Garmin Instinct E 45mm

The Garmin Instinct E 45mm has a square 45×45 mm case that is 14.2 mm thick and weighs 48 g, giving it a compact, lightweight footprint on the wrist. Its 0.9″ LCD screen renders at 176×176 px with a pixel density of 276 ppi, though it does not support touch input and lacks an always-on display mode. The watch carries a 10 ATM waterproof rating, making it suitable for water-based activities, and features a replaceable 22 mm band for easy customization. Neither sapphire glass nor branded damage-resistant glass is used for the display protection.

The watch includes a broad set of built-in sensors, covering GPS, a heart rate monitor, a pulse oximeter for blood oxygenation tracking, a barometer, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a compass, and a body temperature sensor. This combination supports a wide range of outdoor and fitness use cases without relying on external hardware for core measurements. A cadence sensor, wind speed sensor, and perspiration monitor are not included.

The Garmin Instinct E 45mm covers a solid range of everyday and fitness tracking functions, including route tracking, distance, pace, elevation, and step counting, along with automatic activity detection and exercise tagging. Sleep tracking with sleep reports provides a more complete picture of recovery, while calorie intake tracking adds a nutritional dimension to the data. A swim stroke counter is also on board for pool use. Trackback mode and multi-sport mode are not available, and the watch is not designed for diving or golf activities.

The watch is compatible with both iOS and Android devices and supports ANT+, allowing it to connect with a range of third-party fitness accessories such as external heart rate monitors and sensors. Wi-Fi, cellular, and NFC are not included, so the watch relies on a paired smartphone for data syncing and does not support contactless payments or independent connectivity.

The Garmin Instinct E 45mm runs on a rechargeable, non-removable battery rated at up to 16 days in standard mode, dropping to 24 hours with GPS active and 16 hours in training mode. Charging is handled via a wired connection, as neither wireless charging nor solar charging is supported.

On the health monitoring side, the watch tracks HRV, VO2 max, and resting heart rate, and sends fast/slow heart rate notifications, though irregular heart rate warnings and readiness/recovery scoring are not available. It supports Galileo satellite systems for faster GPS acquisition and includes wrist notifications, a silent alarm, a stopwatch, a phone finder function, and sunrise/sunset times. The watch also provides thunderstorm risk alerts, which adds a practical layer of awareness for outdoor use. Internal storage stands at 0.128 GB, and the warranty period is one year. Features not present include vibrating alerts, a smart alarm, call control, the ability to answer calls, voice commands, map uploading, fall detection, and a camera remote shutter.

The companion app is free and ad-free, requires an account to use, and covers an extensive range of tracking and management tools including activity reports, calorie burn, weight, BMI, water intake, temperature, and inactivity alerts. It supports goal setting, achievements, an exercise diary, live tracking, route support, maps, calendar sync, widgets, and app personalisation, rounding out daily and fitness use cases in one place. Voice feedback, music playback, and video tutorials are also available. Period notifications, fertile window notifications, ovulation prediction, start date prediction, coaching, and a barcode scanner are not part of the app's feature set.

The watch includes a battery level indicator and supports auto pause during workouts. It is compatible with Windows, Mac OS X, and PC, and works alongside external heart rate monitors and smart scales for a more connected fitness setup. There is no external memory slot and no 3.5 mm audio jack.