Dropped in the middle of a rainforest or on a desert island, an extreme adventurer could do worse than relying on a Garmin tactix smartwatch.
With its battery life of up to 48 days in solar mode, it will live longer than a starving survivalist, and will offer the best chance of escape or rescue thanks to its myriad field-ready features.
Newly upgraded tactix 8 models come in a choice of 47mm or 51mm versions, both built to US military standards for thermal, shock and water resistance that will keep the smartwatches working during a dive of up to 40 metres.
“Tactix 8’s premium design and innovative features make it the ultimate tactical GPS smartwatch on land, air or sea,” says Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of global consumer sales.
A new feature called rucking allows users to tell the smartwatch the weight of their backpack, and it then adjusts its health monitoring calculations to factor-in the additional exertion.
It also has improved features for divers, who can now rely on the tactix for depths of up to 40 metres.
GPS connectivity works with advanced mapping and navigation functions including on-wrist access to TopoActive maps for a better understanding of terrain.
It will even tell you the best route out of a ravine or suggest the best path for your next dog walk.
Seasoned hunters will be pleased to see tactix 8 units come preloaded with Applied Ballistics Ultralight solver and are compatible with the new AB Quantum app. Like a range-finder for a golfer, the tech will help a rifleman find its target.
Bristling with health-monitoring sensors that work with on-board specialist apps, maps and functions, the watches are personal trainers on the wrist designed to improve performance, endurance and resistance to injury with targeted strength training plans, real-time stamina tracking, sport-specific workouts and a full range of built-in sports apps.
Somewhat more niche, the tactix 8 also has a Direct-To-Navigation feature that helps navigate a path for a pilot to every nearby airport. Additionally, it tracks and displays aviation weather, including NEXRAD radar, METARs and TAFs to see winds, visibility, barometric pressure and more directly on their smartwatch.
Tactix 8 smartwatches go on sale on February 21 priced at $1,290.