Garmin Instinct - ONE YEAR LATER | A Long-Term use Review 

Was gonna buy this watch to wear with my tuxedo until I watched this video.

Just bought it your video was helpful. I was worried you were going to say something really bad but when you just said it's not dressy I'm like -yes, even better!

What sold me on this watch is. Simplicity no nonsense watch and i seen one person use the track me climbing everest. The biking mode tracks pretty accurate. I use it everyday except sleeping.

very good strong heavy duty watch!!!!! one of the best abc watches

My top right button was a bit squishy too. I massaged some silicon grease around the button and after a while the button is as good as new.

Thanks for the review!

Great review, Tommy. Your channel makes a real difference.

It's been 11 months now and my Garmin Instinct watch still working great. I love it better than other smart watch that keep on running on Low Bat. GPS is very useful for hiking.

Thanks!!!

Great video, thanks! I’m considering buying one, how are the buttons now? And how’s the overall now, is there any software problem or battery drains faster?

Nice and to the point. Thanks for the review.

Would you suggest that over the garmin245 for running intervals?(can you set time/distance as parameter of each the interval?)

Thanks for the video. Can you change the DATUM in the settings? Is the DATUM ED50 available? Does it show coordinates in UTM?

Thanks for the follow-up review ! In my opinion the 4th point isn't really an issue at all as I want the watch to look the way it does. If I want something cheesy, I go and buy an 🍏 watch . . .

Just bought one, still a little confused navigating through the manu or features. Only complaint is wishing a friendlier interface

So it's basically one of the best purpose built watches ever! Thanks.

Dear Sir. Thank you for the long term review. Very useful. I have a few questions about its durability as a result of exposure to these conditions: (1) I work on my cars a lot and it would get exposed to knocks, possible scratching, light grease, oil, etc. (2) I swim in the ocean - would the salt water affect it? Is the screen visible in bright sunlight with a polarized sunglasses? Is the screen on all the time? thank you.

Hey! I got the solar edition - first of all: I bump the clock everyday against something - especially the bed frame at night. Since 2 weeks. Nothing happened, but the scratches on the wrist band that u already mentioned. BUT the right buttons are starting to feel loose. I wondered if this would affect the durability especially in humid conditions. But you mentioned it wouldn't. Is that still your opinion? How is your opinion on the clock now? Would u like to make another video how the clock worked until now?

Thank you. Will be buying this soon. Wasnt sure since it's been out a while but it seems like it has everything I would want in a watch without paying an insane price.

Great review thanks just got mine 👊🏻

Props to Casio once again. My Pro-Trek is 20 years old and my g-shock at least 10. Buttons still work and feel like it´s their first day.

Really appreciated this video. Very straight to the point.

Which watch would you suggest for someone who wants to track strength training, HIIT, occasional run, steps, calories etc? Is garmin forerunner 55 good for me?

After 12 months of use I have same button same issue. Still functional though.

Rockin the Seiko Monster! Nice!

Great tips, i'm vurrently considering buying it, but i have a question.. Does it display depth? It is supposed to be 10atm watch, but can you see on the watch how deep you went while diving in the sea? Like, -1,-2 etc. And with how much accuracy?

Could you show us how to use the tracking? I have memory issues and I worry about not finding my way back to the car while I'm out camping & hiking.

Hi! Can you share your altimeter settings, I'm planning on buying an Instinct, and was wondering what settings you use, because WatchFreak's comment section is full of people who say the altimeter settings change the accuracy. Thank you in advance!

Can we put dual time (utc and local time)..i m a student pilot and i need dual time

Does it have an option, dyscypline for triathlon?

Can this watch connect with and share info with other garmin devices like Garmin edge 1030

"i'm pretty sweaty animal" LOL! Great review!

How is the battery. I have read many complain from forum says the battery life will not last 2 weeks after 2 charges. Some says the battery only last 4 days and that watch only few weeks old.

Got the same problem with the bottom left Button, after 12 months of use. But it still works fine.

I had issues with the buttons getting gunked up and then just ran it under hot water and pushed the buttons many times to clear it out. Restored normal function to the buttons.

Great video/review. Would love a “instinct after 2 years video”.

Does it have night vision or light? I hope I can see the time when camping at night.

Seiko monster :)

Just got one last week. So far, so good!

