Garmin GPS Watches

Starting out with a Garmin GPS Watch

Garmin Watches are unlike other smartwatches in that they don’t necessarily focus on the same things or provide the same experiences. Where apps and music figure prominently with those from other brands, Garmin’s focus is as much about being active and adventurous. When you wear one of these watches, it’s supposed to make you feel more confident about whatever excursion you have in mind.

Built-in GPS helps you keep tabs on your location and the distance you’ve travelled in whatever you choose to actively do outdoors. That caters to avid runners, joggers, hikers, walkers, to name a few. It’s also the kind of connectivity that applies to golfers who want to know some key information to improve their game.

The GPS connection works directly from a Garmin watch, so it doesn’t need a smartphone to capture location data. That means the watch logs your route and distance on its own, not by way of a phone’s own assisted GPS capabilities. These watches don’t need their own data plan to connect that way, though they can pair with your phone to do other things.

What Garmin GPS Watches can do

Garmin makes GPS Watches with a number of different purposes in mind. There are models more focused on running, swimming, diving and golf. Others aren’t as specific, like those for adventure and multisport. All of the GPS-enabled watches that fall under all these funnels give you the triangulation you are looking for directly to the watch. No phone required.

With GPS on any of these watches, you can track the metrics that matter for the activity you want to undertake. As an example, Garmin’s Golf Watches have thousands of courses preloaded, giving you insight into precise distances, including shot and club tracking, adding some simple analytics to your game. Go with a Multisport GPS Watch and you get activity profiles for various activities, like running, biking, rowing, skiing, surfing, climbing and more.

All of the active lifestyle features don’t mean these watches ignore all other aspects of life. You can still track activity and fitness like most other smartwatches do. That includes your heart rate, blood oxygen, respiration and sleep quality, among others.

Works with your phone

The Garmin Connect app for iOS and Android is the repository for all the data these GPS Watches collect. It’s where you would see your stats and check whether you are any closer to meeting goals you set for yourself. It also lets you customize the dashboard so you only see the stats you care most about.

You can also listen to music. These watches will let you control the tunes you listen to from your phone. Some models offer integration with Spotify, Amazon Music and Deezer, letting you load playlists directly to the watch and play them through headphones paired via Bluetooth.

Notifications can always come in to keep you apprised. Emails, texts and other alerts come straight to the watch, so you can keep your phone in your pocket or bag.