Please explain what Surf variant does that regular with CIQ apps can not do?

I'm wondering if it's an accident that you can use model-specific CIQ apps like the surf and tactical one on all Instinct 2s, and maybe this is something Garmin will stop you doing in the future (if it can). That would potentially annoy a lot of customers though!

Kamil said:

I'm having hard time understanding why would I get Surf variant instead of simply installing bunch of CIQ apps?

NeilJonesOnline said:

I'm wondering if it's an accident that you can use model-specific CIQ apps

The CIQ store is open source.  You can use any app created for your device and Garmin won't block watch specific apps such as a surf app for a non surf model.  There's one thing to remember here.  Garmin support doesn't cover IQ apps.  If an app causes a problem with your watch or it the app no longer works after a Garmin update support will try and assist, but chances are you'll have to contact the developer to see if it can be corrected. 

But in these cases where it's Garmin themselves who are the creators of these apps, could Garmin not make them only compatible with the Surf variants, or does the watch only identify itself as an Instinct 2 or 2S? I'm thinking along the lines of the MARQ, each model has apps that will only run on that specific model.

NeilJonesOnline said:

But in these cases where it's Garmin themselves who are the creators of these apps, could Garmin not make them only compatible with the Surf variants

Garmin, or any developer design their IQ apps for the device and both can stop supporting or pull those apps per device anytime they want.  If Joe Blow creates a "Surf" app for the Instinct 2, Garmin won't pull it from the store, but they may put some restrictions on it.  For example, this surfing app for the 945 works perfectly, but Garmin no longer displays it as Surfing in Connect.  Check out the notes on the app description below.

apps.garmin.com/.../edc1147f-466f-4a37-9d3d-0487c4fa6c3c