Forget the Apple Watch Ultra: This is the ultimate outdoor smartwatch

I’ve owned an Apple Watch Ultra since its launch again in September 2022, and it has been on my wrist virtually frequently over the previous eight months, excluding when it is charging, the few instances its presence on my wrist has been annoying, and after I swing my kettlebells about a number of instances every week. (Because regardless of how powerful it is, it is not going to take repeated kettlebell smashes to the watch face.)  

And it has been with me on many an journey. Walking, mountain climbing, or on pictures or drone flying journeys, the Apple Watch Ultra has been a relentless companion. It’s been out in rain, snow, ice, and warmth waves. I’ve worn it whereas sweating up steep hills, and whereas stress-free in a sizzling tub.

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Sure, I’ve not taken it up Everest, or on ultramarathons, however there have been instances when it has been my solely supply of sunshine, and even my solely hyperlink with the world at massive.

But it is certain had fairly a tricky life up to now, and it is given me a extremely good concept of the system’s strengths and weaknesses.

I’ve been testing different outdoor smartwatches alongside the Apple Watch Ultra. (Yes, I’ve been carrying two watches, so what? All the cool youngsters are carrying two smartwatches.) All that testing has given me a very good understanding of what the competitors has to supply.

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OK, let’s begin with the Apple Watch Ultra. Over eight months of close-to-continual carrying (I put on it on my left wrist, crown down, as a result of this manner the crown would not get bumped when placing fingers into pockets or gloves) and the Ultra’s situation stays a lot nearer to immaculate than I’d count on it to be. 

The sapphire crystal is excellent, whereas the titanium shell has a number of very gentle scratches and abrasion marks.

It’s one powerful watch.

The battery life has additionally been good (for an Apple Watch). I can count on about three days of battery life out of it earlier than I begin getting frightened, however heavy use of maps or health options can scale back that to a few days.

Not dangerous for an Apple Watch, however there are smartwatches on the market that blow this efficiency out of the water.

Take the Garmin Fenix 7X Solar Sapphire Edition that I’ve been carrying alongside the Apple Watch Ultra. This Garmin has been charged as soon as and has run for nearly two weeks with out cost, and it nonetheless says it has six days of normal use left (or 90 days if I put it into battery saver mode).

It’s lasted for therefore lengthy now that I’m unsure the place I’ve put the charging cable. (Yes, the Fenix 7 line wants a proprietary charging cable.) The photo voltaic cell embedded into the face collects daylight, giving the battery slightly increase whereas I’m exploring the outside.

On the toughness entrance, the Fenix 7X is holding up properly. However, I’m already discovering that the black DLC (diamond-like coating) end is carrying off. A small beauty factor, however when you’re into small beauty issues, this might very properly hassle you.

The battery life and coating apart, there are a number of different methods the Garmin smartwatch beats Apple’s providing when outside. 

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First, the Apple Watch Ultra depends closely on that touchscreen show. This is nice for day-to-day use, however if you’re carrying gloves, or your fingers are chilly, or the show will get moist, that touchscreen turns into a large ache to make use of. Get water on it, and the contact enter turns into tremendous unreliable.

While the Fenix 7X has a touchscreen show, it additionally options buttons, and people buttons make working the watch when moist or when carrying gloves lots simpler.  

I’m additionally an enormous fan of that large show. Those large, chunky letters and numbers are straightforward on my growing older eyes. And Garmin has crammed a number of info onto that 1.4-inch show.

It’s very straightforward on the eyes it doesn’t matter what the circumstances.

The Fenix 7X has an precise LED flashlight constructed into the aspect of the watch that may be switched from white to purple. This is a terrific contact as a result of it frees up the show to nonetheless be a show; the flashlight is excellent for small duties like map studying and lighting the manner in an emergency.

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Finally, the Garmin comes with topographical maps loaded onto the smartwatch (and there are additionally third-party maps you should buy, equivalent to these by the wonderful Talkytoaster), eradicating the want for a mobile connection when exploring. 

The Apple Watch Ultra has Apple Maps, and entry to these depends on having an web connection. I’m not conscious of a third-party providing that fills the hole.  

This seems like an enormous oversight on a watch that is billed as being designed for explorers.

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The Apple Watch Ultra suffers from another weaknesses as properly. For instance, the coordinates on the important entrance display can take ages to replace — minutes, tens of minutes, typically extra — making this characteristic really feel extra like a gimmick than a useful gizmo. Similarly, right here in the UK, our maps use a coordinate system known as British National Grid. Apple would not help this (though there are apps that may convert the present place to the system), whereas the Garmin smartwatch has no drawback with this.

All these little issues add up.

One factor I’m requested very often is how completely different smartwatches examine relating to the accuracy of distance walked, and step depend. All the models I’ve tried alongside the Apple Watch Ultra have agreed to inside 5%. Which one is the extra correct? I can not say.  

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When it involves the app ecosystem, nonetheless, Apple’s acquired the competitors beat. Pretty a lot any app you’ll be able to consider already exists for the Apple Watch. By comparability, the choices for Garmin smartwatches are a bit restricted.

 There’s little question that the Apple Watch Ultra is a terrific smartwatch. But pitting it towards a tool like the Garmin Fenix 7X Solar Sapphire highlights not just some Apple Watch weaknesses but additionally demonstrates the distinction between an organization that makes a mass-market system versus one that actually understands what’s vital to individuals who spend a number of time outside.