Apple - Watch Regular Series

From what I’ve seen on Reddit, especially on the running side of things, are people training for a half marathon or full marathon and have like a Series 1-4 and complain that the Apple Watch battery wouldn’t last the whole race. But they’ll go out and buy a brand new Garmin🤔 Like if you search Apple Watch battery in some running subs you’ll see people complaining about it and recommended Garmin. I’m biased because I’ve always had an Apple Watch and I have no plans at this time to replace it, but at the same time I feel people have these old series watches with terrible battery life and think the newer models are the same. The battery life definitely needs improvement though… I’m still on my Series 7 because I’m waiting for some major improvement to the form factor, health feature, and battery life. But after all of that, I can still make it through the entire day. I charge every morning for like 20mins and then it doesn’t need a charge until the next day and I’m a pretty active person.

I love Apple and Garmin products, and I’ve been waiting for the Ultra 3 release to replace my Apple Watch Series 9. Here’s where my AWS9 falls short for me: camping and hiking because of battery, maps and navigation while biking and hiking, and the dynamic running workout suggestions that Garmin has. I can get Fenix 8 Solar for $880 through a discount with my health insurance which makes it comparable to AWU3. Things I like about Fenix 8 Solar: maps, battery, daily suggested workout, Garmin coach, MIP screen doesn’t look like a mini phone on my wrist. Things I like about AWU3: being reachable by my wife and kids while running and cycling, running errands sans phone, love the design, my watch bands will fit, my Apple Music subscription works, etc. I feel like the AWU3 fits my actual day to day better than the Fenix; although, when I do make it out for that couple times a year backpacking trip, Fenix is the clear winner. But on the day to day I mostly am tracking running and weightlifting. And a weekend gravel bike ride. Anybody have both?

Both me and my wife switched from Apple Watch Series 10 to a venue three and we couldn’t be happier. I thought I would miss my Apple Watch so much more but the more I thought about it the more I realized all I use my Apple Watch for was phone calls, and texting notifications and timers. All stuff that I can do on my Garmin watch but better. And the fitness tracking actually seems way better. The Apple Watch would always have my calories way too high, and I would always question it and not believe it whereas the Garmin is a lot more conservative and I actually believe the numbers

I wear both an Apple Watch and a Garmin. But honestly, if I had to choose one, it would just be the Garmin. For health data and hell even just telling time the Garmin is miles ahead of Apple. Great thing about Garmin is that they hit pretty much every price point. You can get one of their fitness bands for as low as $150 or more expensive watches.

If you have an Apple Watch 9, you’re happy with it and it fits you’re lifestyle then why look for hype. If you want hype, buy hype but it should be about what you think is right for your needs. The Apple Watch is a smartwatch + fitness device. The whoop is a fitness device only. I had an Apple Watch for years and I liked it at the start but over time it became less suitable for me. I often work or study in environments where I must take off anything worn on the wrist. The whoop costs me more but I can wear it on the bicep and the battery is significantly longer. I personally prefer the whoop because it is more suitable for me. You have to decide what is right for you based on what you want from your wearable.

I had an Apple Watch and immediately switched to the 965 after about 2 weeks of trying to manage my anger over how often the AW had to be charged. I’m firmly on the buy-it team

Yeah, I always had better luck with the sleep tracking on the Garmin after switching from Apple Watch. My Apple Watch sleep tracking was so basic and I felt the duration times were so off. And I’m hearing from the new videos on Apple and their sleep scores say that it factors in less things like it doesn’t counter HRV while you’re asleep it goes off consistency, duration, and that’s it. I set my Garmin to sync to Apple health and I got a sleep score and it was so wildly far off. It was insane lol one day I only got 3 1/2 hours of sleep and I got a 95 sleep score on Apple lol the Garmin was correct in telling me I got shit sleep. Definitely happy with my decision to stick to Garmin.

I returned the mk3i 43mm. It’s heavy for daily use and the screen is small for diving. So trying to do everything but it’s not good at anything. I got the descent x50i instead and just use the super light Apple Watch 10 for everything else. The Apple Watch Ultra was also too heavy for me. To me heavy is ok for just a fashion watch. But for a fitness watch I don’t like it.

