Garmin Venu 4 Review: The Venu 3’s Replacement, Tested by Others
We set out to review the Venu 3 and found it has been replaced. Garmin launched the Venu 4 on 22 September 2025, and that is the watch most UK shops now sell at full stock. The testers agree on what matters: the battery lasts well over a week, the GPS is now dual-band, and the heart-rate sensor is close to a chest strap once it settles. What they do not agree on is whether it is worth about £180 more than a run-out Venu 3. We have put the battery figures, the two sizes, the Garmin Pay catch and live UK prices where you can see them.
Where the reviews line up
Three very different sources carry this page: TechRadar, whose Matt Evans wore the 45 mm watch for about ten days and ran it against a Polar H10 chest strap; the5krunner and the Garmin owner forums, the specialist view and the place where problems get reported; and Currys and John Lewis buyers, 40 ratings in total across seven listings, checked on 6 October 2026. On the big points they agree.
The battery is the reason to buy a Garmin instead of an Apple Watch. Garmin claims up to 12 days on the 45 mm and up to 10 days on the 41 mm. TechRadar got a full 10 days from the 45 mm with several workouts. T3 got about 9 days with the always-on display off, and 4 to 5 days with it on. That is a fair result for an AMOLED screen. The heart-rate sensor is good, but not perfect. Over a 7 km run TechRadar’s Venu 4 averaged 151 bpm against 156 bpm on the chest strap, after a bad start when it read in the 120s while the strap showed the 140s. Owners on Garmin’s forum have reported the same kind of low reading early in a run. GPS is now dual-band, which the Venu 3 did not have, and T3 found it held routes under tree cover.
Two caveats decide the purchase. It is expensive for what is new. The launch price was £469.99, against £399 for the Venu 3 at its launch (T3’s figures). Today Currys sells the Venu 4 at £439, and PriceSpy lists the run-out Venu 3 from £259.50. And Garmin Pay may not work with your bank. T3 calls UK bank support “still patchy”. Check your card before you buy if paying by watch matters to you.
No subscription is needed. Sleep coach, sleep score, training plans and Body Battery are all free. Garmin’s optional Connect+ costs £6.99 a month and adds AI insights and some extras. You can ignore it. That is a real difference from Fitbit, where the coaching sits behind Google Health Premium.
The three reviews this summary is built from
- TechRadarEditorial test by Matt Evans. About 10 days of battery measured, and a 7 km run against a Polar H10 chest strap.
- the5krunner & Garmin forumsSpecialist buyer’s guide (updated 3 October 2026) plus an owner thread on low heart-rate readings and GPS.
- Currys & John Lewis26 ratings across six Currys listings (4.5 to 5.0/5) and 4.8/5 from 14 at John Lewis, checked 6 October 2026. Small samples, on pages that sell it.
Before the review: Venu 3, Venu 3S or Venu 4?
The Venu 3 (45 mm) and Venu 3S (41 mm) came out in 2023. Both are still listed by UK sellers, but they are run-out stock: PriceSpy shows the Venu 3 from £259.50 and the 3S from £265.49 (6 October 2026). Their replacement is the Venu 4. It has no “S” model. Instead it comes in two sizes under one name, 41 mm (1.2in screen, 46 g) and 45 mm (1.4in screen, 56 g). Garmin says the Venu 4 adds a metal case, an LED torch, dual-band GPS, health status, lifestyle logging and more training tools. If a cheap listing just says “Venu”, check the model number.
