training.

In Sawe’s case, headlines focused on his shoes, the unreleased Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3, but what stood out to me as a tech reporter (and long-time Garmin user) was his running watch — the entry-level and now five-year-old Garmin Forerunner 55.

We’ve had the Forerunner 55 as one of our best Garmin watches for years before newer models edged it out, but Sawe's win during the London Marathon proves you don't need the latest and most expensive kit to achieve your goals. Even after all this time, the Forerunner 55 is still reliable, has a wide range of features and, importantly, is affordable (for a Garmin) even at full price. But why pay full price when you get it for a decent discount, just in time for the Aussie marathon season.

Admittedly, this Garmin doesn’t look the most modern with its smaller screen and it doesn’t have an on-watch sleep widget, but you do get the accurate GPS technology the brand is known for. It also helps that the Forerunner 55 is feather-light at just 37g, thanks to the plastic case.

The Forerunner 55 also has women’s health tracking, Garmin Coach workout plans, respiration rate and access to third-party widgets available through Garmin’s Connect IQ store.

While it may not turn you into Sawe overnight, it can certainly track your training runs reliably and accurately, or at least get you motivated enough to train for a race in the next few months.

The 2026 London Marathon made history, as not one, but two runners broke the mythical two-hour time barrier. Sabastian Sawe came first, running the London Marathon in one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds. The runner-up, Yomif Kejelcha, also broke the two-hour record, but came 11 seconds shy of winning the race and setting a new record. That's got to sting.

However, I'm just as interested in the equipment Sawe used to run his incredible race. On his feet were a pair of some the best running shoes ever designed, the unreleased Adidas Adizero adios Pro Evo 3. On his wrist... was a five-year-old watch designed for entry-level runners.

The Garmin Forerunner 55 held a place for a few years on our best Garmin watches list, before being edged out in favour of more modern smartwatches like the Garmin Forerunner 165. Nevertheless, the Garmin Forerunner 55 was a consistent recommendation from us when it came to the best cheap running watches, as it's reliable, affordable and has a wide variety of features available in the Garmin Connect app, from Body Battery to virtual pacing — even if it's a bit long in the tooth now.

But it's so good that it seems Sabastian Sawe used it as his running watch du jour in London, to help him break the two-hour barrier, instead of a flagship watch with tons of features like the Garmin Fenix 8 or Garmin Forerunner 970.

Gadgets & Wearables correctly identified a trend of older, cheaper and mid-range watches being worn in London by the fastest runners in the world, suggesting most of them don't actually care about newer features and just want a simple, reliable and lightweight device.

G&W aren't sure whether Sawe is wearing a Garmin Forerunner 255 or the cheaper 55, but I've done some detective work here: zoom in on the image above (you'll have to imagine saying "blow it up" and "enhance" like you're on an episode of CSI) and you can see the thicker line on the "Start | Stop" button caused by the U-shape on the Forerunner 55, as you can see in the picture below.

The Forerunner 255 doesn't have this, indicating it is in fact the basic, entry-level watch being worn by the fastest marathon runner on the planet.

Want to get the watch that broke the boundaries of running? Whether you're just starting out on your running journey or you're looking for a stripped-back running essential for your next marathon PB, Sawe has shown that the Garmin Forerunner 55 is a solid choice.

In the US, it's available at Walmart from $199.99 down to $159.99, saving you $40. In the UK it's available at Decathlon, from £179.99 down to £119.99, saving you an impressive £60. Check out both deals in full below, along with our widget for more of the best prices in your region.

I remember my first-ever smartwatch. I was new to the concept and just wanted a simple watch to track my fitness activities and my health. If I were in the same position again today, I would be snapping up this Garmin Vivoactive 5 at Amazon for £153.44 (was £209.99).

The discount sees the four-star health and fitness smartwatch crash to its best price since Black Friday, but take note that one colourway is only for Prime members. The others are only slightly more expensive. Either way, we're big fans of its bright AMOLED screen, built-in GPS, music controls, and up to 11 days of battery life.

