Fitbit Sense 2 vs Garmin Descent G1
🗓️ Release Year
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: 2022
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: 2022
🏃 Activity
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The Fitbit Sense 2 provides robust activity tracking, diligently monitoring steps, distance, calories burned, and floors climbed. Its Active Zone Minutes feature remains a core component for optimizing workout intensity based on heart rate zones. The integrated built-in GPS ensures accurate real-time pace and distance tracking for outdoor activities such as running, cycling, and hiking, offering essential data independently of a paired smartphone.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Garmin Descent G1 is a robust dive computer and outdoor GPS smartwatch designed for recreational divers and active individuals, built for durability and reliable tracking. It offers precise tracking for dive-specific metrics, alongside comprehensive tracking for steps, distance, calories burned, and active minutes. Its activity profiles cater to both underwater and topside sports, providing essential data for monitoring performance in various environments.
❤️ Health Monitoring
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: Leveraging advanced PurePulse 2.0 technology, the Sense 2 offers continuous 24/7 heart rate monitoring, capturing resting heart rate trends and real-time heart rate zones during exercise. It includes a skin temperature sensor for additional wellness insights and integrates advanced sleep and stress management features, providing a comprehensive health overview.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: This device provides continuous wrist-based heart rate monitoring, stress tracking, and detailed sleep analysis for insights into daily well-being and recovery. The integrated Pulse Ox sensor allows for blood oxygen saturation monitoring, useful for assessing acclimatization at altitude and contributing to dive planning and safety.
🔋 Battery Life
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The Sense 2 delivers a commendable battery life of over 6 days on a single charge, reducing the frequency of recharging. Its fast charging capability is highly convenient, providing a full day's power in just 12 minutes, minimizing interruptions to tracking.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Descent G1 offers strong battery life, providing up to 25 hours in dive mode and up to 14 days in smartwatch mode, ensuring sufficient power for multiple dives and consistent daily tracking without frequent recharging.
😴 Sleep Tracking
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: Detailed sleep tracking on the Sense 2 meticulously monitors sleep duration and analyzes sleep stages (light, deep, and REM). It provides a comprehensive Sleep Score and actionable sleep insights within the app, empowering users to understand and enhance their sleep quality.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: Sleep tracking on the Descent G1 monitors sleep stages and provides valuable insights into sleep quality, contributing to a better understanding of recovery essential for both athletic performance and dive readiness.
📍 GPS Tracking
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: With built-in GPS, the Sense 2 accurately tracks real-time pace and distance for outdoor activities without relying on a phone. The Fitbit app provides detailed route maps and intensity zone analysis post-workout, offering valuable performance data.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: Equipped with built-in GPS, the Descent G1 provides accurate outdoor activity tracking and basic mapping capabilities on the surface. This GPS functionality is also integrated into dive logging for recording entry and exit points, enhancing the utility for documenting dive locations.
🏋️ Workout Modes
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: Supporting an extensive library of over 40 workout modes, the Sense 2 accommodates a wide variety of physical activities, from running and cycling to swimming, HIIT, strength training, and yoga. It provides real-time performance metrics, including heart rate, pace, and calorie burn, to help users monitor and optimize their training.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Descent G1 supports a variety of multisport and individual workout modes, including dedicated profiles for diving (single-gas, multi-gas, freediving), swimming, running, biking, hiking, and strength training, providing relevant metrics for each activity.
💫 Exercise Recognition
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The integrated SmartTrack technology automatically detects and records common exercises such as walking, running, cycling, and elliptical workouts. This feature ensures effortless tracking of activities, even if the user forgets to manually start a workout session.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The device includes automatic exercise detection for common activities such as swimming, running, and cycling through its Move IQ feature, ensuring these basic movements are captured in your activity log alongside detailed dive data.
🍎 Compatibility
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The Sense 2 offers broad compatibility with both Android and iOS devices, connecting via Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Android users benefit from the inclusion of Google Fast Pair for a quick and straightforward initial setup process.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Descent G1 is compatible with both iOS and Android smartphones, connecting via Bluetooth for seamless data synchronization, dive log management, and smart notifications.
📲 App Support
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: Synchronization with the comprehensive Fitbit app provides users with a centralized platform for detailed fitness tracking and in-depth health insights. Compatibility with popular third-party applications like Strava, Google Fit, Apple Health, and MyFitnessPal allows for seamless data integration into existing fitness ecosystems.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: Synchronization with the comprehensive Garmin Connect app is central for topside activity and health tracking, while the Garmin Dive app is specifically designed for detailed dive log management, analysis, and sharing, providing a complete ecosystem for both fitness and diving data.
