Gear Review: Garmin tactix 7 Pro Ballistics Edition Watch

I’m not a watch guy, and I’m certainly not a “tool watch” guy. I’ve worn an unadorned stainless steel analog watch for a very long time. Then I saw a guy at a local PRS match reading his target data off his watch. I was impressed, so I ordered one.

Since then, I’ve worn the Garmin tactix 7 Pro Ballistics every day for the last year and a half. I’ve worn it on hunts and medical missions across the US and around the world and yet I still haven’t used all of the features it has. It’s an amazing piece of technology.

I don’t think I’ll ever need some of the taxtix 7’s features. I don’t see myself needing the HAHO/HALO/Jump calculator and if you ever hear of me using a round canopy again, run for the hills because the end is nigh.

It’s NV optic readable (yes, I’ve tested it). You can push a couple of buttons and block all signals coming out of it and another couple buttons and wipe it clean and return it to its factory defaults. There are multiple watch faces to choose from. You can get and receive texts and phone calls through the watch. Heck, you can even stream or download and listen to music through it. I don’t think I’ve used much of any of those features.

I think I’ve used all the navigation features, though.  I’ve used them on some volunteer medical missions overseas and even more on hunts. On recent archery pronghorn hunts in Nebraska and Wyoming I was able to view and mark locations of water sources, scope high points of terrain for spotting locations, and locations where I had seen promising herds…and then navigate to them, any time day or night, all using the watch only.

By incorporating the map features with the ballistic data, I could mark locations where I though pronghorn might be and then create a target table based on locations from the topo map to the target. That allowed me to essentially create a range card with predicted holds prior to ever actually setting foot on those locations.

For Wyoming, that let me know that it was unlikely I’d be able to get close enough to use my bow on a particular watering hole where I’d seen a big buck, but I could back up to a particular hill 600 yards away and come back a month later during rifle season.

The weather apps are pretty cool, too. You can set the watch to warn you of upcoming storms based on barometric pressure changes and then pull up a weather radar map of the area. I’ve specifically used that feature when hunting in remote areas and in one instance it absolutely saved me from getting caught in a rapidly approaching hailstorm in Nebraska.

There are also a host of health and workout features and I was surprised at their usefulness. But that’s not what I got the watch for. I got it for its built-in Applied Ballistic app. And it’s amazing.

The Garmin tactix 7 Pro Ballistics watch includes the extremely popular (for good reason) Applied Ballistics solver and data set pioneered by shooting uber-nerd, Bryan Litz (praise be his name). Anything you can do with the mobile Applied Ballistics software app can be done with the Garmin tactix 7 watch. That includes multiple firearm and ammunition profiles. The only thing limiting the number of profiles is the physical memory on the watch.

You can program two different wind speeds as well as wind angle, shot angle, environmental data, custom drag models, anything you’d need. In fact, since the watch has its own barometer, I’ve found it’s actually faster and more accurate to use it than my phone app.

Inputs can be made either standalone on the watch or on the AB Synapse app pairing your phone to the watch. Using the AB Synapse app, you can also upload your profiles to the cloud for backup.

For hunting or most days practicing on the range, you’re most likely to use the main Applied Ballistics screen that allows you to quickly toggle through the inputs to change the distance, direction of fire, wind 1 and 2, and wind direction. This will quickly provide your wind and elevation holds. Should your target move, you can very easily increase the range or wind speed to provide new holds. If you back out to the main watch screen, those last holds will remain on the primary display.

Alternatively, you can use the Range Card screens that will provide your holds, as well as a wide variety of other data like energy delivered, time of flight, lead, velocity at target, etc., at whatever range increments you choose.

For competition matches where distance to the target is known, or when you have time to create a traditional range card for your area, you can use the Target Card screens to input specific ranges to identified targets. Next to each of those inputs will be the hold for that target.

Range and wind can be input manually on the watch face either using the touch screen or the button on the case. To be clear, you don’t need to use them both, all of the controls are redundant. If for some reason you don’t want to use the touch screen, you can use the buttons, and vice versa.

Environmentals can be input in several ways. Mostly simply, you can manually input all of the information directly. You can also have the phone use data from the nearest known weather station. Finally, you can pair it with any of the compatible Kestrel mobile weather stations. Here’s a list of the current compatible Kestrel devices:

5700AL Elite
5700AL-I ITAR Elite
5700AL-R Elite with prebuilt Ruger profiles
5700XAL X-hardware Elite
5700XALSF X-hardware Elite for SF
5700XEL ABX Elite (Military version)  

Similarly, distance can be input manually or through a compatible rangefinder. Currently, those include:

Bushnell Nitro 1800
Leica Geovid Pro 10×42 AB Plus
Leica Geovid Pro 32
Safran Vectronix Terrapin X
Sig Sauer KILO 2400 BDX
Sig Sauer KILO 3000 BDX
Sig Sauer KILO 3KSig Sauer KILO 4KSig Sauer KILO 5K BDX
Sig Sauer KILO 6K HDSig Sauer KILO 6K HD Compact
SigSauer KILO 8K-ABS
Sig Sauer KILO 10K-ABS HD
Vortex Fury HD 5000 AB

Battery life for the Garmin tactix 7 Pro is 28 days with its solar charged battery, assuming you’re actually outside and it’s getting sunlight. Eventually you’re going to need to plug it in and recharge it, which you can do using the supplied power cable. My only complaint is that it’s not something as common as a USB connection, but you can buy spare cables for about $20 if you should lose the original.

The case is a fiber-reinforced polymer with a titanium rear cover. The glass is sapphire. The strap is nylon. The size is massive (51 x 51 x 14.9 mm). It’s waterproof up to 10 atmospheres or about 330 feet. It’s got a built-in flashlight that shows in green or white light and at multiple power levels. That’s particularly great if you’re an old dude who has to get up and pee while tent-camp hunting at night.

Put altogether, the Garmin tactix 7 Pro Ballistics watch incorporates several valuable pieces of technology into one device, it’s total is greater than the sum of its parts.

Specifications: Garmin tactix 7 Pro Ballistics
Strap material: Nylon Lens Material: Power Sapphire
Bezel Material: titanium
QuickFit watch band compatible
Physical size: 51 x 51 x 14.9 mm
Weight: 89 g (case only: 61 g)
Display Size: 1.4” (35.56 mm) diameter
Display resolution: 280 x 280 pixels
Battery life:
Smartwatch: Up to 28 days/37 days with solar
Battery Saver Watch Mode: Up to 90 days/1+ year with solar
GPS Only: Up to 89 hours/122 hours with solar
All Satellite Systems: Up to 63 hours/77 hours with solar

All Satellite Systems+ Music: Up to 16 hours Max Battery
GPS: Up to 213 hours/578 hours with solar
Expedition GPS: Up to 62 days/139 days with solar
Charging method: Garmin proprietary plug charger
Memory/History: 32 GB
MSRP: $1,599.99 (about $1,300 retail)