
Backside Line
An extended favourite of ours, the Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic continues to land close to the highest of our lineup of greatest GPS Watches. It resists water, affect, and chilly temperatures, making it perfect for these utilizing it on rugged adventures. The photo voltaic charging functionality by way of the watch face extends battery life considerably, lowering the necessity for frequent recharging when on the path.
Whereas outfitted with solely a single-band GPS, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic nonetheless has spectacular accuracy, even in tight canyons or mountain valleys. We by no means skilled any skipping. Expedition Mode limits satellite tv for pc pings to as soon as an hour for long-duration monitoring. Whereas this watch doesn’t include the choice to obtain topo maps, back-to-start and breadcrumb navigation are greater than satisfactory for locating your approach on the path.
With a tactically rugged exterior, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic prioritizes perform and sturdiness over appears or a modern design. Whereas the .9-inch show dimension is on the smaller finish of the spectrum, the watch could be very giant on account of its cumbersome housing. We discovered that it incessantly caught on jackets and backpack straps and protruded greater than others we examined.
Total, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is a high-performance, backcountry-oriented watch that can monitor all of your actions precisely and keep powered on for days at a time, due to its continuous photo voltaic charging and long-lasting battery.
How We Examined
We put the Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic by way of in depth field-testing in Alaska, utilizing it for path runs, backcountry snowboarding, and on a regular basis smartwatch features to guage its efficiency throughout completely different eventualities. All through a number of months, we utterly drained and recharged the battery a number of instances to check its longevity, wore it for prolonged intervals to evaluate consolation and value, and verified GPS accuracy throughout assorted terrains and circumstances. By incorporating the watch into our day by day actions, we ensured this assessment is thorough and primarily based on direct expertise.
Fast Specs

Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic
Finest Photo voltaic-Charging GPS Watch
CleverHiker Score:
4.7/5.0
Worth:
$400
Weight:
51g
Avg. Battery Life:
28 days smartwatch / 30 hrs GPS
Ease of Use:
4.6
Execs
- Person pleasant
- Distinctive battery life
- Light-weight & snug
- Waterproof to 100 m
- Wonderful companion app
- Photo voltaic prices in vibrant sunllight
- Many sports activities profiles
Cons
- A bit of cumbersome (Intuition Photo voltaic 2S is best for smaller wrists)
- No topo map perform

Accuracy
Whereas the Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is supplied with a single-band GPS, and different high-end watches reviewed are dual-band, it nonetheless has spectacular accuracy throughout a number of environments.
From dense forests, steep mountainsides, and deep valleys, the Intuition 2 photo voltaic maintained connectivity and produced a easy monitor. We examined the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic on a fixed-length loop and located that it often shorted the loop by only some hundredths of a mile.
Probably the most vital discrepancy we seen whereas testing is that the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic commonly shorted us on elevation achieve by as a lot as 5 hundred vertical ft on larger vert days. Whereas the gap remained largely correct, the vertical achieve was essentially the most affected by mountainous terrain. Regardless of this shortcoming, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic gives dependable information for lengthy days on the path.

Battery Life
The Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is a standout possibility for anybody needing a watch to final for days at a time. With a said GPS battery lifetime of 30 hours, it packs greater than sufficient battery life for many adventures.
The most important characteristic of the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic’s battery life is its capacity to cost by way of the watch face when the solar is out. This superb characteristic offers it extra battery life to go the additional mile. Whereas Garmin states that the battery life in GPS mode with photo voltaic charging is 48 hours, in follow, it’s onerous to realize. Inconsistent solar publicity, use quantity, and GPS settings play a big function in battery well being, and we discovered that the photo voltaic charging in GPS principally helped to sluggish the speed of battery drainage by just a few hours at most.
Garmin additionally claims that the watch has a limiteless battery life in smartwatch, expedition, or battery-saver modes. As soon as once more, photo voltaic does prolong the watch’s life, however in follow, photo voltaic charging on the wrist, significantly in cloudy locations or whereas sporting lengthy sleeves, is just too inconsistent to depend on for indefinite charging.
Battery saver mode is nice for extending the battery life without having GPS, and expedition mode reduces monitoring to as soon as per hour. These are nice options for utilizing the look ahead to days at a time whereas on lengthy adventures.