There are more powerful Garmin alternatives, such as the Vivoactive 6 (£270) and the Forerunner (£407), but both are significantly more expensive than the deal I'm highlighting today. So, if it's a great-performing smartwatch at a cracking price, I'd suggest this Vivoactive 5.

Today's best cheap Garmin deal

"The Garmin Vivoactive 5 offers more sports and health tracking metrics than most will need while staying compact and easy to see with that stunning AMOLED display." That's how we described the previous-gen smartwatch in our Garmin Vivoactive 5 review. As a result, we gave it a very respectable four-star rating.

Specifically, we praised the smartwatch's powerful health and sports tracking options, battery life, sleek design, and on-watch music streaming. We also love its compatibility for both Apple and Android users, which makes it a superb fit for all types of people, including runners, cyclists, and triathletes.

In terms of metrics, the Vivoactive excels in serving up accurate GPS and HR monitoring while also reporting on oxygen levels (Pulse OX) and Body Battery. This only scratches the surface of what the watch is capable of. Suffice to say, it delivers a very extensive set of stats.

Garmin makes some of the best running watches in the world right now, and this Vivoactive 5 deal is a great way to own your first ever Garmin. If you'd like a more general smartwatch, you'll want to check out our best smartwatch guide instead.

Garmin Tactix 8: One minute review

The Garmin Tactix 8 sits at the summit of the rugged wearable market and will compete strongly for a place as one of the best Garmin watches. Functioning as a high-end tactical tool rather than a standard consumer gadget. It is specifically engineered for professional tactical operators and serious rucking enthusiasts who require specialized hardware, such as an Applied Ballistics solver and night-vision compatibility.

It includes modern lifestyle features like an AMOLED display, speaker, and microphone, but its massive 51mm frame and premium price tag intentionally distance it from the average fitness tracker user.

In terms of performance, the watch is a powerhouse, offering nearly 50 days of battery life in standard mode and class-leading multi-band GPS accuracy that maintains a signal even indoors. The inclusion of a dedicated rucking profile and voice-activated commands makes it a formidable companion for mission-critical tasks.

However, this power comes with physical trade-offs. The 94g weight can be fatiguing for daily wear, and the interface can occasionally stutter when rendering complex maps under load.

Within the 2026 landscape, the Tactix 8 remains the best option for those who need a watch that can survive a combat zone. It faces competition from the Garmin Instinct 3, which offers similar tactical software at a much lower price point, and the Suunto Vertical 2, which provides cleaner mapping for traditional hikers.

Ultimately, if you don't need a kill switch or ballistics data, the Tactix 8 is expensive overkill; if you do, there is simply no other device on the market that offers this specific blend of tactical tech and premium craftsmanship.

Garmin Tactix 8: Specifications

Garmin Tactix 8 Price and availability

• $1,599.99 USD / £1379.99 UK / $2,799 AUS
• Expensive but excellent value for money
• Less premium alternatives are available

The Tactix 8 is a professional tool, hence the premium price tag. It’s for serious tactical users who need access to the very best tech and a bank balance that allows for it. General consumers who only want to track activities, monitor health and reply to messages will have a heart attack when they see the price, but Garmin hasn’t made this watch for them.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Tactical edition is a much more affordable alternative with some overlap in features. You’ll find Stealth Mode, a kill switch, night vision compatibility, and a specialized tool designed for skydivers to plan and navigate jumps called Jumpmaster.

The build is also far less premium. If the Tactix 8 is overkill for you, and you’re not keen on Garmin, then the Suunto Vertical 2 provides great GPS accuracy and offline mapping. Its high-detail global topo maps are also arguably cleaner than Garmin’s stock maps.

