Smartwatch reminds me to 'charge' the battery at the right time

Smart watches are increasingly multi-functional. In addition to the function of telling time and recording sports activities, manufacturers integrate more health monitoring modes, giving users a lot of information about their own condition.

Instead of making tracking more complicated, many smartwatches approach users with easy-to-understand aggregate metrics. Surely a number between 0-100 each morning to evaluate your sleep last night is easier to understand and absorb than lines about sleep time, deep sleep or REM.

That’s a familiar approach on Garmin models. This year, when using the Venu 4, I realized that the watch model using AMOLED screen has many improvements to be both more user-friendly in design and has more features to track small changes in health, can remind me that I am about to “run out of battery” corresponding to my own feelings.

Balanced design is a plus

In the company's product line, Venu is still a model with elegant design and suitable for both men and women. Design features such as light-colored metal frame, round glass-covered face and smooth, screw-free ears make the Venu 4 model suitable for wearing to work, go out and practice.

The design of Venu 4 is easy to wear, suitable for many situations, the buttons are arranged just enough to control and record practice.

This model also comes in two size options, 41mm and 45mm, at similar prices. The version I chose is the 45mm with a silicone strap. Compared to many of the straps that come with the device from other brands, Garmin's strap is still a bit softer and more comfortable to wear, and has more buttons so it's easier to choose the right size for your wrist. The 56g weight of the strap is also light enough that I can wear the watch to bed every night to track my sleep.

The Venu 4's controls are also more minimalist, with just two buttons compared to three on the Venu 3. These two buttons are enough to control the watch's features, and most other items can be easily accessed and selected using the touchscreen.

Compared to many previous AMOLED models from Garmin, I found the Venu 4's display to be of good quality. The slightly curved glass at the edges gives a better visual experience, and the maximum brightness is enough to be seen outdoors in the sun. Of course, if you play sports on a sunny day, the MIP screens of the sports models are still easier to see. However, for most general users, I think a beautiful, smooth touch screen is still more accessible.

The flashlight on the top bezel is a feature previously found on sports-oriented models, now also available on the Venu 4.

The flashlight, a feature more familiar from Garmin sports models, is a nice addition on the Venu 4. I found myself holding down the back button a few times to turn on the flashlight, usually when I woke up in the middle of the night and had to find something.

Health monitoring in “assistant” style

As a “note taking addict” who writes down a lot of information from medications, work schedules, car maintenance details to travel notes on my phone, I felt like I had an “ally” on my wrist when the company introduced the Lifestyle logging function.

Every evening, the watch pushes a notification to remind me to log my lifestyle habits throughout the day, from how many times I drink coffee or alcohol, how much I exercise, to less common health-related behaviors like taking cold showers, stretching, getting out in the sun, or keeping a journal.

The Garmin Connect app makes it easy for users to grasp a wide range of health information that their watches record.

Because the number of behaviors that can be recorded is quite large and detailed, this feature requires the phone to be turned on, not recorded directly on the watch. Marking lifestyle habits may not help me change immediately, but after using it for nearly a month, I gradually recognized the days when I often slept late, drank too much coffee or forgot to exercise, so I could gradually make changes.

The Venu 4’s sleep tracking is still very comprehensive. When I first put it on, it automatically recorded my sleep, including all stages, changes in my breathing, and gave me an overall sleep score. It’s a visual approach that gives me a quick look at my sleep deprivation and more specific sleep issues.

In addition, Venu 4 also has a new feature called Sleep Alignment. Although the recommended sleep time usually does not change much, the daily work and exercise schedule can cause the body to change its sleep needs. This feature helps to "align" sleep time with the actual biological rhythm, thereby giving me more specific sleep advice.

The readings are then aggregated into a number called “Body Battery,” which gives an idea of your remaining mobility during the day.

After landing after a long flight, even though I slept on the plane and didn’t feel particularly tired, my watch still warned me that I needed more sleep. Indeed, after just a few hours, I slept soundly for almost half a day.

When I'm sleep deprived, the watch also recommends resting even when I'm scheduled to exercise, helping me avoid overexerting myself. In addition, the watch can also warn if some health indicators such as heart rate, heart rate variability or breathing rate show signs of abnormality.

One of the things that initially annoyed me, but I got used to it, was that the clock defaulted to “sleep mode” at 10pm. Many times I had to take extra steps to check the time or miss notifications after this time. Although it can be adjusted, I decided to leave the default curfew time as is, then manually adjust my rest and sleep schedule earlier to increase the time for my body to recover.

Garmin’s strength is in the sports metrics department. The number of sports, special features like dual-band GPS and a new heart rate sensor, and metrics that the Venu 4 can track are beyond what a casual exerciser like me can use. However, beginners can also get used to Garmin Coach.

In addition to running, the watch can now also design strength and endurance training programs.

I have used this feature in the past to create my own running program, starting with 5-10km races.

This year, Garmin Coach added strength and endurance training (Fitness Coach), and there are also some bodyweight programs. After running, this is the program I’ve been waiting to try the most.

During use, when exercising 1 hour/day and 4 days/week and not turning on the always-on display mode, the Venu 4 regularly achieved a battery life of about 8-9 days. This is a pretty comfortable number, enough for me to not have to worry every time I have a long trip.

Smartwatch or sports watch?

The Venu 4's fitness-tracking features are comparable to Garmin's Forerunner 570, which is aimed at mid- to high-end runners. With the Venu's stylish case, it seems like a better-looking Forerunner, and more accessible to a wider audience.

In terms of smartwatches, the Venu 4 is certainly still a bit behind the watches that are tied to platforms like Apple and Google. However, the ability to display notifications, make calls, load music, make payments and even give voice commands also meets the basic needs of a watch that is a companion to a phone, instead of being a standalone device. The battery life of the Venu 4 is also much longer than models using the WatchOS or Wear OS operating systems.

Not as versatile as the phone company's watch models, Venu 4 still meets many basic smart features.

With the new features added, the Venu 4 can also be positioned as a “health assistant”. The tracking modes of this watch model are not inferior to competitors, providing a lot of information and guidance for users to improve their health and gradually give up bad habits.

Priced at nearly 15 million, the high-end smartwatch segment of Venu 4 is quite "crowded" with a series of competitors, from Apple Watch Series 11, Samsung Watch Ultra or the high-end version of Huawei Watch GT6 Pro. However, with a thick positioning in terms of sports and health features, combined with an easy-to-see design, Garmin's latest watch model can still create its own advantage.

Source: https://znews.vn/dong-ho-thong-minh-nhac-toi-sac-pin-dung-luc-post1603027.html