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Review: Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch

Written by Fiona

August 25 2021

There are three versions of Garmin Fenix 6 GPS watch, standard, sapphire and solar, as well as three sizes, 42mm, 47mm and 51mm. This is a review of the Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Multisport GPS Watch.

Features include: 

  • Lens material: Corning® Gorilla® Glass DX or sapphire crystal
  • Bezel material: Stainless steel, titanium or diamond-like carbon (DLC) coated titanium
  • Size: 42mm x 42mm x 13.80mm; 47mm x 47mm x 15.1 mm; 51mm x 51mm x 14.90 mm
  • Weight: Steel: 60g – 85g (depending on size and material) 
  • Colour display
  • Water rating: 10ATM (to depth of 100m)
  • Memory: 32GB
  • Price: RRP: From £619.99 for the pro solar version.
  • See Garmin and Amazon (I earn a little from sales through Amazon.)

Battery life: Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch

The larger the watch the longer the battery lasts.

The battery can be recharged with sunlight and will lose charge faster if using it on GPS mode.

Remember that the Garmin Fenix watches have full mapping facility, which when used causes a larger battery drain, although maps and navigation are very useful, especially if you are in the hills and mountains.

Meanwhile, the Garmin Instinct 2 and Garmin Enduro watches have no mapping, but still have breadcrumb navigation. This makes their battery life a lot longer.

Read my reviews:

Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch size 42mm:

  • Smartwatch: Up to 9 days/10.5 days with solar*
  • Battery saver watch mode: Up to 34 days/59 days with solar*
  • GPS: Up to 25 hours/28 hours with solar**
  • GPS and music: Up to 6 hours
  • Max battery GPS mode: Up to 50 hours/64 hours with solar**
  • Expedition GPS activity: Up to 20 days/26 days with solar

Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch size 47mm:

  • Smartwatch: Up to 14 days/16 days with solar*
  • Battery saver watch mode: Up to 48 days/80 days with solar*
  • GPS: Up to 36 hours/40 hours with solar**
  • GPS and music: Up to 10 hours
  • Max battery GPS mode: Up to 72 hours/93 hours with solar**
  • Expedition GPS activity: Up to 28 days/36 days with solar*

Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch size 51mm:

  • Smartwatch: up to 21 days +3 days*
  • GPS: up to 60 hours +6 hours**
  • GPS and music: up to 15 hours +1 hour**
  • Max battery GPS mode: up to 120 hours +28 hours**
  • Expedition GPS mode: up to 46 days +10 days*
  • Battery saver watch mode: up to 80 days +40 days**

* Solar charging, assuming all-day wear with 3 hours per day outside in 50,000 lux conditions
** Solar charging, assuming all-day wear with 3 hours per day outside in 50,000 lux conditions

Other features of the Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch

The Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch has a host of features. There are many different activities that can be tracked from running and cycling to swimming, surfing and mountain biking.

Navigation is accurate thanks to multiple global navigation satellite system support including GPS, GLONASS and Galileo. Additionally, you can keep on track with built-in sensors such as a 3-axis compass, gyroscope and barometric altimeter.

You can keep track of performance data, including health monitoring, activity tracking such as step counts, plus there are smart features, safety trackers and Garmin Pay.

My thoughts: Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch

There is very little not to like about the Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch. It does everything you could hope for and more than that! In fact, there are so many features and details that I doubt I will ever think to use, yet they are all there if I want them.

I wonder if we really need all that these watches now offer and sometimes it would be good to have a watch that does things more simply. I can’t see that happening though as brands compete with each other for ever more features.

The Fenix has navigation and mapping, which is very useful when you are in the hills and mountains. Even when using the mapping, the battery life is good and much better than any watch I have used before.

For a sports watch, it’s good looking, fairly lightweight given all that is packed into the device and made for rugged durability.

My main criticism is cost. The top-end Garmin watches are very expensive. The other problem is that once you have owned one it is difficult to go back to anything more basic. I want my watch to give me accurate recordings and data and so I guess we need to pay for that.

Conclusion: Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar GPS watch

A great watch for all kinds of sports and with accurate recording of distance, elevation, pace etc and with the bonus of maps and navigation. The sacrifice for full mapping is that the battery drains faster than other sports watch but the charge is still impressive compared to watches even a few years ago. The cost is a bit ouchy but Garmin make good quality and durable devices and you can often shop around to Gian discounts.

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