Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Garmin Venu 2 Plus was launched on 5th January. Venu 2 Plus is an able alternative to the Apple Watch 7, as it seeks to combine the smartwatch features and fitness tracking into a single unit. Below, we look at some key differences between an Apple Watch 7 and the Garmin Venu 2 Plus. The differentiators should help you make a call about the aptest watch for your cause.

Topics covered in this post

Screen size and device specifications – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Apple Watch 7 has multiple models and multiple screen sizes. It has 41mm and 45 mm screen size options. Garmin Venu 2 Plus has only the 43 mm watch model.
Garmin Venu 2 Plus has stainless steel finish and a case made of fiber enriched polymer. Apple Watch 7 comes in aluminium, titanium and stainless steel finish. The bezel on the Venu 2 Plus is stainless steel.
Screen size of Apple Watch 7 is 1.9″; Garmin Venu 2 Plus has a screen size of 1.3″. Wider screen of Apple Watch 7 has been made possible due to the new design of the Watch 7. The size of bezel has been reduced to get more screen area on the Apple Watch 7.
Both watches have almost identical pixel density.
Garmin Venu 2 Plus has round dial. Apple Watch 7 has the square dial.

In terms of the screen size and device specifications, it all boils down to personal liking. Some people may like the sleek finish and look of the Apple Watch 7. Others may love the round screen on the Garmin Venu 2 Plus.

Operating System – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Apple Watch 7 works in the Apple ecosystem, and is only compatible with iOS devices like an iPhone. It cannot work with Android mobile phones. However, for someone with an iPhone, an Apple Watch 7 would make for the most complete smartwatch. Watch 7 based on the watchOS 7 works flawlessly with a paired iPhone.

Garmin Venu 2 Plus works well with iOS devices and Android mobile phones. It is compatible with both mobile operating systems. There are no reported issues of niggles with any mobile platform, iOS or Android. For Android mobile phone users, Garmin Venu 2 Plus and Garmin Venu 2 are two smartwatches that offer top-line functionality expected of a smartwatch.

Apple Watch 7 is based on the watch OS 7 architecture. It will get the natural upgrade to watch OS 8. Garmin’s Venu 2 Plus is based on Garmin’s proprietary operating system for the smart watches.

Battery Life – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

The battery life of the Apple Watch 7 is 18 hours on a full charge. The battery life is 4-6 hours when you use the smartwatch on GPS and Music mode.

Garmin Venu 2 Plus has extended battery life. On the smartwatch mode, Garmin Venu 2 Plus has a battery life of 9 days. On GPS mode, it has a backup of 22 hours. GPS + Music gives you 8 hours of battery life on a Garmin Venu 2 Plus.

The battery has never been the strong point of Apple watches. You need to charge the Watch 7 every day, without fail. To go around this limitation, Apple has introduced fast charging as part of the Apple Watch 7. You could use Apple USB-C Magnetic Fast Charging Cable to boost an empty battery to 80 percent levels on the Watch 7 in 45 minutes. A full charge takes close to 2 hours.

Taking a cue from Apple, Garmin has also introduced fast charging on the Garmin Venu 2 Plus. Charging the Venu 2 Plus for 10 minutes will add a day’s worth of battery life (smartwatch mode) to the Venu 2 Plus. Practically, you are never out of business with a Garmin Venu 2 Plus. The charging and battery life of the Venu 2 Plus does not present any challenges to the wearer.

If you are an outdoor person with a lot of running or activities, a Garmin Venu 2 seems like a more suitable option.

However, an Apple Watch 7 supports wireless charging. You still need a charging station or a charging dock to charge the Watch 7 wirelessly. Garmin Venu 2 Plus does not support wireless charging.

ECG App and Heart Health – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Garmin Venu 2 Plus does not have an ECG app to take on-demand ECG. An ECG on the watch can be useful in detecting issues in heart rhythm. Atrial fibrillation can be detected with the device’s heart rate monitoring and ECG app.

Apple Watch 7 inherits the ECG functionality and it can take on-demand ECG. You can share the ECG with your medical practitioner to help you uncover any health related issues. Apple Watch has a proven history of detecting cases of atrial fibrillation and abnormal heart rhythm. It can take heartbeat readings every second, and shoot high and low heart rate alerts.

Garmin Venu 2 Plus also tracks the heartbeat on a perpetual basis. It can alert you in conditions of a high or low heartbeat.

If you wish to buy a smartwatch that doubles up on good heart health monitoring, you should choose an Apple Watch 7. It ticks most boxes that you would ever need of a heart monitoring smart device. There is also the added functionality of ECG on the Watch 7.

