Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled consider: This excessive outdoors watch will get the Skilled treatment
Editor’s Remember
• Distinctive consider date: July 2023
• New Fenix 8 Skilled with upgrades out now
• Launch worth: $799 / £749 / AU$1,349
• Official worth now: $799 / £749 / AU$1,349
Change: November 2024. The Fenix 7 Skilled shouldn’t be Garmin’s top-of-the-line smartwatch, as a result of arrival in 2024.
The Fenix 8 boasts improved GPS and a larger coronary coronary heart worth monitor, nonetheless in another case the design and assemble keep largely unchanged. Which suggests for individuals who can ranking a Fenix 7 at a superb low price all through a product sales event, you may correctly be worth considering the older model.
You’ll nonetheless get good train monitoring, nice battery life, and a rugged chassis which will cope with one thing life throws at it. The Fenix 8 moreover has a significant chilly water crashing topic that renders it ineffective in some circumstances, so in case you want to save your self as a lot as 35% on the file worth, it pays to purchase spherical for a reduction on the Fenix 7.
Stephen Warwick
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: One-minute consider
The Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled is a model new mannequin of the Fenix 7, which launched in early 2022. This isn’t the first time Garmin has launched a Skilled mannequin of its feature-packed watch aimed towards lovers of the great outside and is extra prone to fill the void sooner than we see the Fenix 8.
For the Fenix 7 Skilled, the headline info is that most likely the best Garmin watches is trying to find to boost points even extra throughout the present and coronary coronary heart worth monitoring departments and now wants that may enable you greater understand how well-equipped you is likely to be at tackling hills and endurance events.
The Fenix 7 was a robust watch and it’s additional of the equivalent with the Skilled, offering a rich array of sports activities actions profiles, metrics, teaching and analysis insights and the type of battery life which will keep you away from a charger for weeks.
The problem that the Skilled has is that a number of the big software program program choices have headed to the older Fenix 7 assortment, making the Skilled mannequin additional of a promote for older Fenix owners and individuals who really want the most recent outdoors choices that Garmin has to produce.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Specs
| Half | Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled (47mm) |
| Dimensions | 47 x 47 x 14.5 mm |
| Weight | 78g |
| Present | 1.3-inch 260 x 260 MIP touchscreen |
| Case/Bezel | Polymer and stainless-steel |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Multi-Frequency |
| Battery | 22 days, 73 hours GPS, picture voltaic |
| Connection | Bluetooth, ANT+ and Wi-Fi |
| Water-resistant | As a lot as 100m |
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Worth and availability
- $799 throughout the US
- £749.99 throughout the UK
- $1,349 in Australia
The Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled is offered for buy now straight from Garmin and from quite a lot of totally different retailers along with Amazon. It has a gift RRP of £749.99 throughout the UK, $799 throughout the US and $1,349 in Australia.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Design and show display screen
- New, clearer show display screen
- Comparable rugged kind situation
- New flashlight added
The Fenix 7 Skilled like the standard 7 is all about being a watch that’s constructed for some extreme robust and tumble, so in distinction to Garmin’s Forerunner watches such as a result of the Garmin Forerunner 265you could anticipate a thicker case design, additional tougher metallic and usually a stronger diploma of security in opposition to water.
Similar to the 7, the 7 Skilled is offered in three case sizes. I had the 47mm mannequin, which has similarities to the 47mm Fenix 7 in relation to the best way it feels to placed on and what you could anticipate in relation to weight and the home it soaks up in your wrist.
It’s a polymer case with steel throughout the once more and a bezel constructed from stainless-steel, which helps this watch to weigh in at 79g. Garmin pairs that with 22mm QuickFit straps, so that you just’re solely a straightforward button press away from eradicating it and putting on a model new one. As a bundle, it’s waterproof as a lot as 100 metres making it safe for pool and open water swimming time.
Entrance and centre is a 1.3-inch, 260 x 260 determination transflective memory-in-pixel present, which Garmin says is an improved one on the present included on the non-Skilled 7. I’d say it’s a contact clearer, nonetheless there’s not a big amount in it. It’s nonetheless a present know-how that gives good visibility indoors, exterior and the responsiveness of the touchscreen assistance is just about pretty much as good as you’ll uncover on a sports activities actions watch correct now. It’s in no way going to be as good as a result of the Epix’ assortment AMOLED present, nonetheless is nice for battery conservation.
On excessive of that show display screen lies Garmin’s PowerGlass, which does suggest you get picture voltaic charging powers proper right here to boost the already giant battery numbers Garmin ensures, as long as you’re spending ample outing throughout the photo voltaic to benefit from the benefits.
The 47mm and 42mm Fenix 7 Skilled now moreover seize the LED flashlight from the Fenix 7X, so that you just now have an extra provide of sunshine that could be enabled from the quick settings and will probably be configured to mild up in case you’re in monitoring mode and is certainly a useful extra to have for individuals who don’t have to seize your smartphone.
Garmin makes use of the equivalent charging cable to power it up as a result of the one provided with the Fenix 7 and as a bundle you’re getting an attractive, well-built watch that doesn’t weigh too heavy or too mild and has a show display screen that’s sufficiently huge to you should definitely can absorb your real-time stats and take a look at onboard maps.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Choices
- New local weather overlays for maps
- Endurance and Hill Scores now added
- Coronary coronary heart worth sensor ensures improved train HR accuracy
The Fenix 7 Skilled is a sit up for the surface and doesn’t disappoint with the extent of choices on present proper right here for a lot of preferring to spend additional time exterior than inside.
