Garmin Reveals Solar Smartwatch With 'Unlimited' Battery Life

Smartwatches are highly useful, but we have so many gadgets to charge every day, and it’s all too easy for these watches to slip through the powered cracks.

Popular smartwatch manufacturer Garmin has unveiled a potential solution to this problem, with the release of the Instinct 2 Solar smartwatch, according to a company press release.

Garmin says the Instinct 2 Solar can be fully powered by the sun, meaning it has potentially unlimited battery life. The company adds that these watches can run continuously with all features enabled, no outlet charging required, with one major caveat. 

The Instinct 2 Solar line needs three hours a day in direct sunlight (50,000 lux) to maintain this continuous battery life, which may be easier said than done for some. Garmin says a normal sunny day should do the trick, but this largely depends on how often you are outside and your local weather conditions. 

As for other specs, these watches are water-rated up to 100 meters and feature military standard shock and thermal resistant components. The line also includes Garmin’s usual mix of health tracking features, including sleep tracking, V02 tracking, and the full-body tracking Body Battery app. 

Instinct 2 Solar watches are also highly customizable, with dozens of bezel and band options creating more than 240 design choices. 

The solar-powered marvel is available to order right now on the official company page. In addition to the Instinct 2 Solar and non-solar editions, Garmin also announced an Instinct 2 Surf edition that tracks watersports like surfing, windsurfing, and kiteboarding, with a tide widget to keep an eye on ocean conditions.