This newest iteration of Garmin's top-tier Fenix outdoor timepiece includes a life-saving capability: phone-free messaging and SOS messaging via 4G LTE or orbital links.
This Fenix 8 Pro upgrades the already impressive Fenix 8 by incorporating new cellular tech, plus an available state-of-the-art microLED display in a special edition. This is the brand's premier device and designed to be the single gadget needed to venture virtually anywhere and monitor all your movements.
This positions it as an extremely expensive option, starting at £1,030 (€1,200, $1,200, A$2,300) for the 47mm OLED model and reaching a substantial £1,730 (€2,000/$2,000/A$3,399) for the 51mm variant with microLED screen – nearly double the price of the standard Fenix 8.
You do get a significant features for your money, with industry-leading fitness, activity and outdoor monitoring. The full offline mapping of the world can seamlessly guide you return to the trail if you lose your way without a phone, and look excellent on the large, crisp and super-bright touchscreen.
The Fenix 8 Pro is only available in 47mm or 51mm case dimensions, omitting the more compact 43mm version found in other devices, so it is a big watch for bigger wrists. However the 47mm OLED model as reviewed boasts an extra day of smartwatch battery life despite the display on all the time, enduring a reliable eight to nine days between charging.
No-Phone Texting, Calls and Real-Time Location
The company operates its proprietary inReach LTE (4G) and satellite subscription plan instead of depending on a watch plan linked to your phone carrier, like other wearables. However unlike Apple or Google's satellite-enabled devices, emergency communication is not provided for free.
Rather, subscriptions begin from £7.99 or equivalent a month, which includes unlimited LTE text and audio messages, call functionality and LiveTrack position sharing – so your contacts or family can keep an eye on you while engaged in jogging, cycling or comparable activities – plus emergency satellite SOS alerts.
Check-ins and texts over orbital are then billed on top, with higher-tier plans offering different allowances of satellite usage, climbing to a £50 a month all-inclusive subscription. The watch comes with a 30-day free trial so you can test out the service.
After you have completed setup, you simply head out outside minus your phone and the watch will connect to LTE. You can not use it for streaming music or comparable tasks, but you are able to make and take calls, send texts and generally keep in touch with your relatives and friends.
Whenever you text someone, Garmin sends them an SMS from a arbitrary phone number, which they can reply to back to your watch. If they install the Garmin Messenger app, you can then message reciprocally via text or voice communications, and initiate voice calls. Your recipient is not required to have a Garmin account to use the Messenger application, just a phone number is enough to sign up for texts.
Texting on the watch works adequately but typing out texts on the small on-screen keyboard is slow. It has a set of personalizable pre-set replies you can send to speed things up. Spoken recordings and calls perform OK, although as with most smartwatches, you’re not going to wish to use it for lengthy discussions as the quality is less than ideal.
LiveTrack is the handiest function. You can set it up to on its own send a URL to chosen contacts whenever you begin an exercise, so they can follow your live position on a map. It’s excellent for monitoring race performance, but it mostly acts as a utility for someone you trust to be aware of your whereabouts in case something happens. It has typically functioned effectively, although the actual position has occasionally lagged when moving in and out of good LTE coverage.
All of these capabilities are accessible on other Garmin watches if you bring your phone with you, but in areas where LTE does not reach, the satellite kicks in on the Fenix 8 Pro to transmit texts, position updates and SOS SOS.
A guide shows you how to locate the line of sight to the satellite, which then sends and receives messages within about 10 to 30 seconds. It was unexpectedly straightforward to use and could be a vital safety feature, though it is essential to remember that satellite service is limited to the US mainland, most of Canada, and most of Europe excluding regions of Scandinavia north of 65 degrees north.
Environmental Impact
The watch is generally repairable with services offered via the support portal. The battery is rated to retain at least 90% of its original power after two years of regular charging. The watch lacks any recycled materials. Garmin provides recycling schemes on new purchases.
Price
The Fenix 8 Pro costs from £1,029.99 (€1,199.99/$1,199.99/A$2,299). The additional Garmin inReach subscription packages cost from £7.99 (€9.99/$7.99/A$13.50).
Verdict
The Fenix 8 Pro builds on a fantastic adventure watch in the regular Fenix 8 and incorporates LTE for texting, call functionality and LiveTrack – plus orbital messaging, check-in and SOS SOS for when you’re without signal.
Outcome is an increasingly impressive outdoor device for those that desire to be phone-free. If you wish to have someone monitor you from afar while running after dark or in the middle of nowhere, the Garmin does so without needing additional gear.
This is very freeing to be outdoors without a phone, but that capability carries a significant cost, both in terms of the colossal price of the watch and the recurring subscription of the inReach plan to enable the features. At least it isn’t dependent on your phone carrier so functions with any brand of smartphone and carrier.
The Fenix 8 Pro is a killer gadget for someone who hates being weighed down by their phone when jogging, cycling or trekking, but nevertheless wants to be locatable and reachable. For everyone else, it is a significant expense when the superb Fenix 8 already exists.
Advantages: LTE and orbital messaging, super-bright OLED display, tracks everything with premier GPS, integrated flashlight, voice and standalone commands, 8+ day battery life, Garmin Pay, full offline maps and routes, offline Spotify, 100-metre waterproofing and 40-metre diving, buttons and touch.
Cons: extremely expensive, LTE and satellite functions need ongoing payment, limited Garmin Pay financial support, speech features are sluggish, limited wearable features compared with Apple/Google/Samsung watches.