Apple Watch Ultra VS Garmin Descent MK2i! Best Smartwatch?!

In this comparison, I pit Apple’s new Apple Watch Ultra against the Garmin Descent MK2i. Both are highly capable smart watches but have the ability act as five watches as well. Which one is best?
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[@anthonycraig274]

There is no depends, even as a apple fan boy, there is no competition especially when diving. Garmin wins by a land slide.

[@talgren]

I'm not sure I'm ready to give up my dive computer for a smartwatch.

[@timzlow]

Yes for 40m depth limit. But when u dive in Indonesia Bali, the Mola Mola sometimes hang around below 40m. If u want to see them, u will have to go slightly below 40m just for a few minutes. And of course, the Sofia Wreck at Pulau Weh.

[@pabloharo8609]

Great vídeo! I love the Garmin watch!! Btw, which watch face are you using? I couldn’t find it in the Garmin Connect IQ store!! Thanks in advance to anyone that can help

[@stokas4446]

All diving computers for spearfishing and freediving as have three main functions which this type of divers is using dive time surf time and deep on Apple Watch ultra is two apps for diving Depth and Oceanic+ both don't have surf function. is it difficult to do like all normal diving computers or because it's apple its not possible ?

[@ArbyCreations]

I have a Fenix and I love the battery life on it, I just with it had better smart watch functions. I was wanting a dive computer for timing spearfishing drops so the ultra might be just the thing as it would double as a smart watch the rest of the time.

[@Helloworldwrjfjrjrj]

Sadly apple has nothing to compare to garmin connect app. I cannot find an app so helpful. Any suggestions.

[@SmartByTravel]

It's built on the Fenix 6 is the issue. Less battery sensors et cetera. I was about to buy this but ended up switching to the Fenix 7 and seperate dive computer.

[@silv3rArrow]

I was checking some used ads and people are nuts asking almost full price when the Descent 3 now exists and like you said, this is based on the 5 year old Fenix 6

[@jimpowers5932]

The Garmin does have a touch screen in dive Move plus you can also shake your wrist and it will change screens in Dive mode

[@MelvinGundlach]

It does not have a touch screen at all 🤔

[@jimpowers5932]

@@MelvinGundlach yes it does I own one. Touch screen is only in Dive Mode

[@jcre2000]

All vs videos end up with IT’S UP TO YOU or IT DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU WANT

[@fdfurlan]

He was just giving the information, not deciding for you. He cannot decide which one is the best, it depends on the use case. Don’t let the others choose for you.

[@divesoflo]

Garmin MK2i is the more superior watch for Diving and a better overall outdoor adventure watch. Apple Watch ultra is not a dive watch, it’s a glorified depth gauge without the oceanic+ paywall. A better comparison would have been the mk2 or the mk2s. The MK2i is in a different class altogether being air integrated. There are a lot of other features that you don’t know about the descent line that make it better. You should try the MK2i and t1 before you have to send them back. The MK2i is an amazing dive watch, I have had 9 other dive computers so I speak from experience.

[@scubadaddy3217]

I saw one review that stated the ping from the T1 for the MK2i drove him nuts during the dive. This particular vlogger tends to be a little hyperbolic so I was wondering if he is overstating the issue? I'm looking to purchase a MK2i, but if that sonar ping is an issue that might be a deal breaker.

[@scubasteve1555]

Except the annoying ping, and when it fails, which mine did 3 different times, Garmin ended up giving me a refund.

[@Underseapete]

@@scubasteve1555 really it broke 3 times?!? Was about to buy

[@scubasteve1555]

@@Underseapete Yes, the watch was fine, it was the transmitter. But personally the Mk2i isn't really a "smart watch" it's a really expensive fitness tracker with dive functionality.

[@nathanrigger15]

​@@scubasteve1555 Fitness trackers generally do everything a smart watch needs to do

[@justyoutube9757]

40 m may be the rec dive limit but when you're diving and pushing the watch around, it gets to higher pressures

[@toovaughnforyou8276]

10:07 he says 10 ft and that seemed odd to me. checked the website and it said 10m 😅

[@tonybrooks9224]

After reading all the comments the Garmin is top choice. Preference is still key.....

[@lagoso8155]

I cant see anything on the garmin the brightness is too low

[@johnenlinda1]

Thanks. Apple watch is for recreational divers like i'm now. The Garmin is for the diver i used to be. but in that time i only haved a Roles ;-) and some US navy Tabels I survived

[@RadDadisRad]

The Garmin is a better outdoors watch. The Ultra is better at being a wearable tech that does some outdoors stuff with a longer life batter vs the regular Apple Watch.

