Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled evaluation: This prime outdoors watch will get the Skilled treatment
Editor’s Bear in mind
• Genuine evaluation date: July 2023
• New Fenix 8 Skilled with upgrades out now
• Launch price: $799 / £749 / AU$1,349
• Official price now: $799 / £749 / AU$1,349
Substitute: November 2024. The Fenix 7 Skilled is no longer Garmin’s top-of-the-line smartwatch, because of the look in 2024.
The Fenix 8 boasts improved GPS and a higher coronary coronary heart cost monitor, nevertheless in every other case the design and assemble keep largely unchanged. Which means ought to you’ll be able to score a Fenix 7 at an excellent low value all through a product sales event, chances are you’ll successfully be worth considering the older model.
It’s possible you’ll nonetheless get good train monitoring, tremendous battery life, and a rugged chassis that will take care of one thing life throws at it. The Fenix 8 moreover has a significant chilly water crashing problem that renders it ineffective in some conditions, so when you want to save your self as a lot as 35% on the guidelines price, it pays to purchase spherical for a reduction on the Fenix 7.
Stephen Warwick
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: One-minute evaluation
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 nice open air and is extra more likely to fill the void sooner than we see the Fenix 8.
For the Fenix 7 Skilled, the headline data is that top-of-the-line Garmin watches is searching for to boost points even extra throughout the present and coronary coronary heart cost monitoring departments and now wishes that may help you increased understand how well-equipped you is perhaps at tackling hills and endurance events.
The Fenix 7 was a strong watch and it’s further of the an identical with the Skilled, offering a rich array of sports activities actions profiles, metrics, teaching and analysis insights and the kind of battery life that will maintain you away from a charger for weeks.
The problem that the Skilled has is that many of the huge software program program choices have headed to the older Fenix 7 assortment, making the Skilled mannequin further of a promote for older Fenix householders and individuals who really want the latest outdoors choices that Garmin has to produce.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Specs
| Ingredient | 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, photograph voltaic |
| Connection | Bluetooth, ANT+ and Wi-Fi |
| Waterproof | 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 on the market for buy now straight from Garmin and from a variety 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
- New, clearer show
- Comparable rugged sort concern
- New flashlight added
The Fenix 7 Skilled like the same old 7 is all about being a watch that’s constructed for some extreme robust and tumble, so not like Garmin’s Forerunner watches such as a result of the Garmin Forerunner 265you presumably can anticipate a thicker case design, further more durable metal and typically a stronger diploma of security in the direction of water.
Identical to the 7, the 7 Skilled is on the market in three case sizes. I had the 47mm mannequin, which has similarities to the 47mm Fenix 7 by the use of the way in which it feels to placed on and what you presumably can anticipate by the use of weight and the world 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 simply’re solely a simple button press away from eradicating it and putting on a model new one. As a bundle deal, it’s waterproof as a lot as 100 metres making it protected for pool and open water swimming time.
Entrance and centre is a 1.3-inch, 260 x 260 resolution 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, nevertheless there’s not an unlimited amount in it. It’s nonetheless a present experience that offers good visibility indoors, outdoor and the responsiveness of the touchscreen help is just about nearly as good as you’ll uncover on a sports activities actions watch correct now. It’s certainly not going to be as vivid as a result of the Epix’ assortment AMOLED present, nevertheless is excellent for battery conservation.
On prime of that show lies Garmin’s PowerGlass, which does suggest you get photograph voltaic charging powers proper right here to boost the already huge battery numbers Garmin ensures, as long as you’re spending adequate outing throughout the photo voltaic to take pleasure in the benefits.
The 47mm and 42mm Fenix 7 Skilled now moreover seize the LED flashlight from the Fenix 7X, so that you simply now have a further provide of sunshine which may be enabled from the quick settings and is perhaps configured to gentle up everytime you’re in monitoring mode and is unquestionably a useful additional to have do you have to don’t want to seize your smartphone.
Garmin makes use of the an identical charging cable to vitality it up as a result of the one provided with the Fenix 7 and as a bundle deal you’re getting a shocking, well-built watch that doesn’t weigh too heavy or too gentle and has a show that’s sufficiently large to make sure you can soak up your real-time stats and take into consideration onboard maps.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Choices
- New local weather overlays for maps
- Endurance and Hill Scores now added
- Coronary coronary heart cost 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 provide proper right here for people preferring to spend further time outdoor than inside.
