Garmin Instinct Solar, Rugged Outdoor Smartwatch with Solar Charging Capabilities, Built-in Sports Apps and Health Monitoring, Graphite

This is my latest in a long line of Garmin GPS I've owned. My last one has been going strong for years but I wanted to be able to load a route to help with guidance on long-distance off road runs or walks in the Lake District. I like this watch because the navigation feature works reasonably well. The screen-size is a little small for my ageing eye-sight, but that's not Garmin's fault. Battery life is superb, it's very comfortable to wear and looks that good that I wear it sociably. Can't comment on reliability or how water-proof it is yet but I'm confident. It connects and works well with the app on my Android phone. I was so impressed with my new watch I bought one for my partner, but in a different colour. We have started to use the tracking feature when we are out on runs alone and it works very well. There are loads of other features that I don't use. I would definitely recommend this watch to anyone who wants to be able to plan routes and then be able to navigate using it.

I have always been active and enjoy many outdoor activities but this lovely piece of kit has been a game changer for me as it takes recording your training and exercise to the next level. Through the app you download to your phone it records the usual distance, time etc. as you would expect but also gives elevation, heart rate, stress levels, body 'battery' as well as GPS mapping - I've used a fraction of the functions with still loads more to discover & use but so far I'm really chuffed. This is my first purchase of a device such as this so I am no expert on these things, but I'd say that anyone who is a keen amateur to semi serious about multi sport performance, this watch covers more than enough of what they'd need? Plus it looks really cool to wear as an everyday watch - I own the Sunburst Yellow version but will probably buy another in a different colour to match with other outfits, for work, etc.? All in all - a great & gorgeous Garmin !

Feels very sturdy and has all the functions required. Bought mainly as a back up to an old etrex 30 gps unit, so that if it ever failed I would have an back up to support my map reading skills. Undecided between this and the suunto traverse but decided to stick with what I know, and also the extra battery life offered. Full of features, can use bng as Co ordinate reference, log your position, easy to use and accurate compass plus others that not fully explored. Excellent battery life, wore for 2 days on a overnight hike, in gps mode only and only used half available battery. In gps mode only, tracking is very accurate and got me within approx 6 ft of my car when back tracked. Very comfortable and light to wear. If only could put maps on at this price point but wouldn't go for a walk now without wearing this.

Hi,I’ve been looking for smart watch for some time now.done a lot of research and decided this watch was the one for me.I’ve had it 5 months now and love this watch.The size is perfect,no deferent from all my other sports watches I’ve worn over the years.I mainly use this for running,cycling,swimming,walking,heart rat and steps.GPS is very accurate and I love it when it buzzes on every mile. Love the colour yellow,which I chose. Straps very comfortable. Great looking watch,I wear it for ever occasion . So far so good it does everything I expected it to do.

Great battery life and functionality combine in a good looking watch. GPS function tracking to suit lots of activities

Why did I waste all that time on fitbit watches?! I've had this for 2 months and I use it for walking, running, cycling and strength training. I love it. Accuracy/reliability is perfect. Looks GREAT. Only downside (if any) is that it does so much stuff that I'm not using all it's functionality. Thought I might not like the lack of fancy touch screen but actually don't miss at all. No accidental button presses and fantastic battery life.

If you need a smart watch that's indestructible and totally waterproof - this is the one. the screen isn't colour or touch screen but what it lacks in frills it makes up for in robustness, battery life is decent too.

Was fine for two years, then stopped working. Garmin Support couldn't help and wouldn't repair. Supposed to be 'rugged' and survive anything, couldn't survive being placed on a bedside table!

Utilisée pour le quotidien, la randonnée, la natation en mer. Jolie, simple ( pour une montre gps avec trajets, waypoints...), très lisible et champs paramétrables. Bon rapport qualité prix.

Great look, very good battery life, more than 14 days, very good water resistant. Works with Strava and Apple health.

