Forerunner 965 and Instinct 2X Solar watches are new variants of smartwatches. Forerunner 965 was released in March 2023 while the Instinct 2X Solar was released in April 2023.
Which of these two smartwatches should you buy? We look at both watches and the capabilities below.
Main differences
- Instinct 2X Solar is a solar watch that uses Power Glass to recharge the battery using sunlight. Forerunner 965 is not a solar watch.
- Forerunner 965 has an AMOLED display while the Instinct 2x Solar has a MIP or memory in pixel screen.
- Instinct 2X Solar has a water resistance of 100 meters and Forerunner 965 has a water resistance of 50 meters.
- Forerunner 965 has SatIQ technology for optimized GPS and battery performance.
- Forerunner 965 has full music compatibility while Instinct 2X Solar has limited music functionality.
- Instinct 2X Solar has limited device storage. You cannot add user content on the device. Forerunner 965 has 32 GB device storage to add music, topo, and trail maps.
- Instinct 2X Solar has much better battery life than Forerunner 965.
- Instinct 2X Solar does not have Wi-Fi compatibility. It does support ANT+ and Bluetooth wireless connectivity.
- Instinct 2X Solar is broader and bigger than the Forerunner 965.
- Forerunner 965 is costlier than Instinct 2X Solar by $150.
We look at these differences in detail below.
Display
Instinct 2X Solar cannot be called out for its display specifications and performance. It is designed as a rugged and robust smartwatch and focuses on the core performance and battery life of the watch.
Forerunner 965 is a modern smartwatch for runners. It has a vibrant display and a much stronger display configuration.
- Forerunner 965 has an AMOLED display.
- Due to the AMOLED display, the display resolution of Forerunner 965 is much higher than Instinct 2X Solar.
- Forerunner 965 also supports the Always-on-display feature.
Apart from these display features, there are other differences in the display specifications of both watches.
All the display specifications of Forerunner 965 and Instinct 2X Solar are displayed hereunder.
Display specifications | Forerunner 965 | Instinct 2X Solar |
---|---|---|
Display lens | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 DX | Power Glass |
Display type | AMOLED | MIP (Memory in Pixel) |
Display resolution | 454 x 454 pixels | 176 x 176 pixels |
Pixel density | 358 ppi | 283 ppi |
Display size | 1.4″ or 36 mm | Custom, two window design of 1.1″ x 1.1″ or 27 x 27 mm |
Color display | Yes | No |
Touchscreen | Yes | No |
Ambient light sensor | Yes | No |
LED flashlight | No | Yes |
Physical specifications
Instinct 2X Solar is a rugged smartwatch. The hardware specifications of Instinct 2X Solar exhibit the rugged and robust nature of the watch.
We look at the physical specifications of the Forerunner 965 smartwatch and the Instinct 2X Solar watch in a side by side comparison below.
Specifications | Forerunner 965 | Instinct 2X Solar |
---|---|---|
Watch size | 47.2 x 47.2 x 13.2 mm | 50 x 50 x 14.5 mm |
Thickness | 13.2 mm | 14.5 mm |
Watch weight | 53 g | 67 g |
Watch body | Fiber-enforced polymer | Fiber-enforced polymer |
Bezel | Fiber-enforced polymer | Titanium |
Band material | Silicone | Silicone |
Band size | 22 mm | 26 mm |
Recommended wrist circumference | 135-205 mm | 145-228 mm |
Water rating | 5 ATM (50 meters) | 10 ATM (100 meters) |
Swimming profile | Pool Swimming, Open Water Swimming, Swimming/Running | Pool Swimming, Open Water Swimming |
Wireless Connectivity | ANT+, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi | ANT+, Bluetooth |
NFC or Contactless payments | Garmin Pay | Garmin Pay |
Device storage | 32 GB | 64 MB |
GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo |
Multi-band GPS | Yes | Yes |
Garmin Elevate Heart Sensor | Yes | Yes |
Gyroscope | Yes | Yes |
Thermometer | Yes | Yes |
Accelerometer | Yes | Yes |
Barometric Altimeter | Yes | Yes |
Compass | Yes | Yes |
Pulse Ox (SpO2) Saturation Sensor | Yes | Yes |
iOS Compatible | Yes | Yes |
Android Compatible | Yes | Yes |
GPS
Forerunner 965 and Instinct 2X Solar has multi-frequency positioning sensor. So, both watches support multi-band GPS capability.
Multi-band GPS improves GPS reliability. At any given point in time, you can get GPS signals from multiple satellites. The feature is very useful when the GPS signal is of a degraded quality.
