New screen, new me
The Instinct 3 is the latest AMOLED smartwatch in Garmin ’s extensive kitchen range , offering enough from its more expensive Fenix serial to make it a good outdoor fellow .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Garmin continues its quest to wreak AMOLED screens to its sporty smartwatches with the Garmin Instinct 3 , the tough , more affordable option to the popular Fenix 8 .
AMOLED CRT screen aside , Garmin is also taking the chance to update the new Instinct with its recent multi - band GPS technology , hike up storage and enhancing the Instinct ’s smartwatch force .
TheInstinct 2was a solid performing artist , and with the gain of a colour exhibit , it kick in replete rooter an outdoor vigil that feels more like a smartwatch .
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Design and screen
Like Garmin did with itsFenix line , the Instinct 3 either comes with an AMOLED or solar charging video display . catch it with an AMOLED silver screen and it ’s the more expensive steal of the two , but you do benefit from this year ’s key rise .
you’re able to also snaffle the watch in a distich of different case size . The Instinct 3 AMOLED and solar models are both available in 45 mm or 50 mm sizing . There ’s also an Instinct E just to further confuse matter , representing the chintzy and smallest uncommitted theoretical account of Instinct you could buy .
I had the 45 millimetre AMOLED Instinct 3 flog to my articulatio radiocarpea in its limited edition Neotropic colourway that show Garmin is still uncoerced to be a bit more adventurous with the colour schema for its garish outdoor smartwatch . The partnered 22 millimetre strap proceed that more playful theme and uses one of Garmin ’s wily mechanism if you require to trade in a new strap .
It ’s dominated by the polymer and atomic number 13 bezel that surrounds its good - sized 1.2 - inch , 390 x 390 declaration AMOLED showing .
That ’s not the big or high resolving AMOLED panel you ’ll chance on a Garmin scout , yet it ’s still abrupt , colourful and promising enough to glint down at . That display is protect by chemically strengthened deoxyephedrine , not the knotty Gorilla or Sapphire glass you detect on more expensive Garmin watches .
move to a young display technology sees Garmin ditch the sub - display from previous models – though this stick around on the solar version of the Instinct 3 . or else , the sub - presentation lives on through the rejigged user interface that gives you the intimate feeling of older replete models .
There are five strong-arm buttons dotted around the case to navigate the watch software , because rather bizarrely , you do n’t get touchscreen functionality on that colourful show . The buttons are also a little on the stiff side , even after a hebdomad of invariant use .
Embedded within the top of the case is an top flashlight , and it ’s a bright one too . you could trip it from the quick preferences or threefold - tap the top left physical clitoris to toggle it on or off .
What I once think was a bit of a gismo when Garmin first embark on add together to its watches now proves quite useful . It ’s great for go around my elbow room at nighttime without turn on the Light Within and when I ’m out at Nox and do n’t want to attain for my smartphone Aaron’s rod .
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Its durability underwater remains the same as the Instinct 2 , slap with a 10 ATM military rating . That means you ’re getting a lookout that can live in urine up to 100 time deep . You ’re not going to want to take it diving , but for pool and open water swimming , it ’s more than up to the task .
Software and smartwatch features
There might be a new display , but Garmin does n’t make sweeping changes to how the Instinct 3 behaves as a smartwatch .
This is still a picket where you may easily consider notifications from either an iPhone or Android phone , with Android users now able-bodied to view paradigm in some notifications . The Morning Reports once again provide digestible summaries of key stats like sleep and training condition , and Garmin ’s Glances lets you prioritise the data that you need to see on a regular basis .
There ’s Garmin Pay for contactless payment , but if you need a medicine participant , you ’re sadly out of luck . Instead , you make habit of the now larger 32 GB of storage to set up apps , datum fields and see expression from the Connect IQ Store – a feature now accessible directly from the watch itself .
Garmin also choose against including its late voice - centric features like Bluetooth calling and a representative recording machine . However , I do n’t think is going to be a mass breakers for most , who should be mostly happy with what ’s on offer in the software section .
That said , the software package experience is n’t identical to the one featured on the Fenix 8 AMOLED . I witness it slimly unexpended that , despite dropping the submarine sandwich - display for the AMOLED Instinct 3 , Garmin still retains the hero - display layout in the user interface . It really does n’t seem to add much economic value in this material body .
Using the Instinct 3 is pretty aboveboard and very Garmin at least . powerfulness users can dig deeply to find optional scene and modes , but it ’s dewy-eyed enough for even casual users to start up a physical exercise , register a apprisal , check the weather or look at training insight .
As remark sooner , the lack of a touchscreen is truly puzzling . There were more than a few occasions where I went to swipe on the display , as I ’ve done on every other Garmin AMOLED watch , with no response from the screen .
With the sub - display no longer useable , touchscreen functionality makes way more sense – though this could be about consistency with the solar model of Instinct 3 that still uses the sub - display . Either path , it makes for a somewhat left user experience on an AMOLED video display .
