Instinct Rugged Outdoor Smartwatch, Built-in Sports Apps and Health Monitoring, Graphite

I bought this watch in Dec 2020, so it's had 2 years and 4 months of everyday use! I've wated a good length of time to review it to hopefully give you a good idea of how robust the watch is etc. Not after a weeks use!! I use the watch everyday without fail and pretty much wear it 24/7 unless I'm charging it! Mainly I'll record hikes, including mountain hikes and the odd bike ride, so this is when I'll record the activity via the built in GPS, then download the activity to the Garmin app and Komoot. I used the watch to record hiking activities extensively last year whilst travelling in our campervan, spending 3 months in France, 3 months back in the UK, then 3 months in Spain. So what I'm saying is that the watch is used a lot. The battery life is fantastic, not using the GPS, I've had a couple of weeks out of it with battery power left over, I think I'd get up to 3 weeks. When the GPS is activated it will last all day, I believe up to 16 hours. I've spent all day on mountains in the UK, Spain and France and there's always been plenty of life left in the battery once the activity has ended. The watch is not bad to look at and is very clear and simple to use, it also sits nice on the wrist and is very light. The only gripe I have is the fact you can't see the steps on the face during a recorded activity, it just means you have to wait until you've finished. Overall I love the watch, it's been totally reliable and the best Garmin I've had by far. I would definitely buy another.

My first smart watch and it is great. The software for Garmin connect went straight onto my ageing Galaxy 4 android without fault and seems to work very well. Only had it a couple of days and was expecting it to be a nightmare to get used to but actually it is very easy and the steps tend on the whole to be common sense. It came in Fahrenheit and miles etc. but was easy to change to centigrade and kilometres. The compass can be set to true, magnetic or grid north as well as degrees or mils. The deal breaker for me was that it gives a good accurate grid reference for the British Ordnance Survey maps and a very accurate sunrise and sunset time. The screen is monochrome/blue and it won't accept pictures on it's screen of your friends sent to your phone but will notify you of the same by message. I only have ugly friends anyway so that is not a problem. On the whole it seems to be very good and accurate with the battery doing well and lasting longer than I expected. When I am rich I will get a Fenix 6X pro but until then this is great. I like Garmin as I got a Garmin 38 handheld GPS back in the 90's and it was great. It still works....! If this watch lasts 25 years then in the year 2045 I will get a Fenix 93X pro with time travel/teleport powered by dylithium crystals. Garmin will probably have that one sussed by then.

I've been looking for a smartwatch for ages that is durable enough to take a few knocks, is reasonably priced and doesn't look like you're carrying a brick on your wrist. This one does all that perfectly! I honestly love this watch, the battery lasts ages, even in GPS navigation mode, it's packed full of features that are actually useful (like the navigation and the ability to control Spotify) and yet it looks like a normal watch. The lack of a touchscreen is a god send as it doesn't go nuts when it starts to rain and it means I don't have to worry about it breaking every time I knock it - which is quite a lot due to my job. The Garmin Connect app that goes along with it is great. Easy to use, informative and let's you create routes which you can send to the watch in advance and navigate using waypoints - super easy to do and very effective. The Garmin Explore app is also worth downloading if you do a lot of walking on footpaths etc as it lets you create routes using an OS style map and send these to the watch, as well as letting you use the app to navigate with more topographic detail offline. All in all, a great watch supported by great apps!

I like this a lot more than I expected I would. Not having to charge the battery for many days at a time makes the whole smartwatch experience much more enjoyable. There is nothing worse than using the Garmin golf watches and immediately having to take them off and charge them after a round. Mind you I haven't been using the GPS heavily for hiking just yet, so that might change my opinion on some things later. On a day to day basis, the App is also surprisingly addictive. I am sure many elements of the data it measures are really only rough guesses but it is nevertheless very useful to notice which days I am roughly walking more, exercising more, sleeping better. It is certainly a good laugh when arguing with the family over who got the worst nights sleep :-) I am most sceptical about the heart rate monitor. I haven't done much running yet but when I am doing mixed workouts in the gym my heart rate seems to jump around a lot. One minute it is in the 90s and the next it is sitting above 130. The next it is much lower again. Maybe this is normal? I have no idea. As for the aesthetics, I like the fact that the watch itself is very light, the strap is soft and comfortable with two loops for the strap, and that the face is very easy to read. I defintely prefer it to the oled type faces. It of course tha face itself is endlessly customisable. This really is a kind of Casio for grown-ups if that's your thing.

