Garmin Fenix 5X+ VS 6X Pro Solar

TL;DR

The third in my series of head to head sport watch comparisons I take a look at some of the higher end watches from Garmin, the Fenix 5X Plus vs. the Fenix 6X Pro Solar.

Similarities

First, let’s talk about the similarities. And there are a lot.

If you want to see the in depth reviews I did of each of these watches, you can check out this video on the 5X Plus or this one on the 6X Pro Solar.

This isn’t going to go through all the things, this is primarily to help you decide which of the two might be better for you based on a number factors.

So first, let’s talk about what’s similar between the two before I get into the things that make the biggest differences.

They both include all the sensors you’ve come to expect in high end satellite enabled watches:

• Satellite Tracking
  • GPS
  • Glonass
  • Galileo
• Wrist-based HRM
• Barometric altimeter
• Compass
• Gyroscope
• Accelerometer
• Thermometer
• PulseOx

And they both act as smart watches when connected to your phone so you can see all your text messages, who’s calling without pulling your phone out of your pocket, etc. Both have widgets for calendar, weather, Garmin Pay, Vo2 Max, Training status, advanced health stats and sleep monitoring 

Although the 6 gives you some advanced metrics on sleep. 

The 6 also has what Garmin calls Body Battery which, well, I don’t know how accurate it is, but in theory can tell you if you’re tired from overtraining or because you’re not getting enough sleep.

Oh, and both can be used with Connect IQ so you can download third party widgets, apps, data fields and watch faces.

Both have onboard music and are compatible with some of the more popular streaming apps. And can be controlled by the watch, not just in Garmin Connect.

But there are a few major differences between the two. And I don’t just mean the price.

But that’s the first difference

Price

The 6X comes in a variety of sizes and features with prices ranging from $600 for the 6S (the small version) to $1,000 for the 6X pro solar. 

The 5, starts at $600 for the 5S Plus and 5 Plus and goes to $700 for the 5 Plus. That’s right, you can now get the 5X plus cheaper than the 5 Plus.

As a side note, the major differences are that the 5X Plus has spot check PulseOx, a larger physical size and better battery.

But, for the sake of this video, with all of the permutations of each model, I’m going to focus on the highest end of each.

The 5X Plus vs. the 6X Pro Solar.

Another major difference is right there in the name.

Solar Charging

The 6X includes solar charging. Which, after 14 months, I’m still not sure is worth the extra cash. I just did a video on that which you can see here. 

So, because the 6X has the solar charging, the lens material is what Garmin calls PowerGlass. That is, it has some solar powering capabilities, but most of the solar charging comes from the ring around the display that you can see here. 

The 5X plus has no solar charging capabilities. 

Then there’s the thickness another difference that may seem small, but trust me, it isn’t.

Thickness

The 5X Plus is 17.5MM thick vs, 14.9 on the 6X. Now you wouldn’t think this would make a huge difference but I’m here to tell you its the difference between getting your arm through your sleeve in a rush, tearing your sleeve to shreds.  

Both are also 51MM wide so that’s not an issue, the real in the size is how much of the real estate is being used.

And that brings me to the displays.  

Display 

The display on the 5X is 1.2” wide – really no bigger than the Forerunner series – from the 945 all the way down to the 245. And when you look at the actual face, you can see why I was disappointed. I felt like there was just too much wasted space there.

The 6X has a 1.4” display which gives you the opportunity to add two more metrics to each screen for a total of 8. On the 5, you can only see four metrics.

The resolution is also different, with the 5X coming in at 240 x 240 pixals and the 6X 280 x 280 pixels.

That said, even the 5 is really easy to see in bright sunlight, so it’s mostly an aesthetic issue. 

Battery Life

Battery life is also going to be a huge difference between the two. 

The 5X really only has whatever Garmin decided to build in.

• Smartwatch: Up to 20 days
• GPS: Up to 32 hours
• GPS and Music: Up to 13 hours
• UltraTrac™ mode: Up to 70 hours

But the 6X not only has the solar charging, it has, what amounts to programmable battery options. 

Now the presets include

• Smartwatch: Up to 21 days/24 days with solar*
• Battery Saver Watch Mode: Up to 80 days/120 days with solar*
• GPS: Up to 60 hours/66 hours with solar**
• GPS + Music: Up to 15 hours/16 hours with solar**
• Max Battery GPS Mode: Up to 120 hours/148 hours with solar**
• Expedition GPS Activity: Up to 46 days/56 days with solar

Of course, those solar stats assume you’re out in optimum conditions for at least 3 hours per day, every day.

But the programmable battery feature I like best is in-activity changes. 

If you’re mid workout, or in a multi-day or multi stage race and you forgot to charge your watch before the big day, fear not. In mid activity, you can scroll through and turn off different features that will extend your battery life.

Pace Pro

And my favorite difference, is the 6X includes the Pace Pro feature.

Where, in a nutshell, you can have your watch tell you if you’re hitting your pace for a goal time during a race or specific workout.

You can load a course and Pace Pro will analyze elevation changes along the way to tell you when to go faster or slower. 

The strategy will calculate when to increase or decrease your pace along the course to help hit your goal time (or pace – depending). 

That’s about it folks, if you’re interested in getting either watch for yourself, I put links throughout this post, just know it goes to my AMZ affiliate account so I will make a couple of shekels on your purchase with no charge to you.

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My Current Running Gear

• Fenix 6X Pro Solar
• AfterShokz Aeropex
• Daily Run: ASICS Gel Nimbus 22
• Long Run: Brooks Ghost 12
• Speedwork: ASICS Novablast
• Trex Air
• Oakley Half Jacket 2.0
• GoPro Max 360
• Merch
• Follow me on Strava

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