Garmin, the last bastion of no subscriptions, has fallen

Garmin announced its Connect+ subscription service on Thursday, and people online wasted no time telling everyone willing to listen what they think about it.

As you’d expect, the general vibe is not happiness. Many criticised the redundancy of new AI features, while others envisioned a grim future where the currently free features will be blocked behind a paywall.

Some went as far as calling for a boycott of Connect+ to teach the brand a message on Reddit: “DO NOT sign up for Garmin Connect+. Unite to fight for our customers' right to software as a service for a thousand dollar watch. This is a slippery slope and will reduce the usability and ownership of our products in the future. Profits will increase and more and more will get behind paywalls!”

ICYMI, Connect+ is a new premium subscription service that adds AI-powered insights, advanced training guidance, real-time workout feedback, and social features to the Garmin Connect app.

It’s not new or even unique for a company to introduce such a paywall: major players such as Oura, Strava, and Whoop have been doing it for quite some time now.

Garmin, however, has always been thought of as the last bastion against the fee-based business model, not least because Garmin watches sell for a high price.

Many thought an upfront lump sum fee is enough to prevent the GPS giant from introducing additional fees to use its app.

While the Connent app is still free, Connect+ certainly looks like a step in a direction where some more advanced features will be cordoned off away from ‘free’ users.

A few people on Reddit mentioned their decision to move to Garmin from Fitbit because of the introduction of Fitbit Premium. An interesting decision, considering that most Garmins offer a much more robust feature set than Fitbits.

I can’t imagine using a Fitbit Versa 4 and thinking, “I’ll upgrade to a Garmin Forerunner 965 to teach Fitbit a lesson.” That said, Garmin sells fitness trackers, too, but those who use them generally don’t make the most of the Connect app, anyway.

The app is also being slated, with many criticising last year’s redesign, calling it buggy and redundant, mentioning that Garmin at least could’ve sorted out the bugs before introducing Connect+.

Another lot of commenters said they will take their business elsewhere, with many mentioning Coros as the next best alternative: ”I'll be ditching Garmin altogether for Coros when it's time to replace my watch.”

Coros has been gaining a foothold in the performance wearable space for years, and it seems the brand’s effort to position itself as a serious competitor for hardcore athletes paid off.

Of course, four people in an online forum saying they’ll switch to Coros is one thing; people actually buying a Vertix or an Apex is a different story altogether.

How the Connect+ subscription will affect Garmin sales, and where the brand plans to take the new model, remains to be seen.

I’m sure the heat will die down soon enough once people get over the fact that Connect+ exists, but I’m also certain that all eyes will be on the company to see what their next move might be.

I, for one, am not a Connect app power user, and mainly rely on the on-device UI of my multisport watch. However, I understand why people might be upset. I try not to take the announcement as a taste of things to come, but you never know.