Garmin Beats Apple to Market with Satellite-Connected Smartwatch

Just days before Apple's expected launch of the satellite-enabled Apple Watch Ultra 3, Garmin unveiled its Fenix 8 Pro -- the company's first smartwatch with built-in inReach satellite and cellular connectivity, SOS features, and a blindingly bright 4,500-nit microLED display. MacRumors reports: With inReach, the Fenix 8 Pro can send location check-ins and text messages over satellite using the Garmin Messenger app. There is also included cellular connectivity, so the smartwatch can make phone calls, send 30-second voice messages, and provide LiveTrack links and weather forecasts when an LTE connection is available.

LiveTrack is a feature that allows the wearer's family and friends to keep track of their location during an activity or adventure. For emergencies, there is an SOS feature that will send a message to the Garmin Response center over a satellite or cellular connection. Garmin Response will then communicate with the user, their emergency contacts, and search and rescue organizations to provide help. Garmin says that its Response team has supported over 17,000 inReach incident responses across over 150 countries. The Fenix 8 Pro smartwatch launches September 8, with the AMOLED model starting at $1,200 and the 51mm microLED version priced at $2,000. Both require a paid inReach satellite plan beginning at $7.99 per month for full functionality.

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[drinkypoo]

There is still a middle class. It is very small, but it does exist. Companies are charging enough for these high-end doodads that they don't have to sell very many. Their name is very good. They have a well-developed reputation for quality, admittedly with some flubs, but who's perfect? $1200 is not that much these days if you have a decent salary. The number of people who think that they do but actually don't is simply very large.

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[timeOday]

That is greatly overstating the fall of the middle class, especially since most of those who left it actually graduated to the upper class:

The share of Americans who are in the middle class is smaller than it used to be. In 1971, 61% of Americans lived in middle-class households. By 2023, the share had fallen to 51%, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of government data.

As a result, Americans are more apart than before financially. From 1971 to 2023, the share of Americans who live in lower-i

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[UnknowingFool]

The target audience for this watch has never been the middle class. These Garmin watches have always been geared towards amateur or professional athletes specifically runners and triathletes. Their market is the kind of people who spend $300 on a pair of shoes [nike.com] they replace every 3-6 months and entry fees that start at $200 per race.

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[Gilgaron]

That and Garmin devices have a long tail, you can still get several gen old devices new in box at a much more reasonable price. So, once the Fenix 10 Pro is released in a few years with grappling hook gun and holographic display you can grab the product here for $500 or whatever.

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[ArchieBunker]

The nordic countries seem to have it figured out. They have a capitalist economy based on selling oil and use that wealth to pay for social programs to benefit citizens.

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[cmseagle]

Nope. Denmark's oil production is trivially small (~25% of the US per capita). Sweden, Iceland, and Finland produce none.

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[cayenne8]

The target audience for this watch are the same people clamoring for socialism. I wonder how they reconcile socialism with a $1,2000 Apple watch.

That price is for the Garmin...the Apple Ultra Watch 2 was still at $799 I believe......the new Ultra 3 I'm guessing will remain very close to if not stay at that same price......

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[toddz]

Agreed, those price points are crazy. For $2k, I'd rather buy a TAG and a personal locator beacon that probably has better range.

Re:$1,200

[timeOday]

I wouldn't spend the dough either, but this watch does have what no other does. Running is the one time when a phone is relatively big and bulky to be carrying, and this will supposedly work beyond cell service. Some of those wealthy middle-aged trail runner dudes might judge it worthwhile for 911 out in the hills. The cool physically fit CEOs (and wannabes) will be wearing them I'm sure.

As for the screen, personally I wish we'd just go back to plain old LCD matrix for unbeatable sunlight visibility. But as emissive screens go, I guess this will be the brightest with good battery life.

So, it's harder to make an irrefutable case for it being a bad value when there is no head-to-head competition.

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[quantaman]

If you go backpacking in the mountains it's not hard to get out of range of cell service, even if you're on fairly standard trails.

This wouldn't be a bad thing to have on a multi-day hike.

Re:$1,200

[thegarbz]

For $2k, I'd rather buy a TAG and a personal locator beacon that probably has better range.

