The Garmin Venu 3 is best viewed as Garmin’s true smartwatch. It gets the best that Garmin has to offer on that front to make it a better alternative to the likes of the Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch and Google Pixel Watch.
For the new Venu, we’re getting improvements in the design, features and of course the smartwatch department. Tester Mike straps on the Venu 3 to find out what’s new on the running front and offer some initial comparisons with the Garmin Venu 2 Plus, the Vivoactive 5 and also the AMOLED-packing Forerunner 265.
CHAPTERS:
00:00 – Intro
01:14 – Price and What’s New from Garmin Venu 2 Plus
04:45 – The Run Test
10:22 – Initial Verdict plus Venu 2 Plus, Vivoactive 5 and Forerunner 265 comparisons
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Hey this is Mike from the Run testers And in this video we're going to be Talking about the Garmin venue 3 now Sometimes it takes us a little bit Longer to get hold of some watches that We do really want to test case in point The venue 3 now the Garmin venue in General and the series it's definitely Garmin's answer to things like the Apple Watch Samsung Galaxy watch any kind of Full fat smart watches that are not made By Sports companies ultimately and this Is showcasing what Garmin has to offer In terms of Smartwatch features used to Be the Vivo active it's now very much The Garmin venue now yeah we've got it In I'm looking forward to kind of going Out and running with it I'm going to do My first run with it what I'm going to Do is take you through what's new on the Gin venue 3 compared to the venue 2 plus But also kind of size it up against Other watches which I think an obvious Kind of comparison so things like the G Via active 5 which we've tested as well Too and also I would say the Garmin fora 265 as well too which kind of sits Around this price as as well too so yeah We going to do do that first take you Through watch new how it Compares some Of its competitors within garmin's own Range and then get into some initial Running thoughts and let you know what We think of the Garmin venue 3 so
Far okay so here's what you need to know About the Garmin venue 3 and we'll start With price and the price is 449 in the UK which does mean it's a bit Of a jump up from what we paid or you Would pay for the Garment venue 2 plus Also it does kind of push it into the Realms of something like the gunr a 265 And interestingly it's got a similar Feature set to the Vivo active 5 which We've also tested on the channel but That is significantly cheaper than the Venue 3 and we'll kind of get into how These kind of watches all kind of Compare now in terms of design there are Some changes it has got it's still got The polymer case like the venue 2 plus You are getting a larger case this time Now you are also getting a large L Screen and a higher resolution AML Display as well too the bigger case does Mean you are getting larger straps as Well but they are ones that you can Remove and you're getting kind of you Know a silicon strap or the option of a Leather strap with the venue 3 um at Launch as well too so in terms of Sensors it's generally very consistent Across the board on both of the watches The venue 2 plus and the venue 3 both Have that kind of ECG support that Garmin has recently kind of unlocked um In terms of GPS support you are getting A multi-gnss
Setup on the gy venue 3 so it's an Upgrade from what we got on the venue 2 Plus it's not the multiband mode that We've seen on other watches from Garmin Recently but it is an upgrade from the Venue 2 plus so in terms of Smartwatch Features it's largely the same for both These watches but there are some extras On the venue 3 that you're getting here You're getting the ability to display Kind of font in a larger size to make it A little bit easier to read you are Getting the ability to access the Connect key store directly from the Watch itself you are getting the ability To kind of view pictures uh when they're Sent through messages but that's only When you've got the watch paired to an Android phone if you're using with an IPhone then you won't be able to see Those images you kind of dig into the Running features and what you have Available again it's more of the same on The venue 3 everything you got in the Venue 2 plus is available on the venue Fee probably the most notable thing I Would say in terms of what you're Getting on the running front and Training font is that you're getting the Kind of improved interval modes and Interval tracking in general that is Available on the venue 3 and not on the Venue 2 plus in terms of analysis you Are getting the HRV status um kind of
Data here as well so that kind of heart Rate variability uh based information to Kind of give you a better insight into Your recovery but you don't have the Training red in this mode that we have Seen on other watches like the Garmin 4un 265 so you are getting a little bit more In terms of those training elements um Particularly from an insight and Features and modes as well to to make This a better running watch in general And then we have to get into battery Life and we're seeing promised Improvements across the board here so Whether it's using it in kind of daily Smartwatch mode you're seeing quite a Vast Improvement on paper with the Garin Venue 3 compared to the venue 2 plus you Also seeing improvements in terms of When you're using the GPS obviously you Have the kind of gnss mode as well so That see the battery drop a little bit More but ultimately that's an additional Way to use the watch and then you're Looking at things like when you are Streaming music while you're tracking as Well too you're getting a couple of Hours extra compared to what you would Do or get from the venue 2 plus in the Same Scenario so first one completed with the Garmin venue 3 and I would say the Experience was pretty solid overall very
