The Garmin Fenix 8, which has been subject to a review here at Notebookcheck, remains the manufacturer's current top-of-the-line smartwatch. It also represents an entire product generation, with other variants of the Fenix 8 available, as well as technically very similar smartwatches with different product names, such as the Enduro 3 and the Fenix E. Regardless of the specific model, Garmin is rolling out a new update, version 17.29, for these wearables. This update is still in beta but can be easily downloaded as an OTA update. However, the update will only be rolled out to participants in the beta program.
Compared to version 17.28, a relatively short changelog has been released that only contains bug fixes. Specifically, InReach devices with the new software version can now be used without issue after losing connection and reconnecting. The altimeter now works without issue at high altitudes, which can be important for safety reasons. Notifications about new messages on a smartphone were apparently not always displayed correctly, but this should no longer occur. A potential shutdown of the watch when adjusting data fields for diving activities has also been fixed.