Garmin Lily 2 Active Gold

I tested this Garmin Lily 2 Active for a week and I am quite impressed. The built-in GPS is a good addition compared to the normal Lily 2. I sometimes found the small screen difficult to read.

Small size
This small 38 millimeter watch is one of the smallest smartwatches. It fits well on my narrow wrist of 14 centimeters in circumference. The watch is a bit thicker than I expected. I do not find this disturbing at all.

Waves on the touchscreen
There are waves printed on the glass of the screen. This gives the watch a unique look. When the screen is off, you can hardly see that it is a smartwatch. While running, I did have a bit more trouble reading the screen. I operate the watch with the touchscreen and with buttons. The touchscreen does not always respond very quickly to me. This could also be because the screen is so small and I just tap something next to it.

Built-in GPS but no altimeter
The Lily 2 Active is the first Lily model to have a built-in GPS. I think this is the best addition. With this I record all my walking and running routes with my watch and I can leave my smartphone at home. The Lily Active also does this quite accurately. Unfortunately, it does not have a built-in altimeter. This means that I can only see my altitude in the Garmin Connect app after my training. The app calculates this based on my GPS location. I notice that this is a lot less accurate than with a built-in altimeter.

Sports functions
In terms of sports measurements, the Lily 2 Active is not much inferior to the larger smartwatches. I measure my body battery, sleep, stress level and menstrual cycle. I do notice that I do not often view all this data on the Lily itself, but prefer to view it in the Garmin app. I find the screen just a bit too small for this.

Smart functions
I receive all messages and notifications from my smartphone on my Lily 2. I also control my music with it and I can even pay contactless. I also view my agenda and the weather on the small screen. I find this very useful.

Call emergency contacts
If I press the top button for 10 seconds, the Lily 2 Active allows me to call my emergency contacts and send my location. This is useful if I fall during a workout or if I feel unsafe somewhere. Fortunately, I haven't had to use the option, but I think it's a nice addition.