Familiar very similar to what I've seen From going watches that I've tested Recently particularly something like the G Viva active 5 now I did kind of an 18K Very easy run and then kind a little Break and then did a extra couple of k Um I had the Garmin FR 265 on my other Wrist and the reason I picked that is Because as I mentioned earlier it's Similar in price to the Garmin venue 3 Also has the multiband mode which you Don't get here on the Garmin venue 3 so That was an opportunity to see how well The GPS performed it obviously is an Upgraded kind of setup from the go venue 2 plus but it isn't that multiband mode That we get or has that multiband mode That we have on something like the 265 I Had the 265 also paired to a Garmin HRM Pro Plus trash St as well to kind of Just keep an eye on the heart rate date As well though as I said I was going Pretty easy on that run now in terms of The experience talk a little bit about The design now I don't think it's Massively changed in terms of how it Feels to run with this watch compared to The Gan venue 2 you have got that kind Of bigger case size you have got that Bigger screen as well I never found the Venue 2 plus screen was a little on the Small side but you know I think it's a Good size in terms of being able to kind Of absorb and you know take in your data
The kind of UI changes that we've Started to see in newer Garmin watches So things like the vi active 5 where G Me it's kind of moved some things in you Know in terms of where they sit inside On kind of on the watch and the watch Menus not sure I absolutely love kind of Putting the kind of tracking modes and The kind of additional modes the same Screen but G decided to do that and from A tracking point of view it was an issue In terms of kind of getting it to Getting into action and getting out and Running now in terms of locking onto a GPS signal was pretty quick um pretty Much in line with the Garmin 4 and a 265 In terms of the time it took and in Terms of that GPS performance Pretty Good overall I was getting the same Buzzers when I hit you know you know the Same kilometers you know splits and Stuff so from that point of view it Seemed to kind of add up when I looked At the data afterwards and during the Run they generally matched up in terms Of things like the average pace distance The I think it was it clocked me kind of 18.20 on the uh kilomet on the 265 18.19 kilometers on the venue 3 so Pretty solid overall and I said the Average pace was pretty much in line With what I got on the 265 and dig a Little bit deeper into the kind of Mapped routes and the tracked routes
There are some little differences and I've picked one out as an example where You see the benefits of maybe the Multiband mode just being slightly a Little bit more accurate than the kind Of the GPS and the multi GN SS mode that You're getting here on the venue 3 now If you care about the accuracy the Multi Band does really deliver in terms of Improved accuracy and it was good Generally I would say on that run but There has been a couple of places when I Look and compare the maps that it was Slightly off point kind of put me inside Of you know inside of kind of car park Par s where obviously I didn't run Through car Parks I was very much on the Pavement so from that point of view GPS Was okay but kind of what I would expect To see what you know you're using it Compared to a multiband watch from Garmin compared to something like this Which has got that multi gnss as it's Kind of top GPS accuracy mode in terms Of other things like heart rate now as I Said I had a heart rate monitor chest Trp P to the 265 and I said I was going Pretty easy in terms of my pacing kind Of two maybe bpms out for average and Max heart rate heart rate readings in Terms of kind of post run and obviously The level of insights you're getting You're not getting the level of insights As you are on the something like the G
FR 265 but on here I kind of looked at Similar metrics that they would offer After so things like recovery and they Kind of suggested the same things that Was 70 hours in terms of recovery and I Mean I've not done a long run for a While because of been off sick um so you Know kind of makes sense you know I've Really kind of up my intensity very Quickly so you know Garmin typically Does maybe go over the top in terms of Recovery suggestions but ultimately the Two watches did match up in terms of What it suggested in terms of rest time Um in terms of battery life now I'm Factoring in the kind of 20k that's a Collective kind of the two runs and in Terms of what I saw and as I said I had The 265 minutes multiband mode that kind Of dropped for that run by about 16% and Then the Garmin venue 3 was 11% so kind Of what I expect to see you do get more Of a drop off when you are using Multiband mode it just demands a little Bit more battery life from Garmin Watches in general as it stands so from That point of view nothing out of the Ordinary so the battery life is kind of What I expected to see from the Garmin Venue 3 so yeah overall pretty solid What I would kind of expect to see in Terms of kind of GPS performance the Heart rate monitoring performance also Kind of battery um kind of drop of them
