Garmin 8 Release Date
Ozie Melzer
The Enduro 2 is part of the Fenix 7 family using the same software updates so it is considered part of the 'new generation'. Whether or not there will be a refreshed model with incremental changes like the newer Fenix 7 Pro series is an unknown.
Due to us being a public traded company, future products are not announced. A new released device will "suddenly appear" on our official Garmin sites the day of release. Which is what just happened with our new Descent MK3 dive series watches released today.
Enduro 2 already has the flashlight of the 7 Pro series including all the modes and was brighter than the 7X in the first place, so not sure what you mean by "tweaked"? Enduro 2 only has one size, so it can't be that.
Getting the case back to the same depth as the 7X and fitting the Tactix' knurled buttons would be cool. In reality I suspect it will be absorbed back into the Fenix line with the inevitable battery improvements that would come with an update of that.
I reallzed two days ago that Enduro (release date was Q1 2021) forum had archived a couple of days earlier -recreation/outdoor-recreation-archive/ while Fenix 6 family (release date was Q3 2019) forum was kept among the active forums.
As a Garmin user I was thinking about new dive computer, Descent Mk2 was "old" and there were no informations about release of Mk3, so I bought Suunto EON few days before Mk3 was released. What a *** strategy. You are doing everything to lose your customers and you are doing it well.
Sidebar Distraction Time: I went back looking at some of my old e-mail threads with initial feedback to Garmin and responses to using the first Fenix. And wow, while I had remembered how difficult it was to use, I forgot about all the crazy steps for basic things that existed back then. Like starting/stopping/laps/etc, with no dedicated button for it. Here was the actual line-items in one of my older e-mail threads from a Garmin person on how to start an activity and lap:
In any case, these two divisions (Outdoors & Fitness) still exist today and still have separate product teams and even separate Wall Street reporting columns on investor/financial statements. But nowadays, they operate much more closely in product planning than they used to.
However, when the Fenix 7X Pro launched this past spring, it largely negated the need for the Enduro 2. The battery differences quickly evaporated the majority of the differences, with there being only a slight battery edge for the Enduro 2. Not to mention the Enduro 2 has the older ELEVATE V4 optical HR sensor package, so it lacks ECG & Skin/Wrist temperature features (or higher accuracy) of the new Fenix 7 Pro.
Garmin said at the time this is partially because a Fenix MIP-based display + solar + touch layers, actually takes up more room than an AMOLED display that has the touch layer built-in. So Garmin simply filled that extra space with a bigger battery. Suunto mirrored these comments when talking about the Suunto Race (AMOLED) & Suunto Vertical (MIP), citing the depth of the MIP display connector is one factor that increases overall space.
The bigger question though in my mind, outside of what to do with Enduro, is whether or not Garmin will continue supporting new features on the Fenix 7/7Pro once a Fenix 8 arrives. When the Fenix 7 Pro was released this past spring, Garmin has since kept the older Fenix 7 & newer Fenix 7 Pro in sync feature-wise, with identical features across the board (save for the handful of things requiring the new sensor hardware, like ECG). At the time of launch, Garmin said they planned to keep those two in sync for a while, but stopped short of saying forever. And to be fair, forever is a long time.
Only time will tell of course, and while I could go down a rabbit hole of comparing the feature upgrades Garmin does to their competitors, on the whole Garmin delivers far more features post-announcement than almost all of their competitors, even if some of their competitors (but not all) give updates for a longer period of time. I suppose one can argue the merits of both systems. But I refuse to have two rabbit hole posts in a single week.
I first had a FR 110 and than a Fenix 2.
Did you ever wonder why the web address is connect.Garmin.com/MODERN/ ?
Because it was back then when the Fenix 2 arrived when they did renew the Connect website. And now they are stuck because as the address says, its already the modern version. How can you now improve this? :-D
Strongly disagree. I looked into it a while ago and adjusted for inflation the Fenix base model has consistently dropped in real terms price.
Garmin have introduced more premium SKUs, but even there my Fenix 3 Sapphire was about 900 at release with metal band and Fenix 7 only slightly more, making it actually cheaper in real terms.
This was a really fun post, to be able to reminisce all of that! I pre-ordered the fēnix 3 and have been getting every other-ish iteration ever since. And I am always excited to see what next, though I really hope fēnix never does end up with AMOLED, but that may also be nostalgia on my part.