Can it count turns in the swimming pool?

Do you feel like the battery diminished over time?

So can you control your music from it or no

I'm thinking of getting one. I hope it will withstand abuse, because i hunt wild boars, fish, trek as well as well as blacksmithing on a hobby basis. What i'm sorta curious about is if there's enough functionality in it to warrant a buy over just any old rugged plain watch? For hunting i'd like to get air pressure, wind direction, tracking of dogs and hunting mates and such.

Could you please tell me Garmin Instinct support Garmin Coach like 5K, 10K...or not? Thank you,

Would you purchase the watch again? How’s the battery life? Thanks for the video!

Mine has the same problem with the top right button...

What is the condition of the display, did you put any protective film on the display?

Interested in why you got rid of the Fenix for this? Which Fenix and why?

Good review!

I came for the garmin instinct video, left subscribing , I'm enjoying your work. Cheers

Loving the Monster you have on your hand :-)

The biggest problem with mine is that after two or three months it stopped holding a charge past two days. What is the purpose of getting this watch if the battery drains in less than two days without even using the any of the activity or GPS functions?

How is your HR sensor working? I'm finding the one on my Instinct very unreliable. In fact it's so useless that I'm thinking of disabling it to save on battery life.

How about in 5 years will it work or you can throw it in a bin like a cellphone which doesn't have memory to support new updates or firmwares???

Same problem with buttons, not just top right one - almost all buttons lost the "click" feel after year of using

Can more durable bands be purchased from other party’s?

Who buys this watch doesnt wear a tuxedo.... I was and still am big suunto fan but this Garmin makes my day

Why is my garmin instinct cannot turn on after it stuck on logo and then when I turn it back on, it just cant

Can it track your depth scuba diving?

Has the button become problematic yet? Also, I am seriously considering buying one. Would you recommend it?

After a year of use for everything you put that watch through sounds like a 10/10 for me lol.

Looks like this will be replacing my tired Suunto Core. lol

My barometer and altimeter sensors have stopped working. I've already updated to the latest firmware and tried cleaning it too. Any solutions? @Tommy

Garmin instinct or Suunto 5?

Still an excellent watch for the price 👍🏻After 12 months of use my buttons on mine are still nice and stiff no clicks sound etc.

Whatever you say, I'm going to agree 😯

Can you install apps on this watch?

have music storage?

I have a garmin instinct since June 2020 and it is mid February 2021 and the battery life is so so bad, I was getting 10 to 12 days on a full charge but now I'm lucky to get 2 days

has anyone of you instinct users encountered a boot loop problem ➡️ frozen display ➡️ then no display at all but the led for heart rate monitoring on the bottom of the watch still blinking after swimming in a pool?

wonder it is good watch for working. My work is related to surveying and engineering. i need to navigate an unknown place by coordinate. may as well I would want to get coordinate for current location.

Is the serial number the one next to the charging port?

Just bought the Garmin Instinct Solar after watching this video. Thank you for the info you provided. Although I have one minor problem which I faced with my unit. The Weather Widget shows the precipitation level and air speed as 0, which from what I checked on my Android phone, wasn't correct. I think it could be a software issue, maybe from the Watch or the Garmin Connect App itself.

If you turn off the gimmicky heart rate function you get 3 times the battery life...just FYI

"Im a pretty sweaty animal".... Hahahah!!! Sold. Only $200 CDN right now so why not

It seems to me that all Garmin watches have this issue with the top right button going bad.

I love mine, but I switched bands

Overall though it's a great watch it sounds? :)

Good viedo thanks. Scared me a bit hahha cause im going to buy one next month. What i found out is that you can buy like a silicone case to put on him for extra protection. Yeee it dosent look so nice with a suit but i thing i will settle with that reason be hahha imagin i have a casio mud master with the orange strap soo hahahha ot will be a better looking . Still i love ma casio but he has same limitations compared with the garmin .

a year later still so expensive in Australia....

Brilliant watch the moss green I reviewed is the best colour in my opinion. Garmin have done a brilliant job with the solar instinct.

Faulty Altimeter is an issue. My first run. March 2020 updates. Elevation failed badly. According to Instinct I fell of the cliff during my short 3k run. The cliff was 90 meters tall. And then I climbed back on top. None of this really happened. Dissapointed.