>>Update: 12/11/23 after having the watch 16 months Sooo, when it comes to ruggedness, the watch held up for 16 months of hard 24/7 use… ONLY with a constant screen protector (see my original review below). I found the screen protector absolutely necessary to protect the hard (brittle) crystal face. I had to replace the screen protector about 8 times during those 16 months and, even so, most of the time it was cracked. I would wait until there were 3 or 4 cracks to replace it. However, with the screen protector in place the watch DID hold up to my abusive daily life. Even the band held up better than I expected. It is a soft silicone so, while that makes it exceptionally comfortable, it did get cut up a bit. The 15 month mark was where I finally ordered a 4 pack of replacement straps because I was concerned that the cuts would open up soon and the band would fail. A pretty respectable performance for a soft, comfortable strap but a fair bit shortlived compared to the tougher Casio bands which take 2-4 years of abuse and are not uncomfortable in the least to me. And, finally, at 16 months the battery is failing. The watch will shut off 3-6 times per day no matter where the charge is from 40%-100%. To make absolutely sure it didn’t have anything to do with button presses I took it off and left it sitting on an end table. The battery is toast after 16 months. That’s considerably shorter than the lifespan of a cell phone battery, shorter than a REPLACEABLE watch button battery and far far shorter than a Casio solar watch battery. Again, that’s with very few O2 readings (<10), no ‘activity session’ tracking, less than 50 “flashlight” uses of less than 1 minute each and only a few GPS uses (literally 3 or 4). That’s far from heavy battery usage and only charging it once every week or two, typically about every week and a half. So, I found the watch to be my absolute favorite smart watch. I found it to be, really, fairly rugged ONLY so long as I keep a screen protector on it. If you are looking for a smart watch and activity tracker, have a rambunctious lifestyle and aren’t concerned about a high def, full color screen this watch/series appears to me to be the front runner on the market. Especially if battery life is of great concern. However, if you are used to your watches holding up for years while taking a heck of a beating and you think this watch could be an equivalent to those watches while entering into the smart watch/tracker market you should take a beat to consider it further. I would suggest those most active and hardest on their watches factor in screen protectors and the need to replace them CONSTANTLY or live most of your life with cracked screen protectors on your watch. Also, even then, don’t expect 3 or 4 years out of it. In my experience, don’t expect 2 years or even 1.5. For the price tag on this watch I could easily get 10-20 years of use out of multiple Casio solar or the cheapest G-shock watches. So, I have to ask myself, is this watch worth it? I would say, personally, that it was worth it once. I received some insights into overheating/heatstroke, improving my sleep patterns and managing my daily stamina through my own observations of the data (the Garmin “insights” never gave me any new and useful info). This was only possible because, unlike with other watches/trackers, it was tracking what I needed constantly 24/7/365 and I only lost the time it was charging once every couple of weeks while I was sitting in the living room watching TV. I appreciated the watch and the insights from it and I don’t regret it but I’m not willing to replace it every 16 months, deal with constant screen protector cracks and replacements and I sure did miss my analog watch hands. I’m going back to my Casio tough solar, G-Shock and Pro Trek watches. >>Original review I’m a “watch guy”. I probably have about (embarrassingly) 2 dozen watches and I’ve worn a watch, basically, 24/7/365 since I was about 9 years old. I have tried about 4 smart watches and a few fitness trackers over the years before the Garmin Instinct Solar and it’s my favorite that I’ve tried by a lot, BUT… I’ve had a smartphone since the original iPhone. I use it all day every day for tons of different things and, being a watch guy, I thought fitness trackers and smartwatches were a logical progression. That’s why I’ve tried so many but they were always disappointing for numerous reasons. The first is battery life. I charge my phone often. I take it out of my pocket and plug it up or put it on a MagSafe charger. It’s charging while I’m using the GPS to drive to my next service call. But I can’t abide taking my watch off to charge it up every night. Even once a week is a stretch. I’ve been wearing a watch 24/7/365 for almost my entire life and going out of my way to take the watch off and charge it is… irritating to say the least. The Solar Instinct lasts about 20-30 days between charges. That’s with constant activity and heart rate tracking, no O2 tracking at night and not using GPS. That is fantastic! The second issue is annoying alerts. As a rabid smartphone user, I thought I would prefer the convenience of seeing calls, texts and notifications at a glance on my wrist. I was so wrong. I’m perfectly satisfied with notifications on my phone. I use my discernment to decide when to check notifications on my phone and they don't get unnecessarily intrusive. Smartwatch notifications on the other hand are extremely invasive. Having my wrist blow up on me is extremely irritating. It's distracting and costs me time by breaking my concentration on whatever task or thought I'm engaged in and the fact that it can't be easily ignored