Another new watch: Coros Apex Pro!

I had to send the Garmin Instinct Solar back because it froze twice in the first four days of owing it.

Not good enough! Apparently it’s a known issue, but that almost makes it worse.

A shame, as I liked it a lot and seemed the best fit right now.

I was going to persist with me 935, but I thought I’d try the Coros Apex Pro, which I’ve always liked the look of.

And lucky I did. 

I suspected the altimeter on my 935 was off, but I never actually tested it against the Instinct. Something I should have done.

I did test it against the Apex Pro — I think to prove I actually needed a new watch.

The 935 did OK in the mountains but faired terribly on the flat and in the wind, compared to the Apex and common sense! On one 20′ walk around a flat track it marked more than 50 m ascent and descent.

For all I know, it did terrible in the mountains, too. But it’s harder to know what the elevation change should be on the trails, where the differences don’t seem as important anyway as there is a lot of climbing and descending.

So a change was warranted.

The altimeter on my 935 did use to work (I checked flat runs I did after buying it on TrainingPeaks), but at some point it started to float.

Why the Apex Pro?

It won by elimination.

• I didn’t want a Fenix as any model with a good battery life would be heavier that I wanted and I don’t need or want music, Garmin Pay or maps
• I didn’t want a 945 either, not after my 935 experience and because I’ve heard complaints about the battery
• I wanted to get off the Garmin treadmill if I could
• The Polar Grit X or Vantage V2 didn’t seem to be what I was looking for

So I took a gamble on Coros and the Apex Pro.

The Apex Pro is expensive and quite old (they could bring out a new one soon). But it seems sturdy, so hopefully it will last. And it’s light and has a good battery life.

Anyway, I’m happy after a week or so of owning it. It’s simple, like the Instinct promised to be, but with a bit more functionality.

It’s weird to change from Garmin after so many years, and I have lost some things I liked having on my 935 (more flexibility with activities and a pool swim mode that makes sense — Coros’s is brainless), but I’ll get by.