Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsThe ONE watch to rule them all (for the most part)
Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2015
First, it is helpful to understand what this watch is, and what it isn't. The Fenix 3 is a multi sport exercise watch, it not a 24 hour activity tracker. Now, it does have the activity tracking feature, it will count your steps and the Garmin Connect App will process that information, but that feature seems like it was added as an after thought. The Fenix 3 is for exercise. As such, you would be stupid to buy the Fenix 3 without the HR monitor chest strap. You have to get it, it doesn't just track heart rate, but in run mode, will track run cadence, ground contact time, and vertical oscillation which is super informative.
Multi-Sport Tracking: I am triathlete, so I use the watch to track running, cycling and swimming, but it can track much more than that. It comes pre-loaded with the following activities, XC Skiing, Ski/Snow Board, Climb, Trail Run, Run, Indoor Run, Bike, Indoor Bike, Pool Swim, Open Water Swim, Triathlon, and Hike. The activities is how you tell the watch which features you will be using (e.g. GPS, Glonass, step counting, etc.). This is my first watch that tracks swimming (somewhat automatically). I appreciate the engineering challenges with tracking pool swims, the watch can auto detect the basic swim strokes, which is nice. However, you do have to fiddle with the watch as you go. You have to press the lap button to tell the watch you are resting, and if you do drills that don't involve a standard swim stroke, you have to tell the watch you are doing a drill, then press a button when your done, then confirm the distance you drilled, then press lap again to get back to regular swim mode. Once you get used it, not a big deal, and the trade off is good data. Lastly, you can create custom activities (like strength training, or if you want a simply timer)
Like many high end garmin watches, the display screens can be customized. It takes a little bit of thought and trial and error to get what you want, but you can access all sorts of data on the run. You can have up to 7 different screens.
It also has features for creating workouts like interval workouts, and you can put the watch in race mode.
Other Features and Device Pairing. For the Fenix to auto-sync data, you need to pair the Fenix with a device (i-OS or Android). Right now, I have it sync to the Garmin Connect app, it can probably sync to others (via bluetooth), but I haven't tested it. One thing it won't do is wirelessly sync to Training Peaks. However, you can plug it in directly with the USB charger and pull files and import them into whatever software you use to record your exercise (the Fenix saves activities as .FIT files). When paired with a mobile device, the watch can give you notifications (incoming emails, calls, text's, etc.). Like with activity tracking, that feature seems like an after thought, and frankly, I find it annoying and have disabled the notifications feature. But, if you care, the watch will give you notifications from your device. However, the watch has a weather feature which is nice. All in all, they packed a lot of stuff into this watch, but at its core, this watch is for exercise.
Batter Life: Battery life seems within manufacturer specifications. My first bike ride with the watch was 2+ hours and I used about 12% of the battery. In GPS mode, 10 hour battery life is realistic. Charging is lightening fast. So far, I don't think I have ran the battery down to less than 75% capacity, so it charges in a matter of minutes.
SIze: The watch is big. I am 6'2" with a medium build, and the watch face takes up my entire wrist (see the attached picture. If you are petite, this watch may overpower you with its size. Also, the watch is 5/8" thick. Granted, it looks like a watch (as opposed to the Garmin 920XT), but it is substantial. I am not really a "watch wearer" so I don't wear the watch all day (but if I valued the activity tracking feature, which I don't, maybe I would, but I think you get more bang for your buck out of a Jawbone Up3, or Basis Peak if you are looking for 24 hour tracking).
Thoughts: This is about as close to the perfect exercise watch as you can get. Hands down, this is the one watch to rule them all. Especially if your leanings are toward trail running, back country activities, or multi sports like triathlons, there is nothing better. Now, there are other watches that are adequate, but none include all the functionality, customization, and future expandability (you can customize screens, pair with other sensors, e.g. power meters, cadence sensors). In addition, app developers can create apps for the watch (although right now, the pickings are slim). Garmin really nailed it with this watch so long as you understand what this watch does and does not do, what it is for, and what it is not for. This watch is not for the single sport, or recreational exerciser; the watch would be overkill and there are cheaper, fully adequate, alternatives. If you are a pro, elite, age grouper, or competitive athlete that participates in multiple sports (or regularly cross trains) and you want to take your training to the next level and get good data, the Fenix 3 is for you.
So far, I have had no issues with the watch. I am so glad I bought it.
