UKH

I'm in the early stages of looking at new smartwatches (not apple, garmin has been my usual choice thus far). My current 735xt has a failing battery, and isn't capable of lasting for the length of a long cycle ride any more (4-5 hours). Ignoring the irritation of having to replace a fairly expensive bit of kit because the battery is dud, I was wondeirng if the hive mind had any recommendations that would fix my major difficulty with the 735. 

I use glasses for reading only. This means that if I look at my watch without glasses on, I can only see the large text. I can see the time, but not the date. On a run, I often have no idea what it's telling me - was my last mile 7 mins 10 or 7 mins 49? was that text notification my wife asking me to call home, or hermes saying they have hidden a parcel in a random place in my next door neighbours garden? So - do any watches allow customisation for people like me, for instance large text notifications, single field displays in an order I choose etc?

The Garmin Connext IQ website has a huge array of watch faces which can be downloaded for your watch. It may be worth looking at that for single field displays or for large text notifications.

For the main reason for your difficulties, it may be worth investigating contact lenses - or rather, a single lens for reading. I have the opposite problem to you, in that I only need lenses for distance vision. My optician recommended a single lens, so one eye is corrected for distance vision and one is left uncorrected for reading. Depedning on your prescription, this may be an option, with the corrected eye for reading the watch face and the uncorrected eye for distance vision.

thanks. I've played around with various watch faces, but there isn't anything that deals with  in-run data, or incoming notifications. Long term, the solution for me will be varifocals, as my eyesight is simply down to getting old. At 44 I had perfect eyesight, at almost 49 for reading my prescription is 2+ with worse to come. How varifocals will work for running I've no idea. 

Does the different lenses thing work well?  I'm short sighted (and a contact lens wearer) but am also aging into presbyopia, so a fix that doesn't involve reading-glasses is quite an attractive proposition!

No help with garmin (looking to buy one soon though)

I have similar eye sight issues. Got some Bolle iri-s safety glasses for work, which I also use on the bike they come with various magnifications.

I expect you can change all the in-run data screens to only have a single field (at least you can on the 935). Start a run activity, press and hold the middle left button and select data screens, can add and change to your heart's content...

It's OK. I wouldn't say it's perfect, but it's a decent workaround and it's better than taking glasses on and off every time I want to look at my watch. I originally started doing it for map-reading, and have carried it over into running. I use daily disposable lenses, and I only wear them on runs where I want decent distance vision (nice trail runs where there's a chance of some wildlife sightings). I don't wear them on short trail runs or long road runs where proper corrected vision isn't so important. 

true - I've been heading that way with the 735.

Surely you're long sighted not short sighted? 😉

Pedantry duties fulfilled; you can get running glasses with a magnifying area just at the bottom of the otherwise non-prescription lens. I bought Mrs Ridge a pair made by Dual, but putting 'bifocal sunglasses' into Amazon pulls up running glasses with yellow lenses and  a +2 correction for about £16. Might be worth a try to see how you get on.

I'm the other way round from you. I'm short sighted so can see my garmin but nothing much else. In poor (rainy) weather I wear a corrective disposable contact lens (so I can see distance) in my dominant eye, and the other eye is used uncorrected for map reading or looking at my watch.

You'd be the other way round, leaving your dominant eye uncorrected for seeing distance, with the corrective lens in the other eye to see your watch. Your brain rapidly sorts the overlapping images out and selects the best option. May take a while the first time you try it.

I also wear varifocals full time and, (after the initial adjustment where your brain sorts out the weirdness), I have no problem, running, biking or driving wearing them.

You can edit all of the data screens for any activity, so rather than having one screen with 4 small separate panels, you can have four screens (which admittedly you have to manually cycle through) with one large panel. Probably worth playing with and seeing how that plays out.

If the battery is only an issue on bike rides, I'd suggest getting a bike computer - longer life anyway, plus a new battery, and a big, more readable screen.

Yes, long sighted! And good suggestions. Ta

Yeah, I have been playing with some of the displays. Bike computer is on wish list, but I think the watch is needed (or wanted). I was planning a marathon later in the year and it's already at the stage where it would need to be on 100% to get round that time.