Fitness tracking
Garmin stay dead on target to the Instinct ’s outdoor - centric roots . Its core sports modes cover running , cycling , swim ( syndicate and open water supply ) and golf game . For lovers of the outdoors , there ’s data about tides and Sunday and moon natural process , with glanceable widgets on the watch to display those more adventure - centric stats .
In terms of headline changes , Garmin has added its latest multi - band Global Positioning System technology and bolstered its indoor breeding and sleep monitoring capabilities . It ’s good to see multi - band reenforcement , and like other Garmin watches I ’ve quiz , offer a nice bump in GPS truth .
Garmin ’s elderly Gen 4 Elevate detector takes care of gist rate monitoring , though this mean you pretermit out on the ECG funding offered on Garmin ’s Gen 5 sensor apparatus .
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In ecumenical , the heart rate sensing element do well during workouts and for continuously monitor spirit rate day and night . Picking up the intensity unsurprisingly see that accuracy falter more , so I ’d be taking the option of pairing an external heart charge per unit monitoring equipment if you worry about stick the most exact exercise HR data .
One dissatisfactory deletion , especially given this is an outdoor watch with an AMOLED screen , is the deficiency of full maps . Garmin sticks to offering the same , mere breadcrumb navigation with the power to upload and import routes to the picket via the Garmin Connect app .
That simpler pilotage is in force enough to help point you in the right steering or get you back home . But when you consider that meretricious outdoor watches like the Amazfit T - Rex 3 provide full maps , you ca n’t aid wonder if Garmin should have admit it on the pricier Instinct 3 .
Despite being a spotter for those who like to explore the out-of-door earth , Garmin has given the Instinct 3 new indoor features we ’ve visualize on other recently set up Garmin watches .
The first is the improved physical exertion support . fundamentally , when you download workouts from the companion Connect app , you ’ll see animated prompts to avail you perform moves aright . Garmin also bolster speciality education with the power to catch muscle map in the Connect app to give you a visual cue stick whether you ’ve neglected your ramification days .
Another new addition deserving highlighting is the accession of a multisport mode to make it better suited to use for triathlons . It also includes Garmin ’s more advanced interval training mode for those who take their focal ratio work more badly .
It ’s once again a jam - packed outdoor watch where the core experience is solid , but I ca n’t help retrieve Garmin could ’ve squeezed in one or two features it ’s book for its more expensive outdoor watch .
Battery life
The Instinct 3 is a smartwatch that Garmin say can last for weeks . Getting weeks out of it entirely depends on factors like whether you pick out to keep the blind on at all prison term , use all uncommitted continuous wellbeing monitor feature or practice the most accurate GPS mode .
Garmin says the 45 mm Instinct 3 model will last up to 18 Clarence Day in smartwatch way , so without using any gravid trailing features essentially . If you keep the AMOLED screen on 24/7 , that pretermit to seven days . And if you ’re using that new multi - band GPS technical school , you’re able to enjoy anywhere between 23 hours and 16 days .
The latter is when you ’re using its Expedition GPS modality , which assure a diminution in overall accuracy in exchange for ensuring it can track multi - solar day or even week - long adventures .
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I ’ve been using it with a mixed bag of climb - to - wake cover mode and also setting the screen to always - on . I ’ve also mainly been using the most precise multiband GPS mode and chance that , even with the addition of an AMOLED blind , it can well last a week between charge .
Using the always - on display way sees that drop significantly , and with regular GPS and exercising trailing , it was closer to 5 days than the promised 7 days .
It think of that , while the Instinct 3 does n’t last longer than the Instinct 2 with its more power - effective display technology , it does put in a respectable carrying out that ensures you ’re not charge it every few days .
Should you buy it?
The G - cushion - esque design on the Instinct 3 , along with all the tracking and smart lineament on offer , gives it plenty of appeal .
While you may upload and fall out routes on the Instinct 3 , you do n’t have the power to view full maps on that Modern AMOLED display .
Final Thoughts
The Garmin Instinct 2 was already a very able outdoor smartwatch , but with the addition of an AMOLED screen and multiband GPS , the new Instinct 3 is a better out-of-door watch and smartwatch .
Missing features like full map support and the want of touchscreen support are unmated , however . That stand for it ’s not quite a Fenix Lite , while also miss some outdoor feature that you may get for less fromcompeting smartwatches .
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How we test
We good screen every smartwatch we refresh . We use industry received examination to compare feature of speech decent and we use the watch as our main equipment over the revaluation stop . We ’ll always tell you what we find and we never , ever , live with money to review a product .
FAQs
No , the Garmin Instinct does not support full map , but does offer simpler breadcrumb navigation and the power to upload routes to follow on the watch .
The Garmin Instinct 3 , like other Garmin watches , does not support the ability to monitor blood pressure .
Full Specs
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