Garmin has officially announced the launch of Instinct® 3 – Tactical Edition, which would be its newest lineup of tactical smartwatches.
According to certain reports, the stated series is available, at launch, with a crisp AMOLED display or solar-powered display. More on that would reveal how Instinct 3 – Tactical Edition brings to the fore a metal-reinforced bezel for extreme durability, rucking activity for training, and built-in LED flashlight on both 45mm and 50mm units for low-light conditions.
Garmin’s new lineup is also built to MIL-STD 810 for thermal and shock resistance, all while remaining water-rated up to 100 meters. In case that wasn’t enough, there is a built-in flashlight to provide users with variable intensities. You see, the green light variant will help protect natural night vision, whereas on the other hand, the strobe mode will assist with location signaling in difficult terrain.
To accommodate night operations, the lineup further features a Night Vision Goggle (NVG) mode which dims the display to levels functional for the primary user (including those wearing night optic devices) but nearly invisible to anyone else.
Talk about the whole value proposition on a slightly deeper level, we begin from its promise to track rucking activity, helping users input pack weight for better analyzing the physical exertion associated with rucking.
Next up, we have the availability of ballistic solutions. This translates to how all Instinct 3 – Tactical Edition units come bearing an Applied Ballistics® solver (unlock fee required) and are compatible with the Applied Ballistics Quantum app.
We also have various dedicated tactical features coming into play, including Stealth Mode, Kill Switch, and Jumpmaster, each one chipping in to ensure that Instinct 3 – Tactical Edition is ready for any mission.
For instance, the Stealth Mode in question may come in handy across sensitive locations, where users can use it to turn off wireless communications but still collect distances traveled and biometric data without recording location data.
Having said so, if security still somehow becomes an issue, the watch’s Kill Switch feature can jump into action and wipe the device of all user memory.
Another detail worth a mention is rooted in the potential for increased solar efficiency, as a larger, more efficient solar lens harnesses the power of the sun even better than what we have seen before. In fact, if compared to Instinct 2 Solar, the new 50mm Instinct 3 – Tactical Edition solar model also gets more than five times the battery life in GPS mode when solar charging.
Hold on, we still have a few bits left to unpack, considering we haven’t yet touched upon how Garmin’s latest brainchild banks upon SatIQ™ technology to deliver multi-band GPS at the disposal of users, thus empowering them to experience superior positioning accuracy in a much more power-efficient manner.
We also haven’t touched upon the prospect of 24/7 health and wellness monitoring, meaning you can seamlessly track steps, heart rate, advanced sleep monitoring, wrist-based Pulse Ox2, heart rate variability (HRV) status and more.
Complementing that would be a facility dedicated towards smart notifications which lets you receive emails, texts and alerts right on the watch when paired with a compatible Apple® or Android™ smartphone.
Among other things, we ought to mention how users can navigate confidently with a 3-axis compass and barometric altimeter. They can also access TracBack® routing, which provides a route back to the starting point, as well as reference points of known spots relative to that location.
Beyond that, apart from built-in sports apps for outdoor adventures, Instinct 3 – Tactical Edition is loaded with apps for activities like HIIT, cardio, indoor and outdoor track running, basketball and more.
“The Instinct series has proven itself time and again as the ultimate choice for individuals who need an advanced smartwatch they can depend on in any situation. With incredible battery life, an innovative rugged design and dedicated features for your tactical lifestyle, the Instinct 3 – Tactical Edition answers the call and dares to be more,” said Susan Lyman, Garmin Vice President of Consumer Sales and Marketing.