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Coros Apex vs Garmin Vívoactive 4S

Coros Apex

112 reviews

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Garmin Vívoactive 4S

Garmin Vívoactive 4S

136 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

#16 most mentioned

Reddit · r/smartwatch

#24 most mentioned

Reddit · r/garmin

Wirecutter · The 4 Best Fitness Trackers 2021

Great battery life

Stylish design

Data-rich companion app

Breadcrumb trail navigation feature

Advanced fitness metrics like VO2 max

Great battery life

Tracks sleep out of the box

Supports Garmin Pay with Curve

Two different size options

Looks more like a "real" watch than sports equipment/smart watch

Not a touch screen

No contactless payments

No ability to store songs locally

Not as many third-party apps as Apple Watch Series 5

Voice command feature is unreliable

Screen is difficult to read in bright sunlight

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 Vívoactive 4S is a solid update from the Vivoactive 3 Music, offering two different size options and a range of features. It has longer battery life than the Apple Watch Series 5, and can track sleep out of the box. It also supports Garmin Pay with Curve, providing a digital card for payments. However, some users have found that the voice command feature is unreliable. Additionally, while it looks more like a "real" watch than sports equipment/smart watch, some users have found that the screen is difficult to read in bright sunlight.

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

youtube

Garmin vívoactive 4/4S & Venu GPS Smartwatches Announced!

Skiing stand-up, paddleboarding rowing but you'll also get downhill, skiing and snowboarding, and both of those sport profiles actually utilize an alt...

Positive

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

An Amazing Smartwatch—But Beware of Updates and Garmin "Customer Service".

maybe not exactly. From the first quarter of 2021 through most of July, my device performed admirably. Sure, sometimes the GPS can take a while to connect, but overall, the watch did everything it was supposed to. It consistently did a good job

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

Garmin Vivoactive 4 Review

The Vivoactive 4 gamifies fitness by giving you badges for certain achievements. When you earn a new badge, the watch will vibrate and a congratulatory message will pop up on the screen. To view all your badges, visit the Garmin Connect app, tap My Day at the bottom, then tap your photo or avatar at the top of the screen to open your profile.

Positive

Price

Are fitness bands becoming redundant?

I'm in love with my Coros Apex. Got it for $300 on sale. I seriously do not think there is a better deal for a watch. To get a comparable Garmin I'd have to spend $650

Positive

reddit.com/r/running

Works as described

As far as cost/value rationing, given accuracy, with bias as purchased prime day at a discount, it definitely for me was a winner without the chicken dinner.

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

nice watch, weak battery life, music sync didnt work, too complicated/clunky interface, 4s too small

I didn't realize that one hour of running with the GPS on and music on would kill two days of "smartwatch" mode, or that a few hours of use in gps tracking mode w/o music would do the same thing. So on average if you are using this the way it is intended you should really expect to have to charge it every 2-3 days minimum. If you're doing longer gps exercises or listening to music then you'll probably change every day. And charging isn't quick, it does charge up to 80% fairly fast but the next 20% seems to take forever

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

The alternatives to leaving Wear Os

I have left wear os for a couple of reasons, but main one is battery life. With 1.5-3hrs of activity tracking per day, 24/7 continous HR monitoring and sleep tracking, and having to reduce my morning get ready routine to under 30 mins, there just wasn't enough time to fully charge my Suunto 7, and was getting to the point where every 2-3 days would have to give up tracking for an hour to recharge, and was often worried about having enough battery life for a tracking session.

Positive

reddit.com/r/WearOS

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

Perfect for my mtb rides

The other day it triggered the alert feature when I did a steep drop then slowing down quickly as the drop rose back up. It thought I had fallen until I started back up. I didn't know it went off until the ride was over and I saw that it the alert didn't send. Nice to know someone would have gotten an alert if I had fallen! The only issues I've had with this device have been setting up the compass

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

Venu 2 Out Now?

So apps installed on the watch will see massive upgrades too when updated from developers. There will be called real apps and widgets are going to be widget glance like with the Fenix series. There is a new HR sensor generation, of course we have to wait and see there. It is not only battery life and display size

Positive

reddit.com/r/Garmin

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.

When you are hyped for new innovative garmin watches, but instead they come with a downgraded watch for yoga influencers...

Meanwhile I'm over here exasperated because I just bought the Vivoactive 4s two weeks ago after a month of research on the smallest, least obtrusive watch that looks more like a "real" watch, and less like sports equipment/smart watch, and they've come out with this just now. After using my Fitbit One for years after it was discontinued, it gave up the ghost this fall and I finally reconciled myself to a wristband version. No yoga, but I do hike and do short runs - but also wanted something less immediately identifiable as tech/sports if I'm wearing it daily, to work, etc.

Negative

reddit.com/r/Garmin

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

I only use these for music

This is pretty good for my use. I have several quartz and digital wristwatches; I only wear this smartwatch at work to listen to downloaded (not streamed) music. The fitness tracking and mobile app features are of no importance to me so I have given them 5 stars. As a timekeeping watch, it is pretty good

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