I’ve been playing with a fenix 7 solar and an epix gen 2, graphics on the Gen 2 are really good especially the maps

I’ve been playing with a fenix 7 solar and an epix gen 2, graphics on the Gen 2 are really good especially the maps

I’m sure they are nice, but you could buy a bike/car for the price of them! 🤣

Instinct 2

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.dcrainmaker.com/2022/02/garmin-instinct2-2s-2-solar-in-depth-review.html/amp

Are any of these watches particularly user friendly

I suspect that’s a bit subjective,  I took delivery of a Polar watch yesterday and am already a fully fledged fanboy. Never had that with Garmin.

Are any of these watches particularly user friendly

I’ve got a Fenix 5, pretty sure it’s basically the same menu as the more recent top-end Garmins (and most of the cheaper sports models, too) – and I’ve never had any issues using it. That said, I’m a computer programmer and used to menus and submenus and keep going, tortoises and menus all the way down, so I’m perhaps not the best person to comment on what is and isn’t “user friendly” 🙂

I’m a bit of a geek and find my 935 reasonably intuitive. I wouldn’t describe myself as a power user but if you can operate a modern phone I wouldn’t say a Garmin will really outwit you.

The basic functions are pretty easy to use but if you want to do something a little tricky (eg load a gpx and follow it) then you steps you have to follow aren’t that logical. It’s not that hard to get the measure of it but I wouldn’t necessarily describe it as user friendly. I suppose it goes with having a tiny screen and a handful of buttons

Well it’s here, Instinct 2.

https://www.garmin.com/en-GB/p/775697/pn/010-02627-00

Yeah, posted above 😉

Never realised the instinct 1 didn’t have VO2 max/training metrics etc.

The solar price is basically the same as a fenix 6 solar, that’s a hard choice.

The instinct 2 would replace my forerunner 245 as a 24/7 watch but I’m not sure I’d want to wear a fenix all day and overnight.

Sorry, posting on a phone after receiving an alert from a watch shop, I missed it.

Well, looks good and feature packed for the price but likely not worth for me personally buying one vs my Instinct 1, which is basically a bike watch becuase I use and HR strap and bike computer… …on a practical basis. If I had a spare £389 though I’d probably buy it.

Have they sorted out the reliability on their barometric altimeter yet?

Instinct 2 looks good. Think I’ll wait a few months until the price drops to under 100 tho.

I already found a place offering 10% discount.

not sure I’d want to wear a fenix all day and overnight.

Don’t think I’ve ever worn a watch overnight unless I’ve been too cut to take it off.

Don’t think I’ve ever worn a watch overnight unless I’ve been too cut to take it off.

I wear my forerunner 245 at night, partly for sleep tracking, mainly for alarms. I wear it almost 24/7.

I’d do the same with any replacement. Need to get an Edge model but might wait until the edge 540 (possibly even solar) which is probably coming this year. Tempted by a Fenix 6 solar, or an Instinct 2 solar. Or a Fenix 7 solar sapphire… 😬

This is the first watch I’ve worn overnight,  didnt think I’d be able to put up with it but I’ve stopped noticing I’m wearing it after a couple of nights and I wanted a measure of how well I’m sleeping,  which I knew to be poor, but this sticks some numbers to.improve upon I to the mix.

The instinct Solar is £225 at H Samuel. If it goes below £200 I may buy one.

Interested in one that doesn’t need charging all that often. I’m sat in my coffee shop with my Bluetooth headphones, phone and iPad…..be good not to have another device that needs to also be charged overnight. Especially as I forgot to charge my earbuds and they’ve just died on me.

Well er, i forgot my morals and ordered a discounted Instinct 2 solar yesterday on the basis it captures all the data i could ever need. It arrived today half charged showing 18 days battery or 42 in power saving mode. Its thinner and the display is clearer, ill be connecting all my sensors tomorrow before a short zwift session.

Lots of functions and extra content (eg simply scroll from.front screen to read whole texts) to play with, and with the extra data will be used more than my I1, now for sale of course…

Feels like a proper rugged device rather than a limted function budget data tracker vs the I1.

I wear normal watches on a daily basis and this only during workouts and rides, so not having the amoled and fancy Fenix display stuff isnt an issue for me.

Where did you find the instinct solar 2 discounted? I bought a I1 on a recent deal but found it a bit too chunky so returned it, I like the look of the I2s though but am not sure I can justify £200 more than the I1 cost me!

Jurawatches, use code GET10

I would warn than Tidal Blue is a bit more blue than it looks on the web.

not sure I can justify £200 more than the I1 cost me!

I was the same but the extra features, slight gain in useability and post Covid usefulness of Body Battery now able to take into account Power for accuracy (plus a small windfall) helped.

