From the 945 -> 965

Very similar performance all round, but MUCH better display and nicer UX.

No major functional enhancements, but a worthy upgrade for old/tired eyes ... if you can afford it!

- Screen is much nicer, more fun to look at and the touch is also nice sometimes (e.g. map panning, or plot scrolling). Domed yes, I guess a screen protector if you care about scratches? I don't care about them.

- GPS performance is the same to me, except the lock on time at the start, that is much faster for 965.

- Battery life feels similar for me, I charge it about once per week, probably a bit more than I charged the 945 - the main difference there is if you don't do activities the 965 doesn't last as long as the 945, as that is mostly display that drains the battery. The more activities you do it evens out, as the 965 is actually more efficient at many things during activities.

- Sleep tracking is the same

- I would say a HR strap is about measuring accurate heart rate, and running dynamics are a gimmick that has little use, so why care about their accuracy? If you are into that kind of data I would recommend a Stryd footpod, which gives you superior distance/speed/pace, superior running power and probably the best accuracy running dynamic gimmicks :D.

TLDR: Nicer screen and faster gps lock time, not much else that I care about, but worth it to me.

I upgraded last week from 945 to 965 - main motivation was more readable for old eyes. I can easily read a screen with 4 data fields on 965 where I had to only use 3 fields per screen on 945. Map display and navigation is also much more readable.

Screen is infinitely better and GPS is infinitely better and so far the wrist HR works whereas the 945 did not (consistently).

The 945 had a sony gps chip that would occasionally get weird error shifting or whatever the technical stuff is. On the 955 and later they switched to the same chip that's in the coros as well they have dual band gps.  Super accurate.

Battery life as a result of the screen is down a bit but totally worth it.

The RD does not include GC Balance , which to me is an important metric. Also the reliability of readings and HR is much better with a HRM than just wrist based. I kept using my HRM

No 965 solar is expected as far as I understand. Even the Epix has no solar.

Thanks .. that was my initial impression, but I wanted to ask. I'm sure my eyes would appreciate the update - my wallet probably not to much :)

Thanks, didn't know that about the GC balance, I too pay attention to that, so the HRM belt would stay. Be nice if solar was standard on all of these going forward, but I'm sure that would be reflected in cost and it may possibly price them out of the market.

Super, thanks for the detailed answer, much appreciated and very helpful.

Thanks .. yes, the display seems to be a (the only?) major upgrade. I'm not a spring chicken, so a better display would be a nice bonus if I decided to upgrade.