Most of the MARQ reviews from DCRainmaker, etc are about a year old now and may not reflect the current watch's features, performance, reliability. What are the biggest changes/updates/fixes since launch?
I just recently purchased the Expedition unit and here are some things that seemed to be new/improved from the original release (and some of these apply to other Garmin devices).
*Note*: I've been updating the below comments as I get more time with the MARQ Adventurer
- DCRainmaker review criticisms rebutted:
- Garmin stingily only included a single strap in his Athlete model review unit a year ago, but REI Adventurer version comes with two straps (leather and silicon)
- non high-end watch specialists like REI now selling the MARQ
- iOS weather widget bug seems to have mostly been worked out
- software feature parity with Fenix 6 maintained, so that only effective differences are hardware
- Amazon music now supported alongside Deezer and Spotify
Not sure about whether these were addressed:
- did free world wide maps get added rather than just the region where the watch was purchased?
- heart rate while swimming added?
And stuff that still needs some work:
- iOS notifications not always reliably delivered (at least for me)
- lag in iOS Health app receiving latest write data from MARQ
- Garmin Pay doesn't support AMEX even though MARQ series is targeted at executives, etc. other AMEX users; also needs to add more banks
- GPS plot accuracy could still use improvement on non-satellite maps (eg walks showing me in the water in low population areas with no tall buildings, etc.); satellite plotting seems to be better, so maybe this is an Apple/iOS issue
- Music streamed via AirPods and Prime Music cuts out periodically. DCRainmaker said this was not happening for him. Not a massive issue, but also not 100% reliable like AirPods/Apple Watch combo. If anyone else has some workout bud recommendations that are more reliable please share in the comments.
- On the Adventurer leather watch strap, the small, loose retaining buckle can easily slide off the rest of the strap and get lost. This happened to me and it got vacuumed up, but after going through the vacuum bag was thankfully able to retrieve it.
And stuff that I wish Garmin would add to current models:
- maintain connection between MARQ and smartphone via WiFi, not just bluetooth (this would be really helpful for notifications when you're around the house and out of bluetooth range)
- for loading personally owned music (eg MP3 files) via a Mac, provide a non-iTunes (which is now called just "Music") option for iOS/Mac users that don't use iTunes/Music (eg drag and drop)
- deliver firmware updates directly via WiFi/app rather than needing Garmin Express; new firmware notifications should also appear on smartphone notifications -- we shouldn't have to check Garmin Express for new firmware
Overall, happy Garmin introduced the MARQ line. Offers a real differentiated product from the competition and I hope it continues to receive prioritization.
For future models would be curious what features people want to see. For example, for me some type of LTE support, at least for emergency messaging/tracking, would be really valuable. LTE would also open up lots of other standard smartwatch features, like spontaneous music streaming, etc.
