Priced out of Garmin MIP...

Yeah ppl act like 255/955 will be around forever or that Garmin will somehow make MIP sequels to 255/955, despite all evidence to the contrary.

Like if you view these forums on mobile, there's literally ads for AMOLED devices bragging about how great AMOLED is.

Garmin never talks about how great MIP is (even though they tried in the past), bc MIP isn't part of their strategy going forward (except for the extreme battery life use case.)

Anyone who likes MIP Forerunners better keep their 255 or 955 for the next 5-10 years. Maybe it's not so crazy as I know some pretty fast runners who get by with a 235 or 920XT (9-10 year old devices). A 255 or 955 is so much better than any Garmin from that era.

Not too long ago, I got into a difficult-to-navigate brushy area while on a trail run and I was able to use the 255 trac back to find my way back to my car.  My 255 has proven it's usefulness so many times.  I really hope Garmin offers new lower to mid priced MIP watches but it looks like they're moving in a different direction which is why I'm considering Coros.

My last bit of irrational hope is that they could still morph the Instinct line into something that fills this niche. But, they may have to make two sub-lines to satisfy the different user groups with opposing tastes.

I don''t want that ugly screen with cutout, I want a screen like my FR255 (at least).  And I really want the more minimal casing like a Forerunner or Enduro 3.  I'm totally fine with wall-to-wall screen and barely any bezel, as that is functionally optimized for me.

But I've come to realize from the various online forums that many Garmin customers care more for the bezel outside the screen than the screen itself. It's been eye opening to read opinions in the flood responding to Fenix 8.  I am glad I am not in a watch product design department.

Similarly, I did an all day out-and-back hike in July, and just confirming my position crawling back up the existing breadcrumb trail was reassuring. At times during the return slog, I wanted to avoid unplanned detours since I was already expecting to return to my car after dark.

I was also pleased to see how well my MIP screen looked under my headlamp's illumination. I didn't even bother to activate the backlight!

Just an FYI for anyone in the US, REI periodically has been listing FR255 (non music) for sale in the past few days. 

Yes, I am very disappointed. I still can't replace my FR245. The FR255 is neither too big nor too small.

I am still waiting for a 42mm size watch with MIP display.

P.S. Why don't they have consistency in the model lines?

Garmin sources their MIP watch displays from JDI and they have closed/retooled their factory that makes small MIP displays and are getting out of the MIP business entirely. I bet Garmin made a huge last-time-buy of displays to see them through a few years as they transition to AMOLED. The only other companies that make MIP displays are Sharp, who do monochrome only, and AUO, who don't make the watch sized displays but likely provide the new Edge bike computer displays.

Unfortunately MIP and transflective displays in general are a tiny market and nobody is willing to spend a billion dollars to build a new glass fab to support it. If you can't live without them, buy a spare now.

That's good news! There's hope for more MIP displays after all.

After my bad experience with a FR965, I've been considering the Enduro 3 but it looks like it has serious unresolved issues that shouldn't be found in a $900 watch.  I'm going to be replacing my FR255 in the next year and I think that Coros is a good possibility.  Does anyone here know anything about Coros watches (specifically the Apex Pro)?  Are they reliable and is their customer service responsive?