• Value score 4.5/5

Garmin Tactix 8: Design

• High-resistance materials and coating
• Bright 1.4-inch AMOLED display
• The 51mm model is bulky and heavy

The Tactix 8 is available in four different models: AMOLED, AMOLED: Cerakote, Solar, and Solar: AB Elite. The standard AMOLED offering is available in 47mm and 51mm sizes and a black finish, but it was the more premium 2026 Cerakote edition (olive color, 51mm) that I was sent to review.

This particular watch is coated in a ceramic 'Ceratoke' finish that enhances a number of the watch's physical performance properties, including abrasion/wear resistance, corrosion resistance, chemical resistance, impact strength, and hardness. I didn't have a standard Tactix 8 model to compare it to, but the step up in resistance was obvious compared to smartwatches from the likes of Huawei, Amazfit, and Suunto.

This incredible level of resistance continues with the robust titanium bezel and scratch-resistant sapphire crystal lens. It's also tested to a MIL-STD-810G standard for thermal, shock, and water resistance. The buttons are leakproof and maintain a tactile feel even when used underwater or with gloves. Garmin has worked hard to make sure the user-experience is not hampered by the environment you put it in.

The AMOLED display is bright enough to be fully readable even when exposed to direct sunlight. The 454 x 454 pixel resolution is sufficient for navigating a map or reading a notification, and even though I never wanted for more clarity, it does sit a little behind the 480 x 480 pixel resolution of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 or the Galaxy Watch Ultra.

At 51mm size and 94g weight, there's no getting away from its heft. I was seriously glad to take it off at the end of a day, and if you have any sort of wrist problems, then it could cause even greater issues. I love the Ceratoke finish and would opt for it every time; it's just a shame it doesn't ship in the smaller 47mm size.

From a hardware point of view, there's a multi-LED flashlight that can emit white or green light instead of Garmin’s usual red light option. This is important for compatibility with night vision gear and helps preserve natural night vision. There's also a reasonably performing speaker, and for the first time in the Tactix line, there's a built-in microphone, allowing for phone calls and voice commands when paired with a smartphone.

• Design Score: 4.5/5

Garmin Tactix 8: Features

• Advanced tactical features including applied ballistics solver
• Perfect for rucking and compatible with night-vision goggles
• Everyday wearable features such as wallet, music, and 24/7 health monitoring

The Tactix 8 is first and foremost a tactical smartwatch, and the feature set reflects that. With some of the most advanced tactical tools on a smartwatch outside of the military, the Tactix 8 is a formidable offering. Take the Applied Ballistics Ultralight, for example. The preloaded solver enables long-range shooting with solutions for windage and elevation.

Then there's Stealth Mode for off-the-grid activities, which immediately disables all wireless connectivity and stops the watch from saving or sharing GPS location data. Another security-focused feature is the kill switch, which performs an instant data wipe if security is compromised. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw James Bond wearing it in his next film.

Rucking enthusiasts will love the specific rucking profile that allows users to input their pack weight to calculate more accurate exertion and health metrics. Parachuters are treated to a military-grade parachuting tool which helps calculate high-altitude release points according to military guidelines.

Alongside this impressive set of tactical features, the Tactix 8 is also a very capable everyday wearable. The built-in speaker and microphone mean users can make calls, listen to music, and take advantage of voice controls. 24/7 health monitoring covers heart rate, HRV, and ECG as well as delivering metrics such as your Training Readiness score, Body Battery, and recovery time. It even has a jet lag advisor!

• Features Score: 4.5/5

Garmin Tactix 8: Performance

• Accurate GPS and reliable voice commands
• Good map coverage but the rucking interface is slow
• Long battery life, even with GPS always-on

The Tactix 8 boasts top-level GPS performance. With multi-band GNSS and SatIQ technology, the watch finds a GPS signal quickly and maintains a strong connection at all times.

I used it in various types of environments, including urban, rural, and forests, and never had a problem picking up a signal. It even managed to lock on when I was inside my house, a location that most other smartwatches I've tested have struggled with. Impressive results continue with the accuracy of the GPS. I tested it alongside the Huawei Watch Ultimate 2 and found the distance-traveled metrics to be bang on, even down to the meter.

