Admit it, you have a certain perception about Garmin smartwatches. It is a time derived cultivation. Something on the lines of Garmin’s activity focused smartwatches appeal to those who take their workouts extremely seriously. They’re bulkier in comparison too. Just not for the comparatively more casual use. Admittedly, their most popular watches do feed that perception, but that is only part of the saga.
Garmin’s newest Venu Sq 2 smartwatch is as close an alternative as it gets to a smartwatch, that balances the task of tracking your activity, keeping tabs on health metrics without a complicated layer of apps and features, and ticks off the lifestyle element too. The slimness of this watch, compared with a Epix 2 for instance, tells us Garmin can do both formats rather well. In many ways, Garmin’s approach is more wholesome than Fitbit’s Versa 4 or the Sense 2, two of their newest watches.
Also Read:Is Garmin Epix 2 the definitive smartwatch for activity tracking, for now?
At ₹27,990 for the entry spec variant, it isn’t exactly more expensive than the best of Fitbit (if you can find one of their newer watches) and saves you a few pennies as an Apple Watch alternative too – good news for Android phone users, in particular. Silicone bands are common across, but you’ve the choices (in some cases, across variants) of slate, cream and mint colour options.
It becomes clear immediately that Garmin hasn’t attempted to do too much with the design. The template followed here is similar to what’s largely defined smartwatches around the ₹30,000 price point. Focus being on keeping the slimness in check, limit physical buttons and a nice display to look at. The band is fairly standard stuff, but the quality of plastic used for the watch case is better than what you’d usually expect from plastic.
It isn’t the largest, but the 1.4-inch OLED display is the highlight. It is very usable, and yet keeps the footprint well in check too. If you don’t like large watch sizes, this will probably not disappoint. It isn’t the brightest screen around, but still has enough illumination grunt to be very comfortably visible in bright sunlight.
In Garmin’s portfolio, this sits somewhere near the entry-level bunch, yet the Venu Sq 2 retains the best bits of the Garmin experience. The connectivity with Garmin’s Connect IQ smartphone app, a bunch of sensors and water resistance are some highlights.
The software on the watch takes some getting acclimatized to. It somehow doesn’t feel very intuitive at first. Once you get used to it, there are enough layers to unwrap, for fitness and wellness. Heart rate detection, body battery monitoring (this pulls in a bunch of data to calculate an approximation; I’ve found it quite accurate for my energy levels), stress tracking, hydration tracking, breathing exercises and a wide portfolio of preloaded workouts.
The basics are well in place. Intensity minutes are a nice touch, which gives you a better idea of the minutes of moderate or intensity activity – that is a fine distinction to illustrate, within the larger intent for staying active.
Did you notice we spoke about all the wellness, fitness and activity features, and not mention a subscription service yet? That is because unlike a Fitbit Premium, Garmin does not put certain features behind a paywall. You buy the Venu Sq 2, download the app and simply use it as it is meant to be – without having to deal with annoying subscriptions along the way.
Think of the Garmin Venu Sq 2 as an Apple Watch, but with days and days of battery life? In a way, you can. For regular usage, which is a mix of daily activity tracking and this being a smart watch rest of the time, the Venu Sq 2 lasted us two weeks on a single charge. That is more than the 11 days which the company claims. GPS workouts will reduce this number quite a bit, which if you do, is something to keep in mind. For the rest, interactions with the charger, will be infrequent.
Speaking of which, this is probably the millionth smartwatch with its own proprietary charger. The other side is USB-A, that is, the fill size USB connector. At least this charger also works with other Garmin smartwatches. Which is more than what can be said of Fitbit – most of their watches have different chargers, and not inter-compatible.
Our takeaway from the experience with the Garmin Venu Sq 2 is quite simple. If you are in the market for a smartwatch around ₹30,000 and don’t want an Apple Watch SE for some reason (not having an iPhone could be one), this should be on your watchlist. For all the activity tracking it can do, think of this as half a segment above what the price tag pegs it in. There are still some rough edges, such as the somewhat unintuitive interface. But the Venu Sq 2 more than makes up with substance of wellness and fitness tracking options.
For all the latest business News Click Here
