Bottom Left: ABC/scroll (ABC) button. Press to scroll DOWN through the widget loop and menus. Press and hold to view Altimeter, Barometer and Compass. The Altimeter screen appears after pressing the ABC-button a few seconds and then pressing it shortly two times. The altimeter shows the current altitude in the right hand corner cirkel and shows the altimeter trend from the last 4 hours. It is shown in graphics and above it is the highest and lowest height shown in numbers. The information on the screen is very clear and easy to read and also hard to misinterpret. But don’t forget to read the chapter about the calibration of the altimeter below. The altimeter screen shows current altitude, the climb and decent. Shooting a in studio…. Barometer screen

Also like most smartwatches the Garmin takes over a part of the smartphone functions: I like the fact that it shows messages so I don’t have to grab my phone. I can also use the ‘Find my phone’ function in case I lose my iPhone. Be aware that it uses the bluetooth connection to find your smartphone so when the connection is lost… Weather forecast The second one is that the Instinct is able to display the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) grid system and the Military Grid Reference System (MGRS) at the same time. The third one is the Stealth mode that switches the storage and sharing of gps data off and turns the watches function to offline so no data is being transmitted. For me not being in military circumstances ever the tactical functies are not that useful but I can imagine that for people who are in tactical situations this can be key. Stealth mode turns the watches function to offline so no data is being transmitted. Charging the Garmin Instinct Solar Tactical Part 2Although I do like the very nifty way of thinking of the Garmin Instinct series, I still feel more comfortable if I can tell the watch if the barometer should be in the lead or the altimeter. Well, I can choose them manually so there is no harm done; I can be in the lead. The best time to choose the Altimeter mode is when you are in the mountains and a lot of elevation changes are made. The barometer mode is best used in places where the change in pressure must be a result of barometric pressure changes like in my totally flat Netherlands. Storm or weather alarm All Garmin Instinct watches allow you to receive smartphone notifications on your wrist (Image credit: Garmin) In the first place I noticed that the ideal circumstances for the Garmin to use the solar panel are pretty rare in my outdoor life. The watch is most of the time on my wrist and it is moving everywhere. Seldom it is facing the sun in a way that the sunlight hits the solar panel to start charging efficiently. The Garmin uses a pressure sensor inside the watch to register the air or barometric pressure. This pressure is used for the barometer – logical – and is also used for the calculation of the altitude.

The original Garmin Instinct has a resolution of 128 x 128 pixels. The 45mm Instinct 2 has a resolution of 176 x 176mm, and the 40mm Instinct 2S has a resolution of 156 x 156 pixels. Battery life

With the watch on my wrist, the lux meter next to it and walking with both facing the sun direction but not holding them perfectly in the sun, I measure about 30.000 lux. With a light meter on my wrist I measured how much sunlight hits the watch face when hiking. When you're in the gym, there are also profiles for strength, cardio and elliptical training, stair stepping, floor climbing, indoor rowing, and yoga. Hiking, climbing, mountain biking, skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, stand-up paddleboarding, rowing, kayaking, and Jumpmaster (for skydiving) are also available. The compass screen shows the bearing when you open it and the bearing is clearly visible in large numbers in the right hand corner; the direction is also shown with N, S, E, W and everything in between. By pressing the GPS button a menu opens. In this menu I can calibrate the compass, change what the display shows – degrees or milliradians -, I can change the North Reference from True, Magnetic, Grid or to my own preference. This is good because now I can change to wherever I am on this planet and be accurate. Did you know that the magnetic North is not everywhere the same way and that it changes from year to year? That is why you should know how a compass works when you are going out. The compass on the Garmin Instinct Solar does what it needs to do. Those are the most impressive figures we've seen for any running watch to date, and Garmin assures us that for the solar 45mm model, indefinite battery life is a real possibility,

Tactical-specific features include stealth mode, Jumpmaster, waypoint projection, dual-position GPS formatting and preloaded tactical activity One of the first things you notice about a watch is how it feels on your wrist. The Instinct’s new silicone band has just enough stretch to aid in both comfort and keeping the watch in place while performing strenuous activities like running, hiking, swimming, or weightlifting. Weighing in at 52 grams, it’s significantly lighter than the 82-gram Fenix 3 it replaced. The activity buttons are also flatter and more ergonomically placed on the Instinct series watches; the round, protruding buttons on the Fenix 3 would often inadvertently depress, starting an activity at inopportune times.

Garmin instinct 2 vs tactical

The Camo edition doesn’t add any extra functions or apps, but has a camouflage patterned band and case.