One of the core features is the dedicated rucking activity profile, which allows you to input your specific pack weight before setting off. This ensures the watch’s algorithm factors in the extra load for more accurate calorie burn and exertion metrics.

Launching a rucking activity is quick and simple thanks to the intuitive interface, and once launched, navigating using the built-in map is easy enough. My only gripe with the rucking interface is that its responsiveness is a little slow. That means moving around a map can be a little jittery, but it's only a small issue in what is a very well-implemented tool.

The health tracking suite on the Tactix 8 is more comprehensive than ever, powered by Garmin’s latest optical heart rate sensor. It provides 24/7 monitoring of body battery, stress levels, and advanced sleep coaching, alongside a Pulse Ox sensor for blood oxygen saturation. The core metrics of these performed similarly to the Watch Ultimate 2, which impressed us during testing against our gold standard, the Apple Watch Ultra series.

There are a lot of menus and features contained within the watch, but navigation around these is intuitive and straightforward. I especially liked the ability to 'pin' three activities for a quick-access experience. Setting these requires the Garmin Connect app, although I’m not sure why Garmin doesn't allow the setting of these inside the watch menus.

Speaking of navigation, I found myself making a lot of use of the built-in voice commands, with my most used being 'start a run', 'start a timer', and 'begin navigation'. Voice controls are not powered by AI, so you have to be specific with the instructions, but once you get used to the required vocabulary, it's a quick and fun way to interact with the watch.

With this level of performance and rich feature set, you'd imagine the battery life would take a pounding. That is absolutely not the case. With occasional GPS use, regular health tracking, and daily interaction with notifications, the watch lasted almost 50 days. That's significantly longer than the advertised length of 29 days. More intense use, including always-on GPS and daily activity tracking, reduced the battery life to around three days.

• Performance score: 4.5/5

Garmin Tactix 8: Scorecard

Garmin Tactix 8: Should I buy?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

How I tested

I wore the Tactix 8 for eight straight weeks and took part in a wide range of activities, including rucking, running, walking, cycling, and workouts. During this time I was able to test the battery capabilities for heavy, medium, and light use. I also tracked my health metrics while exercising and compared its GPS accuracy to the Huawei Watch Ultimate 2. In addition, I used the watch to keep me connected to app notifications and text messages.

First reviewed: April 2026

• A poll on Reddit shows significant support for Garmin’s MIP display tech
• 34% of users said they’d switch to a different brand if Garmin ditched MIP
• A total of 51% indicated a preference for MIP over AMOLED screens

These days, the best Garmin watches are slowly abandoning memory-in-pixel (MIP) tech for their displays, with the company preferring AMOLED screens for their increased brightness and contrast. MIP screens are pretty much just relegated to Solar watches. But not everyone is happy about the move, and a recent user poll suggests plenty of Garmin fans would be sad to see MIP go — and now we want to know if you feel the same way.

Over on Reddit, user Imthenewbee created a poll titled “MIP lovers: what would you do when Garmin quits making MIP screen watches?” With over 1,100, the results might surprise you.

That’s because they show a significant number of respondents want to keep using an MIP smartwatch, whether that’s from Garmin or a different brand. Out of the 1,100 votes cast at the time of writing, 186 said they would buy a used MIP Garmin watch if the company discontinued its MIP devices, while 377 — or 34% — answered that they’d switch to a different MIP smartwatch. Put together, those 563 votes represent 51% of the total votes cast, marking a sizeable coterie of Garmin users who want to stick with MIP screens.

How do you feel about the situation? TechRadar’s own Matt Evans has written about how he’d miss MIP displays if they finally went the way of the dodo, but not everyone prefers the duller-but-more-battery-efficient results you get with MIP. Let us know what you’d like to see in our poll below.

