Garmin is making a huge push into the wearable market at CES this year. We’re only a few hours into the event and Garmin has already introduced three new smartwatches. While these smartwatches are aimed at fitness and wilderness adventure types, they look fashionable enough to wear out everyday.
First up is the Vivoactive. The Vivoactive is the most mainstream of the three smartwatches released by Garmin. The square face is a touchscreen and is in full color. The Vivoactive isn’t as rugged as the other two watches, but it is still water resistant to 50 meters. It supports Garmin’s heart rate monitor (which can be purchased with the watch as a bundle). You will be able to download apps from Garmin’s new ConnectIQ platform so you can tailor the Vivoactive to your needs. Everything else here is pretty much as you would expect from a new smartwatch. It will be able to receive the usual notifications and track the usual fitness metrics. The Vivo active will be available sometime this spring in either black or white for $249.99 by itself or $299.99 with the heart rate monitor.
Next up is the Garmin Fenix 3. This looks like one of the most complete fitness focused smartwatches out there. While the Fenix 3 tracks the normal fitness metrics like steps, distance and the like, it also tracks recovery time, VO2 max, stroke counts (while swimming) and more. The Fenix 3 features a ton of different sensors including GPS, GLONASS, a compass, altimeter and a barometer. A new feature called LiveTrack using the included bluetooth so you can collaborate and share workouts with friends. Like the Vivoactive, the Fenix 3 is water resistant to 50 meters and is able to download apps from Garmin’s ConnectIQ platform. The Fenix 3 will be available this spring in five different configurations. The Fenix 3 starts at $499.99 by itself, $549.99 with the wireless heart rate monitor and $599.99 for a version with a sapphire screen.
Last but not least is the Garmin Epix. Like the other two smartwatches the Epix is water resistant to 50 meters and is able to download apps from the ConnectIQ platform. The Epix is very similar to the Fenix 3 when it comes to the sensors included and functions, with one major difference. The Epix is a wrist mounted GPS system, the Epix comes preloaded with Garmin maps and is controlled by the touch screen watch face. The Epix comes with an additional 8 GB’s of storage is available to add apps and maps. Garmin includes a one year subscription to their mapping system to keep the watch updated. The Epix will be available later this spring for $549.99 or $599.99 with the addition of detailed topographic maps.
Source CES 2015, Engadget and The Verge