I've been using the Instinct for 14 months also, wearing it day and night. It shows no usage at all on the wrist band, no filth is cloggin up the barometer or connection port. The only trouble I have for a little more than a month now is that it doesn't automatically sync all data anymore to Garmin Connect (all software updates are automatically installed, so I have the latest version). Normally, I connect it to my laptop with the cable every time I come home from an activity (mostly bike rides). When connecting Garmin Express launches and syncs the activities and all other measured data since the last synchronisation (daily steps, floors up/down, sleep times and zones, etc.). The last few weeks, it only uploads my activities and the data of the day I connect it. It no longer automatically syncs the previous days data. This has to be done manually by uploading the FIT-files in Garmin Express from the Monitor and Sleep maps. I've been in touch with the Help department of Garmin, who advised me to delete the maps 'Activities', 'Monitor' and 'Sleep', but this did not resolve my problem. Just now, I did a factory reset. Maybe that works out? I'll find it out in the next few days. I was reluctant to do this factory reset, because it loses all previous settings (all the data screens, widgets, etc.). But I still recommend the Instinct. Especially the battery life is excellent. When you just wear the Instinct as a watch, without starting and recording an activity, the battery lasts 2 weeks! With an activity (gps enabled, etc) I still haven't completely used the battery, even with activities up to 10-11 hours. And charging the battery is very quick: less than half an hour!

My battery was going dead and asked me to put it on battery saver and I can't get it back to not battery saver

Dress watch?!

I just bought an Instinct. I was going to replace my 235 and I was comparing the 235 to the Instinct. The instinct is fucking solar-power assisted! It only needs to be charged once per month? I’m sold right there. And it was only an extra $50 for the Instinct over the 235. I do all kinds of things for exercise. You can choose what you want tracked and put it al together on the Instinct. I have my calories burned, heart rate, date and time, and distance traveled for the day all on the Home Screen of my watch. Success 👊🏼 (sorry garmin 235 😔)

I don't understand, the 4th on the list is why an issue? When you bought the watch, it looked the same. It's a g-shock-alike watch. My opinion: this one is the best looking garmin sportwatch. Because it's a sportwatch. You don't have to look after it. I would go insane, if I would have a Marq, and accidentally scratch the bezel. With this one? Who cares! I have the yellow one, fits well with the medicopter uniform. If I'm on a suit day, I take the vivomove style.

Seriously i love your video. I felt disturbed by the video of a guy condemn the baro sensor port and one guy who talk about the dead watch. Who wear the instinct to the party?lol. Atleast a gshock would be much better for a 'look'. I share the same oppinion with you. Have a nice day bro 💪👍

What’s on your wrist now while making this video?

Hi Tommy's Outdoors - great long term review! We found your channel from a comment you left on another page. We'd really appreciate if you'd give our channel a look if you're not already following us and have a minute. Thanks in advance!

Not a dress watch. Got it.Really ?

I’m torn between this and Apple Watch I want a smart rugged watch to me the Apple Watch is like the new Range Rovers more of a road queen u wouldn’t want to take it off road in fear of getting it scratched up and dirty I feel the Apple Watch u don’t want to wear it if you’re into construction in fear of u might get paint splattered on it or drywall compound on it but this garmin looks as if it could be the G shock of smart watches

Garmin is now under attack that has locked user data data being compromised. They might ask for ransomware...

Maybe you got one of the watches that don't have the altimeter error or maybe dress quality/social climbing is more important than phiscical ascent.

In 6 months my top right button lost its clickiness and it presses itself all the time

Now i'm not gonna buy this over G-Shock g steel gst 300g black leather. Which i've been confusing for days. Even in just 1 year, the button clicks loose out, which gshock will survive even 10 years. Anyway it has good features for those who needs tracking on their exercise. For me, doing exercises and get sweat just enough. Stop and rest when ur heart pumps too hard

Dress watches should be only dress watches!

I didnt buy mine. My wife did. Its seems to keep heart rate. Date. Time ok. Thats all I know about the watch. Thats all I NEED from a watch.

Exchanged the instinct for a Fitbit v2. The Fitbit is a much better option .

Warning. I lost my battery life by month 3-4. It might have been that I used it in 10 degrees celsius water, or that its was poor quality. The point is that now it does not last an afeternoon.