Garmin Connect Mobile

Garmin Connect Mobile is the app for connecting your phone and your Garmin smartwatch or fitness tracker. With this app you can watch and schedule your activity, set and track your goals, set up notifications on your wrist, and so on. Download Garmin Connect right after you purchased a Garmin wearable, and get the most out of it!

Design 4/5

Garmin devices seem overloaded to non-fans. So is the app, with dark background and bright colors, avatars and pictures, multiple tabs and pages. It will take time to figure out this sophisticated tool. But when you do, you will enjoy all the richness of what the app brings, along with devices.

Usability 5/5

When you connect a smartwatch or a tracker, the app fetches the data from it in real-time and displays it on the screen. The home screen displays the most important data. It contains date and time, the number of steps you have walked, advanced activity stats, heart rate stats, and it’s all easy to read.

Other tabs contain information about your sleep, your fitness challenges, your routes, and so on. Garmin has always been great at location services, and now its GPS-equipped wearables are the ones of choice for many sports fans. Finally, there is a social tab. With it you can add and manage friends, accept and create challenges and report your progress urbi et orbi.

Unlike, say, Fitbit, Garmin Connect is useless without a device from this manufacturer. On the other hand, it’s compatible with all Garmin wearables, from generic, like smartwatches, to specific, like golf-, piloting-, and boating-oriented models. The software is capable of handling all the specific types of data certain models may operate with.

Features 5/5

The exact set of features depends on the type of wearable you use and the sensors it has. The more advanced it is, the more options from the app are supported by hardware, so they work. For example, the menu has golf-specific features highlighted, but they are only active if you use a specialized golf-oriented tracker. So is with bicycle sport, boating, piloting, and other activities Garmin supports.

In-app Purchases 5/5

The app is positioned as a part of Garmin software and hardware one purchases, so it’s not as free as it seems: if you have a Garmin device, you have paid for it. If not, there’s no need for you to install Garmin Connect. Once you install the app, you have access to all its features supported by your device, with no extra payments required.

Conclusion

Garmin Connect is a must if you have a wearable by this vendor. The app unlocks everything the device is capable of, from sending notifications and alerts to reading your activity.

• Graphics 4
• Gameplay 5
• Controls 5
• Replay Value 5

Pros

Necessary to connect your phone and a Garmin wearable;
Compatible with other apps (like Google/Apple Health);
Social features and challenges;
Specific menus for specialized devices.

Cons

Doesn’t work without a wearable;
Displays even the feature your device doesn’t support.