I’ve had lots of Garmin Fitness Bands/Watches over the years including the original Vivoactive with the Flat screen To Fenix 5 plus with Maps... And I Reckon this Garmin instinct is probably the most comfortable one I’ve put on my wrist It’s so light that sleeping with it on isn’t a problem unlike the heavier Fenix 5 models which due to the size and weight I found uncomfortable. Sure it’s only a Monochromatic screen but the legibility is second to none even in a dim lit room I can still make out the time where I would be struggling with my Fenix 5 No it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles that the higher priced Garmin watches offer But it has all the main Fitness features that I need and then some And the build quality looks like it would take some serious punishment to actually break this Device.. Only had it for a few days but judging by the battery meter which is still at 100% and the fact I haven’t stopped playing with it since it arrived Bolds well for the Manufacturer’s quoted 14 Day using as a Smartwatch I’ve also done 2 GPS activities So colour me impressed

I got this in the Black Friday deals, and glad I did. It’s on the cheaper side of the Garmin range, but still a useful, easy watch to use. It’s got all the basic things you want on a watch, with the option of having your phone connected, to get smart notifications. I wanted it for logging hikes, steps, heart rate. So, I’m happy with that. It links well with Strava, for those who wondered. The mobile app is easy as pie. I’ve read about other people not liking it, but it’s easy to follow and sync. So far, I can’t actually fault this watch. The battery life of 12-14 days is good too. Once it’s set up, I’d recommend this to almost anyone. It’s so so light as well.

I stayed away from this watch for a while until the instinct 2 came out and the price dropped. This is the type of watch that you can wear everyday and forget that you have it on you. In a nutshell, this watch is very accomplished as it has so many features that will satisfy the climber, the runner , the explorer…… What I really love about this watch is it’s looks, and great readability in any light, and not to mention how amazing the battery life! The ABC is flawless, Storm alarm is on point and for any of you out there wondering what setting to use for early change in weather pattern, I experimented with many settings and the 3hPa drop per 3 hours works the best as it warms you that a L front is making land in the next 6h to 12h. Heart rate is by the far the best I have found to match my S6 during swimming!! During running and cross fit is also accurate. I am very impressed with this watch despite my wife’s comment on how ugly it looks 😂😂

I've been using this watch now for about 3 months, and I love it. It's lightweight, and very comfortable, I wear it 24x7 and have had no problems wearing it all the time. It's rugged and "no nonsense", the stying suits me. The poor thing has been battered by gardening and the odd bit of render dropped on it when I was repairing the garden wall. I run three times a week, and am really happy with the running stats its produces and the info and analytics available on Garmin connect. Battery life is fantastic, and I charge it once every 12-14 days or so. I've used it on a treadmill and running outside, as well as to record strength and aerobic workouts. Brilliant sports watch, and very happy with it.

EDIT: After a year of usage, I have absolutely no complaints. There is a minor issue, the sync with iPhone is a bit flawed, you have to connect, disconnect and then reconnect to sync successfully but this is a small flaw, you have to press a button twice, that is all. For me, the watch lasts a week before I have to charge (even after a year) which is good. I keep bumping the watch on hard objects and the watch is built sturdily. The edges of the watch screen tend to accumulate dust which I have to wash daily. Otherwise, this watch is a gem. Highly recommend. I am writing this review after 4 months of usage. I bought this watch for 21,840 ₹, the price in India right now would have increased because of higher tariffs. I use this watch primarily to track my runs/jogs. The watch is capable of tracking a coterie of activities like running, swimming, cycling, rafting etc. It gives you information on how much time was spent on the activities, calories burnt & the distance covered. It also has a real time heart rate monitor. I cannot speak of its accuracy as I haven't had a benchmark to compare it with. The watch also tracks your sleep. The watch also looks sporty and fashionable, if you dig that sort of thing. I got it in Seafoam rubber blue. The watch is supposed to be used in conjunction with the Garmin Connect app on your Android/iPhone. The app is easy to use and provides a lot of detailed stats that would be of interest to you, sleep time, stress levels etc. Again, the accuracy is difficult to ascertain as I don't have a baseline. You are supposed to connect the watch with the app via Bluetooth and it works flawlessly everytime and takes a minute to sync a days worth of data. The more activities you have, the more time it takes to sync. It's made out of a material which is sweat resistant unlike leather. You do need to wash the watch after a workout to remove the sweat. The watch is waterproof up to a certain depth and I wash it daily with tap water and have faced zero issues. I did face an issue wherein I had to factory reset the watch once because the watch screen was constantly changing. In my four months of usage that only happened once so it didn't bother me that much. I have hit the watch accidentally on hard surfaces quite a few times and the watch is built like a tank, so no damage at all. I only have to charge the watch once a week and it lasts for that duration easily. I use it for 1.5 hours to track activities everyday. I presume most of the battery is expended because of GPS usage. I don't use this watch as a smart watch and I don't think it is meant for that. Although you can keep it synced to your phone, I choose not to do that because of privacy concerns. Overall, I higly recommend this watch as a full fledged activity tracker. I wouldn't recommend this if you are looking for a smart watch although it could be used as one.

