The display comes to life: The Garmin Venu with a high-resolution AMOLED display shows fitness exercises that the wearer can then imitate. And the fitness watch in the mid-price segment also has a lot to offer. We checked the smartwatch from the US-Swiss manufacturer in detail in our Garmin Venu test. You can find an overview of all functions, strengths and weaknesses here.

Sports Watches are very trendy - older model generations are improved through regular updates and upgrades to the hardware and software every year. However, completely new models still do not appear on the market every day. The Garmin Venu was a newcomer among the watches in autumn 2019 that quickly secured its place among fans of fitness watches.

The smartwatch combines current sports watch functions with a sporty, elegant design, a high-resolution AMOLED display and an attractive price that is in the middle segment - very clearly below its big brother - the Garmin fenix 6 Pro (test) and the Garmin quatix 6 (test), which are significantly larger in some versions and significantly more expensive in all versions (according to RRP). This makes the fitness smartwatch an exciting gadget for sports enthusiasts and outdoor fans who are looking for a reliable companion on adventure or active vacations - while also being suitable for everyday use in the office.

Elegant, round design

The round design with the shiny bezel is already familiar from other models - including the sister model Garmin vivoactive 4. Round seems to have established itself visually among outdoor watches. Only a few models currently have a shape with rounded corners. The feel of the fitness smartwatch appears to be of high quality and results in a very pleasant look and feel overall. But the highlight of the sports watch only shines when you switch on the timepiece: the brightly colored AMOLED display.

My impression of the Garmin Venu test: Nice thing, it increases the anticipation of trying out the wearable in everyday life and during sports. Below I have put together the most important information about the Garmin Venu for you and in mine Review The most important strengths and weaknesses of the multisport smartwatch have been identified. This much can be revealed in advance: The test produced an unexpected result.

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Overview: the most important functions of the Garmin Venu

• Multisport smartwatch for a variety of uses such as indoor training, outdoor activities, everyday life and travel
• light, minimalist and elegant design
• Highlight: The colorful AMOLED display
• the most important specifications of the sports smartwatch at a glance
  • high-resolution AMOLED display in color
  • four color options for the case and bracelet: black with gold, sand with rose gold, granite blue with silver and black with slate
  • Tracking functions for fitness and health: oxygen saturation, energy level, respiratory rate, menstrual cycle tracking, drinking reminder and relaxation tips
  • Imitation fitness exercises - animated display directly on the smartwatch
  • Accident detection and automatic notifications for emergency help
  • Music functions - memory for up to 500 songs as well as an integration of Amazon, Deezer, Spotify and others
  • Garmin Pay function for contactless payments
  • special smartwatch apps for sports activities like running, swimming and more
  • Via VO2max, fitness age, 24/7 stress level measurement and heart rate measurement on the wrist, the smartwatch determines the fitness level
  • typical smartwatch functions such as notifications, call display and more

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My impression – Garmin Venu in the test

The Garmin Venu has proven to be a positive surprise from the very first moment. Their minimalist and almost timeless design, which is primarily characterized by the stainless steel bezel, spoke to me directly. Nevertheless, our Garmin Venu test showed that many strengths of the sports smartwatch are inside the Gadgets lay. The high-resolution AMOLED display lights up colorfully and brightly immediately after switching on - and really turns out to be an eye-catcher. The sharp screen with touchscreen input is definitely the heart of the Garmin Venu.

As usual with this manufacturer, setup is quick and easy using the associated Garmin Connect app. We connected the sports smartwatch to an iPhone 11 Pro Max (test), i.e. with the iOS 13 operating system. And it worked perfectly and in just a few seconds. You also need a Garmin account to set up the watch and use it to its full extent. However, this is now common practice with all major manufacturers.

The menu navigation on the watch proves to be intuitively simple and is close to that of the sister model Garmin Vivoactive 4 (test) related. Within a few minutes you understand the basic functionality of the sports smartwatch and can experience the timepiece in its full range of functions.

The first thing I tried out was the pulse oximeter and the training animations - and that also worked straight away. However, at the beginning I didn't even know what an oxygen saturation of 96 percent meant. You also have to be able to interpret the measurement results of the sports smartwatch. A healthy person has an oxygen saturation between 96 and 98 percent - so everything is fine for me.

