On top of access to those satellites, Garmin is also introducing new multi frequency positioning, which uses multiple frequencies from available satellite systems to improve outdoor accuracy. It works well too. I used it against a Fenix 6 Pro and it’s actually surprising just how much more accurate it was pinpointing exact positioning in real-time and plotting routes on maps post-activity in the Garmin Connect app. Now, there are some notable omissions here, especially coming hot on the heels of the Venu 2 Plus release two weeks ago. There is no voice assistance, or speaker/microphone for making/receiving calls. Even more, despite Garmin releasing the FR945 LTE last spring, there’s no LTE edition of the Fenix 7 either – a seemingly bizarre and odd gap. Nor is there an LTE version of the Epix Gen 2 either. The sports available on the Fenix 7 series are (some are technically not sports, but fall under the apps list, like Map Manager):

The Fenix 7X contains a three-LED flashlight at the top of the unit. Two of those LEDs are white, and the third is red. There are basically four core scenarios for the flashlight here: All Systems + Multiband: This is the new dual-frequency option that everyone has been waiting for, which combines the All Systems option, and then makes it multi-band across both L1 and L5 satellites. As a result, this burns a boatload more battery, and in theory is the most accurate. Speaking of structured workouts, each day the watch will offer up structured running or cycling workouts, as a suggested workout, based on your current training and recovery. It looks at your recent load and training focus areas, and figures out what the next logical workout should be to slightly increase your fitness. Then, it suggests that daily workout:

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These modes include blink, pulse, beacon, blitz, and cadence (which is for walking/running). Further, there are options for speed including slow, medium, and fast. And finally, you can choose the color (white or red) for each one. Like any product series, the longer the product is in the market, the less revolutionary the changes to each iteration become. As the product, or even product category, matures – the step-up in changes tends to decrease. While the Fenix 7 is theoretically the 7th generation, in reality, it’s closer to the 8th or 9th generation. There was no Fenix 4, but there was both a Fenix 3HR and Fenix 5 Plus, which were both substantially new generations of devices under the previous generation’s name. Now, I’m going to add a few waypoints here. Waypoints in files of course aren’t new. They’ve been around for a decade or two. In this case, Garmin calls them Course Points, but it’s effectively the same. You can tap on your route and add these points from a list of about 50 different standardized icons. A big issue for us walkers, Garmin don’t seem at all interested in fixing this, it’s been known about for a long time.

Available Gym Activity Profiles: Strength, HIIT, cardio and elliptical training, stair stepping, floor climbing, indoor rowing, Pilates and yoga

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As such, I’ve tested all three Fenix 7 series sizes in my workouts. These workouts include a wide variety of intensities and conditions, making them great for accuracy testing. Swims, bikes, runs, hikes, indoor workouts, and more. All of this is spot on. However, it’s not as if they’re on the correct side of the road (or consistently on any given side of the road). So that’s where we need to park the Holy Grail GPS Bus, and remember that hasn’t arrived yet: This is one of those things that at first glance didn’t make a ton of sense to me. I mean, yes, it was spot-on accurate, but why bother to spend the time on this was quirky to me. In asking Garmin, they said the intention was that for certain racing/training, such as steeper incline training, it allowed folks to start to analyze whether or not the pace/HR tradeoffs were worth it on walking versus running. Since you can overlay all those stats atop it, I can see the logic there.All Fenix 7 units now have music, WiFi, and Garmin Pay support (previously base Fenix 6 Series did not have this or maps)