The Garmin vivoactive 6 smartwatch (pictured) appears to be receiving a new update. (Image source: Garmin)
Garmin is rolling out a new beta update to one of its smartwatches. Flagged by several users in the brand’s forum, it is said to tackle a battery drain problem and bring two new features to users of the vivoactive 6. One of these is a new gesture, which can be used to control notifications.
A new beta update, version 15.05, appears to be rolling out to the Garmin vivoactive 6 smartwatch. It follows the release of stable software version 12.74, which brought a Wi-Fi download related bug fix to these users.
A series of user reports in the Garmin forum indicated that beta version 15.05 is rolling out to the vivoactive 6. However, it has yet to be officially announced by the brand. In one forum post, a user of this smartwatch suggests that this latest update brings three changes. The first allows users to access their Morning Report or Evening Report summaries through the watch’s Notification Center.
The second is a new gesture control for the vivoactive 6. Users can now exit a smart notification by placing their palm over the screen. Finally, this beta update is said to resolve an issue with the battery, which was draining faster than expected in some cases.
It is unclear when Garmin will officially acknowledge the beta version 15.05 update for the vivoactive 6 smartwatch (curr. $299.99 at Amazon). Users will be able to download the update by going to Menu > Settings > System > Software Update. A similar beta update for the Forerunner 570 and Forerunner 970 smartwatches was released earlier in September 2025.
Polly Allcock – Senior Tech Writer – 4656 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2021
I’ve been interested in technology for as long as I can remember. From a young age, I have loved gadgets and understanding how things work. Since graduating, I have worked for several technology companies across FinTech, AdTech and Robotics.