There was also a tool that helps in shortening the band. The color is black, so it matches my Fenix 5 Sapphire black :)
Compared to the price Garmin is calling for a metal band this one for 19$ is really worth it, as it also includes the quickfit mechanism.
Bye
Just received mine today as well, indeed perfect band for ~20 bucks. Only small downside is that it's either too tight or just a bit too loose for me I think. Although after a bit the looser option felt more right already. (The leather band was too tight in the beginning but stretched a bit, not going to happen with the metal version ;) ).
Also the inside closing mechanism doesn't feel to great (pushes in your wrist) when having the band too tight.
But that's just the thing with metal bands of course, they don't stretch and all. But the band itself is perfectly fine and looks good (also on a FR935, which is what I have)
I have ordered and received third party silicone bands from two distributors from AliExpress. One with black metal buckle the other with silver buckle. So far so good. The black ones are similar to most described here, silicone a little softer than original. The black one, silicone like the original.
BUT stay away from the silver ones. I got 3 of them, out of which 2 ore duds. I mean you can easily loose your watch, in my yesterday run the watch simply fell on the ground (no harms!) so I stopped and investigated: if you apply pressure, simply put your finger between the locking mechanism and your skin one of the sides, the lock will release. I put it back and you can imagine how stressed I did the rest of my run :-)
I am trying to find the link, but my feeling is that although there are many distributors, there may be very few producers, so for the moment stay away from silver buckles ones!
I have rechecked the black one I have, sturdy as originals.
I wanted to highlight a few of the differences between the Garmin bands and this knock off. Initial feeling is that I would not count on this knock off to keep the watch on my wrist for anything other than casual wear. I'm not even sure it is worth trusting to that.
1. The Garmin buckle is held on with Torx (star nut) bolts, this buckle is held on with a press fit, or possibly spring fit pin. I don't feel this is going to be secure over the life of the band and would be highly concerned with failure at this spot. 2. the Garmin "triangle" logo on the OEM band is shiny. Not sure if this indicates a different process for getting that impression into the silicone, but it makes it easy to spot the fake. This of course has no known impact on the band, just an FYI. 3. The quick fit mechanism is held on with Phillips screws on the fake vs Torx. This quick fit mechanism doesn't have nearly as much contact with the pins on the watch as the Garmin version. The spring mechanism also has less throw, so there is less of a difference between fully open and fully closed as the Garmin band. Lastly, the quickfit mechanism doesn't sit as flush with the silicone as the official Garmin bands.
The price difference is pretty vast between the official bands and the knock off, but I'm not convinced that the savings is worth the buckle being less durable or the potential for the quick fit mechanism failing in a situation where my watch could be damaged or lost forever. I will probably send this one back to Amazon. ciq.forums.garmin.com/.../1235929.jpg
Just received the leather one it looks ok but the quality is pretty bad. So bad that the band changes color when you bend it. :D
I bought one from amazon for $9 for my 935. Mine was so rigid that the pins/springs broke while trying to put it on. Very bad quality. Need to wait for the good ones.
