Can GARMIN detect low blood oxygen🩸? Fenix 7, Forerunner 255, Instinct 2, Vivomove Sport, Vivosmart5

[@paulmeyer9677]

You should test the response time of the devices in a breath-holding test. Hyperventilation (lowering pCO2) beforehand can make

[@davidy4738]

Thanks for all your sharing of your tests! Instead of infrequent flights do the breath holding as mentioned above. A lower and faster desaturation can be achieved by hyperventilation till tingly and then breathing out maximally (to residual volume) and doing isometric contractions of all muscles or any other exercise to use up the oxygen. Isometric allows you to be seated or lying down etc. Take a breath when you can no longer hold the breath. The SpO2 will continue to drop since there is a time lag for the desaturated blood to travel to the finger / wrist and the lag for different devices that average over different periods eg 15secs Vs 5secs etc. I just got 51% before the finger oximeter gave up and the viatom ring gave up earlier at 61%. If you continue to breath out to residual volume and do isometrics, you can maintain a state of reduced oxygenation for a few minutes before you feel the need to breath regularly. I think the difference in the devices may be due to different averaging times / response times. Most SpO2 use the old method of two infrared wavelengths and thus should not differ much (Masimo rainbow technology is one exception). Reflection SpO2 (light emission and sensor on same surface of watch) on the wrist may differ from finger tip where the infrared on one side of the finger shoots through to the opposite side of the finger probe where the sensor is. Placing the watch on the palm / volar side of the wrist may have shallower and better flow vessels than the back / dorsum of the wrist. The reduction in PaCO2 from the hyperventilation takes away the desire to breath (respiratory drive) caused by CO2 diffusing to the respiratory centre. It allows for longer breath holding before the build-up of CO2 or the low oxygen / hypoxia kicks in the strong reflex to breath.

[@paulmeyer9677]

@@davidy4738 great explanation! A potential risk of such experiments is that there might occur brain tissue damage at very low PaO2, don't you agree? 50% hemoglobins saturation seems unsafe to me, although finger tissue might reach lower sat compared to brain tissue. Also there might be a different reading with finger vs. wrist vs. chest strap (e.g. HRM Pro), one should test.

[@TheNaught1]

Just bought a cheap fingertip pulse oximeter, and was sad that no one like you is publishing proper tests of the various brands. Clearly the store review ratings are being manipulated to show high ratings for underperforming units. Thanks again for all your work! You are a gem.

[@EverythingIsPhotogenic]

It would be interesting for you to expand your research on all these devices to look at some of the confounding variables for some of these key data points driven by optical sensors. Observationally, the efficacy of these devices for sleep, HR, SPO2, HRV, etc, is pretty substantially impacted by variables like skin tone, body hair, wrist shape (especially the protrusion of the styloid process), ratio of watch body size to wrist width, weight of watch, position of watch, etc. I suspect that may be why some of your videos find that flagships (that tend to be larger) sometimes underperform more entry level or older devices, even when the sensor is identical. I know there is some general research surrounding optical sensors, but that level of specificity, especially by brand/device doesn't exist. It would be interesting to plug some of your data with these additional variables into Minitab, SAS, or other statistical software to see how much aliasing (if any) there is from these variables. Probably a little abstract for the youtube world, and might not generate as many views, but there would be a niche of nerds out there that would love to see what is most predictive in these values. Awesome video, as always!

[@atleastthreecharswide]

Okay this.

[@yianpap6093]

Good points.

[@abysstec]

Cool

[@chavezchavo]

While watching this video, i whipped out a separate SPO2 gadget. I did measure my Instinct 2 against the gadget. Sad to say even superficially, the gadget consistently showed 98-99 but my Instinct 2 consistently showed 90-97.... I still love my Instinct 2 but I guess I'll just have to live with this short coming.

[@coolsquad7428]

I have the garmin decent G1 aka the instinct 2 but dive varient and I have been getting 97 to 99% on avg and the lowest i have gotten was 94%

[@sandiegojoey1]

Totally off topic but something you might find interesting. I've been wearing my Garmin Fenix 6 Pro Solar and an Oura Ring (Gen2) since they've been out and my sleep data is usually somewhat close but recently is very different. I don't know who made changes, maybe both companies? Which makes me wonder who improved and/or who got worse. I'd love to see a Garmin vs Oura comparison with the latest software updates.