Along with core working, {{golfing}} (there’s a objective Garmin fills out quite a few our biggest golf watches entries), swimming and biking modes, there are the usual outdoors profiles aplenty overlaying each little factor from climbing to searching, snowboarding and likewise you are getting activity-specific metrics for a lot of of those profiles as correctly.
On the navigation entrance, you’ve acquired preloaded topographic maps, road and path maps and ski resort maps, with touchscreen assist to navigate spherical these maps. Garmin has enhanced that mapping mode with Discount Shading to produce additional detailed maps, the ability to see a break up of your metrics and map on one show display screen and take a look at local weather knowledge like temperature, although that isn’t obtainable in the midst of the monitoring mode show display screen. Up Ahead moreover presents path runners and cyclists the position of Components of Curiosity shut by.
Along with the rich teaching analysis and metrics you already get on the Fenix 7, Garmin has launched new Endurance Scores and Hill Scores metrics that may enable you greater understand whether or not or not you would have put in the right amount of teaching to cope with a hilly route or really go prolonged in teaching or an endurance event. It analyses hilly train historic previous and VO2 Max estimates to realize your endurance and expertise to cope with hills and make it simple to understand whether or not or not it’s good or harmful.
Numerous the Fenix 7 Skilled’s teaching and analysis choices are pushed by good coronary coronary heart worth data and Garmin has sought to boost points on that entrance with a model new optical coronary coronary heart worth sensor onboard and new algorithms to ship improved accuracy, considerably in case you’re exercising.
You do nonetheless have the ability to pair up exterior sensors and whereas the accuracy all through workouts has been steady complete, I don’t assume you need to be ditching that devoted coronary coronary heart worth monitor merely however.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Effectivity
- Good multi-band mode
- Endurance and Hill Scores are correctly supplied
- Comparable good battery life
All the nice traits from the Fenix 7 are retained for the Skilled. Garmin’s good multi-frequency positioning GNSS mode, which improves monitoring accuracy in return for sucking up additional battery life than totally different GPS modes, performs very effectively and Garmin’s mapping assist stays the most effective you’ll uncover on a watch correct now. The combo of touchscreen and button interaction makes it simple to navigate the now additional detailed presentation of those maps as correctly.
The model new Endurance and Hill scores are fascinating additions to the already rich array of metrics Garmin presents, nonetheless how reliable and useful they are going to be for a lot of Fenix 7 Skilled clients is definitely up for debate. You need a few weeks of data to kick points off and whereas there’s some useful suggestion provided spherical these scores they weren’t scores that drastically modified the experience of using the 7 Skilled over the frequent 7. Plus, these choices are coming to the older Fenix as correctly.
One factor that luckily hasn’t modified with the model new {{hardware}} and software program program choices on board is the type of battery life you’ll benefit from on the Fenix 7 Skilled. Garmin ensures the equivalent numbers with as a lot as 22 days in smartwatch mode, which will probably be boosted by picture voltaic charging. For many who’re planning to spend quite a lot of days out in your toes, you could sacrifice the most effective GPS accuracy and go for the Expedition mode to get you 40 days of watch time and possibly additional as soon as extra for individuals who can expose the watch to ample daylight to boost battery.
For those who want to use the Fenix 7 Skilled as a smartwatch, it has the equivalent choices as a result of the baseline Fenix 7. The notification assistance is the strongest of those smartwatch choices and likewise you do have good music participant and controls choices as correctly. You do have Garmin Pay and entry to Garmin’s Be a part of IQ Retailer, though don’t anticipate to pile on an excessive amount of big-name apps proper right here. Some modifications have been made to the particular person interface, primarily throughout the train mode, nonetheless for individuals who have been hoping for additional smartwatch talents than sooner than, that’s not the case proper right here.
Lastly, this could be a watch which will last for weeks, even with frequent use of train monitoring, mapping and smartwatch choices. Make use of the onboard power supervisor choices and turning off choices you don’t use and which will make points go extra.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Should I buy?
| Class | Comment | Score |
| Design | A Fenix 7 Picture voltaic with the equivalent rough-and-tumble aesthetic, now with added flashlight. | 5/5 |
| Choices | An infinite array of choices, although some maps modifications, coronary coronary heart worth monitor, and some new metrics are the one new stuff. | 4.5/5 |
| Effectivity | Good battery life, power and it’s useful throughout the space, although the model new choices don’t remodel the experience. | 4.5/5 |
| Verdict | In all probability the best Garmin watches ever, nonetheless with a slight lack of innovation | 4.5/5 |
Buy it if…
Don’t purchase it if…
Moreover take note of
| Half | Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled (47mm) | Garmin Forerunner 265 | Coros Apex 2 Skilled |
| Dimensions | 47 x 47 x 14.5 mm | 46.1 x 46.1 x 12.9 mm | 46.5 x 33 x 14 mm |
| Weight | 78g | 47g | 53g |
| Present | 1.3-inch 260 x 260 MIP touchscreen | 416 x 416 px AMOLED, Corning Gorilla Glass | 1.3-inch 260 x 260 px MIP show display screen |
| Case/Bezel | Polymer and stainless-steel | Fibre-reinforced polymer | Titanium alloy bezel |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Multi-Frequency | GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, SATIQ | Multi-band GPS |
| Battery | 22 days, 73 hours GPS, picture voltaic | 13 days (20 hours GPS) | 30 days, 75 hours GPS |
| Connection | Bluetooth, ANT+ and Wi-Fi | Bluetooth, ANT+, Wi-Fi | Bluetooth, ANT+, Wi-Fi |
| Water-resistant | As a lot as 100m | Certain, 5ATM | Certain, 5ATM |
