Garmin Instinct 2 Review After 100 Days

Today we're looking at the Garmin Instinct 2 after having used the solar edition for about 100 days.

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[geolocate]

I love my Instinct 2 Solar. And the solar actually works. Was out for a ride the other day and the solar added 2 days of battery life. Thx for the video.

[tylernorberg]

2 months in and coming from Fitbit this watch is worth every Penny. I live right off the Appalachian Trail and can’t stay out of the woods with this watch. It’s amazing for runs and hikes and I’d highly recommend it.

[wintrymix]

The reason you can't get infinity is because at your current usage, 100% can only give you 28 days, and you can't charge more than 100%. If you keep all the settings the same, solar charging will only top up to 100% at most and it will still say 28 days.
To get more than 28 days or infinity, you have to turn off some features like connection to watch and heart rate. That defeats the purpose of the watch.
Go to settings on the watch or tap on your watch in Garmin Connect and go to the power manager. There you'll have battery saver which is for non-activity use, and power modes which is for activity use. You can choose what you want to turn off or leave on in each setting, create presets, schedule battery saver for sleep, etc. If you select the most extreme and get a lot of sunlight, it will get to infinity. Good for post apocalyptic times. :)

[tallymo]

Had an apple watch for awhile, but recently got into triathlons and realized my biggest smartwatch priorities are durability and battery life. I've had the Instinct 2 solar for about 6 months and even though it's a completely different watch than the apple watch it's been perfect. I'm training for my first 70.3 in September and your channel has been a huge help!!

[fitgearhunter]

Love it man. It’s such a great watch - but mainly love your long term reviews - they highlight so many things better than a two week video bc how we feel about different features can really change over the long term. Great work.

[ThomasTimlen]

That's a good review. I've been using the Garmin Instinct 2 Solar for four months. The main reason for choosing the Instinct 2 Solar was the longer battery life. Prior to this device, I was using the Forerunner 735XT for running, cycling and swimming. Eventually, as will happen for all rechargeable devices, the battery was not lasting as long as it had out of the box, which became a concern on longer bike rides. The last thing you want to see when there's still about an hour to go is the "Low Battery" message. I then looked at Garmin's solar devices, and the Instinct 2 Solar ticked all my boxes; it was within my budget, it is fine for running, cycling and swimming as well as any combination of those thanks to the Multi-Sport feature.
Regarding the monochrome display - knowing that the reason for it is to reduce battery consumption - its purpose-design - bring it on! I liked the colours on the FR735XT but with longer battery life I don't miss the colour display at all. Purely a question of priorities. The Instinct 2 Solar also has the improved built-in heart rate monitor that is more accurate than the FR735XT, so using a heart rate monitor strap is now a distant memory (for swimming I just don't bother with HR data). The design of the Instinct 2 Solar casing feels a lot more rugged than previous sports watches I have used - the display glass is reset a few millimetres so it is less exposed to being scratched. Also, the five buttons do not protrude very far so there is less chance of them being accidentally pressed during an activity.
It is also amazing how many things this device monitors - from sleep to body battery to respiration and stress and... all that info is pumped into Garmin Connect so the more you wear the watch, the more biodata and performance data you can monitor on your smartphone. Floors climbed, steps... more than I can list here!
Obviously, I'm loving my Instinct 2 Solar, I'll never be stressed about the battery going flat on long rides, and now my wife is enjoying my old FR735XT.

[HelenoPaiva]

I just bought a instinct 2x solar. Waiting delivery now! Time to upgrade from my forerunner 45.

[nabigamer]

Thank you for reviewing, greatly helped me understand what this Garmin watch is in detail.

[SaurabhMahajan]

Really clear and succinct information! Would love to see how the instinct 2 would go from a durability perspective after an year of use. Thanks and good work!

[nugetta]

Hi, IMO Instinct has most visible display of all sport watches. I wish next gen have bigger screen and electric lime (and more vivid colors) in solar fullsize variants.

[hannahgoodman]

I just ordered the Instinct 2s Solar and I’m super excited about it!

[FiremanFrach]

Very good review and very good information. I will probably upgrade, but no time soon. My timing was off and I bought the Instinct Solar 1 just before the 2 came out. Still, I love my Instinct solar, and with the software updates, my original solar Instinct is still relevant and I believe it will be for years to come.

[GuidoTonelliAutos]

great photography/aesthetics Matt, i really enjoyed the review. Rocking a Fenix but always curious on the Instinct. Kudos!

[josejr.]

i own this watch and I love it ! i chose it over the epix, tactix amoled andnthe fenix 7x pro . has almost all the same features

[morrigansraven]

If there is anything Garmin does right it should be GPS, they build the best compact GPS systems in the world

[tommytreats]

Really debating on getting this watch. I'm cycling a few days a week with some weight lifting added in. Really want to track all my workouts & sleep to get training readiness.. I like how the Forerunner looks but feels dumb to spend $200+ more on the Forerunner265 to get the training readiness over the 165. This seems like a good option and currently on sale.

[muhammadfahmi]

My first Garmin watch was the first Instinct (Non Solar). Now, I'm still deciding between Instinct 2 and Fenix 7x. In Singapore, Instinct 2 (Solar) will cost $600+ and Fenix 7 (Saphire Solar) will cost $1500. Both in Singapore Dollars.

[tcwhite]

Great videos Matt I’m ordering the tactical as I do competitive shooting. The tactical has ballistics mode. Thanks for the continued review of this watch.

[bonn]

thanks for this Matt!! great review as always

[kithinders]

Horay, the Solar makes Matt premiere!!! (to my knowledge anyway).

It is difficult, $500 (or just short of it) is a lot of money, you're trading battery life for fancy displays. What a challenge to quantify the usefulness of never charging something. Send the watch with Evan to test this weekend, see if we can get UNLIMITED power to pop up!!

How are you healing? I hope you're well my friend!