Specification at a glance
| Spec | Figure | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| Sizes and screens | 41 mm, 1.2in AMOLED, 390 × 390 · 45 mm, 1.4in AMOLED, 454 × 454 | John Lewis (41 mm); the5krunner (45 mm) |
| Weight with strap | 46 g (41 mm) · 56 g (45 mm) | TechRadar and the5krunner agree. the5krunner gives 38 g for the 45 mm case alone |
| Battery, smartwatch mode | Up to 12 days (45 mm) · up to 10 days (41 mm) | Garmin’s claim, repeated by the5krunner and John Lewis |
| Battery, always-on display | 45 mm: 4 days · 41 mm: 3.5 days (the5krunner) or 3 days (John Lewis) | Sources disagree on the 41 mm, so we print both |
| Battery, tested | About 10 days (TechRadar, 45 mm) · about 9 days, or 4–5 days with always-on (T3) | Two editorial tests; they broadly agree |
| Battery, GPS | 45 mm: 20 h GPS only, 17 h multi-band · 41 mm: 15 h GPS only, 6 h all-systems with music | the5krunner (45 mm); John Lewis (41 mm) |
| GPS | Multi-band GNSS with SatIQ | the5krunner; T3 confirms dual-frequency |
| Heart rate | Garmin Elevate V5 optical sensor, with ECG app | T3; Garmin’s ECG app reached the UK in April 2025 |
| Lens and water | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 · 5 ATM | the5krunner; Currys repeats 5 ATM |
| Storage and music | 8 GB, offline Spotify and YouTube Music | the5krunner (storage); T3 (music) |
| Phone | Android 9+ or iOS 16+. No LTE, so no calls or messages without your phone | Currys; TechRadar |
| Subscription | None needed. Optional Connect+ £6.99 a month or £69.99 a year | TechRadar’s Connect+ report |
| Guarantee | 2 years | Currys and John Lewis |
| Launch price | £469.99 silicone strap · £519.99 leather | Notebookcheck; TechRadar and T3 repeat £469.99 |
| Live UK price, 6 Oct 2026 | £439.00 Currys (all six versions) · £438.99 John Lewis (41 mm silver/periwinkle) · from £349.00 (41 mm) and £365.96 (45 mm) on PriceSpy | Checked 6 October 2026 |
TechRadar
This is the most useful test for a buyer because it measures the two things Garmin sells the Venu 4 on. On battery, Evans says the 45 mm watch “lasted a full 10 days with multiple workouts”, against Garmin’s claim of up to 12. A second editorial test agrees: Lee Bell at T3 got about 9 days with the always-on display off, and 4 to 5 days with it on. So the claim holds up, as long as you leave the screen to wake on a wrist turn.
On heart rate he ran 7 km wearing the Venu 4, an Apple Watch Ultra 3 and a Polar H10 chest strap. The averages were 156 bpm for the strap, 156 for the Apple Watch and 151 for the Venu 4. The detail matters more than the average. Between 1 and 2 km the Venu 4 read in the 120s while his real heart rate was in the 140s. After he paused and restarted the workout it tracked the Apple Watch closely. He judges 5 bpm over a run “very accurate” for most runners, and we agree. If you train by heart-rate zones, it is worth watching the first ten minutes.
What he does not measure is GPS against another device. He only says courses work “just fine”. T3’s Lee Bell is more specific: the dual-band GPS “locked on within seconds and tracked routes reliably, even under tree cover”. Evans’s downsides are no full-colour maps, a limited voice assistant and no LTE.
Watch: Garmin Venu 4 In-Depth Review // Worth The Upgrade?
A long-form review that frames the same question as this page: whether the Venu 4 is worth it over the Venu 3.
Watch on YouTube ↗the5krunner and the Garmin forums
the5krunner is a specialist running-tech blog. Its Venu 4 page is a buyer’s guide that also sums up other reviewers, including DC Rainmaker, DesFit, CNET and The Verge. It did not publish its own accuracy score for this watch. Its verdict is warm: the Venu 4 puts Forerunner 570-level training tools and dual-band GPS into a smarter case, and it rates the Elevate 5 sensor among the best on any wrist. It is also clear about the gaps. There are no maps, only breadcrumb trails. There is no LTE. It has two buttons instead of the Venu 3’s three, which is awkward in gloves. And the price went up by about 20% over the Venu 3, so it calls the watch overpriced next to an Apple Watch.
Garmin’s own forum is where problems show up. In the Venu 4 thread we read, one owner’s new 45 mm watch showed poor GPS and heart rate of about 120 bpm on a run where 145–150 was expected. Another owner later reported low heart rate and calorie figures. One other forum user blamed the strap fit, and we saw no reply from Garmin staff. This is a thread with a handful of posts, not a survey. But it matches the slow start TechRadar saw, and that makes it worth knowing about.
Watch: I tested the Garmin Venu 4 for 6 weeks and learned this!
A six-week owner’s view. Longer wear is what the forum complaints are about, so this is the best match for this section.
Watch on YouTube ↗Currys and John Lewis
These are buyer ratings on pages that sell the watch, so we report the numbers and not the praise. The samples are small. Currys splits its ratings by colour and size: 4.5/5 from 8 on the 45 mm slate, 4.8/5 from 6 on the 41 mm lunar gold, 5.0/5 from 6 on the 45 mm silver, and three more listings with 1 to 3 ratings each. That is 40 ratings in total with John Lewis. It tells you that early owners are happy. It does not tell you how the watch holds up after a year.
The retailers do give you the buying facts. Both list a two-year guarantee. Currys says it needs Android 9 or iOS 16 or later. On 6 October 2026 Currys had all six versions at £439.00, available to deliver or collect in store. John Lewis had the 41 mm silver/periwinkle at £438.99. Both are £31 under the £469.99 launch price. PriceSpy showed lower prices from smaller sellers: the 41 mm from £349.00 and the 45 mm from £365.96. Which?’s page showed the 45 mm from £357.52 at Amazon. Its test score is behind a paywall, so we have not used it.
