The Garmin 970 is their latest flagship Forerunner, a series centered on fitness and running. The 970 supersedes the 965 and introduces several new features, but it also makes some significant trade-offs in the process. You can view my complete review in the video above or continue reading for the key points.
Remains Slim
The Forerunner series is crafted to be lightweight and slender for comfort during running or other athletic activities. Consistent with this, the 970 measures 47 x 47 x 12.9 millimeters and features a 35.3 millimeter display. With a weight increase of 3 grams (now at 56 grams), the 970 remains light, and the slight additional heft is likely a trade-off you can accept.
The lens is now made from a more scratch-resistant material (sapphire crystal), but much of the weight increase is due to two significant hardware enhancements.
Light, Listen, And Sound
The 970 now includes a built-in flashlight with 3 modes of white light and one bright red mode. Comparable in brightness to many modern smartphones, a flashlight is a feature on a watch you might not realize you needed until it’s part of your routine. Garmin has also incorporated a microphone and speaker in the 970, enabling you to make and receive calls directly from the watch. Additionally, it can announce kilometer markers or notify you when an activity commences, but a less highlighted feature is the newly introduced voice commands.
These commands operate entirely offline, allowing you to set alarms, countdown timers, turn on the flashlight, and perform a variety of other watch functions through a long press while speaking the command. Voice commands function adequately, albeit with some bugs; I expect Garmin will enhance this feature with software updates over time, increasing its usefulness.
New Sensors
The 970 is equipped with Garmin’s generation 5 Elevate heart rate sensor – more accurate than the fourth generation – and is capable of performing electrocardiograms or ECG. The ECG capability may aid in identifying atrial fibrillation, also known as Afib, which indicates an irregular heartbeat. This ECG function isn’t available in every region, and honestly, it’s a feature you might use only once or twice right after getting the 970 and then likely not touch again.
The Elevate 5 heart rate sensor can additionally assess skin temperature and ambient temperature when removed for about 10 minutes. There’s a dedicated glance for temperature, and while you’re sleeping, the 970 utilizes the temperature readings to more accurately gauge your sleep score.
However, the most significant change for the Forerunner 970 is the new price point. The 970 is now priced at $750 (up from the $600 price point of the 965 when it was new), and despite the substantial upgrades Garmin has made with the 970, the price may deter many potential buyers. The 965 can still be purchased new at a reduced price, and other brands offer watches featuring built-in maps for considerably less, should you be contemplating a Forerunner purchase at this time. Garmin decided to make a notable leap with the Forerunner 970, but the extent of the price increase was likely unexpected for many.