Garmin fenix 7S Solar, Smaller sized adventure smartwatch, with Solar Charging Capabilities, Rugged outdoor watch with GPS, touchscreen, health and wellness features, slate gray with black band

use for workout, tracking.

Expensive but nice

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Only had it for a few weeks but loving it so far. The newer wrist hrm tech is much more accurate. Beautifully made, light and stylish.

After living with a daily charger watch. I decided to get something that could handle all of my applications without dying at the end of the day. It was a struggle to make the decision as the watch is not inexpensive, but once I had it in hand I knew that I had made the correct decision. Tons of capabilities which I learn about daily.

I purchased this item because of its major feature. Solar charging and how long it holds a charge. The second reason was the fitness element. The third is the golf course stuff. (I’ll come back after golfing to give a review about that.) Some things I noticed in the other reviews which gave me hesitance before I pulled the trigger on the purchase. 1. People liked their Apple Watch more -reasons for this were the brightness of the screen I’ll address that claim first because I feel like it’s the easiest reason to dislike this watch. I showed multiple screens of the watch in my pics. The watch is not bright when you don’t tap the screen. Anyone complaining is find a reason for this as they clearly bought something that holds charge. To hold charge it cannot have a bright screen. It uses mirrors to create it’s light and to conserve power the screen is not bright unless tapped on. I’d actually call this an ADVANTAGE because every time I’d turn my wrist on my Apple Watch that annoyed me that it would drain battery. 2. Other concerns were the weight. - these are weird concerns in the end. People switching from a standard smart watch to this will feel more weight however I like watched. I like real watches. Not just smart. This is significantly lighter than my diver, and about as heavy as my lighter feminine watches. It is REALLY light weight by that standard. Given I have the lightest but I saw weight complaints for that. I own a tissot and it’s lighter than my tissot. I saw a review which worried me with a guy saying they were shocked at its weight and couldn’t get the lightest for their wife. No offense but have more faith! Anyone complaining about weight should get an Apple Watch because they clearly don’t want a tool watch, the Apple Watch is a gadget. This is a tool. It tries to not be distracting and engaging and do what it needs then get out of the way. The Apple Watch is a device you can use to fidget with and will keep you occupied. The Garmin is utilitarian. 3. Complaints about pricing were often paired with the above “problems.” For the price it shouldn’t weigh x. For the price it should be brighter. These people were not aware of what they needed and thought they wanted a product like this because of charge etc. they were wrong. These are not problems if you understand the exact purpose of this watch. If you want a charge you cannot also have a constant light. If you want a lighter watch you cannot have sapphire and all the elements built into this watch which for its processing power is quite light. Also- you clearly don’t wear watches for dress or daily outside of Apple Watches if you believe this is heavy. (The largest size is owned by my cousin, and he said it was heavy but once gotten used to it was fine. This one would be for a larger person, a taller man, or someone who can handle the weight.) Notes: the app was easy to download, there are two. One app is for the watch, the other is an app which allows you to integrate other apps onto it. Basically an app library. Other thoughts: this is not a good watch for an older person who is not capable of understanding new navigations after getting used to the way mac works. If they have to be taught to use it, it will be too hard for them to get some of it. After 10 minutes at 26 years old I managed to navigate it promptly. However there are some features I’ll look at the manual to understand better. Swiping is easy on it and so is the ability to navigate to sports and more. Complains outside of the brave listed were for ease of use. I would say anyone complaining about that needs something more friendly to them. Not user friendly, as it is user friendly, but some are not WILLING to put in any time. If it’s not easy there’s a tech type who just want it done for them. (I have instructed them and unfortunately my dads that type. 73 and just wants me to fix it not help him learn to do it.) If you’re not willing to take 30 minutes to watch a YouTube video or read the manual don’t buy it. The easiest parts are self explanatory but there’s 5 buttons on the watch and they all do different things. The bottom button on the left sets a timer for example which isn’t how Apple Watch works. But it’s freaking easy! Stop complaining! If you want a watch which is standard in weight, long charge, functional, sends notifications, tracks work outs, and does exactly what it says it will do get a Garmin. I have ADHD and my issue is never remembering to charge. If I do charge I leave the watch behind. I now don’t have to REMEMBER. Thank god It has a “find my phone” feature and since I am very ADHD this is amazing. It is so loud. If you’re complaining about tapping the screen or other basics it’s better to get a different watch. This is convenience based and that small tap isn’t inconvenient but if it bothers you other things about this watch surely will. I think it’s an easy way to justify being mad about the price. Another review noted they didn’t like their notifications kept coming through in meetings. That is weird because well…. It has a do not disturb button. You just need to turn it on

it does a lot of things but...$800 are really not worth it, especially when a lot of those things are done at half the price from other smartwatches - even from the same manufacturer! after a few days I have returned it

I love the watch. Its comes with great features and amazing screen. However it also is heavey and very thick, so not comfortable to wear with dresses or while sleeping. Its accuracy is marvellous and the I love it for running and hiking. Again the nylon band is not comfortable as it grabs the skin and sticks. I wish it was thin and had leather strap.

