If you’re running nods, jumping out of planes, or need to wipe your GPS data, the Instinct 2X Tactical has you covered. It has a night vision mode, which drops the brightness so you can read your watch through nods. With Stealth Mode on your watch stops sharing GPS info and disables wireless connectivity. Jumpmaster has HAHO and HALO modes for calculating release points. The Kill Switch deletes all user data from the watch. The Body Battery gives you a metric based on heart rate, stress, sleep and other data to gauge when you’re ready to be active or when you may need to rest.

There's also no charge to use the various workout programs included with Garmin Connect, including the bespoke cycling and running plans that can help you prepare for a new event, or aim for a personal best. A monochrome face might seem an odd choice when more and more smartwatches are arriving with bright color displays, but it makes a lot of sense for the Instinct 2. It uses far less power than an AMOLED display (like that of the Garmin Epix and Venu 2), and it offers more contrast than a color MIP screen (which was one of our few complaints about the Garmin Fenix 7). The Instinct 2X monitors your heart rate, displays it in real time, and uses your heart rate data to inform other health insights like Body Battery and Recovery Time.The solar tech, in percentage terms, doesn’t add TOO much to the battery duration for the FENIX but for the INSTINCT the increases almost double the battery life of the original Instinct on a like-for-like (ish) basis and very significantly increase it with the new battery management modes. Smartwatch manufacturers like Samsung or Apple can’t add the same tech because, for example, a 20% boost to their battery lives would be a trivial increase to the overall battery life of maybe one or two hours. On the other hand companies like Casio or Timex who compete in the outdoors tech space might be looking closely at what they can do here to compete with Garmin and it’s going to be tough for them. Advanced battery management features are not required for this tech to work but they are added as well so you can use pre-defined battery modes which disable certain features like GPS and you can create a custom battery profile too. The new tech inside the watch is also more energy-efficient (Elevate OHR and Sony GPS chip). The Instinct 2X watches have a ton of features for workouts and monitoring vital signs. Here’s a look at some of them. This is the same as the previous TACTICAL version with the standard added features talked about above ie mainly Solar plus PulseOx Garmin Instinct SURF Solar

The Camo edition doesn’t add any extra functions or apps, but has a camouflage patterned band and case. There’s no microphone, so you can’t take calls or use your phone’s voice assistant from your wrist as you can with the Garmin Venu 2 Plus, but if you own an Android phone then you can automatically reject calls with a text message. Like many of the watch’s more advanced features, that’s easy to set up and customize in the Garmin Connect app.For altitude acclimation or sleep monitoring, a Pulse Ox sensoruses light beams at your wrist to estimate how well your body is absorbing oxygen. The Garmin Instinct 2 isn’t a single watch, but an entire series. First of all, there are now two case sizes to consider: the standard 45mm, and a new 40mm diameter model. The watch we tested here was the 40mm Garmin Instinct 2S, and although 5mm shaved off the case size might not sound like much, it makes the watch much more comfortable and practical for smaller wrists. The Tactical edition has a stealth mode that cuts off all wireless communications, a screen mode designed for reading with night vision goggles, and a killswitch that deletes all data stored on the watch, including location information. It also has Garmin’s Jumpmaster app installed for skydiving. Yet Garmin invests millions into R&D and that’s why they are where they are now. You can be sure they will further improve this tech. They will make it work better and they will make it cheaper to integrate, so that price differential will fall over time and the boost to battery lives might become more significant too. Price, Discount & Availability

Another con for some people is that while you can get text and call notifications from an iPhone, you can’t respond to texts or reject calls from your watch — that’s an Android only feature. This version adds ina new SURF sport profile as well as local tides information plus the Solar and Pulse OX There are also a few new screens that enable the battery management and others which give you information on how the Solar Charging has been working. The Instinct 2X offers point A to B navigation. You’ll see an arrow that indicates your direction, a line that indicates your heading, and the distance you have left to reach your destination. Any saved or programmed waypoints are also visible on the watch face. The 40mm Instinct 2 S we tested is leaner still at 13.3mm, and when placed on the scales it weighed 43g including the silicone band. Garmin’s quoted weight is 42g, but there’s always a little variability between devices.

Garmin's super tough sports watch gets a fresh splash of fun

The original Garmin Instinct was a brilliant sports watch, but its chunky, utilitarian design meant it wasn’t one we were inclined to wear it as a regular timepiece. The Garmin Instinct 2’s slimmer profile, optional 40mm case and new colorways mean it’s fun rather than purely functional, so you’re more likely to wear it as an everyday smartwatch. The solar models are a little more expensive, but the photovoltaic material doesn’t have any effect on the look of the display, so it’s well worth considering the extra investment to avoid frequent charging.

If you’re looking for a tool watch that has all the smartwatch capabilities you need and added features for shooting and hunting, then the Instinct 2X Tactical is worth a look.I’ve found it easy to wear and that it has the right mix of features without being overly complicated. Where the Instinct 2X Can Improve

As always, the longevity of this watch's battery will vary depending on how you use it. Functions like SpO2 monitoring and GPS will drain power more rapidly, but if you've opted for one of the solar models, you can expect your Instinct 2 to last much, much longer between charges. If you don’t have time to browse through historic stats, that’s not an issue – the app will provide you with occasional ‘insights’ based on your lifestyle and workouts. For example, if you tend to take fewer steps on a Thursday, the app will nudge you to get outside and take a stroll before the day is out. My everyday watch is a Sangin Neptune, which has a rotating dive bezel, automatic movement, and displays the date. I thought those three functions were all I needed until I strapped the Instinct 2X Solar Tactical to my wrist. The sensor itself is more energy-efficient and will boost the battery lives but also gives you the ability to use the battery-eating blood oxygen monitoring feature. This feature is being added to many activity watches, I don’t really see much point for a healthy & sporty person like you to need this. Nevertheless, the Garmin Instinct already has a good enough battery life that I would argue doesn’t really need improving with Solar. However, I accept that Garmin’s focus on SURF, CAMO and TACTICAL makes sense, as does the Quatix 6X Solar (marine) that we saw earlier in the year and the Delta Solar (+Balistics) also announced today. The marine environment must be perfect to enable this tech to shine. For more details on the Instinct read the updated Garmin Instinct Review Solar Update