GARMIN F NIX 6 PRO SOLAR EDITION GPS SMARTWATCH
£729.99 www.garmin.com
This technologically-advanced GPS smartwatch boasts a claimed 16-day battery life thanks to its onboard solar charging display. It has heart rate monitoring and a pulse oximeter, and can measure your respiration rate. There’s also onboard, preloaded mapping for mountain biking and other activities. This version has a 47mm-diameter stainless steel case, with a 33mm-diameter, 260 260-pixel resolution screen embedded within. It’s 15.1mm deep and weighs 83g with the standard silicone strap. A 10 ATM water rating means it can withstand water pressures equivalent to a depth of 100m. GPS, GLONASS and Galileo satellite tracking logs your whereabouts. Connectivity-wise, Bluetooth and ANT+ both feature.
The fenix 6 Pro feels light on the wrist and isn’t as bulky as its dimensions suggest, fitting comfortably under long sleeves without creating a bulge. However, it’s large enough to hold back cuffs if they’ve been pulled above the watch, which helps get sunlight onto its face to charge it. Using the watch as a GPS activity tracker, we found that the battery would last around seven days, with a two-hour session depleting its charge by between three and 10 per cent. If we weren’t using the GPS, the battery would only drain by between five and eight per cent per day. So, unless you’re a really ardent exerciser, you’re unlikely to need to charge it more than once a week, which is impressive.
During testing we crashed, with the watch’s bezel and face contacting the ground. Scuff marks were left on the body and there was a small scratch on the exterior edge of the glass, but that was all the damage, and the solar charging and waterproofing were unaffected.
While the five-button user interface isn’t initially intuitive, it’s quick to use once mastered. The physical controls are well suited to active use and more useful than a touchscreen, given the display’s smaller (compared to a smartphone) size. Its maps are clear to read, and details such as footpaths, bridleways and forest tracks are vibrant. Turn-by-turn directions are easy to follow, with large bold arrows indicating which way to go and when, like on Garmin’s Edge 830 GPS unit.
Thanks to its robust design and massive list of features, there’s little the fenix 6 Pro can’t do that a dedicated bike computer can, although we did find its heart rate monitoring to be less accurate than using a chest strap linked to a bar-mounted computer. It’s easy to use on the move, and the screen’s size and clarity makes at-a-glance data easy to see. If you’re after a fitness tracker and a bike computer, or want to consolidate multiple devices into one, this should be at the top of your list. Alex