Just ordered the Enduro 3, I owned both the Apple watch ultra 2 and Epix 2 pro and hated the AMOLED, yes the colors are nice but the wrist gesture only worked half of the time. I did own several off the old MIP Garmins and loved those, so very curious about the Enduro 3 display.
My fat 8" wrist laughs at small watches. Plus the Enduro 3 has options for unlimited battery life. When I am out and about, the last thing I ever want to worry about is do I need to charge my watch? I bought the Enduro tree
Where I live and hike the MIP is MUCH easier to see. I can understand both sides and this video was great comparing the options. If I was mostly in forest or shade, then amoled all day. Backlight in the evening/night doesn’t bother me since I can have backlight set to lower brightness or it enters sleep mode. This is a really difficult decision. I’ve been on the fence of either buying a used fenix, enduro 3 or like you said, 47m Fenix 8. Enduro, just seems so thick and I worry about how that battery life and screen will be on the amoled in 4 years. These are expensive watches and I’d rather not upgrade for at least 4 years lol. Btw let’s make it even more complicated… throw in an Epix pro used if your thinking about switching to amoled. New sensor, flashlight, premium build etc.
@@Mdogbrown thank you so much for the compliments and great questions all around! Honestly looking at your situation if it were me I would buy a used F7X, non-pro, and just make sure I connect to a chest strap for the next nine months. There are rumors of a new F8 pro and micro LED versions coming at some point in the next 12 months and I would probably wait until then to buy a watch if I was going to want to use it exclusively for four years
@@fitgearhunter Thanks for the reply. That helps me make my decision. Micro led would be amazing! If the fenix 8 screen was brighter, it would be a no brainer for me. 1,000 nits is nice, but smart watches are getting 2-3,000 nits now. My AWU 2 is bright enough in direct sun for me.
I think oled will not age as good as mip because of faster battery degredation and burn in. I guess thats why they are pushing the oled more, so that they can sell you a new watch in 2 years.
@@Nick-id1yk I do think there really is a question as to what the possible burn in could be, but it currently has not shown to be as bad as may have been feared initially on previously released watches. At least I have not heard of anyone having any kind of significant burning. The battery degradation is an interesting point though! Not sure about that either but, again, it hasn't been reported to be more severe
@@fitgearhunter I think if the screen is almost always off it is a non issue. But if you google garmin watch burnin you find a view examples what can happen.
MIP all the way. I really like how they shine in the sunlight with the backlight completely turned off. Also AMOLEDs burn in. This is what Garmin writes about it: Image persistence, or pixel "burn-in," is normal behavior for AMOLED devices. To extend the display life, you should avoid displaying static images at high brightness levels for long time periods.
Yes, all good points. But I chose the Enduro so I can do week long hikes (10+hour hikes per day plus map use) without needing to worry about the battery.
Great video, thanks for your insights! I have a 6s Pro. I would upgrade to Amoled, but I really don't like that the always on display doesn't update every second. So my other choice is the fenix 8 mip 47mm, but that is 15.2 mm thick vs my 6s Pro which is only 13.8mm thick... if I had my way, they would make a fenix 8 mip non-solar as it seems to be the solar which is adding the extra thickness.
I tried 47mm ant the strap looked from a child/toy watch, it is just too narrow I went to buy 47"and bought 51". Way better battery, better looking on the hand
@@stefanconstantinescu1576 that's a great point! It's funny I've had a number of people point out that the ratio of the band size to the Watch size is too small. So glad the 51 mm is working more perfectly!
@@fitgearhunter i was going to buy 47", but wanted to test it on my hand, but , even though I have a small wrist, I was shocked how tiny the stap looks... really it looks like a toy watch strap . And once I saw that I cannot unsee it, now I see that in all reviews... The 51" looks more like a real adult watch and strap
if i want clarity and detail i use my phone . love MIP . i dont like to have to "gesture" to see the time , and i dont like something emanating light from my wrist the whole time , it is a lot more than "detail and crispness"
Great rundown! I bought both the Enduro 3 and Fenix 8 47mm AMOLED, and ended up keeping the Fenix 8. My tiny wrists (6.5") just could not handle the Enduro 3 - even though I loved the simplicty of the MIP display and the absolutely mental battery life. With the Fenix, I do love the AMOLED display, and the battery life is still pretty good. I do wish the Enduro 3 came in a 47mm model, though!
