Hey everyone, I’m looking at getting the forerunner 165 due to it being entry level and it has the features I want. One piece of info I would like clarification on is: do any of the advertised features require a subscription? It is an absolute deal breaker for me if they advertise all these features but don’t mention they are behind a subscription that I won’t know about until I’m setting up the watch.
Thanks!
To my knowledge I don’t think any of them do, but if you share what features you’re looking at it might give you more peace of mind when people confirm :)
I’m wanting all the workout and activity tracking. HR, GPS, altitude, speed, saving past workouts etc. I’m just asking because I got my mom a fitbit and the sleep tracking was locked behind a subscription.
I’m more familiar with a different model (venu), but none of those features required subscriptions. Part of why I keep an eye on Garmin devices is because they’re generally more privacy friendly, and it’s easier to track health data without using their app / network if you wanted to.
I found this this: https://www.garmin.com/en-CA/c/subscription-plans/
The subscriptions seem to be related to features that would rely on their network, and not workout / activity tracking:
- using cellular networks to text/call/track location without a phone
- storing photos on their servers
- SOS / inReach services
There are a few I’m not sure about, such as the Tacx cycling option or Maps+. You could double check if you wanted those things
Thank you for your response. Privacy is another important factor for me and another reason why I’m looking at Garmin. And thanks for clarifying that all the basic features are not locked behind a paywall.
