18% of 56 verified Vivoactive 5owners don't recommend it, and 1 describe specific problems — based on real owner comments from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube.
For balance: 55% recommend it. This page collects the complaints so you know what you're signing up for — read the full owner report for both sides. How we score
“So disappointed they removed Stairs. I feel like I need to stick with the Vivoactive 4 for this reason.”— @dianacrabtree6546 on YouTube
“It's really disappointing they removed the altimeter, it's basically makes tracking skiing/snowboarding useless”— @tchomicz1992 on YouTube
“Aod can be pretty useless outdoors. I really miss the mip display”— @PhonicWheel51 on YouTube
“I'm disappointed and will be looking at other lines from Garmin.”— @murdock6159 on YouTube
“They should have kept MIP for Vivoactive 5 and add solar.”— @ted363636 on YouTube
“But as soon as I saw it has a AMOLED screen I was out! I love the transflective MIP screens.”— @tophlovr on YouTube
“My worst fears for the Vivoactive 5 :( it has AMOLED :'( sad to see when a company does not listen to their customers.”— @danielmejia5879 on YouTube
“The Vivoactive 4 had an altimeter so I'm surprised they removed it from the 5”— @MatthewLenton on YouTube
“Disappointed with Garmin's exasperated fragmentation of their offer.”— @schina108 on YouTube
“Vivoactive 5 shouldn't have taken away stairs/elevation feature, and definitely shouldn't have taken away the stainless steel bezel.”— @AC-tn1cy on YouTube
“no matter what I changed in the settings or custom stride length it was always way off on distance and pace”— @ZumbaFitnesswithAmy on YouTube
“Looks laggy.”— @SomeFrenchDude on YouTube