Garmin Forerunner 945 LTE finally gets new recovery metrics

Owners of the Garmin Forerunner 945 LTE watch will be happy to know a firmware update with the new recovery features has finally started rolling out. The software is currently in Beta.

We say finally, because this is the only remaining Garmin watch that is expected to get the new functionality. The update has rolled out to other devices, such as the Fenix 7, Epix 2 and Instinct 2, nearly a month ago. Even the Fenix 6 has received a few of the features a few weeks back.

Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets

To remind, this is functionality which debuted with the launch of the Garmin Forerunner 955 and 255 watches. It includes a slew of very useful upgrades, many of them to do with quantifying your recovery.

One of these is the Training Readiness metric, a scale from zero to 100 that assesses how ready you are to train in real-time. This is supplemented by HRV Status, Morning Report, Training Status 2.0 and Daily Suggested Workouts 2.0. Also worthy of a mention is support for native Running Power.

Garmin Forerunner 945 LTE, Release Candidate 7.07

Software Version 7.07, comes along with a new Sensor Hub update. This is still not a public release so you need to be enrolled in the Beta in order to get the features. We’ve published a detailed guide on how to enrol your device in the programme. Once you’re in, the update will come over the air via Garmin Connect.

As this is a Release Candidate, it should not be long before it makes it to public release. Probably a matter of a couple of weeks.

Here are some highlights from the change log. You can read it in full on this link.

• Added Training Readiness
• Added Race Widget
• Added HRV Status
• Added Morning Report
• Added Training Status 2.0
• Added Daily Suggested Workouts 2.0
• Added Running Power
• Added Power Guide
• Added Fitness Age
• Added Spectator Messaging over Bluetooth
• Added Workout Execution Score
• Added Cycling Ability
• Added altitude acclimation widget
• Update UI to the new dark theme used by the latest Forerunner generation
• and much more.

This means that now there is very little difference between the 945 LTE and 955 watch. So if you need something smaller on your wrist, the 945 LTE offers a viable alternative.

It comes in a 44.4mm case instead of a 46.5mm one and untethered safety features. The negatives are that its display is slightly smaller – 1.2 inches vs 1.3 inches. The other important negatives are that you will be missing out on the multi-frequency satellite ability of the Forerunner 955, you get less memory on the watch and fewer mapping features.

Other Garmin watches also get software updates

This is not the only Garmin watch with an active software update. But the upgrades on these other devices are not nearly as big.

Alpha version 9.35 for Fenix 7, Epix 2, Enduro 2 and Quatix 7 fixes an issue causing increased battery drain when using large Strava segments. There are also improvements in the Race Time Predictions and fixes inaccuracies in the reported primary benefit for Training Effect.

The Forerunner 255 and 955 get Public Beta Version 12.25. That one started rolling out a few days ago. The Change log only includes the above mentioned Training Effect fix.

Not to be left behind, the Fenix 6, Enduro, Tactix Delta, Quatix 6 and MARQ watches have been upgraded to Beta Version 23.02. Again, not nearly as exciting an upgrade. It just fixes inaccuracies in the Race Time Predictions.

Like this article? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter and never miss out!