Help on choosing smartwatch combo
Apple Watch Ultra 1 + Whoop vs Garmin Fenix 8 – Help me stop overthinking this
Currently running Apple Watch Ultra 1 + Whoop band combo. Using the Apple Watch for smartwatch functions and real-time metrics during workouts (pace, distance, time), while relying entirely on Whoop for recovery, HRV trending, sleep, stress, journal, and AI insights. Pretty happy with the Whoop app overall.
Last year I tested Garmin Forerunner 965 + Whoop. Issues I ran into:
- Whoop sync only works through Apple Health, not natively – caused inconsistencies
- HR accuracy felt off
- The UI felt dated despite having AMOLED
- Missed the some of the Apple Watch experience in daily life
- Also felt a bit “sad” for missing all the data I had collected for 10 years in Apple Health. Probably just a habit thing
Now training actively for a triathlon in August and considering going all-in on a **Garmin Fenix 8 43mm** and ditching both the Apple Watch and Whoop entirely.
My concerns:
- I'm a heavy Apple ecosystem user and didn't enjoy much daily life without Apple Watch
- I actively use Whoop for recovery decisions, not just as a passive tracker – journal, trends, health monitor, AI. Garmin Connect feels more like a data dump than actionable insight
- Whoop costs ~$300/year and doesn't sync natively with Garmin. Insanely expensive, so I’m considering bevel or other apps to replace it.
The core question: For those who've made the switch from Apple Watch + Whoop to Garmin Fenix 8 as a sole device – do you genuinely miss either, and was the triathlon/multisport functionality worth the trade-off?
Also open to: is the Fenix 8 UI meaningfully better than the Forerunner 965 in day-to-day use, or is it still fundamentally "Garmin UI"?