Garmin Vivoactive 5 In-Depth Review: 19 New Features to Know!

To the surprise of many, Garmin has just announced the Vivoactive 5 – which is essentially a mini-Venu 3 (both in price and features). Garmin has killed off the MIP-based display of the previous Vivoactive series, instead adopting a more modern AMOLED display. With it, the device got a massive overhaul – both inside and out, making it look almost nothing like the previous Vivoactive series.

Garmin’s added literally more features than I can keep track of, but at the same time, they took some away too. While the new device boasts a number of new sport profiles (including openwater swimming), as well as virtually all of Garmin’s newer 24×7 health and sleep tracking metrics – it loses the barometric altimeter of the past. And without that, we see a few other cuts as well. Whether or not you appreciate the gains (or cuts) will depend mostly on how much you want to pay for the features.

Both myself and myself have been testing the new watch, across our workouts. This includes everything from more normal daily workouts, to 4-hour long rides, long runs, swims, and plenty more – all compared to numerous other devices on the market.

here’s all of the big ticket new items:

– Changed display type from MIP to a 1.2” AMOLED
– Switched back to a single size, 42mm
– Added Sleep Coach feature, including sleep recommendation factors
– Added Nap detection support (new to Garmin, finally!)
– Added HRV tracking support (at night)
– Added Morning Report feature
– Added Daily Summary report feature (new to Garmin)
– Added Recovery Time (for sports)
– Added Workout Benefit feature (tells you what the benefit of a given workout was)
– Added on-watch interval workout creation (plus existing downloadable structured workout support)
– Added eBike sensor support (ANT+)
– Added support for tracking Wheelchair pushes, as well as wheelchair sport-specific workouts
– Added ‘Recents’ quick switching between widgets
– Added more new live watch faces
– Added a number of new sport profiles (openwater swim, handcycle, etc – listed below)
– Added new guided Meditation Activity
– Added muscle map feature in strength workouts
– Expanded ‘Shortcuts’ feature
– Added ability to switch between small fonts and larger fonts for text
– Added quick-access Flashlight feature (using screen, not dedicated LED flashlight)
– Added photos in text messages (Android only)
– Revamped user interface a massive number of different ways
– Upgraded from Garmin ELEVATE V3 HR sensor to ELEVATE V4 HR sensor (but V5 is latest)
– Switched GPS sensor to multi-GNSS (but not multi-band)
– Battery life is 11 days in smartwatch mode
– GPS battery life up to 21 hours, depending on mode.
– Price at $299
– Removed barometric altimeter
– Removed floors counted (stairs) metric
– Reduced functionality in skiing/snowboarding modes (no longer automatically counts runs)
– Removed workout animations in strength/yoga/etc (but added muscle maps, per above)

#GarminVivoactive5 #Vivoactive5