PULSE OX Readings Low

It's the same as with reading the heart rate - the watch should be strapped tightly to you wrist and you shouldn't be moving if you want accurate results.

This is the first generation of oxygen readers for Garmin. And it is not only them, the technology is just entering the sport watch field, so don't expect laboratory level accuracy.

Yep, mine are low. Normally around 93-95 % , I used a finger based pulse ox the other day which read about 98% while the instinct was showing 94%.

I have the solar with the updated sensor so I was hoping it would read more accurate.

Gonzo said:

I have the solar with the updated sensor

The PulseOx was not updated. It was added. There was no PulseOx at all, at the standard Instinct. And as sspanak wrote, the PulseOx at recent Garmin models is still the 1st generation.

It's my understanding that while the feature was added it's the result of the updated sensor in the Solar (heart rate and POx) come from same "upgraded" sensor.

Yes, as written, Instinct Solar has an upgraded sensor adding the 1st generation of PuseOx to Instinct (not an upgraded PulseOx).

I'm interested in getting the Instinct Solar for alpine training and alpine glacier climbing. The price of $400 is topping out my budget so the Instinct Solar is looking good to me. One of the attractions is the ability to see how well I'm acclimating from 100' to 8000' or 8000' to 14000' for examples.  However, this discussion of the accuracy is disappointing. Is the Fenix 5 or 6 better than the Instinct Solar in terms of measuring acclimation health? Is the Pulse OX the same between the Fenix 5 and 6? I found a sale on the Fenix 5 which is close to my budget.

I can't speak with accuracy but I would imagine any of these watches is not going to be that accurate compared to a pulse ox that goes directly onto your finger.

That's what I was thinking... I could save a bit of cash by taking my glove off while resting during the climb and use the finger pulse ox I already own.

.....or you could pony up and get a great cool watch that's going to be just a little bit low on readings but still reasonable