Garmin releases new update to older high-end smartwatches as wait continues for stable rollout

Garmin has introduced stable updates for a lot of smartwatches lately, including some older models like the Instinct 2 and Instinct Crossover. Unfortunately, that has not been the case for the Fenix 7 or Fenix 7 Pro, which Garmin has just replaced with the Fenix 8 Pro (curr. $1,199 on Amazon).

Instead, almost three months have passed since Garmin released System Software 22.06 for the Fenix 7, Fenix 7 Pro and peers like the Enduro 2 or Quatix 7. Unfortunately, the company does not seem to be much closer to transitioning v23.xx builds to its stable software branch, either. While Beta Version 23.16 landed nearly a fortnight ago, its replacement introduces a solitary bug fix.

Specifically, Garmin has offered Beta Version 23.17 to fix an issue with rep counting during activities. ECG features remain disabled too, which typically means that more builds will be offered before Garmin finishes its current beta testing round. As it stands, the full list of changes between System Software 22.06 and Beta Version 23.17 are as follows:

• Added a new tip to display during a rest set in a Pool Swim activity.
• Added new feature for certain sensors to pair over ANT and BLE+
• Fixed a possible crash on the Battery Notification Settings page.
• Fixed a possible crash on the climb pro data page.
• Fixed AB connection issues with Kestral device.
• Fixed an issue where course distance data would sometimes incorrectly be set to nautical miles.
• Fixed an issue where courses would sometimes fail to load.
• Fixed an issue where pairing CT10 sensors would fail.
• Fixed an issue with golf club tracking
• Fixed an issue with navigation in the Hunt activity.
• Fixed an issue with rep counting.
• Fixed an issue with where selecting the Last Ride data would incorrectly show the Last Run page.
• Fixed incorrect data being displayed on the laps review page in the Pool Swim activity.
• Fixed incorrect distance data from sometimes being displayed when navigating a course.
• Fixed Navigation prompts from sounding when all audio prompts are disabled.
• Fixed the displayed weight on Strength edit set page to match other Strength-related page.
• Fixed Wind Direction Changing When Connecting to a LRF (Tactix only)
• Updated the breath variation page to use a line graph.
• Updated the Recent Stress Widget to now match the appearance of Fenix 8