Garmin Venu SQ

Garmin Venu Sq review: The top name in fitness, now at $199

You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t know Garmin, and more often than not, they’ll know the company’s extensive line of fitness-focused smartwatches. It has a well-deserved reputation for making the highest-end and most-accurate watches for runners, bikers, triathletes, and every other possible outdoor sport. But Garmin doesn’t just want to play in the “pro” space. There’s reason to believe the Garmin name can translate into sales on the affordable end of the scale, competing with entry-level smartwatches and high-end fitness bands. This is where the Garmin Venu Sq comes in. You can’t see it any other way. The Venu Sq looks like an Apple Watch. I know, there are only so many ways to make a rounded-rectangle smartwatch, but it’s hard to miss. Just a couple days after getting the Venu Sq, I was at soccer practice, and a teammate asked how I liked my Apple Watch. That isn’t a bad thing, though. Unlike every other Garmin fitness watch, this isn’t a polarizing design. It’s simp...

Garmin Venu SQ Smartwatch Orchid/Metallic Orchid 010-02427-12 review

In an interesting contrast to yesterday’s Fitbit Sense review , the Garmin Venu SQ has actually grown on me slightly since I started using it (whereas I got more confused the more I used the Fitbit Sense).

Garmin Venu SQ Smartwatch Orchid/Metallic Orchid 010-02427-12 review

“This is an excellent health and fitness watch at an affordable price.”

Garmin Venu SQ Smartwatch Orchid/Metallic Orchid 010-02427-12 review

Take the Garmin Venu, replace the OLED with an LCD display, and cut the price nearly in half....

Garmin Venu SQ Smartwatch Orchid/Metallic Orchid 010-02427-12 review

Thanks to Apple and Samsung with their smartwatches sporting vibrant, brilliant touchscreen displays, people have come to look for this type of display on other wearables. Dedicated GPS sports watches tend to focus on data capture accuracy with displays that are visible outside.