# Fenix 6 for riding, worth it?



## brankulo (Aug 29, 2005)

I have anan opportunity to pick up fenix 6 for good price from a friend. I have read some about it but cant seem to figure out what it is aimed as main use. I see it has hr monitor but it doesnt seem to be as good as strap that i already have, it displays data but i dont want to be looking at my wrist during ride and i have phone with app thats giving me all the data int the world from the devices i have, plus on nice big screen. it records rides but my phone does as well, maps on it but again display is too small for me to want to use this feature. Am i missing something? I dont care for sleep monitoring or its training features as i already have all that and better on my phone.
How do people use these watches for cycling, hiking etc. Only apealing item is battery life really, but i can 99% of time make it throught my activity with phone, even if its all day activity.


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## mik_git (Feb 4, 2004)

As a watch for riding, you basically start it when you startt he ride and stop it when you finish and it uploads to Garmin then where ever (strava etc). You wouldn't really look at it while you were riding. You can set up alerts and stuff, HR ranges, distance, oether stuff. You can have maps or directions, but you'd probably want to top to look at it. Really its a set and forget, then analys after the ride.
It is designed more for other outdoors stuff, running, walking swimming, multisport etc etc, and will also do all the riding stuff. If you dont do the other stuff, only riding, then a Garmin Edge is the range to look at.
For the HR, I find it OK, good for running, but not so good for riding. The strap is more accurate, it reacts faster. The wrist sensor, it lags behind a bit. SO depending how accurate you want, strap for very close, wrist for close enough.
(This has been my experience with strap on edge 1000, 530, 830, 1030, vs wrist on 645 and 945. Have not used a fenix)

And just in case:
https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2019/08/garmin-fenix6-pro-solar-series-review.html


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## brankulo (Aug 29, 2005)

mik_git said:


> As a watch for riding, you basically start it when you startt he ride and stop it when you finish and it uploads to Garmin then where ever (strava etc). You wouldn't really look at it while you were riding. You can set up alerts and stuff, HR ranges, distance, oether stuff. You can have maps or directions, but you'd probably want to top to look at it. Really its a set and forget, then analys after the ride.
> It is designed more for other outdoors stuff, running, walking swimming, multisport etc etc, and will also do all the riding stuff. If you dont do the other stuff, only riding, then a Garmin Edge is the range to look at.
> For the HR, I find it OK, good for running, but not so good for riding. The strap is more accurate, it reacts faster. The wrist sensor, it lags behind a bit. SO depending how accurate you want, strap for very close, wrist for close enough.
> (This has been my experience with strap on edge 1000, 530, 830, 1030, vs wrist on 645 and 945. Have not used a fenix)
> ...


thanks, have seen the article and videos. i guess it all depends. i dont think its for me. i like to see all my data when doing training rides, having it on hand does nothing for me. maybe for long rides, but even then, i like to see at least some data to pace myself. i do a lot of hiking as well but honestly, i cant really see the use either. maybe if i was swimming more often, as I wouldnt want my phone in water .


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## NorCal_In_AZ (Sep 26, 2019)

I have a Garmin Instinct watch. I love it as I don't want to look at it while riding, keeps my phone put away, and I don't have to worry about it falling off my bike into rocks. I also like that it alerts when I have a call or text coming through, while riding. I can then see if I need to answer my phone or just keep going with a quick glance.


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## brankulo (Aug 29, 2005)

NorCal_In_AZ said:


> I have a Garmin Instinct watch. I love it as I don't want to look at it while riding, keeps my phone put away, and I don't have to worry about it falling off my bike into rocks. I also like that it alerts when I have a call or text coming through, while riding. I can then see if I need to answer my phone or just keep going with a quick glance.


should have stated that my phone on bars is not my main phone, its just a $50 cheapo phone i use as display unit. if it gets destroyed, not a big deal.


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## mik_git (Feb 4, 2004)

For me, I had a garmin 610 i bought for running, and it was fine on the mtb as I don't look at it _that_ much on the mtb, but I started road riding and found it not so good, so got an edge 1000 which was great for that and fine for mtb. I can live with just a watch (and use a 945 now) but I do like to have my computer there as well, I glance at it occasionally, but I don't look at too much (but have to double up for my geek, must have loaded to somewhere and stored)...also I always wear a watch, so may as well be able to do stuff as well as tell time.


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## joshtee (Jun 30, 2016)

I have a Fenix 5X plus. It's easy to setup for a 'bike computer'. I use a handlebar mount and it's great. Haven't had any issues. The 6 has a larger screen, so it would be even better. There's generic version mounts available for low cost.


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## cavo (Apr 18, 2011)

dont think its worth it. for bike riding that is. had mine (fenix 6) for a few months now but not using it anymore, can sell it to you if you want . this is personal, but for me, it is big, even the s version, and thick. s version only has 6 fields if you use it as bike computer. i think x version has 8 but it looked gigantic on my hand. you are pretty much right, there is nothing it does, that smart phone with hr strap wouldnt do for much less. this is as far as cycling goes. if you do a lot of hiking or run, then maybe its worth it. i bought it for when doing my structured training outdoors, but the screen is too small form met to follow displayed trainerroad stuff when on bars, much better to use phone. also, if you have it on your bars, you obviously cant use its hr function and need strap (which is much beter option anyway). for general riding, when u dont need to see data, you can just save your self $600 and just track with your phone and throw it in your backpack. i pretty much gave it to my wife, she was using its other functions for a while, to track her sleep and stress and stuff, but honestly, you will lose interest in doing this pretty quickly. now they just sit on the shelf.


