We’re big fans of Garmin’s GPS sports watches with OLED screens, as they make it so much easier to see everything on the display with just a quick glance. Problem is, those watch models with OLED screens tend to be at the higher end of the price range, making it a tough sell for those who just need a more basic sports watch for their daily training needs. The Garmin Forerunner 165 changes that.
A reasonably affordable sports watch with an OLED display, the new wearable sits between the budget Forerunner 55 model and the mid-priced Forerunner 255, allowing you to enjoy a bright and clear OLED screen without having to pay a premium. It’s feature-packed, too, bringing most of the feature set from their more expensive lines, making it a really attractive option for athletes looking for a new sports watch.
The Garmin Forerunner 165 has a 1.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen with 390 x 390 resolution serving as the dial, with three buttons on the left side and two buttons on the right side of the case allowing you to interact with the watch comfortably using both tactile and touchscreen options. To keep costs down, the watch is equipped with a single-frequency GPS chip and the last-gen Elevate v4 heart rate sensor, although all the other sensors seem to be the outfit’s standard setup. Basically, the former just means it won’t be as accurate in challenging GPS environments (e.g. dense forests) as their more expensive sports watches, while the latter means it doesn’t get access to Garmin’s new EKG and atrial fibrillation features. Suffice to say, most people probably won’t be missing anything.
It features all their usual running functions, collecting all essential metrics such as pace, distance, heart rate, and more, as well as more technical readings like cadence, stride length, and ground contact time to help you improve your running form. The watch can offer suggested daily workouts and adaptive training plans for different types of runs, complete with adaptive training when you’re preparing for specific races. It even supports the Pacepro feature that lets you plan a race-day strategy that will help guide your pace.
The Garmin Forerunner 165 isn’t relegated to just running, either, as it comes with built-in sports app for tracking over 25 other activities, such as cycling, swimming, strength training, HIIT workouts, and more. There’s also a fair amount of outdoor recreation features, including point-to-point navigation, real-time bread crumb trails, elevation profiles, and more, so it can come in handy when you’re hiking or camping in the backcountry. Other features include sleep tracking, energy monitoring, stress tracking, smart notifications, and contactless payments via Garmin Pay.
Since this is a more affordable Garmin watch, everything is housed in a plastic case, so it definitely won’t feel as premium as their more robust models. Battery life, by the way, is rated at 11 days in smartwatch mode, up to 19 hours in GPS mode, and up to 6,5 hours with all sensors running and music playback activated.
The Garmin Forerunner 165 is available now, priced at $249.99.