Consolation & Wearability
With a show dimension of .9 inches however an general diameter of 1.77 inches, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic has a big and, at instances, cumbersome outer case. This provides the watch wonderful sturdiness and climate resistance, however could make the watch really feel overly giant for these with slender wrists.
In case you’re in search of a virtually equivalent watch with a smaller dimension by virtually 1 / 4 of an inch, the Intuition 2S could also be a greater match. We discovered that the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic incessantly caught on backpack straps and was onerous to suit underneath the cuffs of gloves and jackets.
Lastly, with a said weight of 53 grams and a measured weight of 51 grams, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is about common in weight for its efficiency.

Options
With many exercise varieties, from {golfing} to fishing, backcountry snowboarding to horseback using, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic covers you regardless of your sport. It’s straightforward so as to add and take away exercise varieties from the watch to pare down the checklist to your prime sports activities.
The Intuition 2 Photo voltaic additionally has a bunch of options, making it nice for backcountry use. Whereas it can not obtain maps, it may well add routes to observe.
It additionally has breadcrumb navigation for back-to-start tracing. We have been additionally impressed with the flexibility so as to add waypoints whereas on the go.
A singular characteristic discovered on no different watch is the flexibility to hint a polygon with the watch to calculate its space. It’s a novel characteristic for discipline science or search and rescue purposes if that’s your area of interest.
Whereas its small display dimension doesn’t make it a terrific smartwatch, we have been shocked that the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic comes outfitted with Garmin Pay, which permits customers to simply pay on the go with out a bank card.

Ease of Use
The Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is the one watch in our lineup that isn’t touchscreen enabled. Whereas this can be a disadvantage to some, we respect this utilitarian strategy with up/down buttons and a display that isn’t by accident touched and scrolled whereas in movement.
The Garmin IQ companion app is without doubt one of the greatest and oldest smartwatch apps available on the market. It gives straightforward evaluation of metrics, exercise planning, and a social media part. Third-party apps join rapidly and simply, and actions add seamlessly by way of Bluetooth.
The .9-inch show dimension is without doubt one of the smallest in our lineup, which makes attempting to learn charts, smartwatch notifications, and messages difficult. Moreover, the monochrome show improves battery life and visibility in vibrant circumstances however lacks the vibrancy of different smartwatches. This makes the watch much less fitted to a day by day smartwatch, however the excellent match for out of doors fanatics who want solidly constructed fundamentals with out the additional fluff.

Ought to You Purchase the Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic GPS Watch?
The Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is a good selection for out of doors adventurers, endurance athletes, and anybody who prioritizes sturdiness and battery life in a GPS watch.
Because of photo voltaic charging, it may well final for days and even weeks at a time, making it excellent for prolonged backcountry journeys. It’s extremely correct and has options like exercise varieties, route navigation, waypoints, and breadcrumb monitoring.
Whereas it can not load maps on to the watch, it nonetheless gives sufficient efficiency for devoted backcountry use. Whereas the comparatively small show dimension, lack of touchscreen, and elementary smartwatch efficiency make it not pretty much as good a match for a day by day smartwatch, the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is ideal for anybody in search of a efficiency watch in a no-frills platform meant to go the gap.

What Different Watches Ought to You Think about?
The Garmin Intuition 2 Photo voltaic GPS watch isn’t the one backcountry-worthy possibility available on the market. We examined and reviewed the most effective of the most effective, and they’re all in our full GPS watch gear information.
Coros Apex 2 Professional Evaluate: In case you’re in search of one other watch with spectacular battery life, the Apex 2 Professional is certain to satisfy the calls for of monitoring for a number of days at a time.
Garmin Forerunner 165 Evaluate: At a extra reasonably priced value, the Forerunner 165 delivers a lighter platform with a bigger show dimension for improved show capabilities for various actions.
Garmin Vivoactive 5 Evaluate: If the Intuition 2 Photo voltaic is just too giant of a look ahead to you, the Vivoactive is the slimmest and lightest in our lineup, excellent for smaller-sized wrists.
