Garmin Fenix 7X Pro // The best GPS watch? Really?

I guess my expectations were too high?

Check out some trip videos here:

#wintercamping #backpacking #hiking #ultralightbackpacking

[KaneDoesOutdoors]

This is a first impressions video. I decided to keep the watch for more in-depth and long term use, although I switched to the sapphire version which is a much better display. I have sorted out a workflow for importing my maps etc that is pretty simple (based on feedback from comments and friends), but still relies on a third party app (Gaia GPS). I will be following up with field experience & use case from the mountains.
So far my opinion stands that there is room for improvement to the software ecosystem and on-watch map performance (lagging etc). Battery life is impressive. Is this the best GPS watch on the market? It might just be - in terms of what is available.
For a quick comparison, I tried the Suunto Vertical for two days and it was definitely comparable to the Garmin. It had an even more convoluted navigation system because of the limited number of buttons (3 vs 5) and limited customizations. The design of the Suunto also seems to be for people with very small wrists since there is a sharp/pointy part where the strap attaches to the watch that bruised my wrist bone after a few hours. Not something that I wanted to experiment with long term.

[Notagain]

Rule number 1, never tell your wife how much it costs.

[brent_f]

1. There is a limitation on how much cpu power you can install into the device without burning battery power or introducing other issues. You wanted an iPhone type processes shrunk into a small device. It’s 2024, the technology is not there yet.

2. The cpu and storage space dictates the amount of map resolution.

3. You can import gpx files into desktop Garmin Connect; you don’t have to use Explore.

4. You can double tap to zoom the map. This is the first implementation of a touchscreen, it will take time to evolve the software to work within the constraints of the watch.

The Garmin insufficiency of the software ecosystem has been discussed / critique for years. That’s one area most users are in agreement.

Wait a few years and maybe your ideal watch will become a reality. The watch, in its present incarnation, is more of a supplement to a gps device rather than a standalone device.

[esteemedenergy]

I’m sure everyone would love to know what watch you use that actually meet your superior needs

[firstnamelastname]

One thing you need to realize about Garmin is that the user experience does NOT change as you go up their higher priced models. If you buy the MARQ Carbon for $3000, it will behave the EXACT same way as their $250 Forerunner. And if you dare say anything negative on their user forum, be prepared to get bashed by "Top 1%" forum members who make violent love every night to their Garmin watches before going to sleep.

[martinlizo]

The watch is not a replacement for the phone. Each device has it's one benefit. The phone is good for stablished trails in good weather conditions. Also, it's really usefull for exploring on the field, for example doing off-trail and checking satelital images. The watch is good for multi day detailed tracking, in bad weather, or just as a backup. A dedicated GPS is better for mountain expeditions, very long distances treks without access to energy or cold and wet enviroments where you wear gloves all the time. For three season, good weather, stablished trails hiking, the phone is the best option now.

[FFdo.]

You can export routes directly from GAIA or any other software, it's only a two step process, export the track then import it as an activity in garmin connect Web. It will accept .tcx, .fit or .gpx format files. Then you do whatever you want with it, after I import I usually save it as favorite to have it handy for quick access.

[axel-jo]

I'm very happy about my Fenix 7X Pro. I think that the gps watch you wanted only exists in your dream. There are thousands of reviews, videos and opinions online about the Garmin Fenix ​​​​7 Pro and therefore it is impossible that you are disappointed by things that have always been known to everyone.

[EthanDurant]

Sounds like user error to me. I have a forerunner 965 so maybe it's different but I have never used, nor have I ever had a reason to use Garmin explore. I create a route in Gaia then download it as a .gpx file. Upload it to Garmin connect as a course and then send it to my device. It takes a few minuets max.

[heckraiser]

This is true. From an outsider looking in, Garmin hasn’t kept up with modern graphical user interface and application development in general. This cost them to lose the vehicle routing GPS market they had a leg up in the 00’s. Tom-Tom was their closest competitor, but Apple and Google were “stealthily” planning to takeover that market with use of the smartphone platform.

Hardware can be included into this as well as they led the consumer watch and handheld markets too.

Google and Apple could takeover the mountaineering, marine, submarine, and skiing gps markets too, if they thought it might be worth the investment.

