5 vs 5 plus help!

Former Member over 6 years ago

Hello all,

I have decided I want to purchase a Garmin and can't decide between the Fenix 5 Plus or Fenix 5. The main reason is that I heard there were some pretty bad GPS accuracy issues with the original Fenix 5. I have not heard that the same issues exist with the 5 Plus. I don't really require the maps or music capability that the 5 Plus have but I would definitely want to avoid buying a watch with GPS issues plaguing it. Overall I would use it for running, biking, golf, swimming, and general health. I would get it over the 935 for looks alone so let's not breach that subject. Has anyone had the two and if so, does the drastic price difference warrant the price premium? Would the standard Fenix 5 stay capable a couple years from now in your opinion? I will post this in the Fenix 5 Plus forum for a wider audience as well. Thanks!

0 TrippyZ over 6 years ago

Fenix 5 GPS issues are completely solved for me under the most recent beta release. Prior to that it was pretty awful in anything less than perfect conditions - conditions where my 920xt would not have had any problems at all.

0 Former Member over 6 years ago

Personal opinion from someone with an F5.

The F5 plus maps are a good idea, but the music is just nonsense.
Hope they have an F6 that leaves nonsense like music and garmin pay out,
otherwise I will have ti stick with the F5, as it works perfectly, including GPS.

0 Former Member over 6 years ago

So you really have no issues with it to stop you from recommending it to someone?

0 cmerrill over 6 years ago

I have the F5 and the GPS has been just fine. I have never had a GPS watch (Suunto, Apple, or Garmin) that had perfect location accuracy. The F5 is working very well and now has GPS + Galileo for maybe a little better accuracy. Also, I use a Stryd footpad and an inReach communicator. With current firmware I have no connectivity issues. I recently tried to convince myself to upgrade to the F5 Plus. Here are the issues that I considered important:

1. F5 is working great (GPS, connectivity, etc.)
2. Garmin pay is not supported by any of my cards, and not many at all
3. Music does not support Apple Music or Spotify. I am not switching streaming services just to listen from my watch
4. Battery life is significantly longer on the F5. The new features on the plus cut battery life by many hours and I do ultra marathon events where long battery life is important.

So, I am staying with the F5. Your weighting of features may vary but I hope this is of some help.

0 mcalista over 6 years ago

4. Battery life is significantly longer on the F5. The new features on the plus cut battery life by many hours and I do ultra marathon events where long battery life is important.

So, I am staying with the F5. Your weighting of features may vary but I hope this is of some help.

Map rendering is a processor intensive task, and uses a lot of energy. I'd be interested to see the battery life of the F5+ when used in the same way as an F5 (ie. GPS breadcrumb trail only, with no maps). Obviously if you are not using music, it's not going to impact battery life.

0 Felipowisky over 6 years ago

I never had any issues whatsoever with GPS on my Fenix 5 (APAC). As already stated by others on this thread, none of the new features (payments, Maps or music) are useful to me, so...