Fairly new to Apple Watches. I got the Apple Watch 10 as my first watch only a few months ago. I love it. But wondering if I want the ultra. I use it for running and would love the longer battery life. Any suggestions one why I should or shouldn’t upgrade from the 10? With the new sleep score be available on the 10? And the blood pressure update is only on the new watches correct?

Yeah I have taken fitness pretty seriously over the last 1.5 years. Have done 6 triathlons and feel that the Apple Watch is severely lacking. But I feel there would be too many trade offs to go to garmin

I came from an Apple Watch series 10 a couple months ago and I wish I would’ve switched sooner. If you’re looking for a reliable fitness watch, there’s just no competition. I even wore both for a few days and I noticed that Apple Watch was constantly giving me credit for calories I burned doing absolutely nothing and by the end of the day my calories burned were hundreds higher than the Garmin. I love that the Garmin is a lot more conservative with their calories Not to mention when I did a workout Apple Watch and their metrics seems so basic. It was literally just calories burned and heart rate and how long I worked out where I was Garmin even showed the sweat loss and estimated to how much my water intake should be.

Just picked up a stainless steel series 9 for $200 from Wal Mart, and it looks brand new. Not a single scratch or mark. No idea why anyone would be stumping for this or a series 11!

Went from apple watch to Garmin (for longer battery life) then Casio G-shock. Its so calm now. I do miss the tracking sometimes in the summer when i bike. Other than that, i enjoy the freedom not having to charge everyday or not getting bombarded with stats and notifications. You can disable these features from smartwatches of course (which i did), but whats the point of having one then?

Yes, but said apps also cost money and aren’t necessarily cheap. I tried going that route and wound back up staying loyal to Whoop. I rock both now and have gotten used to it. The strength trainer on Whoop is light years better than any fitness or workout module on the Apple Watch as well.

Ridiculous right? Snapped it up and expected something awful, but there’s not a single minor scratch on it. Absolute steal.

I can’t stand my Apple Watch. It always turns off during my workouts and counting “exercise minutes” is literally pointless. I bought an Ultra 2 because I wanted to have the best shot at success with it and that thing is a POS for health tracking. The whoop is so much more comfortable and consistent at tracking with better data analytics. I have the 5.0 and the band is fine. Idk what everyone is complaining about. Is it something you would wear to dress up an expensive outfit? No, but that’s not really what it is intended for. Personally, I would wear it with a suit without thinking twice because I don’t really care what other people think.

Same. I was exclusively Apple Watch since the very first one in 2015 so switching felt weird but man am I glad I did.

yea i wear both aw on the left whoop on the right. they are both good for different things and having the whoop gives me some peace of mind about my apple watch charge like i don’t stress about if it dies cause ik the whoop is running

Personally, i had Apple Watch only since the very beginning. That’s 10 years of being stuck on one platform. Same watch faces. Slow to roll out features. But the biggest for me was: sleep tracking sucked ass on my Apple Watch and the calorie burn was just laughable. The calorie burn on a totally lazy day on my AW put me in the “moderate exercise” category. It was just silly. My wife got a garmin last spring and i got jealous. It had a lot more features that i considered health centric that i liked. The calorie burn made sense. The metrics it gave were just plain cool to look at. It integrated well with the loseit app. The watch face store is just amazing. Makes my garmin feel new all the time. Everything i wanted out of the Apple Watch needed an app and usually a subscription to do. Sleep tracking? Have fun with the pillow app. Subscribe to premium to unlock basic features even the garmin has for free! Calorie tracking beyond some rings? Download bevel. Subscription though! Hydration tracking? Water minder app. Like there’s apps to do stuff, but i just find the functionality on the base garmin experience to be preferable. I just like it. It’s nice.

