Garmin Instinct ™

It is not at all unreasonable to say that Garmin is the leading brand in the manufacture and sales of GPS-enabled electronic devices designed for sports. Smartwatches are one of the devices most highly regarded by users. In the following, we will take a closer look at the aforementioned functions, and more details hidden in this watch.

Technical characteristics.

So that you can imagine a little bit of what the Garmin Instinct watch We will present you with the exact measurements published by the manufacturer itself. The watch case is 45 millimetres wide and high, and has a depth of 15.3 millimetres. It weighs 52 grams. The tough case material is made of fibre-reinforced polymer. The display of this watch is 23 millimetres in both height and width. It has a resolution of 128 x 128 pixels. It is a monochrome display and is visible in sunlight. A chemically strengthened glass protects the screen. This watch has an internal memory of 16MB and its water resistance is rated at 10 ATM. This means that it is a watch ready for both high and low speed water sports. It can be a very good choice for swimmers.

The best and the worst.

As a summary of what we will see later, we will now rank the most advantageous features of this watch, and also where it should be improved:

• ProsCompared to its brother Fenix 5, it is a winner, because it has all the functions of the Fenix, and it is smaller and lighter. This watch is equipped with a bracket for open water swimming. It also measures distance in 3D. To finish with the advantages, mention must be made of the TrakBack mode to retrace your steps if necessary, and the good battery life.
• ConsAlthough it is not easy to find disadvantages to the purchase of this watch, there is already some room for improvement. On the one hand, the display is monochrome. This means that it has only one colour. On the other hand, it lacks modern functions that today's athletes demand, such as Wifi, music storage and Garmin Pay for wireless payments.

Design.

To start with the review we will look at the exterior appearance of the Garmin Instinct watch. It is not a watch that stands out for its beauty, but this device is simple, straightforward, and easy to use on a daily basis. It is available in three colours: graphite, tundra, and red. For its part, there is no great variety of straps, and the basic strap is a QuickFit silicone strap. This strap fits snugly around the wrist and makes this watch wearable 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The display of the Garmin Instinct can be compared to the design of a Casio. It is a traditional, 90's design that is very simple. However, it does its job, and that's what you want from a smartwatch. This watch provides an uncomplicated experience, and reading the information is very simple. It may seem very basic, but if you need a watch to guide you from point A to point B on a mountain range, this is more than enough. Plus, the limited colours on the display make the battery life so good. Inside the display you will find another small window that provides you with the information you want. For example, the compass direction, or the heart rate. You will be able to receive this information at a glance, without having to touch any buttons.

Interface.

It cannot be said that the Garmin Instinct watch is difficult to use, but it is true that at the beginning it is necessary to invest some time to be able to handle it with relative ease. As if it were a toy, you should spend some time trying out all the functions so that when you go out to train you can get the most out of it. Switching from one piece of information to another is done by the simple step of pressing the up and down button. The small window on the display is customisable. Using the custom settings, you can set which information you want to receive. The most common ones are heart rate, temperature, cadence, target...

Outdoor navigation.

The Garmin Instinct is ready to navigate during outings for a variety of sports. Running, walking, hiking, cycling and swimming are the most common. That's one of the biggest problems facing this type of watch, as a cyclist and a mountaineer don't need the same information. Garmin has worked hard to adjust to the needs of each athlete, and the Instinct is an example of this.

For mountaineers, this smartwatch is simple and precise to operate. This watch serves as a compass and guides you precisely on the right trails. However, unlike the Garmin Fenix model, this one has no maps as its display is monochrome. The route is marked by a simple black line. At first glance, it seems that this line is useless. However, you can play with the zoom to make sure of the exact location more precisely. What you should never forget is that this watch is not a map, but rather an orientation guide. You will certainly not be able to hike and climb in the Alps with the help of the smartwatch alone, but you will be able to find your way around more easily. Even if you can't see exactly where you are in the picture, this watch provides topographical data in case you need it.