[matthiasschorghofer]

Did you download all the maps of your continent? I just downloaded middle europe and it was done within 20minutes or so🙂

[granjuas]

As a hiker: Garmin uses low power in its battery, letting me use it throughout multiple days without worrying about battery.
As a runner: Garmin motivates me to become better everyday and is not nice with you as Apple would. Being harsh and honest with you is something I love the most.
As a office-commuter: Garmin keeps me on my toes to remind me that theres a world out there to explore, more than apple would. Why? Because the fenix is a tough watch. Just looking at it makes you want to go out there. An Apple Watch, by the looks of it, wants me to go to buy starbucks and take selfies.

[playnationtoday]

I agree. I’ve had my fenix 7x for 1.5 years. At this time I basically use it to monitor my movements through the day for hiking, trail running, skiing, etc. For mapping and orienteering I use OnX on my phone. I trust the onx considerably, it has gotten me through situations that would have taken hours longer doing it with a paper map. I’m not confident I could do the same with my Garmin watch.

[VinceFowler]

I’ve had my Garmin Fēnix 7X Pro Solar for over a year now and love it. I use .gpx files all the time the time for my ultra races. It works well with Strava saved routes too.

Adding my North American topo map took a couple minutes. Not sure why it took your watch 4 hours.

I don’t use GAIA

Maybe your watch is a lemon.

[nickbnash]

Thank you for the review. It is helpful. I had a similar experience with the Garmin software. I found it completely unintuitive and confusing, and so I haven’t dug into it more than enough to make it do the few limited things I needed. I’m glad it’s not just me.

[Greghikes]

Agreed, easiest to have a shoulder mounted pocket easily accessible for the phone.

[johnsimoney]

Was not understanding your review until you showed video clips of you hiking in that breathtaking location you were in, and described the navigating you do in the field, then it finally clicked. Btw, where were those locations? I was blown away by the landscape and terrain. Reminds me of the hiking and backpacking I did in the Andes. Simply breathtaking.

As for your fenix 7x pro navigation dilemma, yeah, there’s NO watch in the world that will do what you want in terms of the navigating you’re doing, which like you said before, you were looking for something to replace your phone. Not a chance, unless you look into garmin’s actual full sized handheld navigation devices, in which at that point is sort of pointless bc many of them are larger than phones, but I believe Garmin makes a few mini handheld gps devices that are smaller than a phone, so you could look into that. But I agree when you said it’s more about your unrealistic expectations. Wanting a watch w/ gps capabilities to replace a full sized handheld gps device is an outright IMPOSSIBILITY. There simply isn’t enough space to cram all the hardware of a high end full sized handheld gps device, in the small enclosure of a watch, there’s just no way. The Fenix 7 pro series is an ultra fitness tracker and multi-sport watch, WITH GPS capabilities, if that makes sense. It’s a sport and fitness watch first, and a gps watch second, where it’s gps capabilities can be used to track routes and as a back-up in terms of emergencies. So for triathletes, ultramarathoners, or hybrid athletes (who travel for many miles on foot or bike), this is heaven bc they can track their mileage routes and performance. Plus, most serious athletes are biometric and data nerds, and love to track their performance data, which the Fenix 7 pro is the KING at doing, in addition to it’s gps tracking capabilities, which is actually quite accurate at doing. That’s why it has so many 5-star reviews, bc in the application of a fitness tracker and it’s decent gps capabilities to track an athletes routes during workouts and races, this is perfect. But for trailblazing in the backcountry, where you need much more reliable geographic information and data, and more reliable legibility in the form of a bigger screen, a watch is simply not it. However, I believe that the Fenix 7 pro series watches (to an extent) can provide a decent amount of reliable gps data, the critical question is how one will use that data. For a workout that you want to track, or if you’re through hiking somewhere, I believe it can do that successfully. But when you’re trailblazing in the backcountry, and you need geographic data and information that could mean the difference between life and death, there’s no way in hell I would rely on a watch, not even if it was $10K. It’s just too risky, and besides the convenience factor of replacing a phone with a watch, why would you want to view geographic data and maps on such a small screen? For maps and geographic data, you want all that info on a decent size screen, but obviously not too big if you’re in the backcountry. But for a watch, I believe it’s just too much to ask. You need to be using a full sized handheld gps device for that application, there’s just no way around it.

