Customer reviews from Garmin
Garmin - fnix 8 AMOLED GPS Smartwatch 51mm Fiber-reinforced polymer - Slate Gray - (2024)
Average customer rating
4.4
(182 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 182 reviews
5 Stars
132
4 Stars
23
3 Stars
11
2 Stars
5
1 Star
11
Customer Reviews for Garmin - fnix 8 AMOLED GPS Smartwatch 51mm Fiber-reinforced polymer - Slate Gray - (2024)
Customer Rating
3
Very Complicated
on August 22, 2025
Posted by: Capt Doug
2 weeks in, and I am still struggling to learn this watch. I've had a Samsung Smart watch for a long time. I switched for battery life and apps like tide monitoring and to use as a scuba back up.
2 weeks in, I don't understand the controls, the manual is 188 pages and the watch does things on its own that I haven't figured out how to control (ex: watch face changes at some point in the night, and back around 7:15 am, but how I adjust this, I haven't had time to investigate).
There is also a high dependency on the Garmin Connect app. I can't even see my steps or stair flights except on my phone. It's probably on my watch, somewhere, but not that I've been able to see.
Likewise, I haven't had the time to figure out how to run apps when I want them. I loaded a tide app, tried it in Seattle area (where I bought the fenix 8) and 1) couldn't get back to the watch face without resetting the watch, and 2) the location seems locked onto Seattle (I'm now back in North Carolina).
I have questions about the accuracy (or at least consistency/precision) on things like steps or stairs. I spent 3 days moving from a house, with multiple trips to an attic 2-stories up. I really only did stairs, up and down, but Garmin Connect, on a single day, recorded many more stair descended (~50 flights) versus stair flights ascended (~36).
The battery life is great, as is the AMOLED but I find this early experience frustrating.
2 weeks in, I don't understand the controls, the manual is 188 pages and the watch does things on its own that I haven't figured out how to control (ex: watch face changes at some point in the night, and back around 7:15 am, but how I adjust this, I haven't had time to investigate).
There is also a high dependency on the Garmin Connect app. I can't even see my steps or stair flights except on my phone. It's probably on my watch, somewhere, but not that I've been able to see.
Likewise, I haven't had the time to figure out how to run apps when I want them. I loaded a tide app, tried it in Seattle area (where I bought the fenix 8) and 1) couldn't get back to the watch face without resetting the watch, and 2) the location seems locked onto Seattle (I'm now back in North Carolina).
I have questions about the accuracy (or at least consistency/precision) on things like steps or stairs. I spent 3 days moving from a house, with multiple trips to an attic 2-stories up. I really only did stairs, up and down, but Garmin Connect, on a single day, recorded many more stair descended (~50 flights) versus stair flights ascended (~36).
The battery life is great, as is the AMOLED but I find this early experience frustrating.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
5
Get in the know!
on August 21, 2025
Posted by: Mr Gaines
Durable, all the bells and whistles that you are expecting. Able to customize to all my brutal workouts and runs!
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
3
Great, need iMessage
on August 21, 2025
Posted by: Dbuck7
Great product. Actually works while swimming, strength training, and work. It was be better if I could get my iMessage so I don’t have to have my phone with me all the time. Only flaw I see so far. We will see how the golf app goes this Saturday.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
1
Not as described
on August 21, 2025
Posted by: Harry4
Not as described and returned the device. Its unfortunate because I have an Epix gen that out performs.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
4
Incredible watch with some irritating flaws
on August 19, 2025
Posted by: JamesBAz
The watch itself is just beautiful. However, some flaws are making me reconsider my purchase. Number one, which is a complaint across many forums, is the dimming of the display in different light conditions. At night, sometimes to see it you have to shine it under a light to get the display to brighten up. For the price of the watch, we should be able to adjust this manually. Also, the weather is always 3 to 5° out of sync. For some, this isn’t a big deal but being in Arizona it is critical. Again, for the price of the watch, I should be able to set the interval that it checks the weather. Sleep tracking is a bit flawed. If I get up more than twice to urinate at night, it thinks I’m awake and doesn’t calculate the right sleep times. Others have reported that they will be driving down the road and an alert will pop up saying how was your nap? All of these complaints can be viewed on the fenix eight Facebook group with 43,000 members. I got really tired of my Apple Watch and its battery life. But I had none of these issues with that watch.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
4
Genarlly a very good watch
on August 19, 2025
Posted by: brian62
When it works it's great but it also has some bugs. Every month or so it won't synchronize with my phone using the sleep/body battery. Not sure which side is the problem but have to delete and relink to fix. Linking is also painful requiring 3 or 4 attempts before it will properly connect even though the phone is a foot away. Recently updated to Samsung 25 and the bug remains) Also annoying that their flagship watch won't link with the CT-1 club sensors requiring you to spend hundreds more for that functionality (or in my case - not).
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
4
WoW! This thing does a LOT!!!
on August 18, 2025
Posted by: Forsaken Soul
The Good stuff:
The fit is way more comfortable than I thought possible
It looks nice out of the box but a bit intimidating
Battery life is great & it is easy to change, so far
Not too heavy for my liking but it feels good & solid
The fit is way more comfortable than I thought possible
It looks nice out of the box but a bit intimidating
Battery life is great & it is easy to change, so far
Not too heavy for my liking but it feels good & solid
Now the Bad parts:
This is the first "Smart-Watch" I have bought & holy crap has it been a huge long learning curve
The "instructoral videos" on your website are of little help
Very pricey!
Can not use FSA funds to purchase
This is the first "Smart-Watch" I have bought & holy crap has it been a huge long learning curve
The "instructoral videos" on your website are of little help
Very pricey!
Can not use FSA funds to purchase
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
5
Very nice looking watch!
on August 18, 2025
Posted by: angrydev
I love it. It have all the function i need. Have it for 2 weeks - charged it just once
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin