Featured in this comparison chart are two outstanding smartwatches; the Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Apple Watch Series 5. Each of these two comes in a stylish and elegant design, well equipped to track your active life, and loaded with lots of interesting features such as onboard music storage, non-contactless payment, and notifications management. Although, the Watch 5 is a more comprehensive smartwatch with more features but has a far shorter battery life compared to the Vivoactive 4. Compare the differences between these two to find out which is a better choice for you.
The Vivoactive 4 comes in two sizes; Vivoactive 4S and 4, while the Watch 5 also comes in two sizes; 40mm and 44m. Both sizes of the Watch 5 are available in cellular and GPS models. The Cellular unit comes with an eSIM that enables cellular connectivity and thus makes it a standalone smartwatch that can make and receive calls without a phone. The GPS unit can also make and receive calls but requires your phone nearby to do this.
Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Apple Watch Series 5: Specifications Compared
| Product Info |
 Garmin Vivoactive 4 Specifications, Features and Price |
 Apple Watch Series 5 (44mm) (GPS) Specifications, Features and Price |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $209.95 | - |
| ABOUT DEVICE | ABOUT DEVICE | ABOUT DEVICE |
| Device name | Garmin Vivoactive 4 | (Discontinued), (GPS), Apple Watch Series 5 |
| Device type | Fitness/Sport smartwatch | Fitness/Sport smartwatch |
| Gender | Unisex | Unisex |
| Release date | September, 2019 | September, 2019 |
| Predecessor | Garmin Vivoactive 3 | Apple Watch Series 4 |
| Successor | — | Apple Watch Series 6 |
| Versions | Captain Marvel, First Avengers, Vivoactive 4, Vivoactive 4S | Apple Watch Hermès, Apple Watch Nike+ |
| BODY | BODY | BODY |
| Dimension | 45.1 x 45.1 x 12.8 mm | 44 x 38 x 10.7 mm |
| Weight | 50.5 grams | 36.1g (GPS) |
| Shape | Circular | Rectangular |
| Case material | Fiber-reinforced polymer | Aluminum |
| Strap material | Silicone | Elastomer |
| Bezel material | Stainless steel | Bezeless, Sapphire glass |
| Strap size | 22 mm | 24mm |
| Interchangeable strap | 22 mm, Yes | 24mm, Yes |
| Screen protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Sapphire glass |
| Water resistance | Yes, 5ATM | Yes, 5ATM |
| Durability test | — | — |
| Swim-proof | Yes, recommended | Yes |
| Color | Black, Silver | Gold, Gray, Silver |
| DISPLAY | DISPLAY | DISPLAY |
| Display size | 1.3 inches | 1.78 inch |
| Display type | LCD, Memory-in-pixel (MIP), transflective | 1000nit, OLED |
| Display resolution | 260 x 260 px | 448 x 368 pixels |
| Pixel density | — | — |
| Always on | Yes | Yes |
| Custom watch face | Yes | Yes |
| Input type | 2 Physical buttons, Touchscreen | 1 Physical button, Digital crown, Touchscreen |
| CONNECTIVITY | CONNECTIVITY | CONNECTIVITY |
| Bluetooth | ANT+, Bluetooth v4.0 | Bluetooth v5.0 |
| Bluetooth calling | No | Yes |
| GPS | Galileo, GLONASS, GPS | GLONASS, GPS |
| NFC | Yes | Yes |
| Wi-Fi | Yes, WLAN 2.4GHz | Yes, WLAN 2.4GHz |
| MEMORY | MEMORY | MEMORY |
| RAM | — | 0.768GB |
| ROM | 4GB | 32GB |
| Memory card slot | No | No |
| CELLULAR CONNECTIVITY | CELLULAR CONNECTIVITY | CELLULAR CONNECTIVITY |
| Technology | None | None |
| SIM type | None | — |
| Band | — | — |
| NOTIFICATIONS | NOTIFICATIONS | NOTIFICATIONS |
| SMS alert | Yes | Yes |
| Calls alert | Yes | Yes |
| Email alert | Yes | Yes |
| Event reminder | Yes | Yes |
| Third-party apps alert | Yes | Yes |
| Reply to Notifications | - | - |
| MEDIA | MEDIA | MEDIA |
| Audio | mp3/mp4 | mp3/mp4 |
| Bluetooth music | Yes | Yes |
| Loudspeaker | No | Yes |
| Microphone | No | Yes |
| Camera | No | No |
| Radio | No | No |
| SENSORS | SENSORS | SENSORS |
| Accelerometer | Yes | Yes |
| Altimeter | Yes | Yes |
| Ambient light | Yes | Yes |
| Barometer | Yes | Yes |
| Compass | Yes | Yes |
| ECG | No | Yes |