[@SubtleForces]

I have a new 255 and was wondering about the "reliability" of these measurements. I did not have a piece of reference equipment and decided it was not necessary since I was only interested in whether it could pick up expected changes. I therefore made measurements both during a flight and at the top of the Zugspitze (2962m). In both cases, it showed a clear drop from earlier measurements the same day.

[@callan888]

Thanks Rob for another great comparison review. I noticed you tested the SpO2 of a Forerunner 255. Will you be doing a full scientific review of this watch? If so, I'm really looking forward to the review. Thanks.

[@sergiocoelhosergiocoelho_a9033]

Love those videos buddy. Congrats! Really want to see new chinese brands and the new galaxy watch 5 that will release this week August 10.

[@DezinateDesigns]

After watching your reviews i honestly think you deserve more subscribers. The effort is 👏 amazing

[@williamstevenson2649]

I'm not interested in wrist oxygen saturation but I watched all of this because Rob is always informative! I am in the fortunate position of being unconcerned about my saturation and uninterested in a quantity which is always the same in reality but jumps around all time on reflectance devices. If a quantity given is unreliable it's useless, and Rob has performed a great service in showing which devices give reliable readings of the various parameters like HR and steps

[@tucsonastro7763]

Would like to see a review of the O2Ring. I've been using one for a few years, but, have never compared it to a finger tip recording oxymeter. A sleep study comparison would be great. Keep in mind that it internally is making measurements at a 1 Hz rate and sets many flags at this rate. It records every fourth measurement, ie, 0.25 Hz rate. So you may see flags set for conditions not captured in the recorded data. Also note that for the 4% drops below baseline metric, the O2Ring uses the mode definition for continuous distributions, not discrete distributions. IMO, setting the baseline to the discrete distribution mode would be more correct/meaningful. Thanks, James B.

[@KidtipsyEthn]

Think part of the problem with Garmin is the watch family's have different development groups. The Fenix Series are a different group then the Forunner series. This is why you see different feature's on different watches. I believe they all have a base line but then the groups develop without really talking to the other groups. Perfect example of this is I am still waiting for me Epix 2 to get all the new features of the 955. My 2 cents on why the instinct might have different results even with the same sensors. My Fenix 6/Venu/Venu 2 would all show the same stress levels. But when my instinct first gen solor or non solar would both have the same readings but 25-30 points in difference compared to the other 3 watches. Leading me to believe a software issue vs a hardware issue

[@Therevolution7]

I think they all have the same development teams, but are deliberately halting/ segmenting the various lines- It shouldn't be an issue per say for one watch to have all the features garmin offers- perfect example is the Garmin MarQ 2 or w.e But the price tag is crazy

[@DaniBernal]

The intro is a killer, awesome review very detailed and useful for the daily life. Congratulations!

[@santiagodelaespriella1940]

Hey Doc!! Love your KZbin Chanel, love your science!!! Look I will got straight to the point. I receantly bought a Fénix 7X Solar Saphire... after watching your recent video in which you compare like 30 brands on HR performance, I turned it back. Now I want to buy the best and nos accurate smartwatch for calories burned!! I am planning to go with the Enduro Gen 2.... Will this be the best choice for best calorie tracking? Or which one would you say it's the best one

[@Jerubei]

Excellent video, as always, but we're all waiting for the best sleep trackers! :) Keep up the good work!

[@Kev_Smith]

Second this! I'd like to know how accurate the Garmin's are for sleep tracking. Specifically the one that was missing from this video .... the Forerunner 955.

[@cloviscareca]

This guy buy plane tickets just for sake of testing SPO2 LoL Excellent review 👏👏

[@lengtdr]

I wish there was a full review of the forerunner 255 😭

[@adamthewoodworker2571]

Hey there. Can we get an update on the Sleep Comparison video between all the smart watches that you said you were working on? I'm hoping it'll be coming out soon

[@mlegrand]

Great video as always. Hope you had a good trip! ✈️

[@frankniethardt1813]

Garmin sadly have different development units for their watches. Even with the same hardware they are not able to provide the same results. I learned that while switching between the Vivoactive 4 and the Fenix 6S. You would think that all the features in the Vivoactive is included in the Fenix, but it isn't.

