Garmin Fenix 5S

Faulty backlight functions – Love Garmin and I've owned several devices, but despite its great features, like built-in music etc, the backlight problems began only a couple of months in. For the price it is simply unacceptable to have no backlight at all, with the screen is barely visible during the day, let alone at night. The interface is also not as intuitive as other Garmins. From my expereience I wouldn't recommend this model. Show details

Buttons excel touch screens in wet conditions! – - fast charging and good battery life - waterproof is a huge bonus and keeps device clean - Can easily personalise everything just like an Android phone - Light weight and not too bulky for small wrists like mine - the SUP mode is great for paddling sports Show details

HR software issue - accurate.... whenever it decides to start working – Negatives: HR Sensor (Software) - Absolute GARBAGE Positives: Battery life - Great Usability - Great HR Sensor (Hardware) - Very Accurate This watch is a very expensive item and like anyone who has purchased one, I expect to get what I pay for. The HR sensor has a major issue in the HR software, it has an undetermined time lag in detecting… Read more

increased HR when exercising. I’ve researched Garmin responses to this issue and have tried all of their suggested fixes but to be honest, I don’t think there’s anything the end user can do! The HR is actually very accurate when it starts to read properly, the problem is this can literally be ANYTIME during your work out. It is very frustrating when 10 or 20 or 15 minutes into exercise your heart rate on your machine/bike (chest strap) shows HR at 150-160BPM and the watch HR is still saying 110BPM. I don’t agree with the ‘Don’ters’ that if you want accuracy use a chest strap, that’s actually the most frustrating thing, the wrist HR is actually very very accurate, it’s just when it decides to kick in during your work out. Which might be 5min in, 10min in, 25min in or 16:30min in. To me this is a major SOFTWARE ISSUE that the developers need to address immediately. From what I’ve read in reviews this issue has been ongoing for too long. Other than that the watch battery is awesome, the watch is very accurate, there are great work out personalisations you can do. Such a shame when the main purpose of the watch for, I’m assuming, most people is wanting the convenient RESPONSIVE wrist HR monitor without the inconvenience of having to put on a chest strap.

Perfect for Tri training – Perfect for Swimming Running Jogging Counts swimming laps Times sets and rest periods Works in open water swims Gives pace as you run Alert every 1km running Heart Rate distance Speed for Riding Keeps all your training organised on Web The Alarm is easy to set and good for every day Use. Show details

5 s plus goes flat in 3 days max and bluetooth constantly not connecting – I've been having issues since I bought this watch a couple of months ago. The battery is supposed to last a week and I am lucky to get three day not even using it as a sports watch AT ALL. Also it regularly won't connect to bluetooth. It's apparently a known problem and Garmin will not replace for me.  Show details

In love still! – Best watch yet, dress it up or down so it never has to come off! Always up to date, tracking of location and back tracking when on trails is super handy (several times!) sometimes the gps takes a while to kick in starting a run but usually this is due to high cloud cover. Can’t fault the watch at all!  Show details

Love love love – I adore the Fenix 5s. I love the step counter, the GPS, the heart rate monitor and the Connect app. It's got everything, it works really well and I find it really motivating to beat my step goal every day. Not only is the function great, the form is beautiful. I have the white one and it's very elegant. It looks like a watch, not a big chunky thing like the Forerunner.  Show details

Best birthday present ever!! – Having been a long time garmin user (athlete) Ive considered a watch in the past - but wasn't sure i would get a lot out of it. I received it for my birthday and haven't taken it off since. accurate for measuring sleep data (as an athlete that information is essential for me) I can also track) my training, racing and it connects to my power meter… Read more

and heart rate monitor (it does have one built in also and it is failry accurate i must admit). Find it really user friendly and you can alter and adjust the screens easily enough too. Have connected it to my phone so i can see messages on it which is better when Im out training than having to pull my phone out.

