Why You Can Trust CNET

Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Reviews ethics statement

Tech
Mobile

Garmin's Vívoactive 3 is a more well-rounded GPS smartwatch

The third generation of Garmin's Vívoactive moves to a circular design and has more robust smartwatch capabilities, including Garmin Pay.

David Carnoy Executive Editor / Reviews

Executive Editor David Carnoy has been a leading member of CNET's Reviews team since 2000. He covers the gamut of gadgets and is a notable reviewer of mobile accessories and portable audio products, including headphones and speakers. He's also an e-reader and e-publishing expert as well as the author of the novels Knife Music, The Big Exit and Lucidity. All the titles are available as Kindle, iBooks, Nook e-books and audiobooks.

Expertise Mobile accessories and portable audio, including headphones, earbuds and speakers Credentials

Maggie Award for Best Regularly Featured Web Column/Consumer

See full bio

David Carnoy

Aug. 31, 2017 4:00 a.m. PT

2 min read

vivoactive-3-family — Garmin's new smartwatch comes in three color options.
Garmin

The first thing you'll notice about Garmin's new Vívoactive 3 GPS smartwatch is that it's round not square or rectangular like previous Vívoactive models. It's also packed with features, including a heart-rate monitor, 15 built-in indoor and outdoor sports apps and the company's new contactless-payment solution Garmin Pay. Additional free apps, widgets and watch faces can be downloaded via Garmin's Connect IQ store.

The Vívoactive 3 is available now in three color options: Black/stainless, white/stainless ($300) and black/slate for ($330). There's no word yet on UK and Australian pricing, but we'll add it as soon as we get it.

Shop for Garmin Vivoactive 3 (black with stainless hardware)

Garmin is marketing Vívoactive 3 as the "Smartwatch that lets you pay and play." (See YouTube video below). Enabled by FitPay, Garmin Pay works like other contactless payment solutions from Apple, Samsung and others, supporting Visa and Mastercard debit and credit cards from major issuing banks. (Go here for a complete list of supporting issuing banks).

The Vívoactive 3 is fully waterproof and features Garmin's high-resolution Chroma touchscreen display, with a new Side Swipe control that the company says, "makes for quick scrolling and swift navigation of menus, widgets and stats." Battery life is rated at up to 7 days in smartwatch mode and 13 hours in GPS mode.

We'll have a full review of the Vívoactive 3 as soon as soon as we get a review sample. In the meantime, here's a look at its key specs and features:

High-resolution Chroma touchscreen display
Up to 7 days of battery life (13 hours in GPS mode)
Can be worn while swimming or showering (waterproof)
15 built-in sports apps including new profiles for cardio, yoga, elliptical, stair stepper and strength training
24/7 heart-rate monitoring
With Garmin Pay, the Vívoactive 3 smartwatch lets you make purchases on the go, no phone or wallet required
High-end fitness monitoring tools such as VO2 Max and Fitness Age and all-day stress tracking
Thousands of watch faces, widgets, data fields and apps available to download for free from the Garmin Connect IQ store
Includes LiveTrack5, a feature that alerts designated family members and friends where you are during your workouts in real time using the built-in GPS
Automatically syncs with the Garmin Connect mobile app throughout the day to save stats
You can control music on your phone from the Vívoactive 3, send an alert to locate a misplaced smartphone and remote control a Garmin VIRB camera (sold separately)
Available in black/stainless, white/stainless ($300) and black/slate for ($330)