Garmin vivoactive 3

Description

A subtle smartwatch that fits right into your life

It might be getting on in age, considering the Garmin Vivoactive 3 was launched in 2017, but there’s no need to dismiss it outright. It’s still got some legs and is a pretty good affordable alternative to the more expensive options from Garmin.

The Vivoactive 3 has all the basics of a smartwatch covered – its circular design is subtle and pleasing (albeit it can look a tad large on some wrists), you’ll get some notifications pushed to your wrist and it will be able to keep up with your day-to-day activities.

Where it shines, as you’d expect from any Garmin wearable is fitness. It has a very reliable heart monitoring sensor to track heart rate and a huge range of workouts (strangely called ‘apps’) that it’s able to keep tabs on, including golf and skiing. In case there’s an activity you indulge in that Garmin hasn’t already thought of, there’s a ‘create’ option in the companion app that lets you tweak the device’s setting to create your own custom workout. You can set your favourite activities to be available at just a touch, wait for the GPS to kick in and off you go.

The Vivoactive 3 can also monitor your Vo2 Max levels (the maximum amount of oxygen you use), which is a pretty good indicator of overall fitness. There’s even stress tracking on board, and the Vivoactive 3 does this by gauging heart rate variability through the day. Given the heart rate monitor is actually quite reliable, the device’s sleep tracking is also just as good.

Garmin has a few wearables that let you store music on the device, but the Vivoactive 3 isn’t one of them, but you can use it to control the music on your phone. You’ll get about a week’s worth of battery life from a single charge, but this is dependent on how extensively you use the device – if you’ve got GPS on all the time, that will drop significantly to just 13 hours.

As a smartwatch, it does all the basics as we mentioned earlier. Unlike a Fitbit, there’s no way to choose which apps can push notifications to the Vivoactive 3, so it’s an all-or-nothing situation here. That’s not necessarily a bad thing if you like to keep on top of everything. While Android users have preset text messages available to send as replies via the device, iPhone users can’t. Again, that may not really be a deal breaker. For a device that’s great at what it does at a price point that’s easy on the pocket, the Vivoactive 3 is definitely worth it, if you’re not too fussed about having the latest in tech on your wrist.

Score: 4/5

Verdict: The Vivoactive 3 is a versatile smartwatch designed to keep track of your fitness rather than compete with the likes of an Apple Watch. It does everything it says on the tin and does it quite well – and its age means it’s also now far more affordable than at launch in 2017. With onboard GPS and excellent sports tracking, it’s got far more mainstream appeal than its more expensive cousins.

Here's some more information about this product

• The Garmin vivoactive 3 Smart Watch was added to the Smart Watches category in February 2021.

• The lowest price GetPrice has found for the Garmin vivoactive 3 Smart Watch in Australia is $182.79 from Amazon AU.

• Other merchants who stock it are Amazon AU, Catch, Kogan.com, Dick Smith, Rebel.

• GetPrice provides impartial price comparison information to help you get the best deals year-round and Australia-wide.