Health Monitoring – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Garmin Venu 2 Plus has a higher number of tracking features for generic health monitoring. It is geared up to take a constant view of your health, especially when you are exerting or participating in fitness activities. Be it running, swimming, or hiking, a Venu 2 Plus monitors and reports back to you in an efficient manner. The health features on a Garmin Venu 2 Plus smartwatch are listed below:

Sleep monitoring with sleep score and insights about the sleep quality.
Body battery scores to give your stress levels.
Bood oxygenation monitoring.
Perspiration monitoring or Sweat monitoring. This is helpful in tracking intensity of workouts or fitness session.
Temperature monitoring through the tempe sensor.
Respiration rate monitoring.
Abnormal heartbeat alerts if it the heartbeat goes high or low.
Weight tracking.
Calorie intake tracking.
Sunrise and sunset times.
BMI monitoring.

All these health features foretell the special ability of a Garmin Venu 2 Plus to rate your physical and fitness sessions in terms of the impact on your health parameters.

An Apple Watch 7 lacks the following health or wellness monitoring metrics:

it cannot track weights
calorie intake monitoring is not available
respiration rate monitroing is unavailable on Watch 7.
It cannot take temperature readings.
Apple Watch 7 won’t monitor sweat.

These features may not be needed for most people who are not into fitness or outdoor activities. On other factors, an Apple Watch 7 covers the most basics for a good health monitoring smartwatch.

Fall detection – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Fall detection feature is best implemented on an Apple Watch. Apple Watch 7 inherits the feature as part of the core watch OS feature. For someone with a requirement of flawless working of the fall detection feature on a smartwatch, there can be no better choice than an Apple Watch 7. For elders at home, an Apple Watch 7 would count as a dependable watch. It can detect a fall, share the GPS coordinates with the designated emergency contacts and call the emergency services to seek help for the non-responding wearer. The fall detection feature on Apple Watch 7 has been put to use in many cases. And, it has never caused customer’s trust to be shaken.

Garmin Venu 2 Plus uses Garmin’s incident detection feature. It is designed to detect a fall, and share GPS coordinates of the wearer with designated emergency contacts. The underlying Garmin operating system on the watch is robust. But, the fall detection on Apple Watch 7 has got to be rated higher than the incident detection of the Garmin Venu 2 Plus.

Sports modes – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Garmin Venu 2 Plus doubles up as a sports watch. It has in-built modes that would provide you quality experience on various sports activities. A Garmin Venu 2 Plus has:

Golf mode that could be used with maps to get full features of monitoring and tracking a game of golf.
Outdoor profiles that could match with specific outdoor recreation activities like hiking, Indoor Climbing, Bouldering, Skiing, Snowboarding, XC Skiing, Stand Up Paddleboarding, Rowing.
Cycling mode with different set of cycling profiles to help you quanitfy your cycling efforts.
Swimming mode with swimming profiles to offer pool swimming metrics and other swimming data inputs.

These specialized modes on the Garmin Venu 2 Plus make it an ideal fit for swimmers, cyclists and golfers.

An Apple Watch 7 does not have any specific programs or modes that are designed to offer specialized sports feedback.

For swimmers, hikers, cyclists and golfers, a Garmin Venu 2 Plus will not be a disappointment.

Costs – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

Garmin Venu 2 Plus has been launched at an aggressive price of $449.99. And, it has the stainless steel bezel and back cover. The watch looks solid. The price is aggressive because a stainless steel body watch on Apple Watch 7 platform starts upwards of $699. Aluminium casing on the Apple Watch 7 is cheaper though.

Cellular support – Apple Watch 7 vs Garmin Venu 2 Plus

A Garmin Venu 2 Plus does not have any cellular offering. It relies on the paired smartphone for taking or making calls. An Apple Watch 7 comes with cellular model offerings. Cellular model of Apple Watch 7 allows you to make or take calls, directly, through the watch. You remain connected when your phone is not with you. The Apple Watch 7 has support for the LTE and UMTS bands, and works well with most carriers.

Conclusion

There is no clear winner between an Apple Watch 7 and Garmin Venu 2 Plus. Both watches bring different values and features. Basic functionality on both watches overlap to a great extent. For runners, hikers and fitness experts, a Garmin Venu 2 Plus looks like a better option. For people on the Apple ecosystem, an Apple Watch 7 covers the most functionality desired by the smartwatch users. You will, definitely, need to consider the price difference though. The stainless steel casing on Apple Watch 7 costs north of $699; a Garmin Venu 2 Plus is a good $250 saving over that price.

You may like to read the following content related to Apple Watches and Garmin watches:

Helen Kurt

Helen Kurt is a geeky nerd who loves to cover the wearables space. She has over 5 years of experience in the smartwatch domain. You can reach her on email at [email protected].