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FIRST LOOK: The new Garmin epix is a stylishly rugged smartwatch for fitness beginners and enthusiasts

By AYIE LICSI Published Feb 21, 2022 9:07 pm

Looking for a smartwatch that can keep up with your adventures? Or are you looking for the right device to kickstart your fitness journey? Garmin's latest fitness-focused smartwatches, the fenix 7 series and the second generation epix, have arrived in the Philippines and they are rugged enough for intense workouts and smart enough for daily health tracking.

We got our hands on the second-gen Garmin epix, and here's a closer look at the new smartwatch and its features.

The epix 2 comes with a silicone band, a stainless steel bezel, and a 42mm case. There are a total of four buttons on the watch, including a green-colored Start/Stop crown. The watch's screen is a 1.3-inch AMOLED touch display which shows you a lot of information, including maps, health information, and your phone's notifications. 

@philstarlife This fitness watch looks so good! ⌚️ Check out one of #Garmin's latest offering, the Epix 2 ? #unboxing #tech #fitness #smartwatch #PhilStarLife ♬ original sound - philstarlife

Our test unit came in Sapphire - White Titanium, which is a breath of fresh air from the typical black or gray colorways we usually see in most fitness watches. This also makes the epix a versatile wearable that you can wear with any outfit—it will even look stylish when you're wearing something more a bit more formal!

Onto the features, the watch sports sensors for GPS, heart monitoring, pulse oximeter, compass, thermometer, and barometric altimeter. It's also able to track your sleep, stress levels, steps, distance traveled, body battery, respiration, and calories burned.

On the watch side, the epix shows you the weather, sunrise and sunset time, and calendar. And when the watch is connected to your iPhone or Android via Bluetooth, you can get smart notifications and music controls right on its display.

The watch can also store up to 2,000 songs and connect to your Spotify so you can keep your workout playlists on loop even if you leave your phone behind.

For workouts, the epix comes preloaded with sports apps and activity profiles for running, swimming, biking, hiking, rowing, skiing, golfing, climbing, and more. For beginners, there are easy-to-follow animated cardio, strength, yoga, and Pilates workouts that will show up on-screen.

According to Garmin, the epix has a 16-day battery life under smartwatch mode and up to 21 days when Power Manager is turned on.

The watch is also highly customizable. If you're not a fan of the white silicone band, you can get other bands that suit your style. In addition, the watch face can be changed to your vibe—as you can see in the photo below, we swapped the rugged built-in watch face with a different design. You can download more faces through the Garmin Connect and Garmin Connect IQ Store apps.

There are also options to choose which information you want to see on the screen, such as steps you've taken for the day, battery life, and more.

The Garmin epix (2nd generation) comes in three colorways, Slate Steel, Black Titanium, and Carrera White Titanium for P50,735, P56,395, and P56,395, respectively. It's available at all Garmin branded stores, kinetic.com.ph, Garmin's official Shopee and Lazada pages, and the Garmin PH Viber store.

Meanwhile, the fenix 7 series, which doesn't have an AMOLED display but has a built-in flashlight perfect for night runs, starts at P39,695.