💡 Smart Features
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: Beyond its health and fitness capabilities, the Sense 2 offers practical smart features, including call, text, and app notifications. Integration with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa provides convenient voice control. Support for Fitbit Pay and Google Wallet enables contactless payments directly from the wrist.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: Beyond its primary focus on diving and sports, the Descent G1 includes practical smart functionalities such as on-wrist notifications for calls, texts, and calendar alerts. It also features essential utilities like a compass, barometric altimeter, and thermometer, valuable for outdoor navigation and environmental awareness.
💦 Water Resistance
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: With a 5 ATM water resistance rating (up to 50 meters), the Sense 2 is designed to be resistant to water, making it suitable for swimming, showering, and general water exposure. It is not recommended for deep diving or high-pressure water sports.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: With a robust water resistance rating to 100 meters (10 ATM) and built-in dive computer functionality, the Descent G1 is specifically designed for scuba diving, freediving, and other underwater activities, providing essential dive data and safety features for recreational use.
⌚ Display Quality
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The device features a bright and vibrant AMOLED touchscreen display. An always-on display mode offers convenient at-a-glance access to information, and customizable watch faces allow for personalization of the visual interface.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Descent G1 features a sunlight-readable, monochrome display with good contrast, optimized for visibility in various lighting conditions, including underwater and bright sunlight. While not a color screen, it provides clear and easy-to-read data.
👌 Ease of Use
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The Sense 2 is designed for intuitive interaction, featuring a responsive touchscreen complemented by an improved haptic side button for efficient navigation. Seamless wireless synchronization with the Fitbit app facilitates effortless data tracking and analysis.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The device utilizes a user-friendly interface with a combination of buttons, designed for easy navigation and access to features both on land and underwater, prioritizing reliable operation in challenging conditions over touchscreen complexity.
✨ Design and Comfort
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The Sense 2 features a lightweight and stylish aluminum case paired with a comfortable soft silicone band, ensuring suitability for all-day wear. The design supports interchangeable bands, offering options for personalization to match individual style preferences.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Descent G1 features a rugged and durable design built for the demands of outdoor activities and diving. It maintains a comfortable fit for all-day wear and dives, balancing robust construction with practical wearability.
🩸 SpO2 Monitoring
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: An integrated SpO2 sensor allows for tracking blood oxygen levels specifically during sleep. This provides valuable data that can help users identify potential breathing irregularities during the night and gain insights into their respiratory health.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: An integrated Pulse Ox sensor is a key feature, allowing for monitoring blood oxygen saturation levels during sleep and at altitude, providing crucial data for assessing physiological status and contributing to dive safety considerations.
💖 ECG Functionality
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: A key health feature of the Sense 2 is its support for ECG (Electrocardiogram) monitoring, allowing users to check for signs of atrial fibrillation (AFib) and generate reports that can be shared with healthcare providers.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: It is important to note that the Garmin Descent G1 does not support ECG (Electrocardiogram) functionality.
🧘 Stress Tracking
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The Sense 2 features a continuous EDA (Electrodermal Activity) sensor for real-time stress detection. It provides access to guided breathing exercises and mindfulness tools within the app, offering practical resources for stress management and promoting mental well-being.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Descent G1 tracks stress levels throughout the day based on heart rate variability and offers guided breathing exercises to help users manage stress, contributing to overall well-being and focus, important for both athletic and diving performance.
🩹 Recovery Tracking
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The Daily Readiness Score on the Sense 2 provides a data-driven assessment of the body's preparedness for strenuous activity by analyzing sleep quality, heart rate variability, and recent activity levels. This helps users make informed decisions about when to train intensely and when to prioritize rest for optimal recovery.
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: The Body Battery energy monitoring feature provides insights into the body's energy reserves based on activity, stress, and sleep data, helping users understand their physiological readiness for training or the need for rest. This is a key feature for optimizing recovery, essential for demanding sports and diving activities.
💳 Subscription
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: The core functionalities of the Sense 2 are available without a subscription. However, access to advanced stress tracking features, a wider range of guided workouts, and more personalized wellness insights requires a Fitbit Premium subscription ($9.99/month or $79.99/year).
2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: A significant benefit of the Garmin platform is that all core features and data tracked by the Descent G1, including its dive computer functionalities and access to the Garmin Connect and Garmin Dive apps, are available without an additional subscription fee, providing comprehensive value for a capable and rugged dive-focused smartwatch.
🏷️️ Price
1️⃣ Fitbit Sense 2: $299.95
Check Fitbit Sense 2 Price *2️⃣ Garmin Descent G1: $799.99
Check Garmin Descent G1 Price ** If you buy through these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you