Garmin Venu X1 Review: Fenix Features in a Thinner, Square Watch

Introducing the Garmin Venu X1

• 💡 The Garmin Venu X1 blends features from the Fenix and Forerunner lines into a thinner, lighter Venu series watch with Garmin's largest display yet.
• 🎯 It incorporates the fifth-gen heart rate sensor, extensive training feedback, sports capabilities, a sapphire lens, and a built-in LED flashlight.
• 💰 Priced at $799, it's significantly more expensive than previous Venu models but offers advanced features.

Design and Display

• 📏 The Venu X1 measures 41mm wide, 46mm tall, and an exceptionally thin 7.9mm thick, making it about 30% thinner than the Forerunner 970.
• ⚖️ It weighs just 40 grams with the included comfort fit band, which features velcro and stretchiness similar to the Ultra Fit band.
• 🖥️ The watch boasts a 2-inch square display with 448x486 pixels, offering more information than round displays, especially for maps.
• 💎 While it has a sapphire lens for scratch resistance, it lacks a metal bezel found on Fenix and Forerunner watches, unlike the Apple Watch Ultra.

Performance and Battery Life

• 🔋 Battery life is rated up to 8 days with always-on display off, and up to 2 days with it on, reflecting compromises for the large display and thin case.
• 🏃 For outdoor activities, it lasts up to 7 hours in highest accuracy mode and 16 hours in GPS-on mode.
• 🛰️ Notably, it does not include a multiband satellite chipset, a feature common in Fenix and higher-end Forerunner models.

User Interface and Features

• 👆 Navigation is primarily via a touchscreen with two physical buttons (select/enter and back), aligning with the Venu series' focus on smart features.
• 🔦 A standout feature is the built-in LED flashlight, useful for navigation, safety, and general use, surpassing the Apple Watch Ultra's display-based flashlight.
• 📞 It includes a built-in speaker and microphone for taking calls (phone in range) and accessing voice assistants, but lacks cellular capabilities.
• 🎵 32GB of storage is available for music downloads from services like Spotify and Amazon Music, enabling phone-free listening.

Advanced Training and Health Metrics

• 🗺️ Full-color offline TopoActive maps provide navigation with on-demand routing, point-of-interest routing, and suggested routes on the fly.
• ⛰️ The ClimbPro feature breaks down climbs on a loaded route, allowing users to manage efforts.
• ❤️ Health tracking includes a fifth-gen heart rate sensor, blood oxygen saturation, sleep tracking with HRV, and a new breathing disturbances feature.
• 📈 Garmin's Training Readiness feature indicates daily readiness for training based on history and recovery, distinct from the Body Battery feature.
• 📊 Other advanced metrics include Training Status, Endurance Score, wrist-based running power, advanced running dynamics, Hill Score, and Pace Pro.
• 🏊 The Venu X1 also includes multiport and triathlon modes, and can pair with external sensors like heart rate monitors and power meters, features new to the Venu series.

Comparison and Conclusion

• ⌚ The Venu X1 offers a compelling alternative to the Apple Watch Ultra, especially for Android users, with its extensive health and training features.
• 🍎 While the Apple Watch Ultra excels in iPhone integration and has built-in LTE, the Venu X1 works with both Android and iPhones and provides more advanced fitness metrics.
• 🤔 The decision to place this advanced watch in the Venu series, with its square design and two-button layout, makes sense, though the 'X1' naming convention is noted as potentially confusing.