I tried the Fénix 5X and returned it because it was very tedious to use the maps with buttons only. The Fénix 7X Sapphire Solar not only solves this problem but has a massive increase in battery life and better sensors all around. Most well-traveled trails don’t need fancy GPS watches, but I’ve been going off the trails more and more, and having an accurate GPS and not just a breadcrumb app is convenient. It beats relying only on Compass and maps only.

Absolutely zero regrets with the F7x. Wanted to get a few activities completed and waited until I had to charge it before posting this review. Once I saw the Fenix 7x Sapphire was announced, immediately purchased on the same day. Waited only 2 days before selling the 6x Sapphire on an online auction site because the new one checked all the boxes and fit my wrist better. Started my Garmin wearable relationship with the Forerunner 405CX. That was touch enabled and challenging to use with sweat or rain. Stopped using it because it was clunky looking, very slow gps lock, and the battery life was abysmal. Went to the Fenix 3 HR in March 2016 which served me well. Then in September 2019, purchased on of the first 6x Sapphire which totally improved my life and fitness. So much that I shared my positive experience with friends and family that 5 of them purchased Fenix watches. One of them was an Apple Watch users tired of their battery always needing to be charged. Favorite new features: The biggest selling point for me of the F7x was the improved battery life. The F7x does not disappoint with battery… until I saw the Instinct 2 Solar specs. I pulled it out of the box on 1/26 at 80% charge and only charged it on 2/10 when it reached 20%. With it fully charged and all sensors on, it said 20-day battery life. Simply amazing. My F6x on a full charge said it would last 10 days but it worked out to be only 5. The big dip came when Sleep Score was introduced but it could have been the battery was on its way out. However, was bummed seeing with the Instinct 2 Solar, it is effectively unlimited battery using three hours of charging. More on the Instinct 2 below in “Asks” and “Shortcomings.” During my testing with the solar of the F7x, left it outside for an hour hoping it would be a 1 hour : 1% ratio of battery but that was not the case. Understood within Garmin documentation it says for the F7x not to rely on solar as primary charging. The other favorite feature is within Indoor Cycle, it can be set that the activity automatically broadcasts heart rate to my Peloton. Before it took quite a few clicks. I checked the F6x once it received the v20 update that included HIIT, but it still did not get the ability to set an activity to broadcast HR. To me, that should just be a software change. The other reason I purchased the F7x was for stamina score. It works well and I believe what it says. Tested it on a 5-mile treadmill stint that started at 79% and ended at Actual 7% / Potential 17%. Went out to dinner, had two beers, and then did a 4-mile treadmill run about 3 hours later. Wondered what it would read and it started at Actual 40% / Potential 40% and by the time I was done it was 0/0%. I was exhausted good to see that it measured the same. I have also noticed Sleep Score is calculated quicker. With the F6x, it would be a while since I have gotten out of bed that the score was calculated. With the F7x, if I awake but hanging out in bed, it knows the difference and calculates Sleep Score once I am awake. Tested the new heart rate sensor against my LifeFitness 9700 treadmill, Precor AMT 100, and a random LifeFitness commercial treadmill at the gym. All of them showed the same heart rate as the F7x. I have not tried my HRM-Pro with it yet. The GPS lock on the F7x is amazing. If I hit “Walk” inside the house and start the activity inside the house, it will pick up near instantly once I open the front door. Before with the F6x, it would take a few steps to lock out in the open. Out of the box, my F7x was on the 7.20 firmware. Earlier this week while sitting at my desk, I received a vibrate alert and the message onscreen said it was upgrading to new 7.24 firmware. It took only a few seconds and it rebooted the watch. This is a great improvement over the old models. With the F6x, it seemed to wait for charging cycles. Asks: Garmin must have read my F6x review on Amazon in 2019 because two of the issues I pointed out have been addressed. The 7x Sapphire is now offered in three colors including my requested black bezel. The second was the band that ships with the F7x is the exact replacement that is available without the notches. Combined with improved geometry of the F7x, the band fit exactly the same on the 7th hole with six holes showing. My ask of Garmin this time around is to have a power profile named “Instinct 2 Solar Smartwatch” that effectively turns the F7x into an Instinct 2 Solar with 28-day battery life / unlimited with solar even to the point of turning off color screen. Shortcomings of the F7x: Price is the first with it costing considerably more than the F6x. Part of that is it includes touchscreen and a feature I did not want or like on the 405CX. If I wanted touchscreen, would have just purchased an Apple Watch. Turned off touchscreen after pressing the face and seeing it turned on the watch light. The second price aspect is comparing the Instinct 2 versus the F7x since they are very similar other than looks. Do I regret buying the F7x at launch only to see the Instinct 2 Solar came out two weeks later at half price? No. It actually is going to make me use the features that the F7x has and the Instinct 2 Solar doesn’t. The only gap is battery / solar and I mentioned that in the above asks which could be addressed in a power profile. Odd things: My F7x is from the first batch. Sometimes the buttons are a bit squishy and it feels like there are sharp edges where the band attaches. Haven’t cut myself but on the F6x, that area is beveled and not sharp.