Users say they ‘won’t be loyal’

For several Reddit users, the long battery life granted by MIP screens is the reason for their preference. One user said “MIP and sick battery life is the reason I went to Garmin. I won’t settle for an AMOLED with a 12-day battery life.” Another, meanwhile, explained that they “went Garmin because of MIP and battery time. Won’t be loyal if the advantage with Garmin disappears.”

It might be worth taking the Reddit poll results with a grain of salt. After all, the title of the poll specifically asked “MIP lovers” to respond, so the results might be skewed in favor of users who prefer this technology. You never know, our poll above might be more balanced!

Still, it’s interesting that so many users indicated a penchant for MIP. While this type of display is nowhere near as bright as what you get with AMOLED — meaning it’s not as useful in bright outdoor conditions — it’s much more efficient on your battery, helping you eke more juice out of your smartwatch in the long run.

And because MIP is less advanced than AMOLED, the cost of wearables with this tech tends to be lower than AMOLED equivalents. That makes it a great option for some of the best budget smartwatches that give you wearable tech without breaking the bank.

We wouldn’t be surprised to see Garmin phase out its MIP watches eventually as AMOLED displays get more efficient and easier on your battery. But as the Reddit poll suggests, that could leave plenty of people lamenting Garmin’s decision.

I've tested a number of the best smartwatches, and I can tell you that if you're a runner, Garmin is the absolute best. Taking up five out of the ten spots in our guide to the best running watches shows how highly we rate them.

One of our favourites, despite being a few years old, is the Garmin Forerunner 265, which is on sale at Amazon for £314.49 (was £369.99). The 4.5-star smartwatch has a gorgeous AMOLED display, a dedicated physical run button, and a ton of features for runners.

If money were not an issue, we'd recommend the Forerunner 570, but for those on a budget, you can't beat this Forerunner 265 deal. Get it now before the deal expires on May 5.

Today's best Garmin running watch deal

The Garmin Forerunner 265 was released three years ago, and yet it still absolutely holds its own. At the time, our smartwatch expert, Matt Evans, called it one of the best Garmin has ever made. It has since been superseded by the Forerunner 570, but at £150 less than the newer model, it's easy to see why the 265 is so attractive.

The highlight of the watch is the super-bright AMOLED touchscreen, which we think competes even with the latest Apple watches. As you'd expect with any running smartwatch, it works well in all conditions and is waterproof. Touchscreen functionality continues even when you're sweating hard.

In Matt's words: "The eye-popping AMOLED touchscreen certainly brings it more into traditional smartwatch territory, rather than a functional sports watch, and the new 'run' button is cute."

The Forerunner 265 is fantastic for runners, but if you're looking for a general smartwatch rather than a dedicated running watch, you'll want to check out our best smartwatch guide instead.

I’ve been a regular cyclist since 2015, and I’ve had my fair share of bike crashes — all minor, thankfully, where I got away with a few gashes at worst — and the common denominator was that I was distracted by my phone.

A smartphone mounted on bike handlebars is a distraction magnet. The big, bright screen is great for navigating with Google Maps, but notifications and other pop-ups can also take your focus off the road. This setup can also drain the phone battery quite quickly, especially if you’re also recording your ride on an app like Strava, making it less than ideal for longer rides.

Bike computers aim to address these issues. They might resemble small smartphones, but without the distractions, recording metrics like speed, distance, heart rate, time and more. They can range from basic models that cost no more than AU$20, to high-end computers that have built-in GPS and maps, and even a digital ‘bell’ via an on-board speaker (for about the same price as a mid-range smartphone).

Eyes on the road, not on a screen

I tested Garmin’s newest bike computer, the Edge 850, to see how much the ride experience improves compared to using my phone while mounted on my handlebars.

The smaller black-and-white screen only displays numbers, which minimized distractions and kept my eyes on the road more often compared to using my phone. It also has real-time alerts of any upcoming hazards like potholes and road debris, which are usually user-reported (similar to how Waze works).

