Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm VS Garmin Vivoactive 6

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 both feature waterproof designs and have replaceable watch bands, but there are several differences in their specifications. The screen sizes differ, with the Instinct 3 Solar offering a smaller 0.9″ LCD display, while the Vivoactive 6 has a larger 1.2″ OLED/AMOLED screen. The pixel density of the Vivoactive 6 is significantly higher at 459 ppi, compared to the Instinct 3 Solar's 276 ppi, providing a much sharper display. Additionally, the Vivoactive 6 has a higher resolution of 390 x 390 px versus the Instinct 3 Solar’s 176 x 176 px.

In terms of durability, the Vivoactive 6 features branded damage-resistant glass, unlike the Instinct 3 Solar, which does not. Both devices have always-on displays, but the Vivoactive 6 offers a thinner profile at 10.9 mm thickness compared to the 14.9 mm of the Instinct 3 Solar. The Vivoactive 6 is also lighter, weighing 36 g compared to the 52 g of the Instinct 3 Solar, making it more comfortable for extended wear.

The Instinct 3 Solar has a higher ATM rating of 10 ATM, meaning it is rated for deeper water resistance than the Vivoactive 6, which has a 5 ATM rating. The volume of the Instinct 3 Solar is 30.1725 cm³, whereas the Vivoactive 6 is more compact at 19.411156 cm³. The width of the Instinct 3 Solar’s band is 22 mm, while the Vivoactive 6’s band width is slightly narrower at 20 mm. Neither watch features sapphire glass displays.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 share many sensor features, but there are some notable differences. Both models monitor blood oxygenation levels, have heart rate monitors, include GPS, and come equipped with accelerometers. Additionally, both watches feature compasses and gyroscopes. However, the Instinct 3 Solar offers additional sensors like a temperature sensor, a barometer, and a cadence sensor, which are not present in the Vivoactive 6.

In contrast, the Vivoactive 6 does not include a temperature sensor or barometer, which means it may have less detailed environmental data for outdoor activities. It also lacks the cadence sensor found on the Instinct 3 Solar, which may be useful for certain sports like running or cycling. Both models do not monitor perspiration, so neither provides data in that area.

Overall, the Instinct 3 Solar provides more specialized sensors, especially for outdoor and tactical use, while the Vivoactive 6 is more streamlined with a focus on the core sensors like GPS and heart rate monitoring.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 offer many similar activity tracking features, with both models tracking sleep, distance, steps taken, pace, and providing sleep reports. They also detect activities automatically and track calorie intake. However, the Instinct 3 Solar goes further with additional capabilities like route tracking, elevation tracking, and multi-sport mode, which are not available on the Vivoactive 6. The Instinct 3 Solar also includes exercise tagging, while this feature is not explicitly mentioned for the Vivoactive 6.

Both watches are equipped with a stroke counter for swimming, making them suitable for swimmers. In terms of sports-specific features, both models are designed for golf, but neither is designed for diving.

Overall, the Instinct 3 Solar offers more advanced activity tracking features with its route tracker, elevation tracking, and multi-sport mode, while the Vivoactive 6 focuses more on core fitness tracking functions and exercise tagging.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 have similar connectivity features, but there are a few differences. Both devices are compatible with iOS and Android, ensuring broad smartphone compatibility. They also both support ANT+ and NFC, allowing for seamless connectivity with various accessories and devices. Additionally, both models support Galileo for satellite navigation.

However, the Vivoactive 6 has the added benefit of supporting Wi-Fi, while the Instinct 3 Solar does not offer this feature. Both watches lack a cellular module, so they do not support standalone cellular connectivity.

In summary, the Vivoactive 6 provides Wi-Fi support in addition to the features available on the Instinct 3 Solar, which lacks Wi-Fi connectivity but offers the same core compatibility and connectivity options.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 differ significantly in battery life and power options. The Instinct 3 Solar boasts an impressive battery life of ‘Infinity days’ thanks to its solar power feature, which means it can continue to charge itself in sunlight. In contrast, the Vivoactive 6 offers a battery life of 11 days, which is a fixed amount of time and does not have solar charging capabilities.

When using GPS, the Instinct 3 Solar lasts up to 130 hours, far outlasting the Vivoactive 6, which provides 21 hours of battery life with GPS on. Both devices feature rechargeable batteries and lack removable batteries, but neither supports wireless charging.

In summary, the Instinct 3 Solar provides a major advantage in terms of extended battery life, particularly with GPS usage, and benefits from solar charging, while the Vivoactive 6 offers more standard battery performance without solar power.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 offer several similar features, such as HRV tracking, VO2 max measurement, resting heart rate measurement, fast/slow heart rate notifications, phone locating, notifications, silent alarm, vibrating alerts, fall detection, and a stopwatch. Both devices also have internal storage, but the Instinct 3 Solar has 0.128GB, while the Vivoactive 6 has a larger 8GB of internal storage.

There are some key differences between the two models. The Vivoactive 6 includes call control, which allows for more interaction with calls, while the Instinct 3 Solar does not have this feature. Additionally, the Vivoactive 6 has a smart alarm, a feature not present on the Instinct 3 Solar. On the other hand, the Instinct 3 Solar features a faster GPS acquisition time compared to the Vivoactive 6, which may be important for outdoor activities.

Other differences include the readiness level feature, which is available on the Instinct 3 Solar but not the Vivoactive 6. Both watches do not have irregular heart rate warnings or voice command functionality, and both have a one-year warranty period. Neither watch has a built-in camera remote control function.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 share several common features in the app and software category, such as providing activity reports, inactivity alerts, calorie counting, goal setting, achievements, a free app, an exercise diary, ad-free usage, coaching, period notifications, route support, calendar syncing, voice feedback, music playback, fertile window notifications, maps, ovulation prediction, start date prediction, video tutorials, widget support, personalization, barcode scanning on the app, water intake tracking, live tracking, and BMI tracking. Both models also require an account for full functionality.

However, there are a few differences between the two devices. The Instinct 3 Solar includes temperature tracking and weight tracking, which are not available on the Vivoactive 6. On the other hand, the Vivoactive 6 does not include temperature tracking, nor does it have weight tracking functionality.

In summary, while both devices offer similar core features for activity tracking, the Instinct 3 Solar provides additional temperature and weight tracking features that are absent on the Vivoactive 6.

The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar Tactical Edition 45mm and the Garmin Vivoactive 6 offer identical functionality in several areas under the Miscellaneous category. Both devices have a battery level indicator, are available on PC, support auto pause, and are compatible with smart scales and external heart rate monitors. They also both work with Windows and Mac OS X and do not have an external memory slot or a socket for a 3.5 mm audio jack.

Given that the specifications are identical in this group, there are no notable differences between the two devices in terms of additional compatibility or features beyond the core functionalities mentioned.

In summary, both the Instinct 3 Solar and the Vivoactive 6 provide the same set of miscellaneous features, making them very similar in this category.