The Garmin Instinct also has storm warning, route download etc. functions. As mentioned above with a little dedication you will be able to understand and take advantage of all of them.

Training follow-up.

Once they're up and running, whatever sport you're doing, the Garmin Instinct watch will give you the information you want. However, remember that if you're only going to do a single sport, it's better to buy a more specialised smartwatch. If you're only going to do marathons, buy a different electronic device, because what good is an altimeter or storm warning system going to do you? Before choosing one watch over another, use common sense.

One downside to this device is that it is not as useful for weight training exercises that one can do in the gym. It is true that the Instinct has this option, but as with almost all devices, it does not work as it should. Every time you start and finish a set you have to press the button. Often you spend more time looking at the clock than doing the exercises. In addition, the counter is not entirely reliable.

Smartwatch functions.

But remember that the Garmin Instinct is not just a navigator. It also offers the functions that a smartwatch should have 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We are talking about functions such as the step counter, the sleep tracker, or the Mover bar. The latter lets you know if you've been active enough during the day. In addition, you can also set goals to motivate you to exercise more and more. Although these functions are not Garmin's speciality, they are on a par with those of Fitbit.

Moreover, it is common for these functions to fail in accuracy. However, the Garmin Instinct is quite accurate. What is true is that in tests it counted more sleep time than it should have, as the quiet time before going to sleep while reading or listening to music was recorded as sleep. It also has functions for answering calls and text messages if it is linked to a mobile phone. Although we mentioned earlier that there is no music storage, what you can do is control music playback from your mobile phone via the watch. You can also view weather information, or the calendar on your watch's display.

As it can be difficult to analyse all the information on such a small screen, you can transfer all your training data to Garmin Connect and view it in more depth.

Heart rate accuracy.

One of the peculiarities of this smartwatch is that there is no need for a chest strap to measure heart rate. The measurement is done from the wrist itself. Although the result of this novel system is good, it is not exceptional. After several tests with either the strap or the wrist system, it is clear that the heart rate data obtained with the strap is more accurate. The biggest difference is seen during high intensity sports. In the data obtained by the wrist system, the pulse rate fluctuations are too radical. In addition, it takes a couple of seconds longer to receive the information. However, when practising sport at a low intensity, the differences are not so great. It is when 130 heart rates are reached and exceeded that the wrist system fails the most. Therefore, it is clear that if you care about monitoring your heart rate, it is better to buy a chest strap. Garmin itself sells heart rate bands that can be purchased separately.

Battery life.

All of the above functions are of little use if the battery life of the watch is not long enough. However, this is not the case with the Garmin Instinct watchDespite its small size, it has a very powerful battery. This smartwatch is ready to let you go for days without having to worry about finding a power socket. According to Garmin's own information, the Instinct's battery can last for 16 hours at full capacity. That is, with GPS activated. As if this were not enough, this watch has the possibility of activating the GPS Ultratack. This is an optimisation mode that reduces the quality of the GPS, but saves battery life. The battery can last around 40 hours in this mode. In case you use the Instinct as a conventional watch, you won't have to recharge it for two weeks. After several tests with the watch, it can be said that its battery life is sufficient for an amateur athlete. In addition, the energy-saving mode makes it possible for you to collect long training sessions or several days of hiking. For the price of the watch, the battery is more than decent.

Conclusion.

The user profile of the Garmin Instinct is the athlete who plays different sports, but not at a high level. The functions provided by this smartwatch are fine, they work well, but they are not as sophisticated and detailed as in more specialised devices. On the other hand, in case you are interested in knowing your heart rate in detail because you have to take care of the average or the limit of the beats, you'd better buy a chest strap, as the wrist measurement system tends to err. So, if you're looking for a watch that's easy to use, suitable for everyday use, and not overpriced, the Garmin Instinct may be a good choice. As with almost all Garmins, quality and performance are more than guaranteed.