Garmin rolls out new smartwatch update—but not for everyone just yet

Garmin is releasing software update 15.13 for its Instinct 3 series, covering the Instinct 3 AMOLED (on Amazon), Instinct 3 Solar, Instinct E, Instinct 3 Tactical Solar, Instinct 3 Tactical AMOLED, and Instinct Crossover AMOLED. However, the update is not yet available to all users. First, it is a beta release restricted to participants in Garmin’s beta program. Second, as is typical for the manufacturer, the rollout is happening in phased waves, with the firmware currently available to only 20 percent of eligible devices, though installation itself remains straightforward.

The specific changes included in Update 15.13 vary depending on the exact model. Across the entire Instinct 3 lineup, Garmin has improved gear recommendations for hiking activities and refined treadmill distance calibration. Additionally, a bug that caused the app to crash when adding a payment method to Garmin Pay has been resolved. For AMOLED variants, specifically the Instinct 3 Tactical AMOLED, Garmin fixed a date display glitch, while also ensuring that sleep data now renders correctly in the Morning Report across all AMOLED models. Meanwhile, the Instinct 3 Solar and Instinct E now display the correct direction in the DogTrack glance and resolve an issue with empty data fields. Depending on the specific model version, the update also brings optimizations to power management and the post-race summary screen for obstacle course activities.