The on-board GPS is accurate, and the maps are just as intuitive to navigate as Google Maps, and the Edge 850 would also re-calculate your route if you miss a turn.

While the features above are great, what truly makes a Garmin bike computer an essential safety upgrade for anyone who rides bikes is a separate add-on accessory: the Garmin Varia RearVue 820.

Tesla’s vehicle detection tech, but for bicycles

The Varia RearVue 820 may look like a normal rear bike light on the outside, but it contains a radar to detect if there are vehicles behind you — similar to Tesla’s own vehicle-detection tech.

Bike radars are not a new invention by any means; Garmin made the first commercial rear-facing radar in 2015, which has since spawned copycat models across the cycling industry.

What sets the Garmin Varia RearVue 820 apart is that it can also tell you whether the vehicle behind you is a conventional car or something much bigger, like a bus or truck.

Being overtaken by a large vehicle at speed while riding a bicycle isn’t for the faint of heart. The air displaced by the overtaking vehicle creates a push-pull effect that could either make a cyclist veer off into a kerb or into some gravel or grass, or worse, the cyclist could get “sucked in” and crash into the truck or bus’ side. This is one reason why cars of any size should give at least one meter of space when overtaking a cyclist, but that’s a topic for another day.

I’ve been in situations like this many times, and I’ve had a few close calls where I‘ve narrowly avoided a crash when a truck overtook me at full speed. With the Varia RearVue 820, seeing the alert for a large vehicle on my screen helped prepare me to brace when it passes, holding on to the drops of my handlebars to prevent it from steering on its own.

The radar connects to a compatible Garmin bike computer or smartwatch and adds a new section in the screen to replicate a road. Each vehicle detected shows up as a car-shaped icon with their corresponding size. I was able to connect to the Edge 850 quite seamlessly, but I was pleasantly surprised when it was just as easy to pair with my 9-year-old Garmin Fenix 5 smartwatch.

The alerts are accompanied with beeps, so you don’t have to be glued to the screen. Vehicles can be detected as far back as 170m away to give cyclists more time to prepare. The radar can also show whether the vehicles are in the same lane as the cyclist, bolstering that peace of mind.

Garmin says this technology is possible due to a higher frequency 60Hz V-band radar (compared to the 24Hz in its other models), detecting ‘outlines’ of a vehicle instead of a single ‘dot’, which are then converted into virtual cars that show up on the bike computer or smartwatch screen.

More visible than ever on the road

The bike light isn’t just there to make the radar discreet — the Garmin Varia RearVue 820’s rear light is bright enough to be visible to other road users 2km away. Garmin says a car running 100km per hour covers 2km in around 70 seconds, so this visibility would alert a driver much earlier than other bike lights would, giving them more time to adjust.

The light can also flash rapidly when you suddenly have to brake, with the Varia RearVue 820 using radar data and an accelerometer to detect deceleration to produce a 'visual shout' to alert other cyclists and road users. I had not been aware of this feature until someone at a group ride pointed it out to me, showing how effective it was.

The connected bike computer or smartwatch can control the light remotely instead of the cyclist having to reach back and set it to how you want the light to look. The light can be set either for full visibility or at a much less bright 'peloton mode' while riding in a group.

Should you get one?

While the Garmin Varia RearVue 820 is quite accurate at detecting vehicles, it still shouldn’t be a full substitute for occasionally looking over your shoulder to check for cars when it’s safe to do so.

That said, it’s still an excellent piece of safety tech, given how cyclists are some of the most vulnerable road users. The addition of the brake light functionality and the increased visibility also adds to the safety factor. At $299 / £259.99 / AU$469, it’s a big ask for some cyclists — but, for someone who puts safety above all else, it’s a wise investment to help save lives.

While you can splash for the high-end $599 / £519.99 / AU$949 Garmin Edge 850, Garmin says the Varia RearVue 820 is compatible with 162 different devices, including Edge bike computers from 2015 and smartwatch models from 2016.