I switched from an Apple Watch Series 8 to Venu 4. I miss certain aspects of the Apple Watch but I have grown to really appreciate the garmin. Things I miss: - Apple Pay (Garmin pay doesn’t work well in Canada) - answering quick texts from my wrist - ping my phone feature (garmin has this but doesn’t work all the time) - fitness rings - integration with peloton app Things I love about the garmin: - golf gps built into watch (need separate app for AW) I am an avid golfer and any app thru AW would kill battery incredibly fast - battery life - looks far better - health metrics are amazing - sleep metrics are amazing For me the positive outweigh the negatives. I can see why people hate the garmin ecosystem, but after switching for past 2 months I am truly happy with my choice. I wore Apple Watch daily for previous 3 years and never wore it at night due to needing to charge it. -

Had AW 6, 7, 10... Had Garmin Fenix 7 somewhere between AW... Now with Garmin instinct 3. ALl has pros and cons. none is perfect. For me it's great to switch from time to time... I would happily do the same between iphone and android, but the cost of switch in terms of software is crazy...

I have both. Often, it appears the readings are for different people. Oura has me awake when I am asleep and asleep when I am awake. My sleep metrics seem more accurate with Oura aside from deep sleep which can be 14 minutes on Oura and an hour on Apple. My HRV has always been very low, even though I seem to be very fit and healthy. Oura’s average is 29 and Apple 20. Apple is far more efficient at determining lowest RHR at night.

I wear my Apple Watch on my bicep or around my ankle on the days I wear my regular watch. At times I just wear Apple Watch like a tool watch on my wrist too. I don’t think it has to be either or

I have Apple Watch Series 9 right now but previously had a Garmin. Yeah, you can set target heart rate and target pace in the run settings. They can be used for all run types. For example, you can set a target pace or hr (instant value or range) on a distance goal run. Then there is a completely separate pace goal run type that has a special data screen that shows if you’re ahead or behind target pace. Here’s what sucks about pace on Apple Watch: instantaneous pace estimate is a lot worse and more delayed than Garmin. There’s also no pace gauge like Garmin has which I always found a nice screen to use. No, there is NO dynamic run coaching or daily suggested workout like Garmin has. There is a “Workout Buddy” feature that interjects little pep talk blurbs at the start of your run, during various run events like finishing a mile split, and at the end of your run. This feature requires the paired phone to be nearby, at least for my Series 9. Overall a very lame “feature” There are apps on the App Store that try to offer what Garmin has for training and recovery, but I don’t trust them to be as accurate and don’t really find them to offer anything insightful. I tried a trial for all the ones that are frequently recommended on Reddit. Meh. Otherwise, I love having Apple Music on my wrist and no phone needed to be called or texted by wife and kids. I like Garmin and Apple both, and I’m considering buying an Ultra 3 myself in spite of Apple Watch downsides. Just being objective about the downsides of AW compared to Garmin for running.

I have an apple watch and I used it in the start, but I’ve purchased a bike computer after a while, and It’s 100 times better. If you just use it for commuting, I would say it’s fine to just stick to an apple watch. If you use the bike for training, it’s pretty annoying to have to check you wrist to see your heart rate in an all out intervall. If you don’t really care about the stats mid ride an apple watch is the way to go. Since it’s probably not that nice to slap a bike computer to your wrist.

Correct, unless it’s an ultra as others have said. Personally, I use my Garmin for long activities and running and my Apple Watch for everything else. I prefer the versatility and convenience of my Apple Watch throughout the day, while working, doing HIIT, running into a store without my phone, etc. but prefer the Garmin for running metrics and battery life for several hours walking/hiking activities.

Used to have a watch series 2. That one sucked. Then went to a apple series 5. That one fell into a lake and seeing as the ground in the middle was over 10m, i doubt it survived Switched to a Garmin instinct 2 tactical solar about 3 years ago. I love not plugging it back to charge everyday (with gps its been lasting a solid 15-20 days a charge) Great with sports especially skiing (it uses about 3 different satelite technologies so i never lose connection and it detects skiing / lifts to get back up) I can control music from the watch - bit finnicky with the buttons but eh it is what it is I got 50% ish off through work so that was a bonus I do miss being able to send custom messages from it and controlling songs on spotify.... I also miss having the touchscreen, but this watch has remained on my wrist even diving hard into water from cliffs About 18 months after switching I binned my iphone 9 and got a google pixel so yeah, i never would turn back to apple products.... Depends on what you want to be honest. Just know, that most of these watches can survive in water for a few hours to a couple days, so swimming/diving in it isn't a problem but thats just my opinion Hope I helped