@@nooshmert thank you so much for sharing and what an interesting point! A 47 mm E3 would definitely be interesting! It's funny because I actually prefer a plastic back. I don't have a rash or anything but the metal makes my skin itch for some stupid reason but yes, the E3is just too thick for me. It's not the width it's the height that really is the problem or creates discomfort, plus I just love the whole design of the FB 47 mm
@@jakejoyride yes that's still yet to be seen though! Garmin incorporates some sort of pixel shift that should alleviate it at some level, but it still left to be seen for sure!
The problem with oled is that burn in is just unavoidable if you just use those screens and I'm not talking about Garmin but technology that is designed to fail. Colors are beautiful from first look but you have to realize that this first look is a moment when degradation starts because of laws of physics. So after time you end up with screen on which every pixel has incorrect color because those pixels burn unequally. AMOLED is perfect technology for corporations that wish to push their products often. And colorful oled is perfect trap for unaware consumer. I have and use Garmin hand navigation from 2005 and it's MIP screen is perfect after almost 20 years. There are plenty of pictures over internet or burned oled screens from within few years of tvs, phones, laptops, smartwatches from every leading company like Samsung, Apple, Huawei, ... burn in is a fact and it's unavoidable
I wanted to know if the Fenix 8 MIP is higher quality than my Fenix 7X Pro Solar Sapphire. The 7 pro series as a whole are better than the regular 7, as they got updated MIP display panels. Do you happen to know if the 8 is identical to the 7 pro for the MIP display?
Amazing video and comparison. Out of curiosity, what do you think about the new Apple Watch Ultra 2 in black, especially from the perspective of a current Garmin user? I’ll stick with Garmin, but I’m interested to hear your thoughts! Thank you.
@@tivadarorosz thank you so much for the compliments and great question! I have been wanting to do a video just on my thoughts about it, because I am so utterly disappointed. With Apple all around, really. I'm honestly at a point where I wish I was not tied into the ecosystem because I think they are not at all innovating enough with the times. I am shocked, and I mean shocked, At the Apple Watch 10/AWU3 release and how little added value they have!
@@fitgearhunter I completely agree with you, and now I’m even more curious! I hope you make that video because I can’t wait to hear your thoughts in more detail. Thanks again for the great content!
Great run down of the debate. I’m new to Garmin - never had one but know I’d be in camp 1 for this kind of watch. Just don’t want a screen that is a 💡 like my Apple Watch. I’m torn between the 7X Pro and the Enduro 3 as I do dig the more premium build stuff. Here in the UK I can get the 7X Pro with the titanium link bracelet band for £750 and the Enduro is £769 so it’s the same price but you get a very nice band alongside the silicone one. My only hesitation comes from the fact that the Enduro 3 seems like it has a solar system that is really impactful / does something tangible - whereas the 7X Pro it’s a slight benefit. Glad to hear you think the UI changes not being worth it as this was a concern - updates and wotnot. Also interesting to hear that the jump from 7X Pro screen to Enduro 3 not as big as from other watches when it comes to clarity. I also want to ensure I’m not being sucked into the premium vibe of the 7X Pro when the Enduro 3 might actually be just the better - more practical sports watch. Less flashy, but more purposeful in doing what it is supposed to do - (and perhaps just be more comfortable due to cheap strap and weight). Improve wellbeing. Decisions decisions 😂
In my humble opinion, you'd be better off waiting a little while for the 7x pro sapphire model to drop in price and buy that. They usually do deals around Black Friday time which is only a couple months away. If the Enduro 3 had a better premium look, I would prefer that one, I'm in sales and I dress business casual so I like to have a premium looking watch. I tried a forerunner 955 in the past and the plasticky look bothered me. I'm currently using a Fenix 6X Sapphire but I'm waiting for the 7x pro to drop in price so I can buy that. The 7x pro should cover me for 5 years. It has everything I want.
@@Tmacademia thanks for this - I should have probably mentioned that the £750 for the 7X Pro is £250 drop from its normal price of £999(!). The non-special band is normally £839, and discounted would be £629 - so yeah I’m tempted by the £750 deal to get the watch and its nice titanium DLC link bracelet. I’d be spending the Enduro 3 “budget” - and tick the premium materials boxes on the watch and the band 😎
@@mindbalance_cc fantastic breakdown of the dilemma! I would be torn right alongside you. If it were me with this whole debate I would definitely have to look at the F7X pro, and if it were really me I would probably be tempted to find a used F7X pro on marketplace or eBay or something and see how cheap I can get the price down. I personally have never wanted to use the titanium band options, but if you would that is a huge steal if it's the same price because those bracelets are like a lot of money new!