Along with core working, {{golfing}} (there’s a motive Garmin fills out a great deal of our best golf watches entries), swimming and biking modes, there are the usual outdoors profiles aplenty masking each half from mountaineering to shopping, snowboarding and likewise you are getting activity-specific metrics for a lot of of those profiles as successfully.
On the navigation entrance, you’ve purchased preloaded topographic maps, freeway and path maps and ski resort maps, with touchscreen help to navigate spherical these maps. Garmin has enhanced that mapping mode with Assist Shading to produce further detailed maps, the pliability to see a break up of your metrics and map on one show and take into consideration local weather data like temperature, although that isn’t obtainable by means of the monitoring mode show. Up Ahead moreover offers 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 help you increased understand whether or not or not you should have put within the appropriate amount of teaching to take care of 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 take care of hills and make it simple to know whether or not or not it’s good or harmful.
Plenty of the Fenix 7 Skilled’s teaching and analysis choices are pushed by good coronary coronary heart cost data and Garmin has sought to boost points on that entrance with a model new optical coronary coronary heart cost sensor onboard and new algorithms to ship improved accuracy, notably everytime you’re exercising.
You do nonetheless have the pliability to pair up exterior sensors and whereas the accuracy all through workouts has been steady complete, I don’t assume attempt to be ditching that devoted coronary coronary heart cost monitor merely however.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Effectivity
- Good multi-band mode
- Endurance and Hill Scores are correctly launched
- Comparable good battery life
Your complete good 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 further battery life than totally different GPS modes, performs quite properly and Garmin’s mapping help stays the proper you’ll uncover on a watch correct now. The mixture of touchscreen and button interaction makes it simple to navigate the now further detailed presentation of those maps as successfully.
The model new Endurance and Hill scores are fascinating additions to the already rich array of metrics Garmin offers, nevertheless how reliable and useful they will be for a lot of Fenix 7 Skilled clients is definitely up for debate. You need a few weeks of knowledge to kick points off and whereas there’s some useful advice supplied spherical these scores they weren’t scores that drastically modified the experience of using the 7 Skilled over the widespread 7. Plus, these choices are coming to the older Fenix as successfully.
One factor that thankfully hasn’t modified with the model new {{hardware}} and software program program choices on board is the kind of battery life you’ll take pleasure in on the Fenix 7 Skilled. Garmin ensures the an identical numbers with as a lot as 22 days in smartwatch mode, which is perhaps boosted by photograph voltaic charging. For those who occur to’re planning to spend a variety of days out in your toes, you presumably can sacrifice the proper GPS accuracy and go for the Expedition mode to get you 40 days of watch time and doubtlessly further as soon as extra ought to you’ll be able to expose the watch to adequate daylight to boost battery.
For those who want to use the Fenix 7 Skilled as a smartwatch, it has the an identical choices as a result of the baseline Fenix 7. The notification help is the strongest of those smartwatch choices and likewise you do have good music participant and controls choices as successfully. You do have Garmin Pay and entry to Garmin’s Be a part of IQ Retailer, though don’t anticipate to pile on quite a lot of big-name apps proper right here. Some modifications have been made to the individual interface, primarily throughout the train mode, nevertheless ought to you’ve gotten been hoping for further smartwatch experience than sooner than, that’s not the case proper right here.
Lastly, this could be a watch that will closing for weeks, even with widespread use of train monitoring, mapping and smartwatch choices. Make use of the onboard vitality supervisor choices and turning off choices you don’t use and that may make points go extra.
Garmin Fenix 7 Skilled: Must I buy?
| Class | Comment | Ranking |
| Design | A Fenix 7 Picture voltaic with the an identical rough-and-tumble aesthetic, now with added flashlight. | 5/5 |
| Choices | An infinite array of choices, although some maps modifications, coronary coronary heart cost monitor, and some new metrics are the one new stuff. | 4.5/5 |
| Effectivity | Good battery life, vitality and it’s useful throughout the self-discipline, although the model new choices don’t critically change the experience. | 4.5/5 |
| Verdict | The simplest Garmin watches ever, nevertheless with a slight lack of innovation | 4.5/5 |
Buy it if…
Don’t purchase it if…
Moreover take into consideration
| Ingredient | 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 |
| 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, photograph 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 |
| Waterproof | As a lot as 100m | Certain, 5ATM | Certain, 5ATM |
