Garmin Fenix 6 Pro etc experiences (longevity)

[Hugo Stiglitz]

I'm fairly hard on any watch that I wear. I hate any sort of weight on my wrist and I don't like the hard plastic straps of G-shocks.

My Garmin Instinct has been an utter revelation. I don't know it's their and its proven hardy with a great battery life.

However the black Friday deals are calling.

Any experiences? Do they last?

I recently bought a Garmin Enduro but two weeks in the watch fell off my wrist when the strap pin failed which led to a lack of confidence- sent it back as I don't want to be out in the hills and realise I've lost a watch somewhere...

[sausage76]

I've got a Fenix 5 that I picked up second hand.

I replaced the strap and its bene great in the last year I have owned it. use it to track running and obstacle course racing I do plus loads of other stuff. Never gave me any cause for concerns that i might loose it or it'll come loose.

Great watch very sturdy, well built and battery lasts ages.

[RizzoTheRat]

I've got a 5s with the saphire screen. Must have had it at least 3 years and there's not a mark on it. Same as the previous poster I have replaced the strap once, and one of the loops on the current strap now has a rip in it (luckily I still have the original strap so can swipe one off that). My wife recently had to replace the strap on her 935, and I went through 2 straps on my previous 610, so I guess its a weak point on them, but none of those failures risked the watch falling off as it's always been the bar between 2 holes ripping.

[Ian-27xza]

I bought a used Fenix 3 3 years ago. I wear it all day and it is primarily used a watch and then smartwatch when required...

I'm quite heavy on watches too and I don't want to have to worry about knocking it. It's been perfect, no scratches or failures.

Rugged enough for all but the most extreme use case scenarios.

Probably the best £150 I ever spent!

[Inspire]

I’ve got a Fenix 6 and it’s lasted really well. It gets worn all the time and used for trail running - not a scratch on it!

Thanks

Rob

[grumbledoak]

My Fenix 5 proved very rugged. I upgraded to a 6X Pro maybe six months ago. It seems pretty rugged too and has taken some chunks out of my door frames, but the black coating can be scratched off by rough surfaces like concrete.

[Freakuk]

I've had a Fenix 5 for a few years as my daily watch, similar to others in that the bands snapped on the original strap, cheap eBay replacement has been fine since. I've added a screen protector as it's none saphire, £3 and it's done it's job.

Only issue I have had is that the battery was draining quickly a year or so ago, I suspected the battery was on it's way out but I simply let the battery drain fully then recharged which seemed to resolve the issue.

I've been looking at upgrading myself, but I cannot justify it given my 5 still works and looks pretty much like new.

[Calza]

I have a Fenix 6 Pro Sapphire. I've had it about 20 months.

The screen is still flawless, despite my main hobby being rock climbing, though the bezzle is pretty scuffed but that's fair.

I'm never gentle taking it on or off and the straps are still intact.

The battery also appears to be very good still.

[Rhodrig27]

Had a fenix 3 I wore daily for 4/5 years and trained 6 days a week and it is still good as new, moved onto a Fenix 7 and the same brilliant tough wearing watch. Only upgraded from the 3 for some extra features.

[MarcelM6]

Have used a Fenix 6X Pro for about 2 years, had a Fenix3 before. Wear them daily, almost indestructible. I didn't bother with the sapphire glass - no scratches on mine.

The click off straps have not come loose either.

[IREvans]

Hugo Stiglitz said:

I'm fairly hard on any watch that I wear. I hate any sort of weight on my wrist and I don't like the hard plastic straps of G-shocks.

My Garmin Instinct has been an utter revelation. I don't know it's their and its proven hardy with a great battery life.

However the black Friday deals are calling.

Any experiences? Do they last?

I recently bought a Garmin Enduro but two weeks in the watch fell off my wrist when the strap pin failed which led to a lack of confidence- sent it back as I don't want to be out in the hills and realise I've lost a watch somewhere...

I’ve got a Fenix 7X solar, and had a 6X before it. I wear it all the time for running, skiing, mountain biking, and road cycling. Straps are incredibly secure, and simple to change. Battery life on the 7 is around 3 weeks, and that’s with around 8-10 hours a week of recorded activities. Latest firmware update includes HRV if that interests you, and with a chest strap is very accurate. I’ve never had any issues with either of them.

[Insert Coin]

2.5 year old Fenix 6 Solar Titanium here, brilliant watch and still going strong after being worn every day.

[anonymous-user]

6x pro here
Good for running, accurate on my regular runs & also good on my local parkrun which is twisty & under trees
Bezel looks a bit bruised, but i’m not particularly careful with it.
Buttons better for stop start in races etc

The ‘features’ are pretty rubbish in comparison to smart watches.
Never used the maps, far inferior to maps on my apple watch
Can’t use the Garmin pay as with Barclays. Again the Apple pay is 100x better, as are most of the health apps etc on Smart.

But as a sports watch pretty good at the sale prices.