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Coros Apex vs Garmin Venu Sq

Coros Apex

112 reviews

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Garmin Venu Sq

83 reviews

View Product Details

Best Bang for the Buck

OutdoorGearLab · Best GPS Watch of 2022

#17 most mentioned

Reddit · r/trailrunning

Best Overall Sports Watch

Switchback Travel · Best Sports Watches of 2022

#18 most mentioned

Reddit · r/garmin

#20 most mentioned

Reddit · r/smartwatch

Great battery life

Stylish design

Data-rich companion app

Breadcrumb trail navigation feature

Advanced fitness metrics like VO2 max

Great battery life

Comprehensive health and fitness tracking features

Integration with the Garmin ecosystem

Customizable watch faces and screen options

Lightweight and stylish design

Not a touch screen

No contactless payments

No ability to store songs locally

Not suitable for hardcore athletes or those looking for advanced training features

Some users have reported accuracy issues with heart rate tracking

Expensive compared to other lifestyle watches

Verdict

The Coros Apex is a multisport GPS watch with excellent battery life and a data-rich companion app that offers a wealth of insights about your performance biking, running, swimming, and more. It offers similar functionality to the Garmin Forerunner 735XT, with better battery life and a more stylish design, making it our Editors’ Choice. Pros: - Excellent battery life - Stylish design - Data-rich companion app - Breadcrumb trail navigation feature - Comparably priced to Garmin Vivoactive 3 Music - Offers advanced fitness metrics like VO2 max - Smart features like contactless payments and the ability to store songs locally Cons: - No touch screen

Verdict

The Garmin Venu Sq receives mixed reviews, with some users praising its features and design, while others criticize its accuracy and lack of training features. Many users appreciate its battery life and integration with the Garmin ecosystem, while others find it lacking compared to other high-end smartwatches. Overall, the Venu Sq seems to be a good option for those looking for a lifestyle watch with above-average sports tracking and health features, but may not be suitable for hardcore athletes or those looking for a premium smartwatch experience.

Reviews by Topic

Our analysis shows how reviewers feel about different topics. Please note these are not full reviews.

Activity Tracking

Coros Apex Review

When setting up the Apex, the app asks you to select your training level (light, moderate, or hard), and set your daily calorie and exercise goals. I’m an average runner at best, so I selected the light training level, and went with the default recommendations of 153 calories and 39 minutes of exercise. If you find your exercise goals too easy, you can change them in the app. When you meet your daily goal, the Apex vibrates and shows a congratulatory message on its screen

Positive

A Year Later ~ Updated Review February 2022

The mobile app is great and helps to track my activity over time and other measures like my weight and menstrual cycles. I don't wear my watch at night, but there is an option for sleep activity. I charge my watch once a week and it is typically around 40-50% battery life so it could likely last almost another week without charging. There are alerts throughout the day to remind me to move

Connectivity

Multi-sport with A Focus On Runners

For those thinking that perhaps the Coros has a hardware issue, I should note that I had Bluetooth issues on the Pace 2 in many of the similar ways. And for those thinking it’s my phone, I had the same issue with my iPhone 11 and the Pace 2 as well. This is either the Bluetooth stack on their devices, or a poor handling of the Bluetooth API interactions on iOS. As I finally finished my customization (new watch face, workout screen modifications [data fields]), I was able to finally start putting the Apex Pro through it’s paces

Get a screen protector. Otherwise, fantastic. (Coming from Samsung Gear Watch)

I was figuring I'd upgrade to a newer Samsung watch. I'm glad I took the time to research and try a Garmin. I'm a techie and quasi-athlete. In other words, I like gadgets and cool tech, and I take exercise somewhat seriously

Fit

Great GPS watch w/ lackluster iPhone app

I actually give Fitbit the win on both mobile and website interfaces. I find the dark theme and low contrast text on the mobile app hard to read. I don't like that some screens/views require rotating the phone. And, it's just hard to see some of the data I want to see, like HR during specific parts of a workout

Missing very important features.

If you are training and want insight for recovery and progress, this unit provides neither. No recovery time, no performance indicators or insight. Seems odd to leave that out, and those are important metrics for anyone into fitness. Actually, those are the MOST important metrics

Battery Life

Battery life is the only selling point

I almost forgot I had it on at times. The battery life is the selling point of this watch (and frankly, all Coros products). A bit better than what I get on my Fenix 6X. The trade-off in software and lack of data ultimately had me stick with Garmin though

youtube

NEW GARMIN VENU SQ (Accurate HR/GPS, Offline Spotify, 5 Day Battery)

That's a small drawback for me, because when i'm traveling i will have to bring a charger the battery life on this, however, is pretty good. So if you...

Positive

Durability

Upgrading from Fitbit to Garmin

I have had a 245 for 2 years and it’s pretty dope. I really can’t see myself upgrading to a different running watch (though having Garmin Pay would be nice).

Positive

reddit.com/r/running

Venu 2 Plus - Apple/Samsung rival. Great for running/Spotify and general Smartwatch use

Dropping or hitting the watch can damage the water resistance, as can exposing it to hot water/chemicals/soaps i.e. showers. I’m afraid I did both and learned a lesson

Notifications

What smartwatch are you using with your pixel?

I only use the text & call notifications because everything else was just overwhelming/obnoxious. That's also because my Pixel was updated & the "new & improves bubbles" turned my notifications to shit.

Positive

reddit.com/r/GooglePixel

I liked having that constant feedback from the program, and I liked that it would adjust based on what I did. The first few weeks, I had to stop a few runs early as I just didn't have the endurance or I skipped a run, and the program compensated for it. Then in September, I moved the date of my race (since I chose my own race instead of tying it to a specific one) out a week, and the program adjusted.

Positive

reddit.com/r/Garmin

Software Updates

So I've recently update the firmware of my Coros Apex and updated the app. After that the watch was unpaired from my phone and I can't pair it. I've tried everything. I've reset all network connection and cache on my phone, restarted my phone and watch, reset my watch, but still nothing

Negative

reddit.com/r/Coros

A huge disappointment for a Garmin device

Maybe the Venu SQ functions well as a very basic fitness device, but a lot of our time with jt was spent dealing with software and other technical shortcomings.

Design

Great GPS watch w/ lackluster iPhone app

And, it's just hard to see some of the data I want to see, like HR during specific parts of a workout. The iPhone app interface is why I gave it a 4 star instead of 5 star and I'd probably only deduct half a start if that were possible.

Buggy with erratic battery life

This kind of inconsistency makes the watch unreliable. The suggested solution seems to be to uninstall third-party apps, watchfaces, and data fields. So what's the point of having an app store? Poor design: -No airplane mode option at all. -No quick option to turn off the always-on display (AOD) on the fly

Comfort

Moved from Garmin, no regrets.

No complaints. It is comfortable to ware all day and night. It is very light and does not feel thick in the wrist. The Band: The band is also very light and comfortable

Pleasantly Surprised!

. or even a new runner, this is probably the watch for you. It doesn't have all of the frills of some of Garmin's other products, and it is very simple to navigate! I'm all about simplicity because I'm kind of "computer stupid

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