[@justremember9697]

I'd ignore the battery life. It's still pretty crap.

[@amfromch]

switched from Apple Watches to Gamin Epix Gen2 and MK2i for Diving. Apple Watch is a good Smart Watch, but not usable for sporting or diving Activitys!

[@bj133]

Talk about comparing $1000 apples to $2000 oranges. Might as well compare a Fiat Panda to the Mercedes EQS.

[@arturogomez3387]

I have an Apple Watch Ultra, which I’ve used for scuba diving. It is an excellent option for beginners, or maybe intermediate divers. But if you need more advanced features, Garmin wins all the way. Watch ultra for me, is a fancy smartwatch, and eventually it may pair to Garmin. But not now.

[@remcovanhal6336]

Between these 2 Garmin all the way, especially if you are a serious diver.

[@CharliedeCamera]

Garmin all the way if you are a serious sporter too. Apple is a lifestyle watch.

[@Darudas0420]

Garmin all the way if you are a serious human beeing. Apple is just a poser watch.

[@MrKlyde44]

Tech diver, yes. Rec diver, AWU takes it

[@brodymeskers]

@@MrKlyde44 I used both while diving and this is the most accurate comment. AWU is great for rec diving

[@thomasschneider7933]

Thank you for that brief comparison, I will go for the Garmin.

[@buxtonspice1532]

the Garmin is primarily a dive computer, the Apple Watch is a glorified dive gauge. Maybe compare it to a Fenix 7.

[@GeorgeChildress]

I have both and when it comes to customer service, Garmin is impossible to communicate with, which counts for a lot.

[@alexg.994]

Hi Rusty, I had excellent experience with the customer service of Garmin. They were very helpful and supported me well.

[@LashanR]

You gotta call them. Over chat they aren't great but when you get a person they do their best.

[@divesoflo]

I have a literally called Garmin ones for an issue because my watch was Bricked. I went through three different troubleshooting methods with the representative and he was not able to fix the problem either. He ended up sending me a brand new MK2i in the mail and I had to send the bricked one back. I have the opposite opinion about their customer service

[@josearturogomezsanchez7198]

I have an Apple Watch Ultra since las December, and it has been a nightmare since week one. Apple switched it for a new one, and I am so sorry not to have bought de MK2i Oceanic+ never downloaded my logbook to my iPhone, and moreover, it deleted all my logs. And the developer just won't answer.

[@pete6490]

One is a dive watch and outdoors watch with smart watch functionality. Apple watch is a smart watch with limited diving functionality. If you do alot of diving, including tech diving, get the Garmin. If you dive a bit and within recreational limits but really want a smart watch that fully integrates with your phone, get the apple. I got the Garmin and couldn't go back to having to charge my smart watch every day or 2. Never had the Garmin last less than a week unless you are using alot of the GPS map functionality, even then it's well over a day of use if you leave it on constantly. In regular use with some diving I get 10 days no problem.

[@larlario289]

no contest there!

[@sondroxyt]

it says that the apple watch ultra can go down to 100m on their website

[@MelvinGundlach]

It's water resistant up to 100 m, but the diving support ends at 40 m. Probably to have some safety margin. (Same for the Ultra 2)

[@mciepi]

Two words: "air integrated" ... apple lose in this field

[@scubasteve1555]

My Garmin failed 3 times and has an super annoying audible ping.

[@kaiserfish1851]

...and what about noise of the so fantastic "air-integrated"?

[@ivangeorgiev4328]

Try to use touch screen controls with neoprene gloves while diving LOL

[@jimpowers5932]

The Garmin touch screen while in Dive mode works flawlessly

[@scubasteve1555]

@@jimpowers5932 You mean the non-existent touch screen….

[@seanspark]

IMO It's like a sports watch vs smart watch. I would pick the Apple watch, having owned Fenix 6 previously, but I can see why active people prefer Garmin's.

[@fp8007]

Those two are no match 4 the epix 2 😎🙂

[@BroAnarchy]

Garmin. All the way. Battery life important to you? My Garmin watch usually lasts a little over a week on a single charge! When is apple gunna pull that off??

