Garmin takes aim at Apple and Samsung with $799 square-case Venu X1

Garmin has unveiled the Venu X1, an all-new $799/£679 square-cased smartwatch that directly challenges the Ultra offerings from Apple and Samsung.

Available from 18 June, the launch marks the most significant update to its smartwatch lineup since the Venu 3 was released in 2023. However, it appears to be targeting a different audience this time around—it’s the first Garmin smartwatch to be priced directly against the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra.

Typically, the Garmin alternative to those high-priced watches has been the Fenix range, which was refreshed last year with the introduction of the Fenix 8 series.

However, the Venu X1 is a very different proposition; it boasts an ultra-thin 8mm, 40g titanium case and a 2-inch AMOLED display. It’s also not available in as many variations. Only two colors—black and moss—are offered at launch, and the size is limited to a single case, measuring 41 x 46 x 7.9mm, which means it’s not necessarily a great option for those with smaller wrists.

Design aside, though, it still features all the premium capabilities Garmin has been introducing over the last year or two. That includes a built-in speaker and microphone for making and receiving calls on the wrist, an integrated LED flashlight for low-light situations, and a range of advanced health and wellness monitoring tools.

In typical Garmin fashion, it also appears to be pretty long-lasting, at least when compared to the ~2-3 day battery life of those aforementioned Ultra devices. The company claims the X1 is capable of eight days of battery life in its smartwatch mode. Although it hasn’t yet shared estimates for what to expect with the always-on display enabled, we estimate this will be around 3-4 days.

Wareable’s view: Initial analysis

It was only a matter of time until Garmin expanded its smartwatch range, which previously included only the entry-level Vivoactive 6 and mid-range Venu 3, by adding a high-end option.

However, while it certainly makes sense in terms of placement in Garmin’s wider family, the design has slightly surprised us. At least from what we can tell from press images and renders, it appears to be more similar to the Huawei Watch Fit 4 Pro than to Apple or Samsung’s flagship watches.

That’s no bad thing, but it’s certainly not a traditional Garmin look—only its awkwardly placed Venu 2 Sq has boasted this square-faced style.

As ever, the real proof of whether the concept works will be in the real-world testing, and we’ll have this one strapped to our wrists after we’re done with the Foreunner 970 and Forerunner 570, both announced last month.