This most recent iteration of the flagship Fenix adventure timepiece includes a life-saving capability: no-phone messaging and emergency messaging via 4G LTE or satellite links.
The Fenix 8 Pro upgrades the previously outstanding Fenix 8 by incorporating cutting-edge cellular tech, along with an available state-of-the-art microLED display in a special edition. This is the brand's premier model and engineered to be the only gadget needed to venture almost any location and track all your movements.
That makes it an very expensive option, priced from £1,030 (€1,200, $1,200, A$2,300) for the 47mm OLED model and climbing to a substantial £1,730 (€2,000/$2,000/A$3,399) for the 51mm variant with microLED display – nearly twice the price of the standard Fenix 8.
You do get a significant features for your investment, with best-in-class fitness, movement and outdoor tracking. The full offline mapping of the globe can seamlessly guide you return to the trail if you lose your way absent a phone, and look great on the sizable, sharp and super-bright touchscreen.
The Fenix 8 Pro is exclusively available in 47mm or 51mm case dimensions, omitting the more compact 43mm size available in other devices, so it is a big watch for larger wrists. However the 47mm OLED model as reviewed boasts an additional day of smartwatch battery life even with the screen on all the time, enduring a reliable eight to nine days between charges.
No-Phone Messaging, Calling and Live Tracking
Garmin uses its proprietary inReach LTE (4G) and satellite subscription plan instead of depending on a watch plan linked to your mobile provider, like other smartwatches. However in contrast to Apple or Google's satellite-enabled products, emergency communication is not included for free.
Instead, subscriptions start at £7.99 or equivalent a month, which includes limitless LTE text and audio messaging, call functionality and LiveTrack position sharing – so your friends or loved ones can keep an eye on you while out jogging, biking or similar activities – plus SOS orbital SOS alerts.
Location updates and messages over orbital are then charged additionally, with higher-tier subscriptions offering different allowances of orbital use, increasing to a £50 a month all-inclusive subscription. The watch comes with a 30-day trial period so you can test out the functionality.
After you have got it set up, you simply venture the door minus your phone and the watch will link to LTE. You cannot use it for playing music or similar tasks, but you can make and take calls, dispatch texts and overall keep in touch with your relatives and companions.
When you text someone, Garmin sends them an SMS from a arbitrary phone number, which they can respond to back to your watch. If they install the Garmin Messenger app, you can then communicate reciprocally via text or voice messages, and make voice calls. Your recipient does not need a Garmin profile to use the Messenger application, only a phone number is enough to register for texts.
Texting on the watch works fine but composing texts on the small on-screen keyboard is slow. It includes a set of personalizable pre-set responses you can use to speed things up. Spoken recordings and calls perform acceptably, though as with the majority of smartwatches, you’re unlikely going to want to use it for extended conversations as the quality is not fantastic.
LiveTrack is the most useful function. You can set it up to on its own send a link to chosen contacts whenever you start an exercise, so they can track your real time location on a map. It’s great for monitoring race progress, but it primarily serves as a tool for someone you trust to know your location in case something happens. It has typically worked effectively, although the real location has occasionally lagged when moving in and out of good LTE coverage.
These features are available on other Garmin watches if you bring your phone with you, but in locations where LTE lacks coverage, the satellite activates on the Fenix 8 Pro to send texts, location updates and SOS SOS.
A guide shows you how to locate the clear view to the orbital system, which then sends and receives messages within about 10 to 30 seconds. It was unexpectedly straightforward to use and could be a vital lifeline, though it is important to remember that orbital service is limited to the US continent, most of Canada, and most of Europe excluding parts of Scandinavia north of 65 degrees north.
Sustainability
The watch is typically serviceable with options offered via the support site. The battery is rated to maintain at least 90% of its initial power after two years of weekly charging. The watch lacks any recycled components. Garmin provides recycling schemes on new purchases.
Price
This Fenix 8 Pro is priced from £1,029.99 (€1,199.99/$1,199.99/A$2,299). The additional Garmin inReach service plans begin from £7.99 (€9.99/$7.99/A$13.50).
Conclusion
This Fenix 8 Pro builds on a excellent adventure watch in the regular Fenix 8 and adds LTE for texting, calls and LiveTrack – along with orbital communication, location update and SOS SOS for when you’re without signal.
The result is an increasingly impressive outdoor tool for those that desire to be unplugged. If you wish to have someone monitor you from afar while exercising after dark or in the middle of nowhere, the Garmin accomplishes this without requiring additional gear.
It is quite freeing to be outside without a phone, but that functionality carries quite a price, both in terms of the colossal price of the watch and the recurring fee of the inReach plan to provide the features. Fortunately it isn’t reliant on your phone carrier so functions with any brand of smartphone and network.
This Fenix 8 Pro is a top-tier gadget for someone who dislikes being burdened by their phone when running, cycling or trekking, but still wants to be trackable and reachable. For everyone else, it is a significant money when the superb Fenix 8 already exists.
Pros: LTE and satellite communication, high-luminance OLED screen, monitors all activities with premier GPS, built-in torch, phone and standalone voice control, 8+ day battery life, Garmin Pay, complete offline maps and routes, offline Spotify, 100-metre water resistance and 40-metre underwater use, physical controls and touch.
Drawbacks: extremely expensive, LTE and satellite functions need ongoing subscription, restricted Garmin Pay financial support, voice capabilities are slow, basic smartwatch functionality compared with competing watches.
