Garmin vivoactive 4S Silver
Score: 82/100
Apple Watch Series 8
Score: 81/100Rankings
The Garmin vivoactive 4S is a compact 40 mm GPS smartwatch with a sunlight-visible MIP display, extensive health metrics, and up to seven days of battery life. Its low-resolution display and limited GPS-plus-music runtime may disappoint power users. It's perfect for users with smaller wrists who value long battery life and robust fitness tracking.
The Apple Watch Series 8 GPS 45 mm offers a premium OLED display, fast S9 processor and a full suite of health sensors. Its drawbacks are the need for daily charging and the lack of cellular capability in the GPS-only version. Ideal for iPhone users who want top-tier health tracking without cellular independence.
| Attribute | | |
|---|---|---|
168 hoursbest | 18 hours | |
27.9 mm | 38.1 mmbest | |
| ↓ lower better | 36.3 gbest | 36.3 gbest |
— | 64 GBbest |
Click an attribute name to sort · Green = best, red = worst (relative to this comparison)
| Attribute | | |
|---|---|---|
Build & Design(1) | ||
Water & Dust Resistance (IP Rating) | 5 ATM | 50m |
Battery & Power(1) | ||
Battery Life (hours) | 168 hours | 18 hours |
Display(3) | ||
Display Size (mm) | 27.9 mm | 38.1 mm |
Display Resolution | 218x218 | 396x484 |
Display Type | MIP | OLED |
Products in the top-left offer the best value (high score, low price).
Professional reviewers and editors view the vivoactive 4S as a versatile, smaller-wrist-friendly alternative to the larger vivoactive 4, applauding its proportional sizing, solid battery life, swim rating, music capability, and extensive health metrics, while noting the trade-off of a less vibrant MIP display and the omission of advanced navigation and power-meter features.
Everyday users commonly praise the watch's lightweight comfort, music storage for phone-free workouts, and accurate health tracking, but they frequently mention the small screen's readability challenges, the lack of a full-color display, and the limited GPS-plus-music battery life as recurring drawbacks.
Professional reviewers commend the Series 9 for its ultra-bright 2000-nit display, the speed of the new S9 processor and the innovative Double Tap gesture, calling the interaction "magical." They also highlight richer workout visuals and Precision Finding via UWB, while noting that the GPS-only model still needs daily charging and lacks cellular capability, and that the weight gain over the 41 mm version is marginal.
Everyday users praise the watch's seamless iPhone integration, reliable fitness and health tracking, and the readability of the bright screen. Common complaints revolve around the need to charge daily, occasional sync hiccups with the iPhone, and band comfort issues for smaller wrists.