[@dmitriypoltavtsev5777]

Hello! What does correlation mean in all your charts? Did you do 100 tests of each device and did you compare them to some benchmark? Why is Apple Watch 7 equal to 1 in one of the charts? Is it a flawless quality? Which device is the etalon? Thank you for your answer.

[@dmitrykhangulyan4349]

thanks for explaining to me that I should simply disable the SpO2 sensor in my Garmin as it just drains the battery ;-)

[@IrregularTangent]

Thanks!

[@matei9511]

Hi! Do you have a video about garmin forerunner 255..? Complet test review?

[@hkskuw]

What's a reliable finger oximeter I can use to measure continuously while I sleep and have all the data points available at wake up? None of those cheaps (

[@osoletio]

Very good job! What about a test with smart rings?

[@mahammad]

I hope you do the regular Samsung Watch5 review, I'm wondering if the heart rate accuracy has improved and if sleep tracking turns off after waking up for a short time.

[@milanpintar]

thank you for your analysis!

[@Samp1eTech]

Hey Rob, what smart watch do you wear daily? I have a Galaxy Watch 4 Classic I'm trading for a Watch 5 Pro, but really like the battery life and display of my Garmin Fenix 7X.

[@sigurdurhallgrimsson1291]

there is one big thing missing and that is the SPO2 60-80%range cos we who do diving and a lot of APNEA training we are in that range. I use finger oximeter for my daily breathing workout. but I would love to see it in the pool before my Monofin sprint.. kind regards.

[@MrTejnat57]

You should not use the aircraft as your reference point because aircraft pressurizes the cabin that is called cabin altitude and cabin altitude is not always constant because sometimes there is a problem in the aircraft pressurization and each flight is different it could have been better if you test all the watches simultaneously at once.

[@tomylee]

I have found that the measurements are more consistent when I put the watch sensor on my fingertip.

[@ThePieSnatcher]

Great video as usual!

[@giridhranpalani3139]

Love your videos! Please cover the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro!

[@alberbedo9222]

Why not include other brands like Samsung Fitbit Apple

[@Torgo79]

My Instinct 2 seems to have the same issue. It almost always measures spo2 94 to 96%. I have tested it on two flights. On the first flight I didn't see any noticeable change. On the second flight spo2 dropped to 89% for a brief second,but stayed in normal 94-96% most of flight. Doesn't seem to perform very well in any condition. :(

[@Dallas-klay]

thanks for the test

[@eduardmoon2010]

The instinct and Fenix have the same sensor BUT different material (plastic vs glass) AND different shape (rounded plastic vs plain glass) not sure if the glass in the fenix is Sapphire. I belive it affects the accuracy of the sensor readings, so even if the sensor is the same, the way the light arrive to it is different.

[@Eduardo1007]

Why not take more measurements during the flights? To have more data points for the watches

[@OlegGavryliukZodios]

It may be that you have too wide a wrist for the Garmin Instinct thus it is poorly aligned to the skin. It seems to be the exact reason why Fenis 7S has worse data than Fenix 7 in your's HR data comparison for Strength Training.

[@abdbzm6146]

Garmin 245 music or Huawei gt runner? what is the best one for runner and cycling. what is the more accurate ?

[@tomasz8296]

Can we compare Garmin Fenix 7 vs Apple Watch 7/8?? Regards

[@74357175]

Would these measurements show if someone successfully acclimatized to altitude? I.e. would the o2 levels go up, even at altitude?

[@gregpud3471]

Yes

[@janmartens7954]

ik ben gestopt met distale metingen, en voer alleen nog oormetingen uit via de nonix. Die vingermeters zij zo vreselijk ruw en matig accuraat dat ik deze niet meer voor mijn Covidptn wil gebruiken. Mijn Forerunner 245 geeft vrijwel altijd, en vrij accuraat 3-4% minder SpO aan. Voor mezelf tel ik er voor het gemak maar 3 a 4% bij op. Overigens ook niet zo heel vreemd natuurlijk, dat je distaal gewoon minder saturatie meet hahaha.

[@zakialbetiyan449]

Looking forward your testing for the new Venu square 2 🧐

[@4tCa4mzUPqRZZo]

Just curious, have you tried apple watches's new sleep mode from the beta yet? Or are you waiting for the full release?

