Review: Garmin’s Vivomove Trend is a fashion hybrid smartwatch for your everyday use

The design

Credit: Garmin

1/6

Positioned as the midrange option in the Vivomove lineup, the Trend distinguishes itself with a plastic case, liquid crystal display, and a stainless steel bezel – an upgrade that enhances its overall appearance. Yet, despite its seemingly lightweight build, it doesn't feel like a downgrade compared to its pricier counterparts, Vivomove Style and Vivomove Luxe.

The Trend isn’t specifically targeted at a specific gender, though Garmin’s marketing for the smartwatch does seem to lean towards a more feminine market. My review unit came with a peach gold watch face with an ivory band, but other colourways in the range include gold, silver and an all-black version that’s undoubtedly more masculine. It won’t appeal to seeking a rugged vibe (such as the huge Apple Watch Ultra), but it’s not intended to.

Most importantly, the Trend is incredibly lightweight, weighing 43g with the strap. This makes it an impeccable choice for daily wear, and you can work out without feeling like the weight of the entire world is on your wrist. The watch also has 5ATM water resistance, which means it can survive sudden downpours (very useful in Singapore) or washing dishes.

Performance

Credit: Her World/Cheryl Lai-Lim

2/6

Like the other Vivomove watches, the Trend discreetly hides its smartwatch capabilities behind an analogue watch face. It comes to life when you raise your wrist up toward your face, or tap the display – the little analog hands will move out of the way, and stats such as step count and battery level are instantly viewable at a glance. The Garmin Connect app also allows you to personalise the watch face even further, and you can opt for various other combinations to be shown – for example, the date, calorie count, or even the number of floors climbed for the day.

To use the watch, a long press reveals the main menu while swiping the watchface provides access to real-time health and activity data. It offers a range of essential features for smartwatches, including push notifications, media controls, alarms, timers, and the convenient automatic movement of analog hands when viewing data, calendar, weather widgets, or texts. For Android users, the added benefit of replying to texts and rejecting phone calls further enhances its appeal.

Credit: Her World/Cheryl Lai-Lim

3/6

Beyond the basics, the Trend is also a comprehensive health, wellness, and fitness tracker. The watch itself might not cater to hardcore athletes, but its health tracking capabilities are far from lacking. Equipped with an optical heart rate monitor and a Pulse Ox sensor to measure blood oxygen level as well as stress and respiration analysis, you can seamlessly track your health readings and receive alerts for abnormal readings.

What I found interesting was that the watch also has a Body Battery function, which gauges your energy levels throughout the day, optimising the timing of physical activities and moments of repose. It’s nice to check my Body Battery and realise it’s not just my imagination when I’m feeling a little low on energy. Such dips typically align with instances when I’ve been out the entire day, or right before I’m about to get sick.

There’s also stress tracking, which keeps you informed about your daily stress levels and offers relaxation guidance when needed, as well as women's health tracking, which allows you to monitor menstrual cycles and log symptoms as well as access valuable exercise and nutrition guidance.

Credit: Her World/Cheryl Lai-Lim

4/6

And of course, the watch also has features that other Garmin smartwatches have had for years, such as accident detection during activities (especially crucial for women who often go on hikes or long Hot Girl Walks) and the convenience of contactless payments (GarminPay).

In terms of battery life, the smartwatch indeed lasts for about Garmin’s stated five days without needing a recharge. This encompasses continuous wear, default brightness settings, and approximately 30 minutes of daily GPS activity. Of course, battery life heavily depends on your individual usage.

The watch comes with a proprietary Garmin clip-on charger, though I have an irrational fear of scratching my review unit and thus simply charge it via my Qi wireless charging pad on my desk.

The cons

Credit: Her World/Cheryl Lai-Lim

5/6

There are, however, a couple of drawbacks when it comes to the Trend. The first is that there are no physical buttons and crown – this means that navigating the smartwatch’s touchscreen can be problematic when you’re sweaty after a workout, or while wearing gloves.

Plus, the automatic brightness feature takes a while to adapt, and thus the hidden display can sometimes get washed out in bright lighting conditions. While you can manually set a permanently higher brightness level, it comes at the expense of faster battery drain.

I’d also love it if the watch display itself was more responsive. There have been instances where I found myself needing to swipe multiple times to navigate through menu screens, and typically for my wearable tech, I like to flick through the screens quickly to access the information I need.

Bottom line

Credit: Garmin

6/6

In essence, the Vivomove Trend is a versatile choice for those seeking an understated yet capable timepiece. It’s a creative fusion of style and functionality, though it’s definitely more suited for individuals looking for a hybrid smartwatch while engaging in light or moderate exercise, as opposed to intense workouts.

If you’re looking for smartwatches that can now monitor a range of strength training, intensive workouts and outdoor activities, you should look at alternatives such as Garmin's Forerunner series, Fitbit’s Versa series, or an Apple Watch.