This comparison guide will see some of the major differences between Garmin Vivoactive 4 and Fenix 6.
Garmin Vivoactive 4 and Fenix 6 are durable watches suitable for outdoor sports. Both watches offer a wide range of fitness and sports features. However, there are few differences between both that make one a superior watch.
Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Fenix 6: Quick Overview
Overall, Garmin Fenix 6 is considered the best smartwatch that offers a long-lasting battery, 10ATM waterproof rating, better GPS and some extra sports mode. Whereas Vivosmart 4 is more affordable than Fenix 6 and offers all the valuable sports and fitness features.
Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Fenix 6: Comparison Table
| Features | Vivoactive 4 | Fenix 6 |
| Weight | 50.5g | 80g |
| Physical size | 45.1 x 45.1 x 12.8 mm | 47 x 47 x 14.7 mm |
| Lens material | Gorilla Glass 3 | Gorilla Glass DX |
| Case material | fiber-reinforced polymer | fiber-reinforced polymer |
| Display size | 1.3” | 1.3” |
| Display type | sunlight-visible, transflective memory-in-pixel | sunlight-visible, transflective memory-in-pixel |
| Touch screen | Yes | No |
| Display color | Yes | Yes |
Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Fenix 6: Design & Display
Vivoactive 4 and Fenix 6 have pretty similar designs. Both watches give a sporty feel and look durable. But there are still a few differences in their design and display.
The lens material used in Vivoactive 4 is Gorilla Glass 3, whereas Fenix 6 uses Corning Gorilla glass DX, which is very robust.
The Vivoactive watch has a 50 meter or 5ATM water-resistant rating, and Fenix 6 has a 10 ATM water-resistant body. So if you are an open swimmer or triathlete, then Fenix 6 is the best option.
Further, both watches use stainless steel in their bezel design, and the case is made of fibre-reinforced polymer.
When it comes to comfort, Vivoactive feels lightweight as it only weighs 50.5g, whereas Fenix 6 seems a little bulky because of its 80g of weight. Because of the soft silicone band, you can wear both watches for a long time without feeling any stress on your wrist.
Garmin Fenix 6 contains 5 major buttons to control the watch’s functionality, whereas Vivoactive 4 only has two on the left side because it offers a touchscreen. Similarly, the Fenix 6 bezel looks more sporty because of the screws, whereas the bezel on Vivoactive 4 is smooth, giving an elegant feel.
Both watches have a 1.3″ transflective memory-in-pixel display. Additionally, Vivoactive 4 comes with a touch display, making it easy to navigate menus. Vivoactive 4 is the first watch in the Vivoactive series that gives a touchscreen display.
Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Fenix 6: Battery Life
Garmin watches are made for outdoor enthusiasts. That’s why these watches have more extended battery backup. Similarly, Garmin Vivoactive 4 and Fenix 6 both have extended battery life, making you stress-free of charging the watch repeatedly.
Vivoactive 4 can last for 8 days in smartwatch mode, whereas it gives 6 hours of battery life in GPS mode.
On the other hand, Fenix 6 has a more powerful battery that gives 14 days of battery backup time in smartwatch mode and 36 hours in GPS mode. Fenix 6 also has a strong grip over the battery. It offers battery saving mode that extends battery life to 48 days.
| Battery Life | Vivoactive 4 | Fenix 6 |
| Smartwatch mode | 8 days | 14 days |
| GPS With mode | 6 hours | 36 hours on max |
| GPS mode without music | 18 hours | 72 hours |
| Battery Saver Watch Mode | No such mode | 28 days |
Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Fenix 6: Price
When choosing a watch, price is one of the major factors. Usually, Garmin watches are more expensive than the rest of the sports watches. The Fenix series is the most exclusive Garmin watch family, and their prices are very high.
Vivoactive 4 costs 40% less than the price of Fenix 6. Moreover, Fenix 6 comes in different versions, and the most expensive Fenix 6X Pro Solar is 3X more costly than Vivoactive 4.
Fenix 6 prices start from $549 and cross $949 for its solar 51mm variant. On the other hand, Vivoactive 4 costs $329 for both 40mm and 45mm variants. So if you are on a budget, you should go for Vivoactive 4.
Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Fenix 6: Health & Sports Features
| Features | Vivoactive 4 | Fenix 6 |
| Pulse Ox Sensor | Yes | Yes |
| Stress tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Women’s health tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Body battery energy monitor | Yes | Yes |
| Respiration tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Sleep monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Wrist based heart rate | Yes | Yes |
| Animated workouts | Yes | No |
| Background Ski | No | Yes |
| XC Ski Dynamics | No | Yes |
| Power Manager | No | Yes |
| Performance Metrics | No | Yes |
| Recovery Time | No | Yes |
| Ultrarun | No | Yes |
| Climbpro feature | No | Yes |
| Expedition mode | No | Yes |
| Hydration Tracking | Yes | Yes |
Health and sports features are the priority for an athlete with a fitness focus. To track your daily performance Vivoactive 4 and Fenix 6 offer a wide range of fitness features. But Fenix 6 has extra sports features making it the best multi-sports watch.
Both watches offer the Pulse ox sensor, the core fitness feature telling you about your overall wellness. Pulse OX sensor will monitor blood oxygen saturation level during the day, night, and when you perform any activity.
Fenix 6 includes unique features for runners, including; performance metrics, running dynamics, and a recovery advisor. You can deeply analyze your current performance and improve your weak points with these running metrics.
Similarly, an Animated on-screen workout on Vivoactive 4 makes it easy to perform your exercises, activities, cardio etc. You can also build a custom sports profile on both watches.
Fenix 6 has 48 preloaded workouts, whereas Vivoactive 4 offers 20 preloaded sports modes. So Fenix could be the best watch for you if you are a pro-level athlete or outdoor enthusiast.
Garmin Fenix 6 VS Vivoactive 4: Other Features
Both Fenix 6 and Vivoactive 4 include a lot of other valuable features. Firstly both have excellent GPS that works perfectly even in more challenging environments. But Fenix 6 GPS is superior because of Multi-GNSS support.
Similarly, both watches come with an ABC sensor to measure directions and environmental conditions. Both watches offer safety tracking features like live track, incident detection, and assistance.
On both Garmin watches, you can receive notifications, but Fenix can’t respond to calls or texts. With Vivoactive 4, you can directly answer calls from your wrist, which is very convenient if you are a busy person.
Moreover, to pile up your favorite songs, Vivoactive 4 allows you to store up to 500 songs, whereas there is no music storage in Fenix 6.
Fenix 6 VS Vivoactive 4: Which One To Choose?
Most of the features in Fenix 6 and Vivoactive 4 are similar, except Fenix 6 have extra sports modes. Similarly, if you want a watch with a long-lasting battery, then Fenix 6 is a better option. And if you are on a budget, then Vivoactive 4 is a better deal for you, and you will never regret it after getting this watch.
About Author