[@nicholaslittle8154]

Just putting this out there, SpO2 has been if not the most then at least one of the most disappointing health tracker features - inaccurate at best and with far too low a resolution, even in your scientific review I don't think there were enough data points available from the tested devices to say much about them. On your point about Garmin watches with the same sensor performing differently, I'm guessing that's due to Garmin's apparently crazy software development practices - they seem to produce firmware specific to each SKU so I think they have real trouble porting features, bug fixes, and improvements between devices. Saw that with the "advanced" sleep tracking

[@mortenvinther8940]

The confusing results might be you flexing/moving your wrist while the watch measure your oxygen levels. Even tiny movements can disturb the accuracy of the sensor. These tests results are not perfect either.. Also, the material that cover the sensor is the same for both watches, its glass.

[@brandonchenyl]

which watch would you recommended for SPO2 detection?

[@Usagi-Rabbit]

Is there a reason you don't use breath retention to test low O2 levels? I do wim hof breathing method and find that useful to do such tests.

[@jadehendrie1141]

Would it be more accurate if worn on the inside of the wrist?

[@hoozndooznsnizn8077]

Haha so mine has been very low! Says my average Is 93… which is no where near correct. I have also had it read 95 while sitting perfectly at rest. Unfortunately I’m not able to be read correctly right off the bat

[@janaboy82]

Hmm interesting my Venu 2 never measure over 96%, mostly between 90-95%. And i have read others to complain about Garmin's spo2 inaccuracy.

[@MaBozz1959]

I also own the Venu 2 and confirm that the SPO 2 measurement is really bad.

[@HolisticHealthEducation]

Me too. My Venu 2 values varies between 88% to 92%, over a week. The fact that I live at 1600 meters above sea level might have something to do with it?

[@000T00b]

@@HolisticHealthEducation Same here. I have a Venu (1) and live in Joburg. I get similar readings to you. Will be getting a Huawei GT3 or GT Runner for the heart rate accuracy, as I really don’t care about smartwatch features.

[@jamestaylor9258]

Which smartwatch do you use? :)

[@rogertomlinson9496]

Hello qualified scientist, question have you tested out the frontier X2. That thing is way expensive you need to take a mortgage to buy one 😅

[@relivec]

Looking forward to your apple watch 8 and galaxy 5/pro tests👍🏼👍🏼

[@curtispazarjr4985]

great review!!!!!

[@hvah]

Could the differences be that more light are comming in from the sides of some of the watches messing up the reading? The cheapest, and also smallest watch would see alot of interference mayby by outside light. The bigger fenix 7 would cover for outside light much better.

[@ManuelSalcedo]

hello, will you do a scientific review for the GTS 4 mini new biosensors? they claim its much better than its predecessors, im interested in the watch but I want to know how much better it is compared to the mi band 7 ( which is not very good to me, and they come from the same factory*)

[@Baz.007]

Ok, so the Instinct 2 only gets one chance?

[@luukvandenbraak5170]

Can you review the Mi Band 7 Pro? Really wondering about the GPS and it's heartrate tracking

[@MrMattNoir]

The reason why you had different results and maybe even worse results on the new sensor is most probably just software version. It will get better over time with updates and the amount of data they will collect from users (if they use it like this)

[@robertrolannapitupulu4354]

Garmin Fenix 7 and Epix 2 just released new software with lots of new features. Can u help to review the accuracy? Thank you.

[@Nico-go7uc]

Please test amazfit band 7, thank you, amazing work.

[@_-_-8964]

Samsung smartwatch 5? Would be nice to khow how it step up against other watches.

[@wadeduvall7026]

There could also be software differences to save battery.

[@FeeDo666]

Is it possible to test the Garmin descent MK 2 for their accuracy? Its a dive computer that also works as a smartwatch but Not sure about its accuracy with workouts. All I know is that its great for diving

[@teatredenzwieliczki2107]

Hi! :) When will you make a review of Samsung Galaxy Watch 5? Think a lot of people wiating for it! :)

[@ArthurYoshida2012]

could you pleaseee do a sleep test for the new apple watchos9 sleep tracking?

[@snookfanatic06]

Would you be able to review the new Samsung watch 5 when it comes out for HR sensor accuracy while doing weight training?

[@NGCB01]

Will you also test the sleep tracking of the forerunner 255?

[@andrewalisov8738]

When i test finger SPO2-meter, i just breath in plastic bag for around 5 minutes (under medical control!) and after 2.5 minutes blood oxygen starts decrease.

[@Apex543]

it could be the software versions as well...

