Customers choose Garmin smartwatches because they are bombproof and have much longer battery life than you get from Apple and Samsung watches.
That is the view of Todd Register, creative lead designer for Garmin’s MARQ range of luxury tool watches.
New Garmin customers have to master the push buttons that bring the myriad functions of the connected wristwear to life, rather than the more familiar tapping and swiping of touchscreen timers, but once mastered the upside of their ruggedness, reliability and much longer battery life engender strong loyalty.
Mr Register is happiest comparing MARQ watches to traditional mechanical tool watches from the likes of Rolex, Breitling and Omega.
These watches were once developed for specific purposes: water resistant, high legibility dive watches; oversized watches that kept pilots informed under the most extreme circumstances, including wars; or racing chronographs that could time automotive pioneers on the track.
Garmin takes the same approach, developing its MARQ with specific features and functionality for pilots, athletes, golfers and adventurers.
The latest MARQ watches — three versions are named Athlete, Golfer and Commander — are 46mm in diameter and lighter than all previous models in the range thanks to their construction from 130 layers of Fused Carbon Fibre.
Again, Garmin is taking inspiration from the Swiss for these carbon fibre models in terms of their finish and functionality.
“MARQ is about performance in terms of the materials we use, our manufacturing techniques and the high end technology they bring,” explains Mr Register. “The finish we achieve compares well with any equivalent traditional watch,” he adds.
One of the biggest challenges with using carbon fibre to make the case of a smartwatch is the impact it has on wifi or mobile data signals, which are absorbed and distorted by the material.
“These signals pass straight through a case made from plastic, or a steel case can be used as part of an antenna, but carbon fibre is more difficult,” Mr Register explains.
Garmin’s solution is to line with carbon fibre case with a steel inner, which becomes part of the MARQ’s antenna.
Garmin has targeted specialist watch retailers and jewellers as its primary sales channel for the MARQ. “We designed it to be sold alongside luxury Swiss watches,” Mr Register insists.
Partners such as C W Sellors, Beaverbrooks and Goldsmiths are already on board for the £2,699 carbon fibre marks.
The latest pieces have bright AMOLED touchscreen displays, but still operate for 16 days between charges.
“For years, the MARQ name has been synonymous with elevated designs and sophisticated style, and we’re thrilled to continue the legacy with the MARQ Carbon collection. Not only does this collection offer a premium design thanks to the luxurious carbon fiber case, but it integrates an authentic feature set, smartwatch functionality and more into a truly one-of-a-kind tool watch to help people pursue their passions.” says Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of global consumer sales.
The Carbon Fibre MARQs have a high end feel thanks to hours of machining with precision diamond cutting tools to give the watches a flawless finish and an eye-catching spiral design.
Three models are tailored to the needs of athletes, golfers and armed forces personnel.
MARQ Athlete is a multisport tool watch with specialist training, performance and recovery metrics
Daily activity tracking will monitor for various sports including trail running, swimming, hiking, rowing, indoor climbing and more.
The watch also has animated workouts for cardio, strength, yoga and Pilates.
Advanced metrics like endurance score and hill score help athletes measure their overall endurance and capability for running uphill while a training readiness score looks at sleep quality, recovery, training load and more to help determine whether it’s a good day to go hard or slow down.
Runners can prepare for races with training features like PacePro, Garmin Coach, daily suggested workouts, real-time stamina and a race widget.
MARQ Golfer is preloaded with more than 43,000 courses from around the world and a virtual caddie provides players with a club recommendation based on wind, elevation and analysis of their swing; all tied to the precise position on a course picked up from GPS. Around and on the green, the watch will provide contour data.
MARQ Commander might be made for a 00 agent with its dedicated features for tactical operations and a special dark mode that allows the screen to be read by somebody using night vision goggles. It also has a kill switch that wipes all data off the device. For pilots, the watch has advanced aviation features including direct-to-navigation which lets users navigate straight to a location, waypoint or nearby airport, plus weather reports from NEXRAD, METARs and TAFs.
All MARQ Carbon watches share features for navigation with multi-band GPS mapping; health and fitness monitoring and connected features for everyday needs such as contactless payments and on-device music storage.