If you wanted to tell the time and have an emergency locator then this product isn't even remotely designed for you, just like people who would be in the market for this watch would find your incredibly expensive option that does only 2 things out of the many thousands of functions these devices offer, truly bizarre.

Just say you're not in the market for a smartwatch.

Re:$1,200

[sizzlinkitty]

The Garmin Fenix 8 Pro (47mm AMOLED) has amazing battery life in comparison to the latest Apple Watch Ultra 2. The Fenix 8 Pro (47mm AMOLED) claims 15 days or 8 days wiith always on screen. The best the latest Apple Watch Ultra 2 can muster is 3 days in low power mode, otherwise 36 hours in normal mode. So unless Apple has a battery breakthrough, it won't compare to Garmin.

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[fluffernutter]

But how many years of charging daily will it last? I know current Galaxy watches are around 3 years, then it's garbage because the charge won't even last a day. It's the same problem with wireless headphones.

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[necro81]

But how many years of charging daily will it last? I know current Galaxy watches are around 3 years, then it's garbage because the charge won't even last a day.

I have a Garmin Forerunner 955. It's over 3 years old. I use it for workouts (duh), activity/sleep tracking, and some smartwatch functionality. I only need to break out the charging cable once or twice per week.

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[fluffernutter]

But does it run wearOS? My understanding about the galaxy watches is that they need to be charged often because of wearOS. Understood that there are watches without an is that last longer.

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[necro81]

But does it run wearOS? My understanding about the galaxy watches is that they need to be charged often because of wearOS.

No. Garmin develops almost all their own software (not just for fitness watches, but also for bike computers, boats, airplane avionics, etc.). I can't think of any compelling feature of wearOS that would entice anyone to use for anything.

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[Gilgaron]

Oh that's the nice thing about Garmin is you charge it once a week or so. Since the battery lasts so long, even when they get old they still last longer than a Apple or Samsung watch which are lucky if they last the day. I have a couple Garmins that have different features and the 5 year old one has worn down to where the battery only lasts 6 days in smartwatch mode, and 30 days as an analog watch. My newer outdoorsy one goes for 14 days if you're not doing too much GPS tracking. The main difference is

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[fluffernutter]

Ok but the only reason at all that I would want a smartwatch is for it to track my Google calendar meetings and alert me on them. You can't do that without wear OS as far as I understand. If I need GPS I can just take my phone out of my pocket and look at Google maps.

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[Gilgaron]

Yeah it'll alert you about your calendar, you can reply to messages on Android, manage music playback from your wrist, all that jazz. Only the outdoorsy Garmins even have the GPS modules, the other models just use the phone for location.

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[thegarbz]

Garmin watches are more functional than Apple's pretty accessories. Heck most Apple watches won't even survive what these Gamins are designed to be put through.

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[thegarbz]

I guess Apple fanbois have mod points today and think their fashion accessory compares to a ruggedised special purpose device. LOL

Dude! my watch solves Kepler's equation!

[RightwingNutjob]

Bro, that's nothin'! My toaster uses a satellite link to text me a toast emoji when my toast is done!

Dat all u gots, Jack?!?

[Anonymous Coward]

My IoT based toilet roll holder uses cutting edge AI to calculate how many squares are left to properly wipe my ass clean based on long term usage tracking, and notify me to order more so I don't get caught without any after a good, solid shit session.

Garmin needs a new hit

[Kevin108]

For nearly a decade, I have subscribed to the Delorme/Garmin inReach service for satellite communication in the middle of nowhere. Starting with the iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max, this feature was included for free. While I don't expect the Apple service to be free forever, moving it to a camera-enabled device I already have, plus saving me ~$15 a month, I have canceled my Garmin subscription. There's nothing wrong with the device, but saving almost $200 a year and building emergency coms into the USB C-chargeab

Better content

[necro81]

For those that want better content about the Fenix 8 (and sports technology generally), a much deeper dive [dcrainmaker.com] can be found from DCRainmaker [dcrainmaker.com]. Given his profile, he often gets pre-release devices, but he always buys his own materials and does not get paid for reviews.