[@gd515051]

Really not impressed by Garmin’s performance considering they’re 200-300% over priced. I can get an inaccurate smart watch for $150 that has a much better AMOLED display, higher resolution, better battery performance, and if I lose it or it breaks I’m not out almost a grand.

[@blrun129]

I see also some weird results with my Instinct 2 in regards to Spo2 monitor,it’s one of the informations I tend to ignore for now

[@carlosmartin7111]

How is the accuracy of SPO2 in the Venu SQ?

[@nagababugalla]

Waiting for your scientific review of Galaxy watch 5

[@74357175]

Any idea why the Fenix 7 might be doing better, despite using the same sensor as the Instinct 2? Could it be better batter/power ,or some additional processing?

[@Sharki33]

Please please..Review mi band 7 pro and amazfit gts 4 mini

[@yoditonugrahacky765]

Would you review Amazfit T-Rex 2?

[@xanperia]

Nice! Could someone please recommend a smartwatch that measures EKG? For Xiaomi Redmi phone.

[@videohero8638]

Very strange. Garmin Forerunner 255 and 955 are supposed to be the same platform as Fenix 7. From the measurements it appears to be completely different. I would say your result is wrong. It would be very interesting to see Forerunner 955 in a test. How different it is from the Forerunner 255 and Fenix 7.

[@rick23ro]

can you please repeat this test with fitbit models and also oura ring which just enabled spo2 reading?

[@harrowingabyss4518]

Anyone want to help me make a purchase decision? Tossing up between Fitbit versa 3 advanced gps, garmen forerunner 245 music or Garmin Venu sq music, the 3 are on sale for the same price at the moment. Mainly for running with gps and basic health tracking/sleep tracking. No sure what to go with as they seem to both have pros and cons in different things.

[@_.mysteryman._]

For your preferences I would recommend Forerunner 245. The other two is much weaker for sports.

[@harrowingabyss4518]

@@_.mysteryman._ thanks for recommendation. I will order the 245 music before the 50% off sale for it ends.

[@_.mysteryman._]

@@harrowingabyss4518 good choice 👌👍

[@singularity6305]

What about Wahoo products?

[@abderrahmenebenounene3166]

"many of us will enter several times a year" :')))

[@0views372]

Can you have a look at Suunto peak 9 pro please

[@TheMocnivocni]

Please make review of Xiaomi Watch S1🙂

[@Doniyorbek_Turgunov]

Curious, why watches with the same os and sensors show quite diffent performance?! Esp. on sleeping tests...

[@Pipppetto]

Before even watching the video, based on my personal experience, Garmin's blood oxygen detection is pure crap. Or better, it probably wasn't, until something weird suddenly happened (firmware update, maybe ??..). To better understand my point of view, I own a Fenix 6 Pro which is regularly maintained, cleaned thoroughly after each use and up to date. In the first year of life (approx.), my O2 level was always in the 98-100% range all day long, and perfectly comparable with the values detected by other devices (medical grade finger device, other smartwatch..). Then it started without apparent reason to read values definitely lower than the ones detected at the same moment by other devices. It's quite obvious that the faulty reading wasn't due either by my forearm condition or by the sensor integrity, so what ?? Anyway, I quit bothering long time ago, even if this behaviour is IMHO a big flaw in a high end watch, as it was when I bought it.

[@ThatWanderingNomad]

Almost everything from Garmin is crap other then their GPS accuracy.

[@n33oh]

Please test Garmin 735xt

[@leku7184]

You should test mi band 7 pro

[@omaralmutairi257]

waiting for galaxy watch 5 pro

[@시원한배게]

galaxy 4 gps test plz

[@FlutterShipp]

👉👉 Crossbeats, Noise, Zebronics, boAt, Fireboltt Test out these cheapest smart watches roaming around Indian market. Tht will give you so much of views than you are getting now.

[@IrregularTangent]

Support this channel with quids! you took trips to test out the equipments I don't think you can get more scientific then that to test out SPo2 meters other that. Live long and prosper 🖖

[@TheMmiller692001]

I think I would give a higher chance of poor manufacturing standards over you getting unlucky in all your measurements.

[@tylerbrown9538]

Thanks!

[@TheQuantifiedScientist]

Thanks so much Tyler!

[@realitynightmare]

Any chance you can test the asus vivowatch and the BP version. Nobody seems to have a review on these.