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

NorCal_In_AZ said:


> I have a Garmin Instinct watch. I love it as I don't want to look at it while riding, keeps my phone put away, and I don't have to worry about it falling off my bike into rocks. I also like that it alerts when I have a call or text coming through, while riding. I can then see if I need to answer my phone or just keep going with a quick glance.


Same, plus I do occasionally look at it, and it tells me exactly what I need to know up front, like how many miles and how long. I find this to be very helpful for things like turn-offs, points of interest, etc. Sure, I could be running a giant map or something on an i-pad, but I don't want that, I just want to track the ride and provide some critical data. I also need good battery life and touch-screens for the outdoors is an asinine idea. The cold will kill L-ion battery stuff fast unless it's connected to some kind of warming device. I also love that I can interface it with temp sensors, in my cold-weather riding, I find that to be very nice to know.


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## SoDakSooner (Nov 23, 2005)

I don't want anything on my bars and really only use for post ride analysis and distance monitoring. Perfect for what I do. I can't stand having a bunch of stuff on my bars. I even hate the light mount when I am not using the light. It is also much more accurate than my phone.

You can sync your chest strap to it if you use that. The wrist HR is close enough for me, although I think I have 3 or 4 HR straps from previous GPS's.

My biggest problem is that I forget to start it occasionally.


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## cavo (Apr 18, 2011)

...


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## brankulo (Aug 29, 2005)

so i borrowed it from a friend for over a week to try before i decide. 1st thing, like i was afraid, its huge, but i am skinny with thin wrists so i was pretty much expecting that. for outdoor structured training workouts purposes i didnt really care for it, i much prefer my phone display on my bars. for non training days its fine, but i ended up just tossing it in my bakcpack, like i usually do with my phone. i didnt like wearing it on my wrist, certainly not as my everyday watch. i also kept it on my bars for a few rides and it was nice to glance at it but honestly, if i am not doing workouts i dont care much. the battery life was great, i didnt have to recharge before returning it. i am pretty sure i will not buy it form him now, good experience though.


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## goofyarcher (Jul 12, 2020)

I love mine, it is awesome, one of the best investments i have made on biking


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## DennisT (Dec 29, 2019)

I recently bought one. I'm kind of disappointed in it, actually. Nothing particularly wrong with it, but it doesn't give me any reason to give up either my apple watch or my bar-mounted 1030+. I think it's just going to gather dust.


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## goofyarcher (Jul 12, 2020)

DennisT said:


> I recently bought one. I'm kind of disappointed in it, actually. Nothing particularly wrong with it, but it doesn't give me any reason to give up either my apple watch or my bar-mounted 1030+. I think it's just going to gather dust.


Do you use the Announcement features, I love it announces HR ever 60 sec, keeps me in the HR zone I want to be in, and lets me know when I exceed my Max HR, As a person with history of Heart Attacks my HR is critical to me. The Back track is amazing as well. I also use mine for my music while riding and the battery last a very long time.


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## DennisT (Dec 29, 2019)

goofyarcher said:


> Do you use the Announcement features, I love it announces HR ever 60 sec, keeps me in the HR zone I want to be in, and lets me know when I exceed my Max HR, As a person with history of Heart Attacks my HR is critical to me. The Back track is amazing as well. I also use mine for my music while riding and the battery last a very long time.


I tried it. It wasn't loud enough to hear while riding, although I could hear it on the lift. As could the other passengers, who would give me odd locks. I eventually turned it off.

The main reason I bought it in the first place was for downhill biking. I'd been told that it will auto-pause at the bottom and on the lift, similar to what the Slopes app does. It doesn't, unless you tell it you're skiing or snowboarding, then change the type afterwards. Having said that, I will give the watch a try for actual snowboarding this winter, as the HR function is way the hell better than my apple watch.


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## goofyarcher (Jul 12, 2020)

DennisT said:


> I tried it. It wasn't loud enough to hear while riding, although I could hear it on the lift. As could the other passengers, who would give me odd locks. I eventually turned it off.
> 
> The main reason I bought it in the first place was for downhill biking. I'd been told that it will auto-pause at the bottom and on the lift, similar to what the Slopes app does. It doesn't, unless you tell it you're skiing or snowboarding, then change the type afterwards. Having said that, I will give the watch a try for actual snowboarding this winter, as the HR function is way the hell better than my apple watch.


I run my watch over my Aftershokz , listen to music and watch uses them for announcements, goes over the Aftershokz as well, which works great.


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## SeaSwab (Dec 11, 2019)

Has anyone used it for navigation? I ride enduro, road and other sports occasionally - running, skiing, hiking etc. and I am looking to get something with navigation because getting the phone out when traveling is pretty annoying. I like the ability to preload trail forks and other mapping sets/routs to follow at a glance of the wrist and not have anything on the handlebars (especially on the mtb).

What do you think?


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## NordieBoy (Sep 26, 2004)

It works quite well with pre-set courses/routes and works reasonably well using the maps for navigation depending how well your trails are covered by the maps.


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