One last point, as a testament to the Fenix 7 pro gps utilities. I have the Fenix 7 pro SS, I’ve had it for about 2 months now, and I love it. Yes I track everything because I do hybrid training (endurance training, track workouts, trailing running and strength training), so it’s a pleasure to track all my performance data and look at my numbers change through time, and have the ability to see where I can improve. In that regard, there’s nothing better than the Fenix 7 pro.

However, in regards to its gps navigation maps, I used it for the first time 2 days ago… I believe it saved my life.

I was on a trail run at a reservation park I’ve been going to for many years and know pretty well…until I was proven that I don’t know it pretty well. I was running on a trail I’ve done before several times, but not often, and forgot there were 2 forks rather than 1. So I confidently passed through the first fork, and didn’t realize I went the wrong way at the second fork. Had I chosen the right direction, I would’ve been back to familiar ground in about 2 miles. But instead, I went left without noticing it was a fork, and added 4 miles to my run, with significant elevation changes, at 7pm, with a severe thunderstorm incoming, and about 5 miles from the trailhead. That was the first time I panicked, bc I left my phone in the car, which I always do when I go on my trail runs. Luckily I was tracking the entire route with my Fenix 7 pro. When I started noticing unfamiliar ground, and that the trail I was on hadn’t connected to familiar ground, I switched over to the compass watch face to get an idea of where I was in relation to a large lake that the main trail passes through, where it finally leads to the trailhead. It was helpful by orienting me in terms of the location of the lake, but the trail I was on made another abrupt turn and was leading me northwest, when the lake was east. So I switched over to maps and I knew exactly where I was in relation to the lake, and all I could do was run as efficiently and as safe as I could and check the map every minute to verify my progress and direction, all while under the tree line, with the storm now approaching, rain starting, and daylight darkening. The map key indicated I was about 2 miles from the lake and showed that I was traveling in the direction of the lake, so I booked as safely as I could. As it got darker, it started down-pouring, and I couldn’t distinguish the color of the trail-markers on the trees anymore, so I turned on the flashlight and ran with it on, verifying the color of every trail-marker along the way because I was not about to get lost again on my way back, in the middle of a storm, at night, and in an area with Black bears. Eventually, I hit familiar ground in about 45 minutes of running through a thunderstorm, as there was a bit of light still. Had I not had my watch on me, I believe I would’ve been fully convinced that I was completely lost. But having my Fenix 7 pro on me, with its flashlight (which is a basic survival tool that we often take for granted), was a relief I can’t fully explain thinking back about the situation now. I’ve read a lot of reviews before I bought the watch, and many have said that the one thing they absolutely fell in love with is the flashlight. Something you wouldn’t expect, I know, but many have admitted they never realized how useful it would be until they actually needed it. I heard many saying they use it in the middle of the night when going to the kitchen for some water or whatnot, and they don’t want to turn all the kitchen lights on, and in many other low-light situations around the house that when you really think about it, can be quite often.

With the Fenix 7 pro’s heart rate monitor, which is quite accurate (about 98% according to 3rd party testing), and I personally use for every workout to verify what heart rate zones I’m in (which is very important to determine how hard you’re endurance training, bc under an endurance training program, there are days you wanna train aerobic, and days you wanna train anaerobic, and not knowing can really derail your goals), I’ve read via a subreddit that a woman’s garmin fenix watch predicted her pregnancy when the Fenix’s heart rate monitor started to show a pattern of irregularities in her resting heart rate. She goes to the doctor, and they confirm her pregnancy. So do with that information what you will.

But for me, since I am very physically active and I was looking for something that could help me track my performance data/progress, there really wasn’t anything better than the Fenix 7 pro.

For you, I think it’s a matter of accepting what’s possible in technology at the moment, which for you would be a handheld gps device.

Good luck, and stay safe on your travels.

[shanelyon]

Thank you for confirming that digital map devices still suck. I have owned three different hand held gps devices and found them all hard to use, expensive and unreliable. In the end hand held maps is what I still rely on with a bit on phone gps to cheat. Can’t wait to see how you feel after using this for a while, I have been considering this as my next smart watch as well.

[johnbuchheister]

Its good to hear different perspectives. Thanks.

[splatmatt]

I use CalTopo, Gaia, Footpath, never had an issue importing into Garmin.

BTW why didn't you figure this out for the instinct on your wrist? Same software used to import routes as the Fenix 7 series.