A very good watch. Been using for 3 years now, battery still holds up just like the first day. If not use for GPS, can work way more than week without charging. Best clock, as good as old Casio back in the day. Especially useful when you need to monitor the time in more than 2 regions at the time

Simple and reliable. had it for three years now. Running in the jungle, Kayaking and swimming with it. It never let me down. My colleague has the more expensive Garmin and it stopped working after a year. But I do avoid having it exposed to the sun too long, I rinse the sweat and sault after use and I am careful not to knock it with hard objects. However it is my daily watch as well, so, great product. I had Sunntos before, they were good but they always end up with elevation problems. My Garmin is half the price and after over 3 years I still love it. There is a reason for that. They have a great market making aviation instruments. Well what is good for airplanes is certainly good for me.

Ich habe die Garmin Instinct nun seit Anfang Januar in Gebrauch. Getestet habe ich sie in folgenden Situationen: - Laufen - Schwimmen Indoor (Meerwasserschwimmbad) - Schwimmen Outdoor (Atlantik/Madeira) - Einige Wanderungen in flachem Gebiet - Einige Wanderungen in schwierigem GPS-Gebiet (alpin, Schluchten, Stadt, Wald, usw.) - Mountainbiken in flachem Gelände - Einfache Spaziergänge Fazit bis jetzt: Die Uhr ist absolut wasserdicht (Tauchen konnte ich nicht testen), robust und einfach zu tragen. Im flachen Gelände zeichnet sie Tracks und Höhenmeter ziemlich genau auf. Trainingsfunktionen sowie etliche andere Zusatzfunktionen sind mir weniger wichtig und dazu möchte ich keine Bewerung abgeben. Aufgefallen ist mir, dass die Instinct in sehr schwierigem GPS-Gelände hier und da mal die Orientierung kurzzeitig verliert (Abweichungen vom eigentlichen Trail), was aber selbst Geräten wie Garmin Oregon etc. passieren kann. Testgelände war hier Madeira im Gebirge bzw. auf diversen Levadawanderungen durch etliche Tunnel und durch enge Schluchten. Für ein Gerät dieser Größe macht sie ihren Job aber auch dort durchaus gut. GPS Signal wird sehr schnell gefunden, so das man auch zügig starten kann (hatte ich bei verschiedenen Oregon Geräten schon anders, da kann es durchaus mal über eine Minute dauern). Einziges Manko meinerseits ist die fehlende Funktion um z.B. OSM-Karten einzubinden und im Display anzeigen zu lassen, aber das war mir vor dem Kauf bewusst und kann also hier keinen Kritikpunkt darstellen. Für den Preis und für meine Ansprüche eine super Outdoor-/Smartwatch. Update 12.04.2020: Ich hatte die Instinct zum Tracken bei einer 46 km Wanderung am laufen, zum Vergleich auch das Garmin Oregon 600t auf selbiger Strecke: Beide Geräte lieferten in etwa gleiche Werte was Tracklänge angeht. Lediglich die Höhenunterschiede weichen bei beiden ab, kann aber auch am Gelände liegen (bin am Fördesteig gewandert, da sind kaum Höhenmeter zu messen). Nach ca. 9,5 Std. GPS-Tracking hatte die Instinct immer noch 3/5 Balken Ladung. Eine sehr gute Leistung wie ich finde! Update 28.04.2020: In den letzten Wochen und Monaten kam die Instinct auch bei einigen MTB-Touren zum Einsatz. Im Vergleich dazu trackte auch immer mein seit Jahren erprobtes Garmin Edge 200 am Lenker mit. Auch hier ist es so, dass die Instinct meist schneller den aktuellen Standpunkt ermittelt hat, d.h. sie ist schneller startklar. Zum Biken ist es natürlich sehr viel angenehmer das Edge 200 am Lenkrad immer im Blickfeld zu haben, aber die Instinct ist ja nun mal fürs Handgelenk erdacht worden. Auch hier lieferten beide Geräte in etwa gleiche Werte bzgl. Tracklänge ab. Die Instinct zeigt meistens einige Meter mehr an, was aber auch den gelegentlichen Pausen geschuldet ist in denen das Edge 200 auf 'Autopause' am Bike steht und die Instinct jeden gegangen Meter während dessen weiter misst. Der Vergleich im Hinblick auf Höhenmeter kann eigentlich nicht erfolgen, da das Edge 200 keinen barometrischen Höhenmeter hat und die Auswertung selbiger nur zu Hause über die individuell verwendete Software erfolgen kann. Wertet man aber beide Aktivitäten z.B. über Komoot etc. aus, liefert die Instinct zumeist weniger Höhenmeter. Auch hier habe ich einen super Eindruck und kann die Instinct nur empfehlen bzw. bereue den Kauf nach wie vor in keinster Weise.

