I have been using this for about a month now. The heart rate seems to be accurate. I also like other functions such the sleep monitor, daily report, gps tracking, and swim lap counter. I do have an issue with the swim lap counter not recording when using the kick board without arm stroke activity. It does not record laps with this activity. Is there a setting for this? I am not sure.

Really a nice fitness watch. Got this to replace a Vivosmart 4 and I really like this fitness tracker. I keep finding things it can do everyday. Works well with my phone and I get alerts to messages and other important information. The only thing my Vivosmart 4 could do that this doesn't is report stair flights walked up or down. However I don't use stairs much so it doesn't matter. It does so much I can't believe it. I am really glad I got this watch/fitness tracker.

I’ve been using this watch for about a month and it’s still not properly tracking my sleep. I figured it wasn't accurate because I just started using it and it needed time to acclimate to my body but here we are a month later and it’s still inaccurate by a long shot. I was in bed reading for two hours and chatting here and there with my partner. I wake up this morning to check my sleep score and it recorded those two hours as deep sleep and gave me a high score for great sleep when in reality, I didn’t get a minute of deep sleep and am exhausted today since I slept so poorly. It makes me wonder which other features are wrong that can’t be so easily measured. I’ll be returning.

Garmin Vivoactive 5 has improved functions - main face with all the information is great. I like the sleep score and information on how to improve it. However, the strength choice on Vivoactive 3 was better than the 5 model. Vivoactive 3 sensed the movements that you were doing in your workout and registered those. Vivoactive 5 does not sense the movements that you are doing. I wrote them in. It also doesn't sense when you are active in weight training, so it says you've done one set, when you've done 12 sets. I wish that the strength portion stayed as good as the Vivoactive 3 model. The 5 model has made other improvements, though.

If it didn't need a battery upgrade for my Vivoactive 3, I wouldn't have purchased the Vivoactive 5. The watch and bright colorful screen look and feel cheap compared to the 3. Just like my smartphone and car, there is more junk on it than I need. I bike fairly seriously and play picklrball and walk at other times. I monitor those and my heartrate--that is all I need it for. I absolutely hate the interface and the new Garmin Connect program. Sometimes simpler is better. I also could pause my ride or walk for a pit stop or talk and restart on the 3. The 5 automatically times out and saves, so I have to restart the activity. Battery life in the 5 is great, but that is the best I can say. I also don't need inspirational message when I start my day! Very disappointed overall!

I bought this around Christmas time and am just now starting to use it. There are good points and things I am just not 100% sure of. I have a FR245 that has some battery life issues so I decided to use this watch but, when I finish a run all of the laps don't seem to reflect in the Connect app. Also when I finish a run I am finding that the watch wants to be turned off?? I think maybe I am expecting it to work just like the FR watches and it doesn't and it's something that I need to learn, read up on.

This has been a great/different change from my Apple Watch ! The main differences that reeled me in was the battery life: last up to 4-5 days with my use (workout 4-5 times a week) after 1 charge ! The amount of workouts plans on the connect app that come with the watch and record my reps when performing the exercises, as well as my rest time and the active time to complete my sets. The design in my opinion is a lot cleaner looking than the Apple Watch there are multiple watch faces to choose from. The disadvantages in my opinion are : I can only use Spotify if I want to control the song from my watch this isn’t a big deal I just don’t like using my phone while working out even if it is to change the song, there is no find my option like with Apple so if you can’t find your phone you need someone else to ping it or use another Apple device to find it. The band that comes with it is a bit difficult to clip on to the appropriate adjustment. Overall this watch is a 9.5/10 for me with those slight set backs which are just personal preference factors. This is a great watch and a different upgrade ! Garmin is a GPS company so it’s not surprising that location is pinpoint accurate when it comes to weather and location. I recommend this to anyone looking to get away from traditional Apple Watch products.

I love this watch! I had a Garmin Vivomove 3S, and I loved it. But, I wanted one with more capabilities. I got this one as a gift, and wow! I didn't realize how much I was missing out on! Mostly I hike/walk, and I love how easy it is to start tracking on this watch. The heartrate monitor seems to be more accurate on this watch than the Vivomove as well. And I like that it has HRV tracking too. I know this watch also has the capabilities to set up music, and to set up the ability to pay with the watch through tap to pay, but I've not used either yet. And I love that it's waterproof!

Its only OK… seems to require a lot of setting and telling it what i want it to do ( why do I have to tell it I am on a bike when ( for example it is supposed to be talking to Strava). The app requires a fair amount of work to get to the recoded numbers and recording and keeping them accessible is a work out… Maybe Ill learn more as it goes, but today I would go back to my Casio GShock and not miss a beat

I really like the Garmin Vivoactive 5. I switched from the apple watch because I prefer a round face. It does everything that I wanted in a smartwatch. I can't respond to a text or answer a call, but those things are not a deal breaker for me. I only wish the blue tooth connection reached farther. It says 10 meters....it is more like 10 feet. That is somewhat annoying. The garmin is significantly cheaper than the apple watch, too.