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Smartwatch

Garmin Vivoactive 6

Slate with Black Band (part 010-02985-00), 42.2 mm case. All seven color and band versions share one price

$299.99US price, checked Oct 23, 2026

GPS smartwatch with no required subscription and up to 11 days of battery

Check price at Garmin Full review →

Smartwatch

Apple Watch Series 12

42mm aluminum case, GPS (no cellular), with a Sport Band

$399US price, checked Oct 23, 2026

Full iPhone smartwatch with sleep and hypertension alerts, charged most days

Check price at Apple Full review →

Criterion	Garmin Vivoactive 6	Apple Watch Series 12
US price	$299.99Checked Oct 23, 2026 · Price details in the review	$399Checked Oct 23, 2026 · Price details in the review
Three-year ownership estimate	$299.99 Incomplete known subtotal. Not included: energy use.	$399 Incomplete known subtotal. Not included: energy use.
Choose if	You want a screen, GPS and Garmin's sleep and recovery scores for $299.99, without a monthly fee.	An iPhone owner who wants sleep scoring, sleep apnea and hypertension notifications and an ECG app in one everyday smartwatch, with no required fee.
Main trade-off	The 11-day battery drops to 5 days with the always-on display, and food logging and AI insights need the paid Connect+ plan.	You'll charge it most days (Apple rates it at up to 24 hours), Android phones aren't supported, and the notifications flag possible signs rather than diagnose.
Key specifications	Battery life: Up to 11 days in smartwatch mode and 5 days with the always-on display, according to Garmin. Battery saver mode lasts up to 21 days. GPS-only mode lasts up to 21 hours, all-systems GNSS up to 17 hours, and 8 hours with music. Garmin says real battery life depends on features such as wrist heart rate, notifications and GPS. Display: 1.2 in AMOLED touchscreen, 390 x 390 pixels, with an optional always-on mode. Corning Gorilla Glass 3 lens. Sensors: Garmin's optical wrist heart rate monitor, Pulse Ox blood oxygen sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, compass and ambient light sensor. GPS works with GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS and BeiDou. Garmin lists no built-in skin temperature sensor. Garmin's Tempe temperature sensor is a separate accessory. Health tracking: All-day heart rate, resting heart rate, respiration, stress, Body Battery, advanced sleep tracking with sleep coach and HRV status, nap detection, hydration logging and women's health tracking. Pulse Ox works as a spot check, with optional all-day and sleep tracking. High and low heart rate alerts are available. Garmin says the watch isn't a medical device. Smart features: Phone notifications, Garmin Pay contactless payments, 8 GB of memory for music from Spotify, Amazon Music and Deezer (subscription required), the Connect IQ store, incident detection and live location sharing with a paired phone, and a wheelchair mode. More than 80 preloaded sports apps. Water rating: 5 ATM. Garmin says the watch withstands pressure equal to a depth of 50 m and lists swimming among its activities. Subscription: None required. Garmin says all existing Garmin Connect features and data stay free. Garmin Connect+ is optional at $6.99 a month or $69.99 a year. It adds AI insights, LiveTrack+ messages, Garmin Trails, real-time indoor workout data, nutrition logging and badge challenges, and Garmin's manual says the watch's nutrition glance needs an active plan. Compatibility: iPhone and Android phones through the Garmin Connect app. Bluetooth, ANT+ and Wi-Fi. Android phones can send text replies from the watch.	Battery life: Up to 24 hours of normal use, or up to 38 hours in Low Power Mode. Apple rates outdoor-run workout tracking without iPhone at up to 10 hours. Charging: Up to 80% in about 30 minutes, and a 15-minute charge gives up to 12 hours of normal use. Apple measured charge times on drained watches with the included cable and a 20W USB-C power adapter, which isn't in the box. Sensors: Second-generation electrical heart sensor, always-on optical heart sensor, blood oxygen sensor, temperature sensor, water temperature sensor, depth gauge to 6 m, compass, always-on altimeter, high-g accelerometer, high dynamic range gyroscope and ambient light sensor Health features: Sleep score, plus sleep apnea notifications for people 18 and older. Hypertension notifications, the ECG app and irregular rhythm notifications are each for people 22 and older. Apple says Vitals and Blood Oxygen are for wellness purposes and not for medical use, and that temperature sensing isn't intended for medical use. Subscription: None listed for the health features on Apple's Series 12 page. Apple Music needs its own subscription. Apple Fitness+ is a separate service that the page doesn't price. Water and dust: Water resistant to 50 m under ISO 22810:2010. Apple rates it for shallow-water activities such as swimming in a pool or ocean, or snorkeling to 6 m. It isn't for scuba diving, waterskiing or other high-velocity water sports. Apple says water resistance can diminish over time. Dust resistance is rated IP6X. Compatibility: iPhone 11 or later, including iPhone SE (2nd generation or later), with iOS 27 or later. The GPS model connects over Bluetooth 5.3 and Wi-Fi 4 and has no cellular radio.
