Garmin introduces new stable update for latest high-end smartwatch with fresh changes and improvements

Garmin has finalised a new stable update for the Fenix 8 Pro, the third so far for the smartwatch since its release at the start of September. Jumping from System Software 18.41 to System Software 18.51 last month, the Fenix 8 Pro has mainly received bug fixes or improvements relating to new hardware like Garmin's microLED display or LTE functionality.

Now, the company has moved its latest high-end smartwatch onto System Software 18.68, skipping all interim builds in the process. Incidentally, Garmin has still not added the Fenix 8 Pro to its Beta Program (curr. $1,199.99 on Amazon). By contrast, the newer Venu 4 has just received its first beta update.

According to a forum post, System Software 18.68 contains five bug fixes and three separate improvements. Like prior builds, many of the changes contained within System Software 18.68 focus on refining LTE functionality. For instance, Garmin claims to have resolved an issue that could cause Auto LTE mode to disable immediately after ending an activity. Similarly, System Software 18.68 should fix a bug that resulted in Livetrack via LTE stopping working during an activity at random. The full changelog for System Software 18.68 is as follows:

• Fixed issue where Auto LTE Mode would disable immediately when an activity is ended.
• Fixed issue where GPS would not resume recording after sending a satellite message.
• Fixed issue where Livetrack via LTE would stop and not function for the rest of the activity.
• Fixed potential crash when saving an activity.
• Fixed potential issue where a voice call could not be received over LTE.
• Improved brightness auto adjustment behavior.
• Improved notifications for missed Messenger calls.
• Improved the inReach Plan Usage page to automatically refresh when the page is opened.