You can even skip the bike computer entirely and just pair the Garmin Varia RearVue 820 with your smartphone. The Garmin Varia app on iOS and Android replicates the same experience on a larger screen, and can also work alongside Google Maps by appearing as a slim sidebar. Just make sure to temporarily disable notifications by setting a Focus Mode or Do Not Disturb profile that is optimized for cycling, so you can reduce distracting notifications.

This makes the Garmin Varia RearVue 820 an essential safety upgrade for anyone who regularly rides bicycles on roads — whether you’re a serious cyclist using a bike computer to keep track of your training, or a bike commuter with your phone mounted on the handlebars. Heck, I’d say it’s even worth using when you’re taking a leisurely ride to the local coffee shop.

Garmin Bounce 2: One minute review

Most of the best smartwatches are designed for adults, but every so often a smartwatch brand will release a dedicated offering for children. There’s the Fitbit Ace LTE and the Xplora X6Play, but the newest kid on the block is the Garmin Bounce 2. With calling, text messaging, real-time location tracking features, and some fun games, the Bounce 2 is a device that keeps kids connected without needing a smartphone.

Designed for 6-12 year olds, the Bounce 2 is fun, cool and colorful. It boasts a bright 1.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen that delivers clear graphics and vibrant colors, elevating the smartwatch experience beyond that of most kids' smartwatches.

The Bounce 2 also includes a range of child-friendly features, such as activity tracking and games, although my son’s interest in the watch began to wane after a couple of months. He would still wear it if we asked him to, but he has ceased ‘pestering’ me to let him wear it. Beyond connectivity that is primarily for parents' peace of mind, the watch doesn’t include a huge amount to keep the child glued to it.

If you’d like a smartwatch with more features at a similar price, then the Apple Watch SE 3 is our recommended option. With a full set of features, including health tracking and a robust ecosystem, the Watch SE 3 offers much more longevity. This watch can be set up under a family plan which enables parents to control access and functionality and ensures the child is only able to access appropriate content for their age.

But if you’re looking for a locked-down smartwatch for your pre-teen, then it doesn’t get much better than the Bounce 2. It’s easy to set up, enjoyable to use, and has onboard GPS. To help with testing, I enlisted my ten-year-old son. Much of this review features his observations and opinions.

Garmin Bounce 2: Specifications

Garmin Bounce 2: Price and availability

• $299 USD / £259 UK / $479 AUS
• Additional subscription required for access to all features
• The Apple Watch SE 3 offers more features at a similar price

At $299 USD / £259 UK / AUD$479, the Garmin Bounce 2 is at the pricey end of smartwatches for kids. It ships in Slate Grey, Light Purple, and Turquoise colorways.

It is priced similarly to the Apple Watch SE 3, which offers more features but is much more distracting for a younger child. It also doesn't have the same functionality for chore management.

As well as the upfront hardware cost, the Bounce 2 requires an LTE subscription for access to two-way calling, messaging, and tracking. This costs $9.99 / £9.99 / AUD per month or $99 / £99 / AUD$17 per year, with the plan being managed through the Garmin Jr. app.

• Value score 3.5/5

Garmin Bounce 2: Design

• Simple, kid-friendly and not too flashy
• A small but responsive AMOLED touchscreen
• Comfortable fit with silicon strap

The Bounce 2 is a basic smartwatch with a kid-friendly design. It’s nothing revolutionary, but my son wore the watch with pride and thought it looked like a fashionable accessory. Constructed of a fiber-reinforced polymer and at just over 40g with the strap, the Bounce 2 is light enough for all-day wear, even on the small wrist of a child. The silicone strap also has the benefit of being sweat resistant and easy to clean. It fits wrists between 115-180 mm.

From a parent’s point of view, one of the best things about the design is that it doesn’t particularly stand out. It’s therefore unlikely to attract any unwanted attention that could cause problems for your child.

