Realistic life cycle - How long will it last?

mikemikemikemikemikemikemike over 5 years ago

I would like to know what users see as a realistic life cycle for the 5x or even the plus? How many years can one squeeze out of this?

I am just starting out with a 5x and hoping I can combine two gadgets into one. I wear an activity tracker. I have carried a hand held GPS for ages. The 60CS has lasted over 10 years of occasional use and is now so dated I can’t update the maps.

Given the battery is recharable I assume eventually it will wear out in the 5. Possibly replaceable by Garmin at some sort of high price point.

Warranty related threads seem hit and miss as to results. Some get good results others get used scratched up watches if can’t be fixed under warranty.

Is it realistic to think I will get 4 plus years out of this watch and still be able to enjoy the back country without the worry of getting lost.

0 s_orange over 5 years ago

quick answer is yes :)

0 mikemikemikemikemikemikemike over 5 years ago

Perhaps would be a good idea to consider upgrading!

My only experiences with smart watch tech has been Fitbit. And it’s a mixed bag. I like the product but don’t like that it has a very big flaw and is not addressed just replaced while under warranty. 4 bands have broken and two watch cores. I am the easiest person on equipment.

0 ikim1967 over 5 years ago

I think you'll get four years out of it. I have had mine a year an a half so far and its still going strong. Touch wood I haven't seen the sensor cracking issue so hopefully I won't. I'll look at the 6 when it comes out but if its not a decent step forward I'll stick with this one. Does what I want it to do - not perfectly but good enough, battery is more than enough for what I do - and even as it ages it should still be more than enough, just might need charging a little more often. As to getting lost - don't think that is covered under any guarantee :-)

0 mcalista over 5 years ago

The battery is not replaceable.

Typical figures for a li-ion battery are that it loses about 20% capacity over 500 charge cycles. For a cell phone with pretty much a daily charge cycle, you will reach 500 charge cycles in about 18 months. Keep your phone for 3 years, and it may be struggling to reach the end of the day.

Obviously it is going to depend on individual usage patterns, but most people are probably running their 5X's on a charge cycle of 5-7 days. This means it might take you 7 years to reach 500 charge cycles.

Batteries are at their most efficient if you can keep them between 30-70% of capacity. So if you charge for 10 minutes a day, you can probably keep it nicely in this range (as against charging fully, then running it right down) and slightly extend the rate of capacity loss. Obviously if you are about to head out on an all-day hike, you may want to charge to 100% specifically for that event.

If you are intending to keep the watch for many years, it may also be wise to invest in some protective films for the watch face.

0 garminspartygw over 4 years ago in reply to mcalista

I came here from a google search. I've now gone through 2 Garmins in 4.5 years so I'm nowhere near reaching 7 years of battery life.

I'm about to head over to dcrainmaker to look for other options.

My current watch is a forerunner 235 that I have just over 600 hours of running time in 2 years and it now won't let me go more than 2 days without needing a charge. I never turn on bluetooth so most of the day my watch is in a very low power usage mode.

The forerunner 220 that I had before that lasted slightly over 600 running hours and about 2.5 years before it became unusable (unable to hold a charge for more than a day).

I'm disappointed that the service fee is so high to replace a battery. Half the cost of a new unit.

0 FiFiWest over 3 years ago in reply to garminspartygw

I’m the same. I’ve purchased 2 Garmin watches over the past 5 years. My second watch has lasted 18 months. I’m getting a replacement watch as it’s under warranty, but I know that is going to be an old serviced watch. I’d have expected the lifespan of a Garmin to be longer than this and realistically for a watch which is only 18months old I would expect a new replacement.

0 Skwint over 3 years ago

I have had my Fenix 5 Plus for 2.5 years. As far as I can tell, it is as peppy today as it was the day I got it. I let the battery drop to about 20-30% before I recharge. I wear it 24/7. Record anywhere from 4 to 10 workout/events per week. Use 4 alarms every day. I’m hoping I’ll get 4 years out of it. As these thing go, it will work until it doesn’t. I doubt ill get any advance warning.

0 Elbo over 3 years ago in reply to Skwint

My forerunner 935 is almost 4 years old.

Battery with gps usage used to be 20+ hours. Now it’s only 10-12 hours. This is the biggest problem with my watch. No, I don’t do ultra’s, but If I wake up on a Saturday and want to go out for a 2 hour run or a 4 hour cycling and there is only 20% battery left I use to have no problem, now I have to charge first. I used to charge once a week, but only 200 charge cycles should not cause so much battery degeneration. Either garmin messed up the firmware or uses very bad batteries.

I do notice gps fix is a bit slow lately, but further from that, it’s fine (yesterday was a mess, but almost all brands have gps problems last couple of days)

firmware is fine. Yes, there are a lot of bugs and sometimes it’s unexplanable slow, but most of the time it’s fine.

barometer gives unbelievable output, but I can’t be bothered. Same for temperature, which is just plain stupid.

optical heartrate is okish for resting hearrate, although there are cracks in the sensor. Mostly I use a cheststrap.

replaced the band, but that’s also for looks.

My forerunner 935 is not as rugged as e fenix 5, but the case is still solid. I do use a screenprotector, but that’s also because it looks slightly better.

I expect my watch to last for a couple of years more, before I move to an other brand (so far, couple of suuntos, 1 tomtom and 1 garmin. Next is probable Coros. Or Polar if they properly implement navigation features)