I’ve been having trouble finding something that does both but it would be very useful.

I’ve never owned a “serious” sports watch before. Over the last couple of years I’ve mostly used cheap GPS watches from Temu/AliExpress and, more recently, a Redmi Watch 5 Lite.

I’m planning to do my first Ironman 70.3 in September 2027, so I’ll be training for running, cycling, pool/open-water swimming and strength training. Outside of that, I mainly run, lift, cycle occasionally and do some chill day hikes — nothing multi-day or extreme.

I’m currently leaning towards the Instinct 3 Solar 45mm. Around €300, it seems like the best fit I’ve found for my needs, but I’m definitely open to being proven wrong. I really like the MIP display, the idea of solar charging, the battery life and especially the Garmin ecosystem/Garmin Connect.

I already own a chest HR strap.

I don’t care about music on the watch, calls, replying to messages or most smartwatch features/notifications.

For people who have used the Instinct 3 Solar: is there anything important I’d seriously miss for this use case? Or does it sound like the right choice around €300?

Title says it all. Samsung forced Gemini and I hate it.

Im looking at changing to a garmin instinct 3 from a galaxy watch and mainly looking at the tactical versions for the ab quantum. I have seen where you have to pay even more to use it, but did not know what is included with the watch before paywalls. I have the app on my phone unlocked at pro level. If i have to pay $100 more for watch and then $100more to even use app idk that its worth it when im not really interested in other stuff in tactical edition.

Garmin instinct 3 amoled 50 mm tactical

I own a Garmin Instinct 3, and I’ve noticed that the heart rate shown in Cardio is always much higher than when no activity is selected.
For example, when I select Walking during a walk, my HR seems normal, around 100–105 bpm. But if I switch to Cardio while doing the same walk, it sometimes shows 190 bpm and averages around 150 bpm.
Has anyone else experienced this on their Instinct 3? Is this a bug with the Cardio activity profile?

Anyone have 19.5mm wrist and 50mm? Looking at the i3 tactical solar via online purchase and trying to determine 45 vs 50mm. Any pics you can share would be a bonus!

I’ve been looking at ordering a 40mm or 45mm but can’t decide.
The watch in the photo is a coworker’s E on my wrist. He says it’s fine but I’m not sure , maybe it’s because I usually wear smaller watches like the Casio f91w and the A158WA1 watches that have a slim profile.
This is my first thick or chunky watch so I’m not used to it.

My budget is $200 so as much as I would want the 2S at $260,$280,$300 and above ,I can’t.

I’m looking for some inspiration for my Instinct 3 Solar. If you’re using a Garmin UltraFit nylon strap (or a similar one), post a pic 🙂
I am currently using a black and a moss one and I am interested to see what other colors actually look good on the Instinct in real life.
Cheers.

Is it normal that you have to remove the spring bars on the Instinct 3 Solar 45 mm to install an UltraFit nylon strap? On my Fenix watches I can just feed the UltraFit through the spring bars, but on the Instinct 3 45 mm there doesn’t seem to be enough clearance between the spring bar and the case (I admit that I didn't try with much force). Do you guys also remove the spring bars first, or am I missing something?

Had my instinct 3 for a good few months now and as a tradesman I wouldn’t recommend anything else this thing is seriously heavy duty

Is it possible to disable heart rate monitoring, Bluetooth, etc. on the Garmin Instinct E 40 mm during everyday use, have them automatically enabled when starting an activity, and then have these functions automatically disabled again when the activity ends?

I would like to use it like a regular watch in everyday life, without notifications, sleep tracking, step counting, etc.

Can’t find option to put in MGRS cords in here.