I’m sure they are nice, but you could buy a bike/car for the price of them! 🤣

Very true but they’ll be going back to Garmin eventually. They are so nice I don’t want to give them back after the review is written!

Thanks PWP and Kryton57

The I1 that I had briefly was tidal blue. I quite like it!

Imagine Fenix users will have seen these before, but this – and a few other bits I can’t fit on my phone screen e.g. suggested VO2max and recovery times are what came off the I2 from my brief Zwift session:

Ignore speed, I haven’t worked out how to calibrate a turbo for that.

I think when the flame red instinct 2 solar is available I may well upgrade from my current solar 1…

Sport pursuit have the tidal blue instinct solar at £189.99 today.

I’ve been playing with a fenix 7 solar and an epix gen 2, graphics on the Gen 2 are really good especially the maps

I’ve recently got myself a Fenix 7 – solar sapphire.
Honestly, I’m SOOOO impressed with teh battery life and solar charging.
I think i’ve only had to propery plug it in to charge 2 or 3 times in the several weeks i’ve had it!
it currently says 40% charge, 7 days..
I record an actvity pretty much every day and play around with it a lot too. Top stuff garmin.

also, as per kryton, the data you get from it (which in fairness, was v similar to my old fenix 5) is really useful too.

Oh, touchscreen is fab.

Didn’t think i’d like touchscreen, but it’s good!

DrP

Didn’t think i’d like touchscreen, but it’s good!

whats it like in the wet…

whats it like in the wet…

So the caveat here is that when I do an activity, (or in bed) the touchscreen is set to turn off!

In reality, in the wet it does struggle (like any capacitative(or is it conductive..??!) screen will)… the only real life experience i have is in the shower! i.e after a workout, adn wanting to look at stats..it does get ‘overloaded’ by droplets and can glitch… but… the beauty is the buttons scroll anyway, so it’s a non issue..

DrP

Sport Pursuit have the Instinct Solar for £189.99

Linky

I still haven’t charged my instinct 2 after 5 weeks. I don’t use it as a daily, but it’s been used 7hrs a week recording activities of which 2-3hrs is outdoor gps.

It showed 18d out of the box, I leave it on the windowsill and it’s currently showing 7d.

@kryton did you manage to get you Instinct calibrated with your turbo?

I have similar issues with mine (although even faster/further out than yours!) Mine is a Gen 1 solar mind

Yes with power, but speed is a weirdness, seems to defer to amount 150kmph, vary in the middle, and end up at 150kmph again. Don’t know how to fix it tbh so I’m doing Zwift workouts with hr and power to better advise the body battery.

After Garmin broke my heart at Christmas I bought a Vivoactive 4 instead.

That’s now been returned as the HRM and SP02 were amazingly inaccurate. Under exercise the HRM was under-reading, showing about half the expected count. The SP02 was showing as sub 90 at times (I had a chest infection) and I had to verify again with another device that I didn’t need to go to hospital.

I did try all the suggestions like shaving arm hair, moving further up arm, but nothing seemed to make a difference.

Oddly I had a similar experience with a Fitbit years ago, wondering if skin tone or vein bulginess might have something to do with it.

Anyone else had similar?

Yes with power, but speed is a weirdness, seems to defer to amount 150kmph, vary in the middle, and end up at 150kmph again. Don’t know how to fix it tbh so I’m doing Zwift workouts with hr and power to better advise the body battery.

When I picked up a smart trainer the first ride apparently I did a max speed of 146MPh covering 47miles in an hour… I had to cross reference a table the trainer manufacturer had on their site for model of trainer and calculation for recording devices by other brands, the calculation for me was wheel circumference divided by 12.1 which then gave me more realistic rides being recorded.

Here’s the link if your trainer is Elite

@kryton57 I dont wear mine on the turbo but the body battery drops when I sync it all to Garmin Connect so I think it still takes it into account without wearing it during the actual activity (assuming you sync the activity with Garmin through zwift or strava)?

@oikeith thank you! I have a Direto so that’s now set to 173 instead of 2093 – works and looks sensible on the watch I’ll see tonight if it matches with zwift!

Robbo – I have a vivosmart and yes this works the same as you mention without the instinct. Having paid £300 for a trinket though I may as well max out its use….

Where do you make those changes? I can’t seem to find it on mine…..I’ve got a Drivo

From the watch screen, Settings (hold down middle left button), Sensors…, Add Sensor (you’ll need your drivo on), speed and cadence, Find, and when it locates it select it to add it, it then asks for wheel circumference.

Ah cheers Kryton, will have a go in a bit if I don’t cry off tonight’s session!