‘I switched my Fitbit watch for a Garmin model with brilliant features’

‘I have recently switched from Fitbit to Garmin and I am impressed!’

While Fitbit has been very popular on the fitness tracker market, some runners and gym-goers are now making the switch to Garmin for its detailed health insights and training tools. The Garmin Forerunner 265 watch with music is available for £318, down from £369.99, on Amazon, saving buyers 14%.

Designed for serious fitness enthusiasts as well as everyday exercisers, the Garmin smartwatch combines advanced performance tracking with the convenience of a traditional smartwatch. It features a bright AMOLED touchscreen display alongside physical button controls, giving users the flexibility to navigate workouts in any conditions.

Battery life is one of its biggest selling points, lasting up to 13 days in smartwatch mode and up to 20 hours in GPS mode. That means less time charging and more time focusing on training, whether people are preparing for a race or simply tracking daily activity.

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Each morning, users receive a personalised report summarising sleep, recovery, training readiness, HRV status and even the weather. The watch is designed to help wearers understand not just how much they’re training, but how well their body is recovering in between workouts.

For runners, one standout feature is the ability to create a race strategy through the Garmin Connect app. Once a race and course are entered, the watch generates personalised daily suggested workouts that adapt based on performance and recovery, helping users train more effectively.

The Garmin Forerunner 265 also includes a training readiness score, which takes factors such as sleep quality, recovery, training load and HRV status into account before recommending whether it’s a good day to push harder or prioritise recovery. With more than 30 built-in activity profiles, including running, cycling, triathlon and open-water swimming, it’s designed to support a wide range of sports.

Garmin’s training status feature also helps users understand whether they’re training productively, peaking for an event or potentially overreaching. With fitness on the rise, there are a variety of alternatives that shoppers could have a look at. For example, Argos has the classic Apple Watch SE 3 for £219 up for grabs.

Available in two colours – starlight or midnight – this one comes in sizes small/medium and medium/large, as well as case sizes 40 or 44mm. Like the others, it has health essentials such as a sleep score and workouts, an 18-hour battery life and safety features such as detecting any falls.

Samsung has the Galaxy Watch8 for £349 on its website, but buying it from the Samsung store will give shoppers £75 cashback – essentially taking the price down to £274. The key features here are the fact that it’s said to be ‘the most comfortable’ Galaxy Watch ever, and it analyses data such as sleep, provides personalised insights and gives a tailored coaching program to build healthier habits.

On Amazon, the Garmin Forerunner 265 has received a 4.7 out of five-star rating from more than 1,000 reviews. One person said: “I have recently switched from Fitbit to Garmin and I am impressed. The features are brilliant, especially when connected to the Connect app, and give varied, detailed reports on a variety of aspects from sleep to fitness age.”

Another added: “Excellent watch. Bought for my son’s 18th birthday. He is big into outdoor sports and loves this watch. The nerd in him enjoys all the stats and data he can collect on his activities.

“It helps him train and monitor his performance. It would be nice if it had a pre-programmed kayaking mode, but you can customise your own. Very happy with it.”

A third customer said: “Incredible watch! It reads your stats better with more accurate GPS. Not only that, but you can install additional watch faces. Mine’s currently the Fallout Pip-Boy data screen. So cool!”

A handful of shoppers did remove a star, however. For example, this person said: “Very nice watch with lots of features at a very good price. Unfortunately, the watch is too big for my arm.”

Another said: “The watch is very good for much of its functionality. I wish the music volume control would work with my hearing aids, and I was hoping the battery would last as long as they said it would.”