[@30mattdavies]

They can pull off a pin point accurate heart rate tracker, sleep tracking etc…. Look at the quantified scientist- the garmin is junk for metrics

[@Mike-gz4xn]

if you put the ultra in the same settings as a Garmin, (gps off) no phone it will last a week.

[@MrKlyde44]

Yeah if Apple had a shitty screen like the garmin, it could prob last a month. The battery tech in garmin is nothing. The Apple Watch lasts 2.5 days with a 2000 nit display running cellular and actually does smartwatch stuff

[@BroAnarchy]

@@MrKlyde44 wow... two days. Thats almost ....a ⅓rd .... of a week. Very .....impressive.

[@MrKlyde44]

@@BroAnarchy did you not read my whole response? Or you can only read a number

[@willharrah9381]

Clip charger kinda ugly. 😮

[@ricks200192117]

I have both, the apple ultra and MK2i, for ease of use the Apple is better. For a serious diver, you can't beat the MK2i. You have to learn how to use the MK2I, it takes a while, I'm still learning. The Ultra, like most Apple products, is idiot proof, you could train a chimp to use it. Aesthetically the MK2i crushes Apple, all Apple watches are ugly, the Ultra is no exception. Then there is battery life, two days for Apple Ultra, 15-18 days for the MK2i,. I'm a serious diver.

[@jairokling1335]

With constant use, I've never had my apple watch ultra last me less than 2 1/2 days. Yes, the Garmin would last me about 6 days with regular use but let's be frank if the Garmin did half of the things the apple watch ultra did it wouldn't last any longer. I don't think the Garmin has a better battery it just has a more limited display, and fewer functions overall. I can get the apple watch ultra with third-party apps to do similar functions to Garmin. But I can't upgrade my Garmin to make phone calls, send texts, shazam a song...

[@rustyshacklefort3715]

You can't get third party apps to do what the garmin does at least ones any competent diver would trust their life to. I don't mind that I have to use my phone for texts or calls and I don't shazam songs so I think the Garmin is much better. Although, I'm also a diver so if you arent a diver obviously the Apple is superior. I feel like this is a dumb comparison because garmin makes other watches that would be better competitively than these two.

[@MrKlyde44]

Nope. It’s a perfect rec dive computer. I do 3-4 dives a week with my ultra. And It works perfectly. I navigate with the on board compass(to test out and it worked perfectly). I’ve dove 5x in a day and still had over 20% left (43° water). I also dive down to 120ft no problems. GPS is great for planning and marking significant locations. UI is great and clean and screen is BRIGHT when it needs to be. Also one of the most durable dive watches you can get with titanium housing and sapphire glass. Also when on the surface of the water you can do anything your phone can, I can make calls in an emergency, or just a quick chat with my gf. I’ve also even tried watching a KZbin video while far out on the water with its speakers. AI will come in future versions, but I prefer a SPG and most divers carry a spg regardless of AI.

[@zafransanjaya7774]

@@MrKlyde44 i think u dive in swimming pool

[@divesoflo]

@@MrKlyde44 the Garmin might not be able to take calls, but I’m also not having to pay for a 3rd party dive app to do what the Garmin does right out of the box. Also the ultra does not have the ability for air integration, might be smart above water, but below it’s just another advanced depth gauge.

[@shaf3006]

​@@divesofloGarmin is for old school dude

[@jefferyneu3915]

The Apple Watch Ultra wins for me. As a sport diver, it works deeper than I am certified to go and has incredible functions for out of water.

[@robkuijer]

A bit straight forward if I mag say so. When you go below 40 meters (I know, you should't) it stops logging, and that's we're it gets dangerous: it should keep logging in order to help you to get to the surface in a safe way: if neccesary with a deco-stop (certified or not). Safety requiers that the device should help you to come up safe, and nòt give up on a diver that makes a mistake!

[@zafransanjaya7774]

Because u dont have a Garmin 😅

[@nathanrigger15]

​@@robkuijerbecause it's not a dive computer it's a toy

[@geraldpolymath]

I just got my first Garmin last week. I just sent it back today. Way too high of a learning curve. My Apple watch ultra way easier to use

[@brada1997]

No offense, but that's what Apple people say about Android, as well

[@janmasek699]

Yes, AW ultra does not measure any usefull sports metrics, so it is really easy to use it 😀

[@alexg.994]

Hi there, are you using the watch for diving? If yes, did you use the Ultra in very bright environment and is it good readable? Just interested to know.