Worth the price – I bought this after my apple watch died on me. Was expensive, but worth it. It calculates everything, movement, calories, steps, etc. The extra map techy map on it I thought was silly at first but I have actually used it. Great that it also links up to your phone and I have also linked it with my Garmin body weights  Show details

Really really good – The new smaller size is great, with the look of the watch being a bit less ‘sporty’ so I wear mine every day. The tech is fabulous, love all the features and the additional heart rate monitor that I didn’t have in the fenix 3 has opened up a whole new world to me! Only slight down side is battery life.  Show details

Great watch but heavy! – Bought this watch for running stats and some 'smart watch' functions. Works well at what it is meant to do. Only downsides are that it is large (even the 5s on my skinny wrist!), heavy and the screen is sometimes difficult to see in direct sunlight. However, as it has buttons rather than a touch screen you don't have to spend much time looking at it.  Show details

Love it !! – I bought this watch as a fitness watch. I wanted that little extra motivation to run and swim and be active. I specifically bought this type because of the surf edition I could download to it. It's amazing the way it tracks each wave and length and how far I've paddled. Would highly recommend this product if you are looking for the best fitness watch out there. Bonus ! It looks great. I have the plain white and it goes with everything.  Show details

Perfect sports watch – I have had my Fenix 5s for about 6 months and couldn’t be happier with it. I upgraded from the Apple Watch and this is a major step up for anyone who is really into health and fitness. Pros: - excellent battery life - great customisation options - workout data far superior to that on the Apple Watch - not as bulky as many sports watches… Read more

of the same callibre

Cons:

- expensive

- a little hard to get used to navigating with buttons after being used to the touch screen of the Apple Watch.

Good watch but heartrate monitor immensely inaccurate - customer service uninterested – I did my research before I bought this watch. At nearly $1,000, it was not a decision I made lightly. From what I could read, it came down to the Garmin Fenix 5 or the Apple watch 3. I personally liked the look of the round face more than the square face, and I thought buttons would be easier to use than a touchscreen. Both of these were true.… Read more

What let the whole thing down was the heartrate function. I recently had a heart attack so I'm exercising to get fit again but I have limitations on what I should be doing. I didn't expect medical standard accuracy from the device but I wanted a guide to know if I was pushing it too far.

Trying to ensure the reading was accurate I took time to read up on how to fit properly and then ensured that it wasn't too loose, etc.

Unfortunately the device was immensely inaccurate. One reading I would get 160 beats (hooley dooley, I am way over the top), the next reading 10 seconds later, 80 beats (wow, now that's recovery!), the next reading would be 120 beats, the next under 100. It was all over the place.

I contacted Garmin, a got the usual "it's not a medical device" which I knew, but to have that level of inaccuracy is well outside of that sort of caveat. Then we did the usual, "have you got the latest firmware", which of course I had.

Then I was asked if I had synced to my PC. Which I had not. I had connected to the App on my iphone as per the instructions. But to try and fix, I downloaded the software onto my PC, did the sync, and that did nothing.

Then I was to send pictures of the front and back of the watch and the receipt, and I was given a case number. Which I did. And that was the last I ever heard. Email after email, without response. In essence, they had tried to make it as hard as possible to raise a fault, but I wasn't giving up. When that was obvious, they avoided me.

Would I spend $1,000 on this watch. Unlikely. Would I ever buy a Garmin product based on the customer service I received - never.

Sorry Garmin, but you just have to treat people who hand over their very hard earned money with a little more respect than that.

On the flipside, when I took it back to JB HiFI at Top Ryde, they couldn't have been more helpful and refunded on the spot. Now that's customer service.

Really loving the Fenix 5S – Just upgraded from my fitbit and this Garmin is great. I tried the 935 and even though it is lighter the face was so big on my smaller wrist. I customised my watch face via the app and have default for time, date, HR, steps and battery. Lots of stats and options. I think it would be hard to make use of all the features. The band and clip feel… Read more

really solid. The band is also easily interchangeable. I bought a spare charging cord on ebay to have handy at work and can buy other bands easily. The battery lasts for ages even after using it with GPS. Very happy.