Thanks for the video. Based on your last two videos, the right choice for me will be sticking with my Forerunner 265. It is doing everything that I need it to do. No sense in upgrading, I can wait for Garmin to come out with the release that is a true game-changer. These most recent releases are only incremental in my opinion.
@@ShawnIsBatman so glad the videos helped and can totally see that! I feel the same way about my 965, but I am currently just planning on sticking with the upgrade because of the raw design, honestly
@@quinnchau7166 thanks! I actually might do a thoughts review on it because I'm shocked at how pathetic it is! Apple is really definitively behind the standards these days, and my opinion
@@bilal7217 only for the pure experience of having a bigger screen or a different design, but not for any feature enhancement, no. I'll share that in my final thoughts on the F8 series, but my baseline recommendation is it's not worth upgrading unless you just have the extra money and want the new look/design
@@andregoncalves1648 and I totally get/respect that! I swear I'm still drawn to the instinct 2X for whatever dumb reason even though I have all these fancy versions calling my name
@@StevenVanlancker-m7h That is true for all smartwatches, and when that time comes, I will exchange for another as I do with any device, smartphone etc...
Thank you so much for the videos. really informative. I am coming from the Apple watch series 7. looking at garmin for running hiking cycling etc but primarily for the mapping and battery life. I am still having a hard time deciding and trying to decide between Enduro 3 and 47mm either amoled or solar. i don't think there is too much difference in battery on the 47 solar vs Amoled. My only concern is lug to lug length on the Enduro 3. I don't care about the thickness of the watch. The 47 fits quite nicely on the wrist. I am not interested in diving capabilities as if i go back diving i will buy a purpose built dive computer. I don't really use the smart assistance on apple watch as i pretty much always have the phone with me. i can get a discount and the 47 amoled with titanium bracelet is £895 for me Enduro 3 is not able to be discounted so is £769 and either 47 or 51 amoled or solar is about £850. so they are similar to AWU2 which i was considering. A bit stuck! my concerns are with GPS usage for multi day hikes and time to charge from portable battery pack
@@trickystravels if you're coming from the Apple Watch they are all going to feel like 1 million times longer battery life. Because of the visual display I would strongly suggest the OLED displays, you just get significantly more detail. You could always take a little battery and the charging cord if you are on a trek lasting more than five days and you burn through the battery. I would strongly suggest the 47 mm amoled Fenix 8!
@@fitgearhunter I have ordered a 47mm Amoled but think i can get away with the 51 as it's going to be a sports watch rather than an every day. I may swap it for the 51mm or look at the Enduro
@@trickystravels totally get it! I personally would not look at the Enduro three because the mapping and experience was just so felt, so different from the amoled. But I get it too w forever ish battery! Best of luck!
@@fitgearhunter thank you. at least with the garmin i can use offline mapping whatever model i get so already better than apple watch. i am planning on long bicycle tours and week long hikes in the future hence why i am looking at the enduro. anyway good luck and thank you so much once again
@@dylanbournesings I did see that setting in the past but the problem is is not an option for a low level backlight versus a full backlight. That would be the design to go with, is like a 5% back light and then up to 60% or whatever you want when you raise your wrist
@@fitgearhunter The Fenix 7 pro does not have a setting to change the brightness for wrist based gestures. But you can change brightness for sleep, general use, and activities. That does make sense. I do not really like wrist gesture. So once they made that backlight update for me. The Fenix 7 pro was better for me then it was at launch for viewing the screen at night. Maybe if Garmin watches have less delay on the wrist gesture in the future I will like them more. But it's too much for me personally at the moment.
I saw that you can have no timeout for the backlight. Wonder if that would suck the battery dry super fast, or potentially somehow burn out the backlight.
@@Valarizator that is my same wrist size and I think you could get used to it! My problem with the E3 was how high it sits up though. I would more strongly recommend the F8 series, and, for me, the OLED is next level when it comes to maps and experience all around
@@Valarizator please let me know how it turns out! Not to be clear there are bugs that are getting updated and you have to make it through the first couple of actual updates when you get it so make sure you connect it to Wifi and you do a search for updates until two have processed (so you do it once and then you do it again)
