Pictures of three new Garmin watches have leaked online, including new versions of the Fenix 7 and Epix (Gen 2), plus a new golf watch. The pictures were posted by German site WinFuture, and spotted by Reddit user TheShroomsAreCalling who shared the news on the Garmin subreddit.
WinFuture hasn't stated its source, but has a good track record for leaks and was the first site to publish pictures of the Garmin Instinct 2X back in March. I won't republish the images of these new watches, but you can check them out on WinFuture for yourself.
Fenix 7 Pro
Rumors of a new Garmin Fenix 8 have been circulating for some time, but now it looks like we're getting a new iteration of the Fenix 7 first. It looks as though the Fenix 7 Pro will come in two sizes, both of which will be available in Solar and Sapphire Solar variants.
The Sapphire Solar model will have a tough sapphire crystal lens rather than the standard Gorilla Glass, which should make it more resistant to scratches, and it may come with a few bonuses like more internal storage to sweeten the deal too.
In terms of design, the Fenix 7 Pro looks similar to the standard Fenix 7, with the same metal bezel and exposed screws. The main difference I can see is that the start/pause button is now highlighted in orange, suggesting it may perform an additional function.
Unlike the Garmin Vivomove Trend, the Fenix 7 Pro clearly doesn't have wireless charging; the back sports the same power socket as most other Garmin watches released in recent years.
The fact that all the Fenix 7 Pro watches have solar charging means that they probably have memory-in-pixel rather than OLED displays. Garmin has decided that placing a film over an OLED panel doesn't look good, and although it's been working on a way to create OLED panels with photovoltaic cells in between the subpixels, the back of the Fenix 7 Pro states that it has 'power glass', so that tech clearly isn't in use here.
That might sound disappointing, but things get more interesting when you look at the back of the watch, which features a new sensor array with four extra green LEDs. The green LEDs on a smartwatch are used to detect changes in bloodflow in your wrist, Blood absorbs green light, so the amount of light reflected back from your skin allows to watch to monitor your pulse.
I don't know what function these extra lights will serve. They may be there to increase accuracy of the heart rate monitor, or they may serve another purpose, such as estimating blood pressure.
Garmin Epix (Gen 2) Pro
A couple of weeks ago, Flo of Fitness Tracker Test spotted references to the Garmin Epix (Gen 2) Pro on some retailers' websites, and noted that this device seemed to have a unique ID number. He speculated that this meant a new Epix was coming soon – and it seems he was correct.
According to the images posted by WinFuture, the confusingly named Garmin Epix (Gen 2) Pro will be available in three sizes: 42mm, 47mm, and 51mm. The original Epix (Gen 2) was only available with a 47mm case, so this is exciting news.
There will also be a Sapphire variant, but no solar models, which makes sense considering the highlight of the Epix series is its bright AMOLED display.
It's hard to see many differences between this watch and the standard Epix (Gen 2). Again, the key change seems to be a new LED array on the back of the watch.
Garmin Approach S70
Earlier this week, Polly Allcock of Notebookcheck spotted documents on the Singapore Telecoms Licensing System (TLS) website that seemed to relate to a new golf watch. It seems that this is indeed the case, and a successor to the Garmin Approach S62 will soon be arriving on golfers' wrists.
The Garmin Approach S70 looks like a big upgrade. According to the specifications on the TLS site, it will be the first Approach watch to offer Wi-Fi, making it faster for golfers to download new maps and courses.
Judging by the images shared by WinFuture, it looks like the Approach S70 may also have an OLED display, which would be a real boon, providing much more detail and making it easier for them to pick out features on the course.
However, the Approach S70 has the same sensor array on the back as the Fenix 7 and other current-gen Garmin watches, so it doesn't have whatever secret sauce makes the new Pro models special.
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