Brilliant watches compared to the rest of the smartwatch market.

Battery life is ridiculously good and even with daily 80 mins of GPS usage I get over a week of battery power. Without GPS usage you'd stretch that to 2-3 weeks on a single charge! It connects to my HRM and speed/cadence sensor without issue.

Integrates with Garmin Connect and syncs via your phone and simple apps can be downloaded from the phone app to add things like HIIT timers etc.

The screen is IMO spot on in all lighting conditions and doesn't suffer the same issues as LCD, viewing angles also great.

Check DCrainmaker for a thorough review, but I'd recommend unreservedly.

Hi, I purchased this watch from Amazon during the flash sale. The backlight is very dim, I sent it back for a refund.

I have one. I don't find it dim when I use the backlight but I did notice that, unlike a tablet or phone screen, the brighter the light shining onto it the better for viewing. This one is stand out for the fact it lets you swim whilst it counts your lengths, time, etc. There is a dedicated Garmin Swim watch but I think I prefer the Vivo Active. I got mine just after Christmas from Amazon Prime for £119.58.

Brilliant watches compared to the rest of the smartwatch market.

Battery life is ridiculously good and even with daily 80 mins of GPS usage I get over a week of battery power. Without GPS usage you'd stretch that to 2-3 weeks on a single charge! It connects to my HRM and speed/cadence sensor without issue.

Integrates with Garmin Connect and syncs via your phone and simple apps can be downloaded from the phone app to add things like HIIT timers etc.

The screen is IMO spot on in all lighting conditions and doesn't suffer the same issues as LCD, viewing angles also great.

Check DCrainmaker for a thorough review, but I'd recommend unreservedly.

I had this and currently use a Fenix 3 (essentially a bigger brother to this) - Garmin have kind of nailed the smartwatches; these are more sports watches with useful smart features built-in but that's all you need. The screen is 'dim' but it's transflective, it's designed to be used outdoors and the backlight only when it's really dark (and then a dim backlight doesn't matter).

When I got mine, I took off my Apple Watch and haven't used the Apple Watch since - a device that has real standalone GPS, outstanding battery life and no frills or useless gimmicks (the apps on the Apple Watch are so slow I don't know a single person who actually uses them).

Oos

Oddly I was looking at this yesterday but the new one is really appealing. Torn.

Oos

I hope the build quality is better than the Vivosmart. Mine has been the biggest pile of nonsense I've bought in a long while. My colleagues was just as bad. I rate Windows Millenium and Vista ahead of the Vivosmart.

It's pretty good actually. I got the Fenix 3 and 920XT for triathlon mode which the VivoActive is missing (no multi sport mode basically) but it's very fully featured given its price point. I would choose the VA over the older Fenix 2 as well. I don't think you get Run Dynamics on the VA but that may not be important to you. The VA should have all the features of the 220 and then some (like swim mode and smart notifications).

Yes, as another said, the Garmins keep their display always on which is a big bonus (not just when you raise your wrist).

Also if you want accurate HR data and HR variability then you don't want an optical sensor, the chest straps are far better (plus in circuits classes you can remove the watch if it would get in the way otherwise but you can't with optical sensors).

New one is out on the 3rd of May.

So I'm looking at reviews of the VA, it doesn't look like you can set up workouts/interval runs like with the FR and Fenix? That's a pretty big killer!

Sorry, I don't use intervals and didn't actually see that bit of your question, but yes you may be right. DC Rainmaker has a very in-depth review of it. The bike and swim modes seem to be fine (as basic trackers).

Good rationale. I sadly am an impatient sod and a sucker for the latest tech, so I pre-ordered from Amazon for £209. I really do like the form factor of the new one.

I've been researching these things for weeks. Looking for a fitness tracker that can truly track swims.

Finding one that was actually water proof was tough. The TomTom spark looked a good option but turns out it's terrible for swimming as it isn't at all accurate for lengths.

Only downside is I have the wait until May 3rd for this to arrive.

2nd hand.

amazing watch, had one since march, battery life brilliant, used it for walks in the lakes, fitness training with custom apps, swimming, Cycling, and it pairs with my HR belt really well

I have one and I love it. When I first got it, the excellent device itself was severely hampered by the Garmin Connect software on my phone and would take ages to synchronise and would disconnect at regular intervals. Thankfully, the software has been updated a number of times during my ownership and it is now spot on. I just bought a new ANT+ heart strap to go with it, so it cost me a lot more than this, so this is a stonking deal if you manage to get a mint VA and HR strap.
Heat!

I've been using one of these for the last 3 weeks having spent hours on forums ect. DCRainmaker is the go to place for a full review. So best go there to check out this tech and if it is right for you.
I've done a 170mile coast to coast this week and the Vivo was brilliant. I was in the saddle for 10 hrs and gave it a little boost on charge at about 5hrs which at the time was at about 40%. 20mins on charge and she was back to 65%. Can't fault it one bit.
I mainly use it for running. GPS is fast, simple to use and best of all a very good price. I bought mine from Amazon, no nonsense customer service.
Still, at this price can't go wrong.

Twice this week I have tried ordering one of these from CEX to no avail.

Tuesday night I noticed 1 was in stock so I quickly ordered it and received a confirmation email. Order stayed at the 'Stock picking in progress' stage until Thursday night when I received an email saying my order had been cancelled as "Unfortunately, we were unable to source the item you had ordered, and as such have been unable to complete your order." I was eager to purchase one thanks to OP's recommendation and other reviews so I checked again on Friday morning. Lo and behold, they were in stock again so I ordered another...and the same result seems likely. Order is listed as 'Stock picking in progress' and I'm sure I'll receive an email soon saying the order has been cancelled for the same reason. Seems far too much of a coincidence to me that they were out of stock on Thursday night and suddenly in stock again on Friday morning.

I emailed CEX customer service yesterday lunch time to ask whether I would actually receive one and they haven't responded to my email either. I've no idea what they are playing at and I would not recommend anyone bother trying to purchase one. Quite frankly, I'd not buy a thing from them online after this farce.

£177 for vivoactive HR on Amazon