{"id":122176,"date":"2025-09-05T16:13:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-05T16:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/122176\/"},"modified":"2025-09-05T16:13:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T16:13:09","slug":"why-garmins-new-fenix-8-pro-watch-is-big-news-for-backcountry-adventurers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/122176\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Garmin’s New f\u0113nix 8 Pro Watch Is Big News for Backcountry Adventurers"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you buy through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission. This supports our mission to get more people active and outside.Learn about Outside Online’s affiliate link policy<\/a><\/p>\n

You can text and make calls without your phone, plus Garmin’s emergency features are now built into the watch <\/p>\n

\"Garmin<\/p>\n

(Photo: Courtesy Garmin)<\/p>\n

Published September 4, 2025 04:18PM<\/p>\n

Yesterday, Garmin announced its new f\u0113nix 8 Pro<\/a> watch. The biggest selling point? It connects to both cellular and satellite networks. That means users can make phone calls, trigger an SOS, and have two-way text communications with friends, family, and emergency responders all from their wrist\u2014off-grid and without their phone. Even with all these battery-sucking features, Garmin claims that the f\u0113nix 8 Pro will pack an incredible 27 days of battery life in smartwatch-mode. Also announced was the f\u0113nix 8 Pro MicroLED<\/a>, which has the same connectivity features but a much brighter screen\u2014the brightest on the market according to Garmin\u2014and a battery that still lasts up to 10 days.<\/p>\n

Garmin f\u0113nix 8 Pro
\n\"Garmin(Photo: Courtesy Garmin)<\/p>\n

We\u2019re still waiting on an 8 Pro to test and review, but in the meantime, we\u2019ve pored through the available information to find out what\u2019s most important. To start, it weighs nearly half as much as an inReach Messenger Plus<\/a> (without the strap), and comes with all the smart sportswatch features you\u2019d want in the backcountry; On paper, the f\u0113nix 8 Pro is a device that ultralight hikers and trail runners should be drooling over.<\/p>\n

In terms of LTE connectivity, the 8 Pro will not function like an Apple Watch<\/a> that\u2019s capable of calling any phone. Instead, it will need to connect via the Garmin Messenger app, which is required for any call recipient. Additionally, LTE connectivity will let watch users send 30-second voice messages and allow for live-tracking via the app (and only the app.)<\/p>\n

The watch can, however, send a text message to any phone. That message will come in as a random phone number; the recipient can then reply to the issuing number and the sender\u2019s watch will receive the message. If you text someone via the recipient\u2019s Messenger app, the watch user will be clearly identified.<\/p>\n

If a watch user triggers the SOS feature, the initial alert and two-way messaging with responders will be sent through the cellular connection if there\u2019s one available. Garmin told us that the 8 Pro will default to LTE for any kind of messaging, but will connect to satellite when you\u2019ve lost cell coverage. They also told us that a feature on the watch allows users to override LTE coverage and go straight to satellite when LTE is available but weak\u2014an achilles heel of Apple\u2019s satellite messaging that makes it wholly unreliable in the backcountry. Like the iPhone SOS system, the 8 Pro will help you connect to a satellite by telling you where to point the watch for optimal connectivity.<\/p>\n

On paper the 8 Pro sounds magical, but adventurers will still need to consider relying on a traditional inReach device for longer trips. According to Garmin, the 8 Pro\u2019s battery life goes down to 53 hours when the watch is using its most powerful and accurate satellite system. That should be plenty for a rescue situation, but would put a user at risk if they\u2019d been tracking their progress and communicating with friends for several days and then got in trouble.<\/p>\n

The watch also uses different satellites than the standard inReach, which is why the coverage is limited to the continental U.S. and most of Canada and Europe. That coverage area is fine for many of us, but people up in Alaska will be very disappointed, and anyone adventuring in South America or across Africa and Asia will need a separate satellite communication device.<\/p>\n

The timing of Garmin\u2019s announcement is strategic: Apple is likely set to announce the Apple Watch Ultra 3 next Tuesday (Sept. 9) and we could see a similar feature that allows that watch to connect with Apple\u2019s Emergency SOS system. Google also just announced the Pixel Watch 4<\/a> ($450), which can trigger an SOS via satellite. Google uses Garmin as its response center since Garmin is so well-versed in this space.<\/p>\n

The f\u0113nix 8 Pro joins the f\u0113nix 8<\/a>, which will still be available in a variety of sizes and configurations. The f\u0113nix 8 Pro<\/a> will start at $1,199.99 for the 47mm version, and the MicroLED version jumps to $1,999.99. The data plans you\u2019ll need in order to use the messaging services on the f\u0113nix 8 Pro start at $7.99\/month and go up to $49.99\/month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you buy through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission. This supports our mission to get…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":122177,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[49,48,67855,195,65870,67851,62576,67852,67853,67854,61,54267],"class_list":{"0":"post-122176","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-gadgets","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-editor-jbeverly","11":"tag-gadgets","12":"tag-parent_category-gear","13":"tag-tag-commerce","14":"tag-tag-evergreen","15":"tag-tag-garmin","16":"tag-tag-smart-watches","17":"tag-tag-sport-watches","18":"tag-technology","19":"tag-type-article"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122176"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122176\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122177"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}