Lots of stats but I’ve decided to keep it simple and just focus on the few metrics that are relevant to my goals.
Gadgetbridge has been building out Garmin functionality.
Personally, I started w/ the most supported watches on their site first, and then weighed my options from that group via online reviews. I ended up w/ an AmazFit watch. Works w/ GrapehenOS and never have to share data outside of an email address and the initial watch setup.
I would categorically refuse any kind of “smart” watch (or any other “smart” device) that cannot be used offline.
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I’m using a huawei watch fit 3 with gadgetbridge. It works very well for fitness, sleep tracking SMS notifications. And the battery lasts a week, which is surprisingly important once you have it.
I tried amazfit but found the gadgetbridge link process too challenging.
I miss some things about my Samsung watch 6 but overall I prefer my setup now (paired with Pixel 8 running grapheneos)
Outdoorsy sensors? Barometer, temperature etc?
Seem to be the case
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I don’t think it has any of those unfortunately.
But that’s a tradeoff I’m fine with if it allows for a 4 weeks battery life. Eric made a few concessions on the core essentials sensors instead of bloating it with things people don’t always need.
You can always write a quick app to have those metrics fetched by Bluetooth into your watch if you have your phone/other computer around with Bluetooth.
The pebble is less smart with fewer sensors, more boring screen (no shiny dopamine’d OLED colors) and doesn’t come with a lot of internal storage, nor Apple Pay etc…but that’s because it is something different and not an n-th iteration of the same BS[1].
It focuses on doing things differently and doing them very well. Eric’s blog posts + videos explain it thoroughly if you’re interested by the mindset of the creator. 
A quote from the article above
“There’s an app for that” applied to the original Apple Watch for a few years before the platform’s app focus teetered off
Exactly how I felt with my ex-Apple Watch Ultra, got so excited and hit rock bottom when I saw the awful and poor quality app’s ecosystem on WatchOS. 
(on top of being SUPER locked down)
Excellent article that I agree fully with. One point that is worth extra points for me is the fact that I could just develop and app for my personally owned Pebble without dealing with any of the iOS/Android stores nonsense BS. By pulling and building from a Git repo.
All of that for free, fully FOSS and with plenty of fun/customizability.
I never was excited by mobile development (because of those Big Tech gatekeepers) but this is quite different and refreshing.
Also, will feel nice to have something that works in 10 years+ unlike all the other junk currently available.
So yes, I’m very excited to receive mine. 
he states clearly that it’s not supposed to be a competitor to the Apple Watch Ultra
↩︎
For health maybe a ring, is a better option.
It is not that much better[1] and the sad reality is: there is no decent ring on the market that is without subscription yet decent.
Eric is releasing a voice recording ring, maybe he’ll add some of those in a future iteration? 
still not at a location that can guarantee good enough measurements of the metrics ↩︎
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I think I will go with Garmin Instinct solar as the build looks like Casio Pro track / G-Shock.
Lol at the end, I just settled for how it looks haha.
Sad there are no details about which sensors the watches have, there should be a matrix somewhere.
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Instinct is great for GPS and “outdoorsy”! It also has breadcrumb navigation, useful for backcountry (or running-exploring).
If you opt for Instinct 2 (not as feature-rich as the 3) it has a MIP display, so not light-emitting and I love it.
Damn. 
I mean, I guess you were looking for a trail watch then.
Anyway, enjoy!
That’s the one Garmin that looks like it’s meant to be thrown against rocks without any concern of damage!
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The Garmin Instinct is the cheapest watch they sell as a “hiking” watch locally.
It has GPS, magnetic compass, a barometer/altimeter and temperature sensor (although it tends to be inaccurate when you’re wearing it). In my experience the accuracy seems ballpark correct, but I have seen nonsensical readings. Probably best to verify them where possible.
I’m not so sure about the newer Instinct 3 models. But on Instinct 2 I was able to use most features I care about without syncing the app at all. Although I eventually did download the app for the few conveniences it adds. Using only the watch is just a bit of a pain given that you have to use buttons to scroll through probably over a hundred settings.
The new “AI” coaching features are in my opinion a pretty clear indication that Garmin harvests data. So using something like gadget-bridge where you aren’t sending it to their servers is probably good privacy wise.
The solar feature seems slick too
Just throwing this out there but if you want something with sensors that looks like a g-shock you can get an actual g-shock. They make a couple models that have ABC sensors, heart rate, step counter, blood oxygen, etc.. and you can use them with or without the app. Both also have MIP displays.
The two I’m referring to are the GBD-H2000 which is more geared towards fitness but still has the g-shock toughness and the GPR-H1000 Rangeman which is more outdoor/rugged style. I have both and wear them often. I got rid of my Garmin Instinct Solar 2X.
The ABC sensors are pretty spot on accurate and the fitness sensors are actually Polar brand sensors so they’re on par with Garmin as far as heart rate and step counting goes.
If you choose to use the app you can use a fake name, burner email and all that. I used it for a while with the internet access turned off but eventually got rid of it cause I rarely used it.
If you have your mind set on a Garmin with an MIP display, definitely go for the 2nd generation Instinct as the “newer” 3rd generation uses the exact same sensors as the 2. Basically would be paying more money for the same watch.
Why?
Garmin seems to be an expert in sensors, they make industrial ones as well if I am not wrong.
Their app store seems to be having some things if not at par with pebble.
I just ordered a colmi ring as well from aliexpress lets see how that goes with gadgetbridge. It was dead cheap so had to try.
Oh wow, it has good support for Gadgetbridge?
Okay, it went from Trash tier to God like in a second indeed. Didn’t knew such a thing would exist, good call.
Let’s just see how the battery performs now! 
I heard that their software is quite meh + seen the UX in person and yeah… 
But hey, if GadgetBridge works well for your specific model then why not. 