| Gyroscope | Yes | Yes |
| HRM | Yes | Yes |
| Pulse oximeter (SpO2) | Yes | No |
| Temperature | Yes | App, No |
| Other sensors | — | — |
| ACTIVITY TRACKING | ACTIVITY TRACKING | ACTIVITY TRACKING |
| Blood oxygen | Yes | No |
| Blood Pressure | No | No |
| Calories | Yes | Yes |
| Distance | Yes | Yes |
| ECG tracking | No | Yes |
| Heart rate monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Sleep tracking | Yes | (Third-party app), Yes |
| Steps | Yes | Yes |
| Floors climbed | Yes | Yes |
| Stress | Yes | Yes |
| Fall detection | Yes | Yes |
| Menstrual cycle | Yes | Yes |
| VO2 Max | Yes | Yes |
| Swim-tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Underwater heart rate tracking | Yes | No |
| On-screen workout | Yes | No |
| Sport modes | 20 | Yes |
| BATTERY | BATTERY | BATTERY |
| Battery type | non-removable Lithium-polymer | Non-removable Li-ion battery |
| Battery capacity | — | — |
| Battery life | GPS with music: up to 6hrs, Smartwatch mode: up to 8 days | Regular: up to 18hrs |
| Charging type | Charging dock | Charging dock |
| Charging time | 1-2 hours | 1-2 hours |
| Solar charging | No | No |
| PLATFORM | PLATFORM | PLATFORM |
| Chipset | — | Apple S5 chip (64bits) |
| CPU | — | Dual core |
| GPU | — | — |
| Operating system | Proprietary OS | WatchOS 6 |
| MISC | MISC | MISC |
| Companion app | Garmin Connect | Apple Watch App |
| Compatibility | Android 5.0+, iOS 11.0+ | iOS 12.0+ |
| Payment system | Garmin Pay | Apple Pay |
| Voice command | No | Yes, Siri |
| Find my phone | Yes | Yes |
| Box content | Charger, Garmin Vivoactive 4, Manual, Straps | Apple Watch Series 5, Charger, Manual, Straps |
The Differences
Both watches are sturdily built with durable and lightweight materials. The Vivoactive 4 has a case made of fiber-reinforced polymer, while the Watch 5 has an aluminum case. These are durable and lightweight materials that make each of these two very comfortable to wear. Although, the Watch 5 is more compact and slimmer than Vivoactive 4.
The Watch 5 also has a more colorful display than Vivoactive 4. It has an OLED display compared to the transflective display of Vivoactive 4. The display size of the Watch 5 is also slightly bigger than that of the Vivoactive 4.
In terms of activity tracking, both watches are well equipped to track your daily activities like your steps, calories, sleep, stress and heart rate. Both watches also feature an inbuilt GPS as well as feature incidental fall detection.
However, while the Watch 5 can measure ECG, it isn’t possible with Vivoactive 4. Meanwhile, Vivoactive 4 features 24/7 blood oxygen measurement which isn’t possible with Watch 5.
The Watch 5 comes with a massive 32GB storage which is far higher than the 4GB of Vivoactive 4. This will allow you to store more of your favorite tracks onboard the watch. The Watch 5 also has a microphone and speaker than enables Bluetooth calls for the GPS model and independent calling for the Cellular model. The Vivoactive 4 lacks both a mic and speaker.
The Vivoactive 4 wins greatly against the Watch 5 as far as battery life is concerned. You can get up to 8 days of battery life with Vivoactive 4 compared to about 18hrs with Watch 5.
Which is Better?
Each of these two is sturdy, stylish, lightweight, well equipped, and loaded with lots of activity-tracking features that can help you improve your fitness goals.
However, the Apple Watch 5 with a bigger display than the Vivoactive 4 allows you to see more at a glance, it’s also slimmer which makes it sleeker and more stylish. Moreover, the Watch 5 has a more colorful display, has higher onboard music storage, and is equipped with a microphone and loudspeaker which enables Bluetooth calling and voice assistant.
On the other hand, the Vivoactive 4 has a longer battery life which makes it a better smartwatch for tracking extreme workout activities. It’s also cheaper and compatible with both android and iOS devices unlike Watch 5 which is only compatible with iOS devices.