As for the training animations, I immediately started with a round of yoga and realized how immobile I actually am. For this reason, Far Eastern stretching exercises, breathing exercises and relaxation exercises have now found their way into my everyday life. The sports watch shows me how it works. You can find out what strengths and weaknesses my Garmin Venu test revealed further down in the article.

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Holistic approach with the Garmin Venu

The manufacturer takes a holistic approach to the sports smartwatch. The Garmin Venu is intended to bring “body and mind into harmony” on a daily basis Training adapt to personal preferences and performance. The sports watch measures the wearer's individual energy level - the body battery.

The Garmin Venu also offers menstrual cycle tracking for women. And for anyone who wants to improve their sleep quality, advanced sleep analysis is available. The Pulse Ox sensor is used to measure the oxygen saturation in the blood and record the breathing rate. Conclusions about different sleep phases and sleep quality are then drawn from the measurements.

Motivation boost through workout animations

Also very exciting are the animated on-screen workouts on the Garmin Venu, which look lively on the high-resolution AMOLED display and encourage the wearer of the watch to imitate them. The workouts are deliberately designed to be simple so that they can be easily copied by the user. The workouts are available for strength training, cardio, yoga and Pilates, with users being given a visual demonstration of the correct technique for performing the exercise.

And the Garmin Venu is also ideal for endurance sports: the sports watch tracks numerous indoor and outdoor sports profiles from running, cycling to swimming and Pilates and records the movement data for users to analyze. The virtual coach is available especially for runners and supports joggers with personalized training plans and safety functions. The automatic accident notification is used for safety.

Numerous smartwatch functions on the Garmin Venu

In addition to the numerous sports watch functions, the Venu also has the typical, current smartwatch features. Headphones can be connected directly to the watch and music can be played directly from the smartwatch. The integrated music storage can store up to 500 songs. In addition, premium users of various music streaming services such as Spotify, Deezer and Amazon can download their music offline to the smartwatch.

Contactless payments can be made using the Garmin Pay function. Additional smartwatch functions are available when the Bluetooth connection to the smartphone is active. This includes calls, emails, weather, news, messages and more. All activity data can be saved in the Garmin Connect Mobile app and can be viewed there by the wearer. Additional apps, widgets and watch faces can be loaded onto the watch. This makes the Garmin Venu a current lifestyle gadget.

Video – Garmin Venu in test

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Garmin Venu test – who is the smartwatch suitable for?

The Garmin Venu is completely geared towards athletes and actively supports them in their workouts in various sports. With numerous state-of-the-art functions and apps for many sports, particularly active people can benefit from the sports watch - for example when jogging, cycling or swimming. For this reason, I would clearly rate the timepiece as one of the best sports watches currently on the market. In particular, the display of animated fitness exercises is really motivating and helpful for staying on track.

Calculating the wearer's physical fitness is important information for anyone who wants to improve their health in the long term and sustainably. The watch is therefore particularly suitable for anyone who provides healthcare. And of course, less active people are motivated to move more often. The multisport smartwatch also cuts a fine figure when traveling, especially on active holidays and adventure holidays, but of course also when swimming on a beach holiday - a real all-rounder.

Strengths and weaknesses of the Garmin Venu

The Garmin Venu is one of the sports smartwatches that I liked the most in my tests. The sports watch has many strengths, which are offset by relatively few weaknesses. In particular, the extensive equipment of the smartwatch - both in terms of hardware and software functions - was convincing in the test. A Garmin Venu comparison with other smartwatches shows the consistently good performance of the watch - for example as Heart rate monitor – that can compete with the top models from other manufacturers.

I personally like the rather minimalist and elegant design of the watch. Other users may prefer a more robust and intrusive design with a larger housing and more buttons. The main strengths of the sports smartwatch include the sharp, colorful screen with high resolution and great brightness. In addition, the precise recording of the heart rate is impressive, which unfortunately is not available to this extent in all current multisport watches. A refreshing change are the workout animations, which can be played directly on the screen of the smartwatch and motivate the wearer to train.

The Garmin Venu offers programs for numerous sports and areas of application in the Outdoor- and indoor area, so that it is a real all-rounder as a multi-sport watch. I also like the extensive operation via the touch-sensitive screen, which is only supplemented and supported by two physical buttons with four different functions. The price is also a positive surprise, as the sports smartwatch is available from some retailers on the Internet for less than 300 euros (price may vary).