Also, the fēnix 3 review back in 2015 was the first time I ever saw anything from DC Rainmaker and I was astonished then at the detail, as I still am today! Of course, I re-read that review over and over again in eager anticipation because as Ray mentioned, even though I pre-ordered, it was very late.
It is not only a low Volume niche product, but it is also harder to develop because it literally switches its internal running mode. As soon as you are diving, it only uses special hardened code to run as reliable as possible.
Yup. Marketing problems are basicly confusing naming. Fenix is too strong brand to give it up. And with every Garmin watch getting AMOLED screen, event tactix IT is bot hard to imagine Fenix getting one. This will allow enduro to differenciate. And three is no place for epix.
I promise that when you eventually upgrade your mind will be blown by the progress. Even jumping to the 5 there was a HUGE performance improvement in the interface. With Epix and Fenix 7 the mapping is finally usable to scroll and zoom without going insane :)
I was about to ask this question during DC Open Day but something distracted me ? and this post is the perfect place: Was the original Epix so bad that you never completed the full In depth review?
Must say I was super surprised when HRV dripped down to F6, almost singlehandedly shutting down my plans to upgrade to F7. Hope that Garmin keeps that trend and when i finally get F8 i will be able to keep it for 2 iterations without FOMO too.
did I read this right?.. Fenix and Epix are the same except the Amoled screen? is there any pitfall to the Amoled display? I just got myself a Fenix 7 Pro and thinking I might have got the wrong watch?
Could you please please ? make a story about how Garmin outdoor/sport divisions see the future of sensors in their watches. If there will be no more slots maybe native integrations (core temp, SmO2, glucose, etc) and slots for different apps. Thanks!
I would love to see a Fenix 8 with an updated MIP screen. (we people choose the Fenix series is because of the MIP display and not the funcy Amodel which for me is very nice but doesnt mutch to the watch like this, especially for the reason is proposed to be).
If they eliminate the Fenix series and keep only the Epic, the i would like to see an Instinct 3X Pro with an MIP fenix has, and better CPU faster UI and maps. I dont care about the solid metal frame, im more interested to the better MIP display, faster CPU and nice frame like the Instinct 2X currently has.
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The Garmin Forerunner series is a selection of sports watches produced by Garmin. Most models use the Global Positioning System (GPS), and are targeted at road runners and triathletes. Forerunner series watches are designed to measure distance, speed, heart rate (optional), time, altitude, steps, and pace.[2]
In late 2007, the Forerunner 50 was introduced. As opposed to GPS, this model paired with a foot pod to measure displacement. The Forerunner 50 came with a USB stick that allowed training data to be transferred wirelessly to one's pc.[4] This feature has since become a staple of Garmin's more full-featured sport watches.
The Forerunner 405 was introduced in 2008 and is significantly smaller than its predecessors, only slightly outsizing a typical wristwatch. The 405 also featured improved satellite discovery and connection.
In 2009, Garmin produced three new models: the Forerunner 60 (an evolution of the Forerunner 50), the Forerunner 405CX (405 chassis), and the Forerunner 310XT (an evolution of the 305 chassis).[5] New features in these models included additional battery life and vibration alerts on the 310XT and advanced calorie consumption modelling on all watches. The new calorie consumption modelling in these devices was the result of Garmin's first collaboration with Finnish physiological analytics firm First beat.[6][7] The 310XT was also the first watch of the Forerunner series to be waterproof, thus allowing its use for swimming and on all legs of a Triathlon, also thanks to extended battery life. In 2010 a firmware update added vastly improved open-water swimming metrics.[8]
In 2010, the Forerunner 110, 210 and 410 were introduced. The releases included the addition of a touch-sensitive bezel on the 410, presumably, although heavily debated, allowing for easier scrolling and selection of functions. It was touted as providing "unmatched reliability in sweaty, rainy conditions."[9]
In 2012 the Forerunner 910XT was introduced, which is a development of the 310XT. This version was originally supposed to be released in Q4 of 2011, but the November date had slipped and it was eventually released in Q1 of 2012. New features introduced in this model are the inclusion of the Sifter iv chipset, a barometric altimeter, and improved swimming metrics using an accelerometer in the watch. This allowed it to automatically count pool lengths and to recognize swimming styles.[11]
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