The 1.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen with a resolution of 390×390 pixels delivers clear graphics and vibrant colors. Swipes and taps are accurately detected, and the interface responds quickly and as expected. The screen is also chemically strengthened, which is ideal, as my child wasn't the most careful with it! The downside to this, is that the screen seriously drains the battery with my son having to charge the watch most nights.

Other features include physical buttons and a 5ATM water resistance rating that enables the watch to withstand water from splashes, showers, and pool trips. It also has a proprietary charger rather than USB-C, which is far from ideal if your child is prone to losing cables!

• Design Score: 4/5

Garmin Bounce 2: Features

• Location tracking and geofencing
• Two-way calling and messaging
• Basic activity tracking and chore management

With an LTE subscription, parents can view their child's real-time location via the Garmin Jr. app. The child can also manually ping their location to their approved contacts if they’re in an emergency situation. My son loved pinging his location when he arrived at a friend’s house, and even though it wouldn’t constitute an emergency, I appreciated receiving the update.

The GPS hardware can also be used to geofence areas so that parents receive notifications when their child enters or leaves a designated area. This is ideal for the journeys that your child will most commonly make, such as between school and home.

The first Bounce smartwatch was limited to voice and text messages. The second iteration builds on this by including a built-in speaker and microphone for conducting phone calls with parent-approved contacts. For messages, the watch now supports voice-to-text transcription and a full QWERTY keyboard. My son took great pleasure in texting me funny jokes as well as humorous emojis and sound clips.

The Bounce 2 includes a range of sports profiles, including running, walking, cycling, and more niche activities such as racket sports and even motor sports. Children can unlock games by meeting daily activity goals, which acts as a motivation towards fitness.

Another feature for rewarding behavior is the chore tracking feature, which enables parents to assign chores and virtual coins through the app, which kids can redeem for agreed-upon rewards. These rewards might be screen time, a chocolate treat, or a new toy or game.

As the Bounce 2 is primarily a communication and safety tool, there's no heart rate sensor for health tracking, something that my son was rather disappointed about.

• Features Score: 4/5

Garmin Bounce 2: Performance

• Mixed results for GPS signal
• Fun and engaging games
• Very short battery life

We experienced variable results with the GPS signal, with a significant tail-off in signal within rural areas. Despite being able to successfully access signals in dense urban areas, the same wasn’t true when we were out in the country. There were a number of times when I couldn’t determine the location of my son, and even though it was never an emergency, it didn’t fill me with much confidence.

The GPS and LTE connectivity are always on, which means the battery drains very quickly. The advertised two-day battery life is definitely the maximum, with real-world experience being just over a day. My son said, “I didn’t like having to keep on top of charging and would have liked it to last at least a full school week.”

He spent a lot of time playing the simple games, with his favorite being the Tamagotchi-style digital pet that you have to keep alive. “I was surprised how much I found myself caring about the little thing.” In reality, I think the appeal was in the challenge of keeping it alive. Either way, they’re pretty addictive in the short term, but he lost interest after a few weeks.

The day-to-day operation of the smartwatch was considered smooth and enjoyable. “I loved using the voice commands to set an alarm or check the weather, although it was a little frustrating having to speak specific commands.” For example, "Tell me the weather” didn’t work, but "Show me the weather” did. Some AI help here would certainly improve the user experience.

• Performance score: 3.5/5

Garmin Bounce 2: Scorecard

Garmin Bounce 2: Should I buy?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

How I tested

The Garmin Bounce 2 is targeted at 6-12-year-olds, so I thought it would be a little disingenuous if I, a 40+ year-old, were to carry out the lion's share of testing. As soon as it arrived, I therefore handed it to my son, who spent a couple of months with it, testing it while out and about with his friends and at various midweek clubs. I’ve taken his experience and written the review, but most of the observations are his. I’m not entirely redundant, though; the Bounce 2 is designed to have parental oversight, so I’ve been proactive in that area of testing.

First reviewed: April 2026