is no small matter. I have my Solar Instinct set up for no notifications which I greatly prefer. The third consideration would be the features. The ability to control your music or engage your phone’s camera with your watch is fine but those types of things (or, obviously, phone notifications) don't concern me. What I love about the Solar Instinct is the customization to display many pieces of information that I value, by default, on the face and the ability to track my heart rate 24/7, my sleep, my general activity and GPS without a huge battery life cost or a phone connection. What I really like is that it also has good watch functionality, i.e. stopwatch, timer, alarm, etc. What I find useful on occasion is the O2 monitor and the ability to use it as a little flashlight in a pinch. The final consideration which may be the one most pertinent for me is ruggedness. You see, in the HVAC trade, I work with my hands for a living. I'm also a red-blooded American. In addition to the physical nature of my job I frequently do yard work and find occasion to cut down/up trees, split wood, build things, work on things and engage in maintenance on vehicles and my home and, as established, I wear a watch at all times which includes when engaging in these activities as well as showering and swimming. I have destroyed many watches, particularly the ones I’ve worn while working. When I first got my Instinct Solar I was babying it because, well, my experience has been that smartwatches and activity trackers are FAR from rugged and robust. I didn't wear it at work. I would swap it out with my work watch when I got home & swap them back before I left in the morning. I wanted it to last and, to start, I sacrificed tracking during the majority of my activity (while at work) for the sake of protecting the watch and longevity. Finally, after a few weeks, I wore the watch while doing yard work on the weekend. THE FIRST TIME I wore it while weed-eating the screen got busted. Now, I'm sure the reason this happened is that they used a nice, hard, highly scratch-resistant crystal for the watch BUT this is a real problem. I didn't expect that it would be too much to ask of a “robust” watch that’s “mil-spec” rated to be able to wear it while doing basic yard work. You know, a period where you might want to track your heart rate and activity. What's more, of the hundreds of times I've done yard work and used a weed-eater, always while wearing a watch, NOT ONCE has it ever significantly damaged a watch. Until that is, the first time I did it wearing my Instinct Solar. I replaced that watch and disappointedly decided I'll just have to use screen protectors from now on. The new Instinct Solar took a dive after just a few weeks. It began an endless bootup loop. It would boot up and crash and boot up again endlessly. I tried charging it, letting it die and doing a hard boot. Nothing worked. Tech support had me, of course, do another hard boot because that's what they do to people who take the time to troubleshoot their own issues. They have you repeat the steps you've already taken. After that they had me send them a video of what the watch was doing and they promptly sent me a replacement. They did make it right. By this point, I decided I'm done babying it. I keep a screen protector on it and I may remove the watch to shove my hand/arm in a tight spot at work but I wear it 24/7 now. It is what it is. If this watch can't handle normal life so it can track my heart rate and activity then so be it. I have plenty of “normal” watches I can revert to in that event (which are a fraction of the cost by the way). If that occurs I suppose I'll just forget about smartwatches until someone finally comes out with one that at least has the capabilities of the Instinct Solar and is truly rugged. As a side note, we are now back to warm weather and I have worn it while weed-eating twice. That resulted in cracking and replacing the screen protectors for the first two times. So, the tally is weed-eating three times resulting in one broken watch and two broken screen protectors. I'm also not fond of the proprietary watch band attachment that prevents the use of a regular band like 99% of other watches use. At this point, however, I'm not sure this will even become an issue. I don't see the watch lasting long enough to require a band replacement but we’ll see. As much as I like the Instict Solar it just doesn't seem to be resilient enough to hold up to my normal life. It may be absolutely great for someone who lives in an apartment, works at a desk or a counter and whose physical activity consists of working out at the gym or running or swimming or biking. If, on the other hand, you have a rough-and-tumble kind of life you should think twice about spending the scratch on this watch if your plan is to wear it 24/7. It certainly seems tougher than 99% of smart watches but it can't hold a candle to the beating a $30-$40 Casio “tough solar” can take, much less a G-Shock.

It works very well, is strong and has a good lasting battery.

It has ABC + Thermo + Heart beat sensor + GPS (GLONASS & GALILEO) all built in. The battery lasts for around 2 weeks. It is amazingly light, weighing around 52 gms only. It fits perfectly on my wrist. The display is bright and big. Legible in the Sun. The buttons are tactile and ergonomic. I don't want to comment on the durability as it is built with 810-G military standards 🙂. There are plenty of watch faces built-in (both - ve & +ve display). Getting it to connect to your phone or computer is like a breeze. This review box will fall short if I get started on the features. One of my favorite purchases of the year!