Garmin Vivoactive 6 smartwatch adds a smarter, sleep-sensitive alarm for optimal performance in and out of bed

Garmin has launched its 2025 update to its Vivoactive smartwatch lineup, and that is none other than the Garmin Vivoactive 6.

Smart Wake Alarm? On a watch?

New to the wearable (and Garmin as a whole) is a Smart Wake Alarm feature. When it’s roughly the right time to get up (a 30-minute window that’s preselected by the user), the watch wakes them during lighter sleep stages with a light vibration. Failing which, it will still wake you up at the last possible minute in your window. This is unlike dumb alarms that go strictly by the minute and blare in your face while you’re still groggy and annoyed. 

In case you’re wondering why it matters, sleep is actually categorised in stages. The light sleep phase is most conducive for waking up, and deep sleep is when most of your recovery happens. You can read more about sleeping here to make the most out of your performance in bed, but we’re moving on to the rest of the Garmin smartwatch for now.

Garmin Vivoactive 6 versus previous model (Vivoactive 5)

Also newly added in the Garmin Vivoactive 6 is Daily Suggested Workouts. These are daily walking workouts that adjusts its intensity based on how rested you were before.

When compared to the previous Garmin Vivoactive 5, the watch is otherwise similar in broad strokes. However, the new version adds more metrics for running, brought on workout animations (previously available in other Garmin watches), doubled its internal storage for songs to 64GB, among many other minor changes.

While the Garmin Vivoactive 6 kept the same display type (AMOLED), display size (1.2-inch, 390 x 390 pixels) and case size (42mm) Garmin reduced the thickness by 0.2mm. Functionally, both Vivoactive 5 and Vivoactive 6 spec sheets show they are similar in water resistance (5 ATM), protection (Corning Gorilla Glass 3), right down to battery life (11 days in smartwatch mode) and connectivity (Bluetooth, GPS, GNSS).

You’re still getting all the main perks like Body Battery, an energy level indicator that tells you the best time for workouts and rest, a Sleep Coach for sleep opmitisation, the HRV status for checking heart rate variability, Stress Tracking, Meditation and Mindful Breathing tracking, and Pulse Ox for blood oxygen saturation records. For women, it comes with Women’s Health, that tracks menstrual cycles or pregnancy, along with nutrition guidance.

Pricing and availability

Garmin Vivoactive 6 comes in face/strap colour combos like Black/Slate, Bone/Lunar Gold Jasper Green, and Pink Dawn.

It officially retails at S$459 at Garmin Brand Stores, Lazada, Shopee, its official distributor store, Takashimaya, and other authorised retailers, from 18 April 2025 onwards.