Overdue for a refresh — no successor announced yet. Prices should be at their lowest
Full details →| Amazfit Band 7 | Garmin Forerunner 165 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Starting price | $50★ | $249 |
| Subscription | ✓ None | ℹ️ Optional — $70/yr |
| Hardware | ||
| Weight | 28g★ | 39g |
| Water resistance | 5ATM | 5ATM |
| Battery | 18 days★ | 11 days |
| Always-on display | ❌ | ❌ |
| GPS | ❌ | ✅★ |
| Cellular | ❌ | ❌ |
| Platform | iOS & Android | iOS & Android |
| Tier | Fitness Tracker | Sports GPS |
| Buy timing | ||
| Released | Sep 22, 2022 | Mar 5, 2024 |
| Cycle advice | bad | bad |
| Deals advice | good | good |
| Next model | — | Garmin Forerunner 170 (Expected March 2026) |
18 days of typical use with health monitoring — nearly 3 weeks without charging, far beyond any smartwatch competitor.
Ask Alexa for weather, timers, reminders, and smart home controls directly from your wrist — unusual for a sub-$50 fitness band.
Amazfit's Personal Activity Intelligence score aggregates your daily activity into a single 0–100 health index, guiding you toward optimal activity levels.
The FR165 is the first Garmin entry-level running watch with an AMOLED display — dramatically more readable than the LCD it replaces.
Training load, recovery time, Body Battery, HRV status, VO2 max estimation — the same analytics found on watches costing twice as much.
11 days typical use and roughly 19 hours GPS — enough for most training blocks without mid-week charging.
The right pick depends on what you optimize for.
$50 vs $459 over 3 years · no required subscription.
18 days vs 11 days battery.
5 sensors.
28g · no required subscription.
Budget-conscious users who want more features than a basic step counter — SpO2, stress, sleep analysis, and workout tracking — without paying for a full smartwatch. Works with both iPhone and Android.
Full details →Beginner and intermediate runners who want real GPS accuracy and Garmin's analytics depth without the price of the 265 or 965. Also ideal as a first serious GPS watch for anyone moving up from a fitness tracker.
Full details →