For years, the Garmin Fenix has been the undisputed king of premium multisport GPS watches. It’s an absolute beast, known for its rugged build, huge feature set, and truly exceptional battery life, thanks in part to its transflective memory-in-pixel (MiP) display.

But this Black Friday week, if you’re hunting for a deal on the Black Friday Garmin Fenix 7, you need to pause and look closely at the Garmin Epix Gen 2. UK readers can grab a real bargain already and I think there are likely to be more Garmin Epix deals to come globally this Black Friday, based on some informed guessing about Garmin’s new release timelines.

For readers in the UK, H. Samuel has a great deal on the Epix Gen 2 down to just £369.99, from the RRP of: £739.99. There’s also an impressive deal at Millets for the Garmin Epix Pro (Gen 2) Sapphire Edition (Saphire means a scratch resistant screen in Garmin parlance) down to just £399.

Comparative Garmin Fenix 7 deals are all around £100-£150 more for essentially the same powerhouse watch with one crucial (and, for many, superior) difference.

Epix Gen 2 vs. Fenix 7

The truth is, the Epix and Fenix 7 are almost identical twins beneath the surface.

Both watches boast the exact same extensive sports tracking capabilities, advanced health and fitness metrics, and powerful mapping and navigation tools. They are the full, uncompromising Garmin experience.

The Fenix 7 uses the MiP display, which offers an always-on display with incredibly long battery life, especially when combined with solar charging. The trade-off is that the screen is less vibrant, with duller colours and lower resolution.

The Epix Gen 2 is equipped with a stunning, high-resolution AMOLED screen, which is brighter, clearer, and far more vibrant, making on-watch maps, data screens, and daily use simple.

While the AMOLED screen naturally draws more power than the MiP display (meaning the Fenix 7 still wins on raw, multi-week battery longevity), the Epix Gen 2 still delivers an impressive battery life for all but the most hardy off-the-beaten-track adventurers (16 days in smartwatch mode, or around 6 days with the screen always-on). For most users, this is more than enough.

The AMOLED Future is Already Here

The biggest reason the Epix Gen 2 is the smartest Fenix 7 alternative this Black Friday is that it already has the feature Garmin’s top-tier watches are moving toward: the AMOLED display.

Garmin has already started adding AMOLED display options to its subsequent generations, effectively bringing the Fenix 8 into line with the Epix’s brilliant screen technology.

The Epix Gen 2 essentially gives you the stunning visuals of the newest generation watches, wrapped in a premium, flagship package that performs as well as the Fenix 7.

In fact, I’m pretty convinced that this coming together of these two top watches is why Garmin Epix deals are springing up this Black Friday. It seems to me with the Fenix 8 moving to an AMOLED display the (already slim) differences between the watches are now essentially zero, so we could be seeing the last of the Epix line.

Our verdict

If you find a deeply discounted Garmin Epix Gen 2 this Black Friday, you should absolutely pounce on it.

For the vast majority of users who love high-end Garmin features but want a screen that pops with colour and clarity for daily use and detailed mapping, the Epix Gen 2 is the superior experience.

And sure, if your plans mean that you will regularly be away from the means to charge a watch for weeks and weeks at a time, then the Fenix is still worth the £150 more. But I’d argue that there are very few people in that position really.