I switched from Apple Watch & Apple Music to Garmin 255 & Spotify. You can get a yearly Spotify premium gift card from Amazon for $120 to save money, otherwise it's $144 a year from Spotify. I much prefer Garmins watch for running over the Apple Watch. The 2 music subscriptions were about equal to me. They both have their annoyances & pluses.

currently use aw s8 and whoop. i love the setup, i know ill always have sleep data cause the chances of me letting both die are very small and i know i have the constant metrics from whoop and use aw for daily stuff and workouts

For me, my Apple Watch never knew when I woke up or did anything and the timing was always off. Where is my Garmin is dead on with pretty much everything. Idk 🤷‍♂️

I have switched from apple watch to garmin tho may few yrs in between since I got really into automatic watches. Get apple watch for the ECG and AFIB stuff, more apps, cuter watch faces, calls. Get the garmin for weekly charging and better training data.

The Apple Watch is the choice of compromise between daily life and running. I find it very inferior to the Garmins for running and hiking, but it is still acceptable considering the advantages for everything else.

For example : - metronome - Pace Pro: pace monitoring with the possibility of automatically adapting the target pace according to the elevation or with a negative or positive split - adaptive maps: you can ask the watch to create a loop route of a defined distance; if we decide to change the route, the Fenix ​​8 recalculates a new loop, - maps: turn-by-turn audio guidance. With enough battery to last a hike of 12 hours or more - maps (always): whole world included so no need for data (practical if you get lost in the mountains) - I find the instantaneous look more reliable than on my old AppleWatch series 8. You can include refueling locations, or a hydration reminder - structured training: the pace or heart rate gauge is practical, the displays are generally much better when running - the Garmin coach adapts to our state of form based on sleep, HRV and training load - the flashing flashlight allows you to be better seen when running at night (it does not replace a headlamp except in an emergency) - with a cardio belt the watch can be attached over the jacket in winter There are certainly many other things. Well I just ordered an AWU3, I hope I won't miss all that...

Do it man. I switched from a series 10 and the battery life is the strangest thing to get used to. It’s like if you have a car with a standard gas tank you have to fill up every week. Then going to a car you only fill up every 6 months. I fully charged my forerunner 970 last night and it’s a day later. What’s my battery at? 95%

It essentially boils down to numbers go brr. Not a literal video game thing like some niche high end workout machines have Apple Watch’s activity rings are closest to gamification you can ever get to a watch though. It has achievements in it too. My problem is I can’t disable stand rings because I do not wear my watch 24/7

It’s more of a fitness tracker than anything. Apple themselves (in the apps they have) makes sure to reiterate that whatever data they show to you is not a replacement to a health check up nor an accurate indicator of your overall health. It’s not a gimmick, as the data they record hold real weight and I’ve read stories here that some of the things they saw in their watches prompted them to go to a doctor, indirectly saving their lives. Personally I use an Apple Watch to gamify my workouts. I am an avid gamer and a bit of a gym rat. Some people use it to gamify their walk, run, swimming and hiking activities. Even sleep can be gamified, or menstrual cycles. You’d know how many hours you actually slept with a watch on. It is a fun device for those trying to stay fit and live a healthy lifestyle. For some people, maybe they just want a digital watch they can customize. A watch they can put their dog’s face on. But for health and making sure you don’t die? Nothing still beats a visit to the doctor.

I have the 970. I first switched from an Apple Watch series 10 to a venu 3 before switching again to a 970. I like even the small things like step cadence and estimated sweat loss. If I do a workout it estimates how much sweat I lost and changes my hydration goal

🤷‍♂️ came from Apple Watch last spring. It might be cheaper but it doesn’t seem better. Sleep tracking (for me) was far worse on the Apple Watch, fitness tracking is better on garmin, calorie burn, calculating tdee, etc. just everything is better for me. So meh

Refurbs usually have a scratch or two, no matter how minor. This thing looks brand new. It was $219.

Stayed away from an Apple watch until I started going to the gym, now it’s on my wrist 24/7 unless it’s being charged. Sold 5 of my mechanical watches in the last few months. Only kept my Submariner and a pair of CWC watches (G10 & G40) for special occasions.