The numerous strengths are offset by relatively few weaknesses. Above all, I think that the screen could be one or two sizes larger. The bezels (black area around the display) are relatively wide compared to the overall size of the case. It would also be nice if the smartwatch had an always-on display like some other current models. The display turns on when you do that Wrist rotates. However, this function on the Garmin Venu is still a bit cumbersome.

Overall, I would also like Garmin to be a little more creative with the pre-installed watch faces. However, this applies to all smartwatches I have tested so far from all manufacturers. You can download additional watch faces from third-party providers, but a really attractive, original watch face directly from the provider would be nice to have. The menu of the Wearables could be made a little clearer.

Power

• the sharp, colorful touchscreen AMOLED color display with high resolution
• precise recording of the heart rate
• Workout animations on the display
• extensive equipment for numerous sports and areas of application
• elegant, timeless design
• few buttons, extensive operation via the touch screen

weaknesses

• the screen could still be one or two sizes bigger
• Always-on display would be practical, the watch sometimes reacts somewhat sluggishly to wrist rotations
• a little more creativity with the pre-installed dials would be good

Rating: Garmin Venu in the test

Processing, materials and optics

Display and operation

Features

Precision of the measurement results

Versatility of application areas

Value for money

overall impression

Average rating 8,8

The evaluation is purely subjective and only reflects my own experience with the smartwatch.

Specifications Table – Garmin Venu

	Technology used
Main material	fiber-reinforced polymer - dimensions: 43,2 × 43,2 × 12,4mm
Cover glass material	Gorilla Glass
Bezel material	Stainless Steel
Bracelet material	Silicone Sealant
Display	Color touchscreen AMOLED display with 1,2 inch diameter
Touchscreen	Ja
Color variants of the smartwatch	Black, silver, rose gold
Clock functions	Time, automatic summer time, alarm clock, timer, stopwatch
Fitness tracking	Energy level measurement, oxygen saturation measurement, stress level tracking, heart rate measurement, respiratory rate, sleep analysis and menstrual cycle tracking
Activity features	Pedometer, calorie consumption, floors, distance, intensity minutes
Focus	Multisport - running, cycling, swimming, SUP, golf, skiing, hiking, yoga, Pilates
Indoor tracking functions	Strength training, cardio training and cross-trainer training, steps, climbing stairs, rowing machine, yoga, Pilates and breathing exercises as well as training animations on the watch
Heart rate measurement on the wrist	Optical heart sensor
Pulse oximeter	Ja
water resistance	50 meters (5 ATM) - suitable for swimming
Battery Life	Smartwatch mode: up to eight days GPS mode with music: up to six hours
Position tracking	GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO
Sensors	Optical heart rate sensor, barometric altimeter, compass, gyroscope, accelerometer, pulse oximeter
SmartWatch features	Notifications, SMS reply, calendar, weather, music functions, phone search, Garmin Pay payment function
Compatibility	iPhone, Android
Connections	Bluetooth, ANT +, WiFi
Weight	46,3 grams

Garmin Venu test – best all-rounder smartwatch for athletes?

My conclusion

In my Garmin Venu test report, I gave the multisport smartwatch one of the best ratings ever because the overall package with this model is just right. The Venu impresses with its design and offers a wide range of functions at a really exciting price. The highlights of the model are certainly the high-resolution AMOLED display, the long battery life, the numerous Garmin Venu sports, the precisely recorded heart rate and the pulse oximeter.

With all of these features and functions, the heart rate monitor is state-of-the-art. Features such as pedometers and activity calories as well as stress level tracking and sleep analysis are standard. Athletes from many sports get their money's worth with the electronic wristwatch. You could easily use the Garmin Venu for triathlon, although advanced athletes might prefer a larger model like the Fenix ​​6.

The included silicone Garmin Venu bracelet isn't a big deal, but it's definitely okay. Other third-party bracelets can also be purchased separately. The wearable's positive features outweigh its weaknesses. So, after my detailed Garmin Venu test, there is a clear purchase recommendation for the sports smartwatch.

Are you already using a smartwatch? Which models convince you the most? Share your experiences in the comments.

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