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Garmin Approach S62 Review: The Best GPS Watch Gets Better
For the past year or so, one of the most common questions I’ve received from readers is, “when is Garmin releasing an update to the Approach S60 watch?” Golfers could sense it was at the end of its product cycle and didn’t want to make a purchase without seeing what a newer, shinier model would offer. Fortunately, the wait is over. The Garmin Approach S62 GPS Watch
The S60 watch held its position as the best GPS watch in the market for several years. It’s hard to imagine what improvements it needed, but Garmin managed to come up with some enhancements and new features not seen before. In this review, I’ll try to help solve the problem of deciding between the two watches (the S60 is still on the market
What’s Improved
The Garmin S60 did not have much to complain about – you can read my review here. Having detailed maps of each hole, the ability to track swing tempo, yardage adjustments for elevation changes, and plenty of other attributes made it the best golf GPS watch for the past several years.
But as technology improves, new releases try to go above and beyond the originals.
I’ll summarize the key features that I noticed in the Approach S62:
- The resolution is sharper and the screen is even easier to read in direct sunlight (the watch face is also 17% larger).
- It’s much faster – most notably when I’m using the on-screen map to select points on the course. There used to be a slight delay, but now it’s almost instantaneous.
- Garmin has improved the hazard information. You can quickly toggle through the distances to sand traps and other points of interest on the hole without having to manually select them on the map.
- Battery life is much longer; I can play three rounds without having to recharge the watch.
New Features in the S62
The Garmin Approach S62
The virtual caddie is perhaps their biggest new addition. After collecting information on your typical distances with each club, it factors in the wind speed, yardage, elevation changes, and the layout of the hole to give you advice on what club and target you should choose. While I didn’t get to use this feature, I have to say I’m “philosophically” opposed to having these decisions made for you. I’m very skeptical that it can make the right choice in each instance, but more importantly, I believe those choices should be made by the golfer.
I’m not suggesting the virtual caddie won’t be useful for players, but in a perfect world, I’d love for you to go through the archives of Practical Golf to learn how to make these decisions without the help of a (potentially) imperfect technology.
The Approach S62 can also pair with your smartphone to help display wind direction and speed. I live in an area where it’s quite windy, and it’s common that the wind direction can change several times during a round. This is also another area where I believe a golfer has to rely on their senses, and not technology. I’m not opposed to knowing the prevailing wind conditions for the day, but I’d defer to your senses to make the right decision on what the wind is actually doing at the moment.
Lastly, the Approach S62 does come with built-in shot tracking capability. Garmin has built a nice stats app, and this pairs nicely with the watch. You will have to manually make sure the club you use on each shot is correct. If you want a more seamless experience, then I would recommend adding their CT10 sensors
Overall, I’m not completely sold on the virtual caddie or wind features, but I believe the automatic shot tracking is its strongest additional characteristic. I’m a big proponent of golfers keeping track of their stats to help them make better decisions on the course. My preference is that you are the one making those decisions, and not artificial intelligence.
The Approach S62 Can Also Be Your Smartwatch
Garmin also went above and beyond golf to build even more value into the S62. The watch pairs with your smartphone to provide various notifications (text messages etc). But I think the main feature that might entice some is the new heart rate technology.
For the past 18 months, I’ve had an Apple Watch and mainly used it as a fitness tracker (and motivator). The results have been pretty powerful for me. If you are someone who exercises or wants to start, I think having fitness tracking is a great feature that could make the Approach S62
As an Apple enthusiast, I would say that the S62 will not replace my Apple watch because the syncing feature is so powerful with the iPhone. But if you don’t currently have a smartwatch, or use Android for mobile, then I think there are enough new features to make it a great smartwatch.
The Final Verdict
Garmin easily maintains the title of the best golf GPS watch with the Approach S62
The new enhancements are nice, but compared to its predecessor, I wouldn’t call them game-changers. If you strictly want a great golf watch, and the price is a major consideration, then it might make sense to go with the Approach S60. However, if the extra smartwatch features are important to you, and you do want the benefit of some of the newer enhancements, then spending the extra money might make sense.
Either way, they’re both excellent watches. The only other watch that I’ve seen that could compare at a slightly lower price is the Voice Caddie G1. Additionally, if you want a more basic model, then I would recommend going with the Garmin Approach S20
Overall, Garmin did another fantastic job of making a premium golf GPS watch that has a robust set of features.