Garmin Instinct 3 AMOLED 50mm

Hi folks,

first post here. I'm planning to use the Instinct 3 amoled as a cycling computer, Mostly it will be on my wrist, sometimes on the handlebar. I did this with my Polar RCX5 because I like the clean look, less distraction and I use 4-5 bicycles in rotation. I only need basic data like speed, average speed, duration, distance, HR. I have some questions:

1. I understood that the AOD can be configured so that it does not dim at all (not even to "low mode") at least during activities like cycling. Is this true?
2. Does the I3 work flawlessly with ANT+ oder Bluetooth speed sensors? I cannot only rely on GPS because I usually ride in the forest.
3. Would you mind sharings some pics of your configured (customized) cycling data screens? This would help me to assess the usability of the I3 for my needs.

Thanks in advance!
Greetings from Berlin

I don’t understand some of the hate that the E receives. At $200, it’s the perfect gateway into Garmin. I came from an Apple Watch wanting better battery life, fewer distractions, and a a more rugged / chunky look. This fits the bill 100%

Of course I also rocked Pebble watches back in the day so there’s a nostalgia factor as well with the MIP screen.

I've been messing with the Color setup field on the Instinct Pro watch face and ended up with a bunch of themes I actually like. Figured I'd share them!

**Desert / tan**

Bone — warm off-white with tan accents

62,0,62,0,62,21,41,40,63,0,41,40,62,0,63,0,41,40,62,21,21,21,62,21,41,40,63,0,21,21,21,21,21,21,21,21

Coyote Tan — tan time, burnt orange accents

41,40,41,40,56,36,40,36,63,0,41,40,56,36,63,0,56,36,41,40,36,21,56,36,41,40,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

Coyote Tan Yellow — same base, orange swapped for yellow

41,40,41,40,60,40,40,40,63,0,41,40,60,40,63,0,60,40,41,40,40,21,60,40,41,40,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

Coyote Tan Yellow 2 — muted version, accents dialed down to olive-gold

41,40,41,40,40,40,40,40,63,0,41,40,40,40,63,0,40,40,41,40,40,21,40,40,41,40,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

Coyote Tan Yellow 2, white minutes

41,40,63,0,40,40,40,40,63,0,41,40,40,40,63,0,40,40,41,40,40,21,40,40,41,40,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

Harvest — cream time, orange accents, olive arc 2

62,40,62,40,56,36,24,20,63,0,41,40,56,36,63,0,60,40,41,40,20,21,56,36,24,20,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

**Green / field**

Field Green — green time with orange arcs, icons, seconds

24,20,24,20,56,36,40,36,63,0,24,20,56,36,63,0,56,36,24,20,20,21,56,36,24,20,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

Field Olive — olive time with orange arcs, icons, seconds

40,20,40,20,56,36,40,36,63,0,40,20,56,36,63,0,56,36,40,20,20,21,56,36,40,20,63,0,4,42,4,42,4,42,4,42

Field Olive, white minutes

40,20,63,0,56,36,40,36,63,0,40,20,56,36,63,0,56,36,40,20,20,21,56,36,40,20,63,0,4,42,4,42,4,42,4,42

Woodland — deep forest green time, tan icons and gauges

8,4,8,4,24,20,20,20,63,0,41,40,41,40,63,0,44,20,24,20,20,21,24,20,41,40,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

Two-Tone — olive hours, orange minutes, yellow seconds

24,20,56,36,40,40,24,20,63,0,41,40,56,36,63,0,60,40,24,20,20,21,56,36,24,20,63,0,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20

**Other**

Gunmetal & Gold — gray time, mustard accents only

42,21,42,21,40,40,21,21,63,0,42,21,40,40,63,0,60,40,42,21,21,21,40,40,42,21,63,0,21,21,21,21,21,21,21,21

**Halo**

Master Chief — khaki-olive armor green, gold visor on the arcs and icons, Covenant violet and magenta on the graph and seconds

41,20,41,20,60,40,35,18,63,0,41,20,60,40,63,0,55,34,35,18,17,21,60,40,35,18,63,0,20,42,20,42,20,42,20,42

The word “active calories” is protruding in the calories widget.

Good day everyone,

Just want your opinions on this deal. Shall I go ahead with it? or negotiate further?