Exact variant	Slate with Black Band (part 010-02985-00), 42.2 mm case. All seven color and band versions share one price	42mm aluminum case, GPS (no cellular), with a Sport Band
Dimensions	The case is 42.2 x 42.2 x 10.9 mm. Garmin lists 23 g for the watch and 36 g with the included silicone band. The band fits wrists from 125 to 190 mm around. The display is 1.2 inches (30.4 mm) across at 390 x 390 pixels.	The aluminum GPS case is 42 mm high, 37 mm wide and 9.7 mm deep. It weighs 32.2 g. Apple's specs page says the 42mm size fits 130 to 200 mm wrists. The buy page says a Sport Band comes with one size in the box.
Installation	No installation. You pair the watch with the Garmin Connect app on an iPhone or Android phone. The box holds the watch, a USB-C charging and data cable, and documentation. Garmin lists the charging method as a proprietary plug charger. Garmin doesn't publish minimum phone versions.	No installation. Pair it with an iPhone 11 or later, including iPhone SE (2nd generation or later), running iOS 27 or later. It doesn't work with Android phones. In the box are the watch, the band and an Apple Watch Magnetic Fast Charger to USB-C Cable (1 m). No power adapter is listed.
Materials	The case is fiber-reinforced polymer with an anodized aluminum bezel. The lens is Corning Gorilla Glass 3, and the included band is silicone. It takes standard 20 mm quick-release bands.	The case is made with 100% recycled aluminum and comes in Dark Bronze, Light Gold, Black or Space Gray. Aluminum cases have a Ceramic Shield 2 front crystal. Apple doesn't say what the case back or the Sport Band is made of.
Warranty	One year from the date of purchase, per Garmin's Consumer Limited Warranty. Garmin can repair or replace the device, or refund the purchase price, at its option, and you pay shipping to Garmin. The warranty excludes cosmetic damage, batteries unless a defect damaged the product, and damage from accident, abuse, misuse or water. A repaired or replaced device is covered for 90 days or the rest of the original year, whichever is longer. In the US, the warranty covers products bought from Garmin or an authorized reseller, under terms revised Dec 30, 2025.	The Apple One (1) Year Limited Warranty runs one year from the date of original retail purchase. It excludes damage caused by accident, abuse, misuse or other external causes. It also excludes consumable parts, such as batteries, that diminish over time by design, unless the failure is due to a defect in materials or workmanship. The warranty page doesn't give a battery-capacity threshold for service. Apple says AppleCare plans are separate from and in addition to this warranty.
Returns	30 days from receiving your order, for a refund if the item is in its original condition. That applies to Garmin.com orders. Garmin says opened software, downloadable items and custom products are nonrefundable, and you start a return online. Its page doesn't say who pays return shipping. Orders from other stores follow that store's return policy, and restocking fees may apply.	You can return or exchange it within 14 days of the date you receive it from Apple, under Apple's US Sales and Refund Policy. It must be in its original condition, with all included parts, accessories and packaging, and you need a receipt. Apple may inspect returned products. The Series 12 buy page says returns are subject to Apple's Sales and Refunds Policy. Apple doesn't state restocking fees or return shipping costs.
Unresolved questions	Peer-reviewed accuracy data for the Vivoactive 6's heart rate, HRV, Pulse Ox and sleep tracking Charge time and the charger's power draw Minimum supported iOS and Android versions Battery lifespan and the cost of an out-of-warranty battery replacement Who pays return shipping on a Garmin.com return Whether the 30-day Connect+ trial from Garmin's March 2025 launch release is still offered	Coverage for battery capacity loss beyond Apple's one-year warranty, which excludes batteries that diminish over time unless failure is due to a defect The checkout price for this exact band and color: Apple shows $399 for the 42mm model but no separate price for the Sport Band What the Sport Band is made of, and the wrist range of the single band size in the box Which FDA clearances cover the sleep apnea notifications, because Apple's Series 12 page mentions FDA-cleared features without listing them Independent, peer-reviewed accuracy data for the Series 12 sensors (Apple's heart-rate accuracy claim rests on its own study) Battery lifespan, battery service cost and charger power draw

These comparisons use published specifications, not head-to-head tests. Prices and terms are dated. Unknown costs are not zero. Check the exact variant before you buy.