Terms of the kind of general you know Experience of using the watch not Massively I would say different from Using the venue 2 plus I don't think the While you are getting a better quality AMOLED display and you are getting a Bigger case overall I can't say that it Really is a massive leap from you know The experience of using the G venue 2 Plus and running with That so initial verdict on the Garmin Venue 3 is that it feels like another Solid garan watch one where you know You're going to get a good core run Tracking experience from I think Ultimately when you look at the price And you look at what else is in garmin's Range it represents a bit of a I think An issue for Garmin here in terms of What else is in its range because this Is now more expensive and the price puts It up against things like the Garian Forign at 265 now from a running point Of view when you look at the features That you're getting on the 400 265 the multi band that you're not Getting here the kind of navigation Support that you're getting here on the 26 on the 265 that you're not getting on The venue 3 and the extra training Analysis getting the training readiness Support here on there that you're not Getting here as well and you're getting Good Smartwatch features on the 265 as
Well you're not getting the kind of Those kind of additional things that You're going to get on the venue those Voice uh enabled features you're not Getting the ECG sensor you're not Getting some of those extra Smartwatch Features that you're going to get from Having it or using with an Android phone But ultimately in terms of the Smartwatch experience on the 265 I think It's pretty good good and you know I Don't think most people are going to Massively miss the extras that you're Going to get on the venue 3 in Comparison the other problem I think is The Garmin V Active 5 now we didn't Really expect that to come back and Gin's brought it back and put it at a Very affordable price and I think the Feature set is very similar to The Venue 3 you know you're not getting the same Size you maybe not get the same Resolution screen you're not getting Things like the voice enabled features The ECG stuff but in terms of the kind Of core run tracking experience it's Pretty similar overall I'd say maybe Battery life is maybe a little bit you Know worse off when you kind of compare But I think you know generally it's Going to be pretty solid overall and Then you look at the kind of G V2 plus As well too I do think there's some nice Additions in terms of you're getting
Here from a running point of view the Kind of improvements in terms of the GPS Setup in terms of things like the insall Modes that you didn't have on the venue 2 plus uh but on that watch you are I Still think you're getting a good Experience I still think you're getting Good features overall you're getting Good Smartwatch features still I think The battery life is slightly different Particular when you got it and always on Display I think it's a couple of days on The venue 2 plus I would feel that you Can probably get a little bit more on The venue 3 just because that's what We've seen on garments watches and AMOLED watches in general but that is The problem when you've got so many Watches with now in garage that have am Displays they all feel like smart Watches they all offer good Smartwatch Features I just wonder whether the venue 3 offers enough over those other watches From a running perspective I say Particularly to Warrant going for Something like the Viva active 5 which Is cheaper going for the 4 and a 265 Which is around the same price and Offers more in terms of that running Experience so the venue of three is a Weird one for me I think unless you Really want the best that Garmin has to Offer to a smartwatch and Hell features And you want you know some of those kind
Of good strong R running features but The best that gin has to offer I'm not Sure there's an argument to go as I can See it so far to go over the 265 or the Viva active5 but I say early days in Terms of my experience that's just kind Of how I'm feeling about this and in Terms of when you look at the price of The venue 3 compared to what else is in Garmin's range so yeah those are kind of Some initial thoughts on the Garmin Venue 3 plenty more testing to do but Yeah I'm not 100% convinced there it's Really a good space in terms of whether Venue 3 sits with garmin's you know Entire range okay so there you have it Some initial thoughts on the Garmin Venue 3 now we've got plenty more Testing to do with this watch and we Have got our kind of garming overview of Our picks our top picks in terms of the Ging watch as well so this is good Timing in terms of this watch finally Arriving with us so if you got any Questions about this watch let us know As always please do like and subscribe Hit that little bell to find out about Our latest videos and yeah we see next Run Test's Video