First they came for golfers, now Garmin International is reaching out to that other favourite demographic of Swiss watchmakers: mariners.
Of course Garmin has been among the sailing fraternity for decades with its advanced navigational equipment for yachts.
Now it is combining its expertise in luxury smartwatches with experience in what sailors need in the quatix 7 Series of premium smartwatches, “Purpose-built for life on the water and packed with wearable tech for everyday fitness, wellness and convenience,” the company says.
Garmin quatix 7 Series
Building on previous versions of the quatix, 7 Series offers several new boating features designed to strengthen onboard integration, such as multifunction display (MFD) control, anchor drag alerts and more.
It has a new AMOLED touchscreen display along with the familiar 5-button design.
“The quatix 7 Series offers a level of versatility and utility that any mariner can appreciate, serving as everything from the dedicated first mate for an offshore cruise to a sleek and stylish timepiece that can be worn to dinner with friends,” says Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of global consumer sales.
“With several new and innovative marine features, customers can control their MFD from anywhere on the boat and even get notified of important weather and tide information that could impact their navigation. Plus, the quatix 7 Series packs advanced smart features and an incredibly enduring battery life that can’t be found in any other marine watch.”
There are three models in the Series 7 collection: quatix 7, quatix 7 Sapphire and quatix 7X Solar, all of which integrate with Garmin chartplotters and other marine electronics.
When paired with compatible onboard equipment, quatix 7 enables convenient control for autopilot and Fusion Entertainment systems, and it can stream information about the boat, including water depth, engine RPM, wind and customised data, directly to the wrist from anywhere on board.
Other navigation assistance comes from detail-rich BlueChart g3 costal charts and inland maps.
There are also in built apps to help with more casual water sports like fishing, sailing, sail racing, kayaking and surfing.
Despite the addition of a touchscreen dial, Garmin says the watches’ batteries will last up to16 days in smartwatch mode for Sapphire models and up to 18 days for standard models. The solar-charging model increases this range up to 37 days of in smartwatch mode or up to 90 days in battery saver mode — enough time for cruising from Saint Tropez to Dubai.
Garmin Smartwatches
It is not all about life on the ocean seas, the quatix 7 Series also has all the usual connectivity, messaging, alerts and wellness functionality including Pulse Ox, wrist-based heart rate, respiration and stress tracking, plus Garmin wellness insights such as Body Battery, Fitness Age and Sleep Score with Advanced Sleep Monitoring.
It comes preloaded with on land activity profiles for running, cycling, golfing, hiking, rowing, skiing, golf and more.
The quatix 7, quatix 7 Sapphire and quatix 7X Solar are available now with suggested retail prices ranging from £599.99 to £1,049.99.