This model came out from Garmin at the same time I was starting to seriously want a device for a mixture of tracking activity, in my case most of which is outdoor oriented, like hiking and riding my mountain bike, plus I wanted to start exploring some physical data from a heart rate monitor as I get more active. When smartwatches first started becoming popular, I thought they were pretty stupid and redundant, and in my mind a teeny tiny 2" screen will never replace a phone screen which is small enough, especially for GPS navigation duty. However, the function of getting the sensors and GPS antenna in a more favorable location, plus heart rate monitoring, I could see the benefits of a smartwatch. I didn't like most of what was on the market until this unit. What I liked about this watch was it didn't have all the features and bloated interface to replace interacting with your phone for things a phone is best at. In some ways the Instinct is a throwback to older tech, but in a good way, the way anyone who has experience with GPS from the time it first became widely available for consumer use will appreciate. The interface will just make sense if you were used to the older devices. It does all the things you might want your phone to do, but a phone is not really suited to doing well. I disliked using my phone for tracking hikes and on my MTN bike because either the phone was safe in my pocket with a horrible view of the sky and where I couldn't see it, or I had it strapped on my handlebars where it could get knocked off. Or while hiking I had to pack it in my hands or strapped to my backpack in an awkward position. Not to mention if you use GPS on the phone and keep the screen on to see stats, it will hit the battery hard. With this, you can tuck the phone safely away but still see the info you want. This watch was the right combo of features for outdoor activities and activity tracking to get my attention and be a useful tool more than an expensive trinket. I did not wear any watch before buying the Instinct, and now I wear this most of the time for the last 2-3 weeks I've had it. While it lacks some features of more dedicated fitness devices, I got it mostly for what it did not have rather than what it did. Most criticism of this watch I read prior to purchasing clearly was because this watch has a niche and those folks didn't fit it. This is mostly for outdoor activities, it's simple, rugged, and doesn't do as much because it's made to do it's set of tasks well, and it's trade off is the things it does not do allow it to be smaller and use the battery more efficiently. You can read up on it's features and functions elsewhere, but a few things I will point out as exceptional. Some may harp on the old school LCD type display, but it's high contrast and the way the face catches ambient light extremely well makes it very easy to read. Actually I set the back light on 5%, it's lowest setting, because if it's so dark you need the back light, that is plenty to see it by. I like it's size, it's not huge feeling, and it's light. As I mentioned I did not wear a watch before this one, and I find it comfortable to wear despite a history of disliking things on my wrist. I had to get used to it yes, but it's not like having a rock strapped to your arm. Battery life has been great, using the GPS 2-3 times a week for an hour at a time pulls it down some but I still get over a week on a charge. I've yet to let it run down to the point it claims it needs charging, but so far I've yet to charge it in a period of less than 7 days. Definitely a personal preference but I also really like it's appearance. I got the Graphite colored one, it's not black but kind of a charcoal grey. It's not preppy looking or stylish, and that's what I'm going for. It does not give off that "oh look at me I'm athletic I have a fitbit" vibe, or look super snazzy and expensive, it just looks like a run of the mill boring watch if no one inspects it closely. For sure a more utility look, and for folks who would get the most out of this watch, that's probably perfect. Also will throw in there for my mountain bike, I later picked up Garmin's cadence and speed sensors, and they paired up effortlessly with the Instinct. GPS will cheat you distance on a bike especially and that is just the nature of the tech, I was getting some big discrepancies between the Instinct's recorded track and my wheel sensor bike computer. The trails I ride on frequently are a particular hardship for GPS anyway with heavy tree cover and tightly winding trails. With the speed sensor the difference is much smaller and I recommend it if you are going to use this on a bike. So far I've been very happy with the purchase and impressed with the device, enough to write this lengthy review, which I don't bother with often. (I did lean heavily on reviews deciding to purchase, so this is to help those like me.) If you fall into the niche this watch is intended to appeal to, I recommend it.