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Garmin rolls out new update to popular smartwatches with over a dozen improvements

The Forerunner 970 has received more than a dozen improvements with Beta Version 18.23.
ⓘ Garmin
The Forerunner 970 has received more than a dozen improvements with Beta Version 18.23.
Garmin is now rolling out a new update to some of its popular smartwatches. Available globally as a free download, the new firmware contains more than a dozen improvements over its predecessor, including multiple aimed at fixing bugs that caused device resets and crashes on older firmware.
Garmin Smartwatch Wearable Software

At the end of last month, Garmin issued its third v18.xx update for the Forerunner 570 and Forerunner 970 (curr. $749 on Amazon). With August well and truly underway, the company has returned with a fresh update for the pair.

Another beta firmware, Beta Version 18.23 jumps multiple revision numbers from Beta Version 18.19, with Beta Version 18.14 and Beta Version 18.12 occurring before that. Nonetheless, Garmin has packaged more than a dozen changes within Beta Version 18.23, which it is issuing as an over-the-air (OTA) download.

As always, one can download the company's new beta manually by navigating through the Main Menu on a Forerunner 570 or Forerunner 970 to Settings, System and Software Update before tapping 'Check for Updates'. Across two forum posts, Garmin sets out 14 changes from Beta Version 18.19, including four dedicated to resolving device resets or crashes.

Reportedly, Beta Version 18.23 has already been offered to all Beta Program participants. Despite the speed of its latest rollout, Garmin has not indicated when it plans to transition v18.xx development to its stable software branch. The full changelog between Beta Version 18.19 and Beta Version 18.23 is as follows:

  • Fixes an issue that causes the device to crash during an incident detection.
  • Fixes an issue that causes the morning and evening report to not time out.
  • Fixes an issue that could cause the device to reset after receiving an audio spectator message.
  • Fixes an issue that could cause the device to reset when saving an activity.
  • Fixes an issue that could cause the device to reset when viewing the morning report.
  • Fixes an issue that could result in pace/speed dropouts, especially during interval training.
  • Fixes an issue where an audio spectator message could fail to play while music is paused.
  • Fixes an issue where device fails to detect Wake Word.
  • Fixes an issue where device fails to respond to commands after Wake Word is triggered.
  • Fixes an issue where other voice output could fail to sound after receiving an audio spectator message.
  • Fixes an issue where the device will reboot sporadically.
  • Fixes an issue where the volume slider in music controls bounces around and becomes unresponsive.
  • Fixes other minor issues.
  • Updates translations.

Source(s)

Garmin (1) (2)

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2026 08 > Garmin rolls out new update to popular smartwatches with over a dozen improvements
Alex Alderson, 2026-08-12 (Update: 2026-08-12)