Video summary

Garmin Cirqa In-Depth Review: Reality vs Expectations

Main summary

Key takeaways

Product Review

Product reviewed

Garmin Cirqa (Circa) screenless fitness/health wearable (worn on the wrist), with phone-assisted GPS and an optical heart rate sensor plus skin temperature.

Key features mentioned

  • Price: $199

    • Available in 4 core colors
    • Additional accessory bands available, including a bicep/arm band option in multiple sizes

  • No subscription required:

    • Works fully on the free version during the review
    • Garmin Connect Plus not enabled

Hardware / controls

  • Strap + pod (detached band piece)
  • Physical button supports:
    • Start/stop activities manually
    • Enable heart-rate broadcasting to platforms/devices (e.g., Peloton/Zwift, ANT+/Bluetooth pairing)
    • Snooze/dismiss vibration alarm

Sensors

  • Optical heart rate sensor (Gen 4)
  • Extra skin temperature layer
  • No ECG (unlike Garmin’s Gen 5 optical sensor)
  • Pulse ox:
    • Can be enabled
    • Default disabled to save battery
    • Reviewer uses it for sleep only

App experience (Garmin app)

  • “Essentials” tab:
    • 4 customizable slots, with only 6 available choices
  • Customizable “in-focus” training readiness/status
  • Multiple dashboard tiles
  • “Yesterday” and **last 7-day stats”

Workout tracking modes

  1. Automatic activity detection (runs/walks/cycling, etc.)
  2. Manual start/stop via the button
    • Useful for strength/yoga where HR spikes may be subtle
  3. App-based workout selection (~80 workout types)

GPS behavior for auto-detected activities

  • GPS can be enabled per sport profile to trigger phone GPS within ~60 seconds after detection (not default)
  • For outdoor activities, GPS tracks upload to platforms like Strava/TrainingPeaks

Main pros (as stated)

  • No subscription required for reviewed functionality
  • Similar day-to-day metrics to a high-end Garmin watch (sleep, calories, etc.)
  • Training readiness feature described as one of the best Garmin has done recently
  • Sleep time/wake time accuracy: wrist-worn devices were generally close across wearables; biggest value is correct sleep timing
  • Running + walking auto-detection described as solid
  • Heart-rate broadcasting supports pairing with cycling/training platforms and devices

Main cons / issues highlighted

  • Fiddly band swapping

    • Pin mechanism is more annoying than quick-fit approaches (e.g., Whoop/Fitbit style)

  • Training load depends on detected activities

    • Garmin records training load primarily during detected workouts
    • Missed detection can mean lost workout/training load
    • Unlike Whoop/Fitbit, which accumulate strain/load more continuously

  • Auto activity detection misses (notably cycling)

    • Initial bike commutes: missed most
    • Later algorithm improvements observed with better detection in subsequent rides

  • Workout screen limitations

    • During app-recorded workouts, live heart rate view is very basic
    • Richer workout views are more limited compared with competitors
    • Some heart-rate display behavior improved after complaint (Garmin “changed it”)

  • Battery life is inconsistent vs claim

    • Garmin claim: 10 days (with stated assumptions such as no nightly pulse ox)
    • Reviewer sees variability, often not reaching 10 days
    • Compared to Whoop’s more consistent multi-week endurance, the claim didn’t match typical use

  • Heart-rate accuracy concerns in certain workouts

    • Generally “as expected” vs competitors, but 400 m interval runs repeatedly failed in cold/rainy Newfoundland
    • Worn on bicep, accuracy improves
    • Cold/rain conditions worsened results for wrist-worn devices; bicep band performed better

Comparisons made with other wearables

Whoop / Fitbit

  • Compared on training load philosophy:
    • Whoop/Fitbit: strain/load 24/7
    • Garmin: load largely depends on detected activities

Amazfit / Polar / others

  • Compared on step counting and general tracking similarity:
    • Steps generally within ~10–15% of others for daily totals
    • Bike days can skew step counts since some brands convert cycling time to steps

Bicep vs wrist across brands

  • Reviewer reports consistently:
    • Bicep wear performs better during workouts
    • Wrist wear performs worse during sleep (and some motion-heavy intervals)

Garmin Connect Plus

  • Some workout details (e.g., certain charts) may be limited without Connect Plus
  • Reviewer did not use Connect Plus

Specific numerical / rating-like details mentioned

  • Price: $199
  • Workout types in app: ~80
  • Step accuracy: daily totals generally within 10–15%
    • Also referenced: a 500-step step test described as “close”
  • Auto-detection timing (GPS): GPS starts within about 60 seconds after detection (when enabled)
  • Battery expectations:
    • Garmin claim: 10 days
    • Reviewer observation: often doesn’t reach 10 days
    • Rough workout battery rate: about 1–2% per hour of workouts
  • Sleep-phase accuracy approach:
    • Reviewer avoids judging sleep stages/phases because they’re only ~80% accurate overall
    • Focus is on timing (sleep time/wake time)

Unique points mentioned about user experience (end-to-end)

  • Day-to-day use: mostly “slide on and forget,” emphasizing automatic sleep and core health metrics
  • Morning:
    • Body battery trend rises toward ~100 overnight then declines through the morning
    • Configurable vibration alarms
    • “Health status” uses five core metrics:
      • Heart rate
      • HRV
      • Respiration rate
      • Skin temperature
      • Optional pulse ox (enabled for sleep only)
  • During workouts:
    • Manual button start/stop for training types with subtle HR changes
    • Auto detection works well for running/walking but can be unreliable for cycling early on
    • Phone GPS supports outdoor tracking when configured

Overall verdict / recommendation

Verdict: Good wearable and strong for Garmin-like training guidance, especially if you want 24/7 health + workout tracking without a subscription.

Recommendation: Worth considering, particularly if you’re already in the Garmin ecosystem. However, the reviewer would not personally choose it over their Garmin Fenix watch due to ongoing watch-usage needs and remaining gaps—especially early auto bike detection, battery variability, band swapping fiddliness, and some workout-specific optical HR issues.

Speaker-specific views

  • Single main reviewer throughout (no clearly separated alternate speaker perspectives)
  • Mentions a wife’s experience:
    • Size felt “fine”
    • Band looked a bit larger on her wrist but no issues
  • Mentions DezFit (another YouTuber) to corroborate the 400 m interval HR failure in cold/wet conditions.

Original video