Garmin Lily review

Our Verdict

The Garmin Lily is a fashionable, midrange smartwatch with a keen display and useful health tools for female users.

For

Stylish, lightweight design
All-time display of any Garmin lifestyle watch
On-lath pregnancy tracking app

Confronting

No built-in GPS
Incompatible with Garmin Connect IQ app store

Tom's Guide Verdict

The Garmin Lily is a fashionable, midrange smartwatch with a great display and useful wellness tools for female users.

Pros

+
Fashionable, lightweight design
+
Best brandish of whatsoever Garmin lifestyle sentinel
+
On-board pregnancy tracking app

Cons

-
No built-in GPS
-
Incompatible with Garmin Connect IQ app store

Garmin Lily quick specs

Price: $199 (sport), $249 (classic)
Size: 34 mm
Battery life: v days
Swim-proof: Yes
Heart rate monitor: Yes
SpO2: Yes
GPS: No
Notifications: Yes

The Garmin Lily is a pocket-sized and fashionable smartwatch that volition brand you forget the bulky GPS wearables the make is best known for. A new offering designed with first-time, female smartwatch users in mind, the $199 Garmin Lily is a gamble for the company that'south paying off based on my feel so far.

In the days I've spent working on this Garmin Lily review, I've enjoyed its barely-there feel and stylish appearance, which is accentuated by a patterned lens that somehow doesn't obstruct the brandish. Of all the best smartwatches and best fitness trackers I've tested in contempo retentivity, this one looks the most like bodily jewelry. Yep, fifty-fifty more than than the Fitbit Luxe.

And information technology'due south not just aesthetics. The Garmin Lily is positioned equally a Samsung Milky way Picket Agile ii and Fitbit Versa 3 rival cheers to a bounty of health and fitness features for active users. That said, the lack of on-lath GPS makes Garmin's newest midrange watch impractical for outdoor sport enthusiasts. And so who is this watch for?

Garmin Lily review: Price and availability

The Garmin Lily is bachelor for buy as of this writing. It comes in two variants: Sport and Classic. The Garmin Lily Sport, the version I'thousand testing, costs $199.99, while the Classic models costs $249.99.

If you atomic number 82 an active lifestyle, the Sport model is probably best for yous. It features silicone straps and comes in three color options. If you're interested in a smartwatch with a smidge of elegance, the dual-tone leather straps of the Archetype model might exist more your speed.

Garmin Lily review: Blueprint and display

The Garmin Lily doesn't await similar any Garmin watch nosotros've seen before. Between its 34-millimeter button-less case, intricate hardware details and thin straps, it's dainty compared to the the abominable Garmin Instinct I wore a few months ago. The affluent bezel, which is a beautiful rose-gold color on the model I'one thousand testing, reminds me more than of the Garmin Venu, if I were to draw an in-brand comparing. But over again, the Lily is significantly smaller.

Garmin's lifestyle lookout partitioning hasn't wowed in the past. When I tested the Garmin vivomove Luxe, another mode-first wear, the hybrid analog-digital display frustrated me whenever I wanted to check my notifications outdoors. Plus the leather straps weren't conducive to my daily workouts.

Information technology seems like the Garmin Lily has sought out to solve those displays woes with a responsive, monochromatic touchscreen I can see clearly fifty-fifty in direct sunlight. Instead of an analog overlay, each Lily model has a unique pattern lightly printed on the glass. I feared the swirling semi-circles on my review unit would distract from checking the time, but when the brandish is activated the pattern seems to vanish. Information technology's a corking effect.

Garmin Lily review: Health features

Like many of Garmin'south other watches, the Lily provides insight on a series of health metrics, viewable in the Garmin Connect app.

In addition to heart charge per unit and blood oxygen (SpO2) monitoring, the Lily offers stress and slumber tracking. Information technology also benefits from Garmin'due south Body Battery feature, which shows you your estimated energy levels so you can programme your exercise and recovery accordingly.

For female users, the Garmin Lily offers menstrual cycle tracking, as well every bit a pregnancy tracking guide that gives expecting mothers get a more consummate overview of their health. Although the Lily isn't compatible with the Garmin Connect IQ app store, the pregnancy tracking app is one of options that comes pre-installed on this smartwatch.

In terms of activity, the Garmin Lily supports workout tracking for yoga, Pilates, cardio, treadmill and more. But if you want to keep tabs on your location for outdoor exercise, you'll need to bring your smartphone since Lily is one of the few Garmin watches without built-in GPS.

Garmin Lily review: Battery life

Garmin rates the Lily smartwatch for v days of battery life, including overnight wear for sleep tracking. So far, I've found the brandish settings take the biggest bear upon on battery life. At max brightness, I lost more than 30% of juice in one twenty-four hour period, but when I relied on machine-brightness, the battery drain charge per unit slowed.

When my Garmin Lily's battery is getting low, I can charge information technology back up through a clip-shaped proprietary charger. Garmin doesn't say how long the charge fourth dimension should be, merely I got my review unit from dead to full bombardment in under two hours.

Garmin Lily review: Verdict

The Garmin Lily isn't a replacement for the Apple Watch Series half dozen or Fitbit Versa iii. As much as I'one thousand attracted to the blueprint, the brandish is smaller than any smartwatch I've e'er used, and it's taking time to adjust.

That said, for $199 I believe Garmin Lily could be a slap-up pick for a first-time smartwatch owner, or someone with smaller wrists who prefers a fashionable pattern. It's as easy to navigate as it is on the eyes, and its compact size won't conflict with whatever else yous already clothing on your wrists.

For the price, it's also one of the best cheap smartwatches you can buy now.

Kate Kozuch is a senior writer at Tom'due south Guide roofing wearables, TVs and everything smart-home related. When she'due south not in cyborg manner, you can discover her on an exercise bike or channeling her inner glory chef. She and her robot ground forces will rule the world one twenty-four hours, but until then, accomplish her at kate.kozuch@futurenet.com.