[@bradleydallman8519]

@@alexg.994 I have been using a mk2i for diving for about a year and picked up an ultra to try. Yes, it was readable in high Hawaiian sunlight but ultimately the subscription for any useful information made me return it. It works great for the diver that dives a few times a year. For somebody like myself recording over 100 dives a year, the awu was not worth it over designated dive watches.

[@MrKlyde44]

@@bradleydallman8519funny you say that because with the price difference, it would take 15.62 years of subscription to add up to the difference in cost of AWU vs Garmin.

[@e.a9783]

Only 40 meters for a dive watch is ridiculous

[@AppleInsider]

Totally disagree. An advanced open water certification -- not even your basic open water certification -- only certifies you to go 100 feet, or 30 meters. This is beyond the maximum any recreational diver can go. The only people going further are professionals that are probably using more advanced equipment than an Apple Watch.

[@e.a9783]

@@AppleInsider I’m a French recreational diver, and in France, a recreational diver can go to 60 meters breathing air with the Level 3 of the FFESSM. In others countries, you can dive to 40 meters with the CMAS 3-star level, so a watch with a 40-meter limit is not enough

[@am932]

Apple watch positive comments are bots or plainly dont know what their talking about. Im a new scuba diver and the MK2i is so helpful with Air integration with low air alerts.

[@397coney7]

I wouldnt buy the apple, simply because of the stupid monthly fee. Yes its chump change, really, but its stupid.

[@stalone78able]

Apple Watch Ultra is a toy compared to Garmin

[@busybee2148]

Apple watch is a more of a smartwatch and has way better display oled 2000 nits sharper touch display etc Cellular, better gps , better perfomance,

[@robkuijer]

Tapping the screen of the Garmin is a better alternativ for Apples touch screen. Wearing 7mm gloves when diving (in the Netherlands) makes a small touch screen not very handy. Furthermore: entering cold water with your Apple makes your battery cool down so far that you might wonder if it'l last the entirely dive. Furthermore more : IF you going deeper than you should go as a recreational diver, you still need to know if you have to make a decrompression stop in other to safely reach the surface. Specially the last argument makes the Apple a wrong choice for a diving computer!

[@robkuijer]

It's the OLED that makes the battery drain so fast. Check KZbin to see which screen is better when you're in plain sunLight, which, I know, is often the case.

[@MrKlyde44]

@@robkuijerI’ve done 5 dives in a day at 43°F water and I still had over 20% left

[@e.a9783]

@@robkuijer a recreational diver can go to 60 meters, so the limit of 40 meters on the apple watch is ridiculous

[@madmack2198]

only way I would covert to apple is it they converted to OpenBsd or LINUX and Dropped the UI

[@heyaitsjuju]

What's the point of this comparison? The Garmin Descent is a dive computer, it's made for scubadiving. Try and take the Apple Watch scubadiving and then we can compare.

[@MrKlyde44]

Nope. It’s a perfect rec dive computer. I do 3-4 dives a week with my ultra. And It works perfectly. I navigate with the on board compass(to test out and it worked perfectly). I’ve dove 5x in a day and still had over 20% left(43°F water). I also dive down to 120ft no problems. GPS is great for planning and marking significant locations. UI is great and clean and screen is BRIGHT when it needs to be. Also one of the most durable dive watches you can get with titanium housing and sapphire glass. Also when on the surface of the water you can do anything your phone can, I can make calls in an emergency, or just a quick chat with my gf. I’ve also even tried watching a KZbin video while far out on the water with its speakers. AI will come in future versions, but I prefer a SPG and most divers carry a spg regardless of AI.

[@heyaitsjuju]

@@MrKlyde44 I was specifically talking of this comparison, in which he used the Garmin as a normal smartwatch. I don't have neither of these watches, and I'm not planning on getting them either. it just seems unfair to use as a simple smartwatch something that is made specifically for diving and comparing it with something that's primarily a smartwatch. A more fair comparison would have been diving with both of them and see which holds up the best. I'm not sure I'd trust a third party app (as in the Apple watch) over something purposefully made with diving in mind, but that's just me.

[@e.a9783]

Yes, but with the apple watch you can't go deeper than 40 meters (130 ft), which is stupid because a recreational diver can go to 60 meters (196 ft). And you can't use nitrox or trimix with the apple watch@e44

[@madmack2198]

When GARMIN has standalone Cellular Capabilities The Apple Watch gets SOLD!