Garmin Enduro 4: What's new, and who should choose this watch?

has the same body, screen, and battery as Enduro 3. The new features are software and memory: faster maps now with perspective view. Plus, you can now use Garmin Epic on the watch, a feature that feels made for this watch. If you're buying a new ultra watch , Enduro 4 is the choice.

Considering Enduro 4, you're probably also thinking about something like fenix 9 . The watches are similar, but screen, weight, and battery set them apart. Read on to find out how.

I've had Enduro 4 on my wrist. Here's what's new and who it's for.

What's the same?

Let's be honest: body, screen, and battery are unchanged from Enduro 3. Because everything here worked well. The watch was robustly built, and the battery lasts absurdly long adventures.

The case measures 51 x 51 x 15.7 mm, the glass is Power Sapphire with built-in solar cell, and the bezel is titanium. The screen is a 1.4-inch MIP display. It's not as sharp as AMOLED, but it's easy to read in sunlight and uses very little power. And that's the whole point of an Enduro watch .

*With solar charging in smartwatch mode. Assumes the watch is worn all day and is outdoors three hours a day in 50,000 lux.
**Assumes use in 50,000 lux throughout the period and activity mode with extended battery selected.

The solar numbers require a lot of sunlight. Garmin assumes three hours outdoors a day in 50,000 lux in smartwatch mode and constant 50,000 lux in activity mode. This equates to strong, direct sunlight. Therefore, see the numbers without solar as what you can rely on, and the sun as a bonus.

The watch is waterproof to 10 ATM, and the built-in flashlight shines again this year in both white and red. My colleagues and I still can't emphasize enough HOW smart the flashlight function is, but here I actually want to highlight the red diode.

The red light has become my favorite. Imagine you're winding down in the evening. Maybe you're on a long adventure race, and your team has found time to rest. Recovery hours are scarce, so you want to give your eyes a break and make the most of the hours. The red light allows you to start recovery while getting ready to sleep.

Why Enduro 4?

• Battery for many days: As you can see in the table above, the Enduro series takes its battery life very seriously. That's what sets the series apart from the Fenix series.

• More space and faster maps: 64 GB storage versus 32 GB and according to Garmin 50 percent more working memory. Maps pan up to 30 percent faster, and new is perspective view, where you see the terrain ahead obliquely from above. Maps on a watch seem smart, but only if it updates quickly enough to be used when running. The 30% faster experience is a huge upgrade.

• Garmin Epic on the watch: The Epic feature is made for a watch like this, where battery life makes the watch a must for multi-day activities: Hikes or adventure races, where you gather several days of activities with photos and data into one story. On Enduro 3, the feature is only in the Garmin Connect app.

• Trainings with grade-adjusted pace: I'm currently training hill intervals and there's nothing more demotivating than training by pace. For each interval, this likely drops, even though the pulse only rises. Here, Garmin's GAP function (Grade adjusted Pace) saved me. The function accounts for incline when calculating your effort.

• Stamina zones and stamina curve: On top of the real-time stamina measurement that Enduro 3 also has, Enduro 4 shows stamina zones during activity and a stamina curve that shows how your endurance develops over time based on your form and training history.

• Rucking trainings: Build trainings with load, and change load weight along the way.

• New ComfortFit strap: A soft fabric strap that wicks sweat away and fits wrists from 145 to 220 mm. The watch weighs 66 grams, 3 grams more than Enduro 3. Another area where the watch differs from Fenix. The watch is significantly lighter and it really shows. Especially when the watch is the size it is, it's nice that the watch is about 25 grams lighter than Fenix 9 51mm.

Enduro 4, Enduro 3 or fenix 9?

Enduro 4 is for you who are away for many hours or several days: the ultrarunner, trail runner, and you who go on multi-day hikes and prefer battery life in weeks over a colorful screen.

Choose Enduro 4 if you need a new ultra watch and want the new trail tools and the fastest experience ever on an Enduro watch.

Choose Enduro 3 if you can do without the fast user experience and without stamina zones and curve. Battery, screen, and body are the same, so the difference is user experience, software, and memory.

Choose fenix 9 if you want a sharp AMOLED screen, a smaller watch, or the features that come with speaker and microphone, and can live with shorter battery life.

Which should you choose?

It depends on how long you're on an adventure. If you run for several days or hike for weeks, battery is key, and an Enduro watch is the way to go. If choosing between the two, Enduro 4 is the obvious choice if buying new. 

If your trips are shorter and the screen matters a lot to you, fenix 9 the better choice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the battery really last 320 hours?
Only under ideal conditions: constant strong sunlight (50,000 lux) and extended battery mode selected. Without sun, it's up to 120 hours in the same mode, which is still enough for most runs over several days.

What is Garmin Epic?
A feature that compiles multiple days of activities with photos and data into one story, which you can relive and share. On Enduro 4, you can view it directly on the watch.

Does the strap fit a small wrist?
The included ComfortFit strap fits wrists from 145 to 220 mm. Garmin also makes ComfortFit straps in short (135 to 205 mm) and long (155 to 230 mm), and the watch fits all QuickFit 26 straps.

Not quite convinced?

You can find all our watches from Garmin here.