However, Forerunner 965 scores over the Instinct 2X Solar as it has an integrated SatIQ technology sensor. SatIQ is an intelligent smartwatch technology.
Multi-band GPS consumes a lot of battery. To optimize the battery performance, SatIQ controls the switch from simple GPS to multi-band GPS modes automatically.
When the GPS signals are weak, SatIQ turns on the multi-band GPS. And, when the GPS signals are of poor quality, SatIQ will turn off the multi-band GPS.
Music
In terms of music functionality, Instinct 2X Solar has a limited scope. The device storage of Instinct 2X Solar is quite low and music storage is not available. So, you cannot store music files on the Instinct 2X Solar watch.
But, you can control smartphone music from your Instinct 2X Solar smartwatch.
For the Forerunner 965, complete music functionality has been made available. So, you can get the following music features on a Forerunner 965:
- Control smartphone music
- Store music on the watch
- Play music from the watch
Solar functionality
Instinct 2X Solar is a solar watch that can use solar charging to supplement the primary method of charging.
For solar charging to be effective, you need to expose your watch to bright sunshine with a luminosity of 50000 lux or more every day. For optimum battery charging, Garmin recommends 3 hours of solar exposure every day.
Solar charging of the Instinct 2X Solar is pretty useful:
- if you spend a considerable part of your day under the sun
- you get decent sunlight all through the day
Battery
Forerunner 965 has pretty decent battery life. However, Instinct 2X Solar is designed for basic functionality and preserves battery due to the basic display configuration.
Instinct 2X Solar has a long battery life that gets reinforced through solar charging. The battery backups provided by Forerunner 965 and Instinct 2X Solar are mentioned below in a side-by-side comparison.
Watch mode | Forerunner 965 backup | Instinct 2X Solar backup |
---|---|---|
Smartwatch mode | Up to 23 days | Up to 40 days, unlimited with solar charging |
GPS-only mode without music | Up to 31 hours | Up to 60 hours, 145 hours with solar |
All Systems GNSS Mode without Music | Up to 24 hours | 40 hours; 65 hours with solar |
All-Systems GNSS mode + Multi-Band | Up to 19 hours | 27 hours; 36 hours with solar |
All Systems GNSS with Music | Up to 10 hours | – |
All-Systems GNSS mode + Multi-Band with music | Up to 8.5 hours | – |
SatIQ AutoSelect GNSS Mode without Music | Up to 22 hours | SatIQ not available |
SatIQ (AutoSelect) GNSS Mode with Music | Up to 9.5 hours | SatIQ not available |
Miscellaneous features
Aside from the main feature differences discussed above, there are quite a few miscellaneous differences that are mentioned hereunder.
- Forerunner 965 offers safety features for watch owners. These include Spectator messaging, Group LiveTrack, Live Event sharing on Android devices, and Incident detection alerts. Instinct 2X Solar does not have any of these safety features.
- Forerunner 965 has additional running profiles for virtual running and ultra running.
- Forerunner 965 comes preloaded with 43000 Golf course data.
- Instinct 2X Solar has an additional profile for Triathlon.
- Forerunner 965 offers online workout animations and muscle maps. Instinct 2X Solar lacks these features.
Cost
Instinct 2X Solar comes at a list price of $449.99 and Forerunner 965 has a list price of $599.99.
Final verdict
Instinct 2X Solar is a rugged, solid watch that has been designed to handle strong activities with ease. For the multiple advancements on the Forerunner 965, our money goes to the Forerunner 965. In specific, the reasons that make me pick the Forerunner 965 are:
- AMOLED display
- Device storage of 32 GB
- Full music functionality
- Safety features, especially the spectator messaging feature
- Decent battery life.
Suggested reading
You may like to read other smartwatch comparison studies mentioned below.
- Garmin Instinct 2X Solar vs Instinct 2
- Garmin Forerunner 965 vs Forerunner 945 LTE
- Garmin Forerunner 965 vs Epix 2
- Garmin Forerunner 265 vs Epix 2
- Garmin Forerunner 265 vs Vivoactive 4
- Garmin Forerunner 965 vs Fenix 7X Sapphire Solar
- Garmin Forerunner 965 vs Fenix 7 Solar
- Garmin Forerunner 965 vs Venu 2 Plus
- Garmin Forerunner 955 vs Venu 2 Plus
- Garmin Forerunner 265 vs Venu 2 Plus
- Garmin Forerunner 265 vs Venu 2