Watch: Garmin Venu 4 Review - Worth It?
A shorter “is it worth it” review. It suits the buyer’s question this section answers: is it worth the price?
Watch on YouTube ↗Venu 4, Forerunner 165 or Charge 6?
These three cover most of what people mean by “a fitness watch”, and the price gaps are large. Our prices for the other two come from our own reviews, checked on 5 October 2026.
| Garmin Venu 4 | Garmin Forerunner 165 | Fitbit Charge 6 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price at Currys | £439.00 (6 Oct) | £199.99 (5 Oct) | £139.00 (5 Oct) |
| Type | Smartwatch, metal case, two sizes | Running watch, one 43 mm size | Slim band |
| Battery claim | Up to 12 days (45 mm) | Up to 11 days | Up to 7 days |
| GPS | Dual-band | Single-band | Built-in, but basic |
| Calls and speaker | Yes, through your phone | No | No |
| Subscription for coaching | Not needed | Not needed | Google Health Premium, from £7.99 a month |
Buy the Charge 6 if you mainly want steps, sleep and heart rate, with your phone in your pocket for runs. Buy the Forerunner 165 if running is the point. It has the same kind of AMOLED screen and most of the same training tools for about £240 less. Buy the Venu 4 if you want one watch for the office and the gym that takes calls, has a torch, and has better GPS than the 165. Read our Forerunner 165 review and our Fitbit Charge 6 review for the testing behind those two.
What works without your phone
The Venu 4 has no LTE, so anything that needs the internet goes through your phone over Bluetooth. Calls, messages, notifications and the voice assistant need the phone nearby. So do live tracking for family and syncing to the Garmin Connect app. With the phone at home, the watch still records GPS workouts, heart rate and sleep, plays music you have downloaded, and can pay with Garmin Pay if your bank supports it.
Strengths and weak points
What holds up
- Battery: about 9 to 10 days in two editorial tests, against a 12-day claim. That is very good for an AMOLED screen.
- Dual-band GPS, new for the Venu line, held routes under trees in T3’s test.
- Heart rate within 5 bpm of a Polar H10 over a 7 km run once settled (TechRadar).
- No subscription needed for sleep coach, training plans or recovery data.
- Two sizes with the same features, and an LED torch on both.
- Two-year guarantee from Currys and John Lewis.
What people complain about
- The price rose from the Venu 3’s £399 to £469.99 at launch, and the run-out Venu 3 is about £180 cheaper today.
- Heart rate can read low early in a run. TechRadar saw it, and owners report it on Garmin’s forum.
- Garmin Pay does not work with every UK bank. T3 calls support “patchy”.
- No maps and no LTE.
- Two buttons instead of three, so you use the touchscreen more, which is harder in gloves.
- It still uses Garmin’s own charging cable, not USB-C (T3).
Who it actually suits
Buy it if you want a smartwatch that looks smart at work, lasts more than a week, and tracks your training properly without a monthly fee. It is also a good choice if you have tried an Apple Watch and are tired of charging it every night. Choose the 41 mm for a smaller wrist. It has the same features and gives up about two days of battery.
Look elsewhere if you mainly run, because the Forerunner 165 does most of this for less than half the price. Look elsewhere too if you need maps or want to leave your phone at home and still take calls. And if price matters more than dual-band GPS and the torch, a run-out Venu 3 from about £260 is still a good watch. Shops are clearing it, though, so buy from a seller that gives you the full two-year guarantee.
What we could not check
- Which UK banks work with Garmin Pay. Garmin’s own bank list uses an interactive filter, and it gave us no list. Curve, which sells a card that works around the problem, names Monzo, Barclays, NatWest, HSBC and Capital One as supported. Curve has a commercial interest, so check your own card in the Garmin Connect app before you rely on paying by watch.
- Garmin UK’s own price and stock. Garmin’s UK product page is JavaScript-rendered and returned only a summary to us. It is live, and it describes the watch as current. Our prices come from Currys, John Lewis and PriceSpy.
- An independent GPS accuracy score. TechRadar did not compare GPS against another device, and the5krunner published no score for this watch. T3’s comment on tree cover is the only GPS finding we have.
- Which?’s results. The battery and accuracy scores are behind a paywall.
- The 41 mm always-on battery figure. the5krunner says 3.5 days and John Lewis says 3 days. We could not read Garmin’s own table to settle it.
- Long-term reliability. The retailer ratings come from 40 buyers, mostly soon after they bought the watch.
- Whether Garmin has fixed the slow heart-rate start in firmware. We found no statement either way.
- The videos. We confirmed all three by search listing. We did not open them, because YouTube is blocked from where we work. The listings did not name the channels.
Sources last checked 6 October 2026. Garmin prices move often, especially around new launches. Check the listing in front of you before you order.