Connect IQ supports major services such as Spotify and YouTube Music plus a wide range of community apps and widgets.
Pros: recovery insights, fitness tracking accuracy
Cons: ECG functionality, call handling
Best 2026 Smartwatches for third-party app support
Release year
Completed workouts sync easily to services such as Strava and Apple Health. The broad integration makes Garmin data easy to use across a larger fitness setup.
Pros: step counting accuracy, app ecosystem
Cons: Bluetooth connectivity, pairing reliability
Connect IQ adds downloadable apps and watch faces, while services such as WhatsApp, Spotify, and Deezer broaden everyday usefulness.
Pros: music controls, pairing reliability
Cons: LTE connectivity, ECG functionality
Third-party support was strong for fitness platforms like TrainingPeaks, Runna, Intervals.icu and Strava, but weaker for streaming services and app breadth.
Pros: calorie tracking usefulness, durability
Cons: ECG functionality, size options
Fitness-service connectivity and data export are useful, but wrist-app support is limited. The absence of Spotify and the shallow app catalog keep it behind Apple Watch and Wear OS for...
Pros: battery life, watch face quality
Cons: activity auto-detection, LTE connectivity
Third-party app support is mixed, with useful athlete integrations offset by a storefront lacking major apps.
Pros: software smoothness, flashlight usefulness
Cons: sleep tracking accuracy, ECG functionality
Third-party app support is mixed, ranging from praise for TrainingPeaks-style integrations to disappointment over missing Coopah and Runna compatibility and limited app-store access.
Pros: pairing reliability, brightness
Cons: Wi-Fi connectivity, Bluetooth connectivity
Third-party app support was a clear weakness, with limited apps and missing golf support called out.
Pros: display quality, brightness
Cons: onboard music storage, size options