John, great review as usual. Now the magic question…Bang for your buck, S62, S60 or Voice Caddie?
Next question, if you already have Arccos Golf and you don’t want to pull your phone out of your pocket every shot to look at the recommendations or yardage, do you get an Apple Watch or one of these devices? Decisions, decisions…
The funny thing is, you still have to hit the shot. 🏌️♀️⛳️
I prefer to keep things as simple as possible, which is why I am not a fan of keeping your cell phone in your pocket and using it for yardage info.
The Voice Caddie G1 is still the best value in the premium category IMO, because you still get most of the features of the S60 (even a few more) for a lower price. But if you do want it all, and are willing to pay for it, then the Garmin offerings are hard to beat!
John, how did you find the accuracy – I have the fenix 6 pro and the approach Z 80, both which use the same maps as the s60/62 I believe and they are a little bit off on my course, up to 10 yards on some holes. I have asked for an update but nothing so far….
I haven’t had any issues with accuracy, but it does depend on the quality of the maps they are using for each course.
Good Review,
I have the s20 for a few years and ready to step up.
I have read a lot of info and watched a lot of videos on the Garmin watches and all the info doesn’t have what I’m looking for.
I want more info on how to use the watches and I called Garmin and they just told me to watch YouTube videos, but they dont go in depth. As far as I can tell you have 2 open 2 apps to take full advantage of it?
It’s hard to understand how to use the measure shot and what club for what distance.
Even tho I know which club for what distance, I want to know how to use the features. It doesn’t seem like the watch pairs very good with the app.
Also, does the s62 keep track of Rem sleep? The s20 does not, even tho it has a catagory for Rem.
It’s very confusing and not much help from Garmin.
Even the golf stores that sell them don’t know how to use all the features the watches have.
I wish there were a Garmin store that could help
Hi Jon. Your reviews speak very highly of the S60 and now the S62. When I look online, I find a non-trivial number of awful reviews for the S60. S62 is too new right now. But these bad reviews are persistent across online retailers. Obviously, you are a serious user and reviewer, and the online reviews could be by who knows who. But they give me pause. Battery life, connectivity, responsiveness, overall bugginess, and longevity seem to be the main complaints. Any thoughts?
Also, I seem to recall that these two watches can pair with the Garmin device that attaches to the club shaft to measure shaft angle at impact, which I think could be a good substitute for measuring angle of attack (without a Trackman). Have you ever tried that? Trying to work on upward AOA on driver, but feel isn’t always real, as we all know.
Thanks.
I can only speak to my experiences with both products, and they have been both overwhelmingly positive. I have not tried the attached swing measuring device, so can’t comment on that.
To respond to your question, I’d say two things. First, no matter how good a product is there are always going to be a certain amount of defective devices or some that don’t connect well via Bluetooth etc. Also, if you scour the reviews of any widely accepted product, you’ll likely find plenty of negative reviews as well. It’s impossible to avoid either. Garmin is a pretty reputable company, so if there was an issue, you’re likely going to get top-notch customer support.
I now have several Garmin products and can contest their customer service have been outstanding. They have replaced devices without hassle. So in my search for gps devices, I going with Garmin for the customer service factor.
Just acquired my S62 today. Will put it to test tomorrow. Really hope it will be monies worth!
I have an Apple Watch 3 and a Garmin S2. I was trying to between an Apple Watch 6 with a golf app or a Garmin S62.
My question is what app would you recommend if I bought the Apple Watch 6? What would the app not provide me that I would get with the Garmin S62?
I just purchased the S62 and a full set of C10 sensors. Nice to not have to remember to tell the watch which club I use. It worked very well to track shots. Takes a week for the fitness data to make sense. I have specific health issue that most people don’t have so it was interesting how the watch ended up figuring what my normal is. The only slow aspect is when one starts a round. It takes a few seconds to find the course where my phone using an app like The Grint finds a course in less than a second.
I also would like to have it record a manual round when no course is available. I take my father to a little chip/putt that is not available. Would be nice to see how well I make the target.
I like that I can customize the main face. I can get notifications for what I want to get on the watch that is different from the phone. And I usually hate wearing a watch but this is not a big irritant.