The Garmin Venu 2 Plus is a fitness watch in various designs, with which it is aimed at men and women. Thanks to its wide range of functions, it leaves nothing to be desired – neither in everyday life, nor during leisure time or targeted training. For the first time, a wearable from Garmin has received a speaker and microphone. Thus, wearers accept calls that come in on the paired smartphone. They also control the voice assistant via the GPS watch.
The Garmin Venu 2 also reliably records many health parameters, such as oxygen saturation, respiration rate or stress level. It supports around 25 sports and provides new inspiration with animated workouts on the display. Its battery life is up to nine days – with a quick-charge mode, the sports watch refuels energy for the next 24 hours within ten minutes.
In this article
Technical details
| Size screen | 1,3 inch |
| Size wrist | no info |
| Size watch | 43,6 x 43,6 x 12,6 mm |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth |
| GPS | yes |
| Battery life | up to 9 days |
| Supported systems | iOS, Android, more |
| Water resistance | 5 ATM, up to 50 meters |
| Display | AMOLED |
| Sensors | Accelerometer, GPS, Gyroscope, Pulse monitor, Pulse monitor without chest strap, Sleep monitor, Pedometers, Thermometer, Ambient light sensor |
| Microphone included | Yes |
| Speaker included | Yes |
Fresh look, different dimensions and a new detail
The Garmin Venu 2 Plus is a new model that differs from the previously launched Venu 2 series. One of these features includes the case diameter, which is 43 millimeters – so it no longer takes two sizes to target men and women. Instead, these are the optimal dimensions for a unisex fitness watch.
The Venu 2 Plus is available in a variety of color options. A particularly neutral version shows up in a slate gray case that is combined with a black wristband. This is joined by a variant with a silver bezel and gray strap. Especially for the ladies, a model with a gold case and beige strap should be appealing.
More Buttons and Always-On
Another difference that makes the Venu 2 Plus stand out: instead of two buttons on the right edge of the case, there are three in total. Another button has been added, which can be used to wake up the voice assistant. The fitness watch is waterproof up to 50 meters and has a 1.3-inch AMOLED display.
An always-on mode can be activated if required. Then the digital display stays on this entire time. The Garmin Venu 2 weighs a light 51 grams, although it is a real heavyweight in view of its wealth of functions.
Training companion, coach and inspiration
First and foremost, the Garmin Venu 2 Plus is an athletic companion, and for this reason, the associated functions should be discussed first. The fitness watch records more than 25 different activities. Among them are HIIT workouts, weight training, climbing or running. But the wearable’s capabilities go far beyond that.
Users who want to perform HIIT workouts can plan them precisely in advance and set criteria like the timer, the load and recovery intervals, and the number of rounds. Other sports are not neglected either. The Garmin Connect app on the smartphone has over 1,600 different exercises ready. Users can select these and put them together as they like, and then call them up on the Venu 2 Plus.
Great smartwatch for fitness enthusiasts
In addition, the Garmin Coach helps to achieve running goals. It creates an individual training plan for athletes, for example, to complete the first ten kilometers or to manage a half marathon. Strength athletes benefit from the Garmin Venu 2 Plus through enhancements. It no longer just recognizes exercises based on typical movement patterns – the fitness watch also graphically illustrates the muscle groups used.
It permanently measures the pulse at the wrist and warns of conspicuous values in a resting phase. The Garmin Venu 2 Plus can even track the heart rate under water. As expected, it records outdoor routes thanks to the integrated GPS module.
On top of that, it determines the fitness age – it uses parameters like the actual age, the weekly activity or the resting heart rate. If desired, it can provide tips on how to improve this value as an indicator of performance. In turn, the Body Battery provides guidance as to whether the athlete is ready for the next session or still needs some rest.
Smartwatch and health watch combined
The main new feature of the Garmin Venu 2 Plus is that a speaker and microphone are integrated. This opens up additional options. If calls are received on the connected smartphone, they can be accepted directly via the wrist. This was not yet possible with other devices from the manufacturer until the presentation of this fitness watch in January 2022. Compatibility is given as usual with Android and iOS.
There is also access to voice assistants via the microphone. With a command, users wake up Siri, Bixby or Google Assistant, depending on the device. Messages or answers can be dictated or knowledge questions can be asked. Furthermore, smart home devices can be controlled.
The Venu 2 Plus allows contactless payment via the Garmin Pay service based on the built-in NFC chip. Entertainment is also provided: The fitness watch’s memory offers space for up to 650 music tracks. Playlists from services like Spotify, Deezer and Amazon Music are also easily stored on the fitness watch. For more information on that check out the Garmin Shop webpage.
High security features
The Venu 2 Plus also pays attention to the security of its owners. Wearers define contacts in advance that are to be notified in an emergency. In such a scenario, they share their location and send it via the smartphone connected via Bluetooth. An automatic call is also possible.
Finally, there is an important focus on the user’s health. The so-called “Health Snapshot” is new for this. With one command, the Garmin Venu 2 Plus determines important parameters within two minutes. These include pulse rate, heart rate variability (HRV), stress level, as well as respiration rate and oxygen saturation (SpO2). If the stress level is too high, breathing exercises can be used to help relax.
Analysis modes and battery life
A detailed sleep analysis provides information on the quality of the night’s rest and the distribution of the individual phases. The Garmin Venu 2 Plus also collects additional data, such as breathing rate or blood oxygen saturation. As with virtually all of the manufacturer’s new wearables, a menstrual cycle tracker is also available here. In the Garmin app, wearers log various information such as symptoms or their diet.
The battery life of the Garmin Venu 2 Plus is up to nine days. With the GPS module permanently active, it manages 24 hours at a stretch. If GPS tracking and music playback are active, the fitness watch still lasts eight hours. The new quick-charge mode is convenient. Energy for an entire day can be recharged within ten minutes.
Conclusion
The Garmin Venu 2S is a sleek, technically advanced watch with many useful features that keep you thoroughly informed about your fitness. It is a watch that is fun to wear in everyday life and – not least thanks to the music function – also while running. It is a great successor to older models like the Garmin Venu Sq (check out our review).
This is a real selling point: if you like to run with music, you don’t need another playback device like the big, heavy smartphone or a separate MP3 player with the Venu on the run. And you still don’t have to do without the training recording.
