Serious runners looking to upgrade their smartwatch now have two new Garmin Forerunner options in the form of the 570 and 970. For those unfamiliar, Forerunner is Garmin’s line of running and triathlon training watches. The new versions pack the brightest display from Garmin to date and add new training tools, recovery insights and connected features.
Garmin is competing in a field that includes the Apple Watch and Apple Watch Ultra, which is Apple’s adventure-focused version of its regular smartwatch. Garmin is perhaps best known for its in-car GPS systems, but has branched out into smartwatches aimed at athletes over the past few years.
Want to learn more? Check out our roundup of the best Garmin deals around. If you’re a die-hard Apple fan, we also have a recent roundup of Apple watch rumors for you to peruse.
New Forerunners feature a variety of colors
The Forerunner 570 comes in two sizes and numerous colors.
570 is the cheaper of the two
The 570 is available in both 42mm and 47mm cases, and each size has two exclusive color options in addition to the slate gray, aluminum and black band colors. The 970 only ships in a 47mm case, meaning you can only go big or go back to the 570.
The 970 is available in three colors that look good, but are slightly less fun than its smaller sibling’s options. This model is for the serious athlete or those who just want the best Garmin has to offer.
A brighter 1.4-inch AMOLED display, with an optional always-on mode is new for both watches. Opting for this setting will likely reduce battery life, but given that the 570 has an 11-day battery life, and the 970 can squeak out 15 days you probably won’t be reaching for a charger nearly as much as you would with other smartwatches.
Both watches feature the Garmin Triathlon Coach trainer, which offers adaptive daily personalized workouts plans based on your performance and health metrics. Users can also create multisport workouts from the Garmin Connect app and send them to the watch to track stats even when you switch to another sport during training.
970 extras include flashlight and titanium bezel
The Forerunner 970 includes a set of expected exclusive features, including a scratch-resistant sapphire lens and titanium bezel.
The 970 also ships with a built-in LED flashlight and offers on-screen controls to dial down the brightness. Additional features include running tolerance, step-speed loss and support for ECG measurements in the app, though this feature’s availability will vary by region.
Pricing and availability
Both the Forerunner 570 and 970 will be available to order starting May 21. The Forerunner 570 42mm and the Forerunner 570 47mm are priced at $550, while the Forerunner 970 costs $750.
