It’s been more than three years since Garmin announced Forerunner 945. And finally, Garmin unveiled its next high-end multisport fitness watch, the Forerunner 955. Now, it packs in a massive slate of new features, including multi-band GPS, a race widget, and heart rate variation.
Today, we are going to compare it with the Apple watch series 7 to help you decide if you really should go for a dedicated running smartwatch or buy the watch series 7 instead. So, without further ado, let’s get started!
Design
The Forerunner 955 is suitably hefty and rugged, but it feels comfortable on the wrist. Also, it has Garmin’s usual classic design, featuring a metal case and five-button functions. The Forerunner 955 comes in only one size with a 1.3-inch touchscreen display, which can help you to navigate more accurately, especially when you are using the map.
In contrast, the Apple Watch Series 7 boasts a 1.9-inch always-on display, which ensures responsive touch, rich color, and brightness to see stats clearly. Most importantly, the series 7 offers an almost 40 percent bigger display than the 955. As expected, Garmin has provided a rugged design for their 955, but the Apple watch will not disappoint you in terms of durability as well. As for the water resistance, both watches have a 5-ATM rating, so you can wear them even while swimming.
Performance and Features
The Forerunner 955 comes with Garmin’s fourth-generation heart rate sensor to track your overall health conditions on a continuous basis. Whereas the Series 7 also has an improved heart rate sensor, which offers more accurate tracking compared to the Forerunner 955. Also, it comes with an ECG feature which Forerunner 955 lacks. Besides, the Watch Series 7 is very good at detecting AFib, whereas the 955 can only detect abnormal heart rates, but it can not provide AFib warning.
To track your wellness, both Forerunner 955 and Apple Watch Series 7 have almost similar features. Both watches can monitor blood oxygen saturation levels to help you with sleep tracking and altitude acclimation. Plus, they can track your sleep quality, so you will know how well you slept last night.
In addition, both watches are good at detecting fatigue conditions. With HRV status, the Forerunner 955 can deliver a deeper understanding of your overall health recovery and training performance. Besides, the new race widget features in the Forerunner 955 can help you with race prep information, race-day weather, countdown clock, and performance predictions.
Moreover, both the Forerunner 955 and Watch Series 7 can track menstrual health and cycles, which can help women to understand their health conditions. Most importantly, the Forerunner 955 can measure skin-based temperature with the help of a thermometer. Whereas the Apple Watch Series 7 is still unable to provide this feature.
GPS System
The Forerunner 955 has Multi-Band GPS, which provides more accurate tracking than ever. Also, the Forerunner 955 can provide better accuracy where it’s hard to get a good signal with multiple satellite frequency support. On the other hand, the Apple Watch Series 7 also has an outstanding GPS system, which ensures accurate tracking and positioning but is not as good as the forerunner.
Battery Life
The Forerunner 955 offers more battery backup than Apple Watch Series 7. The Forerunner 955 can run for up to 15 days, and with solar, it can be extended for up to 20 days. If you are using GPS all day long, then it can survive for up to 42 hours. On the other side, the Apple Watch Series 7 can stay alive for up to 18 hours.
Price
About the price, the Garmin Forerunner 955 comes at a $599.99 price tag. Whereas the Apple Watch Series 7 is available for $399. As you can see, there is a $200 price difference, but Series 7 still offers everything that you would want in any smartwatch.
Which One Should You Get?
Both the Garmin Forerunner 955 and Apple Watch Series 7 come with almost similar features, but in terms of health tracking, Apple Watch Series 7 does better. Series 7 is also a more affordable option. But if you are a true fitness enthusiast and passionate about running, the forerunner 955 will be a great pick.
