Garmin Connect Plus Initial Review: A Clumsy Start
Garmin's new subscription service, Connect Plus, promises premium features. But does it deliver? First impressions are mixed.
Garmin recently unveiled Garmin Connect Plus on March 27, 2025, a new subscription tier bringing enhanced AI-powered features to its ecosystem. While the move to a paid model surprised some users, I want to share my detailed thoughts as a tech reviewer who has been closely following AI developments. While I believe the current implementation might be clumsy, it represents an inevitable and potentially exciting future for personalized health and fitness technology.
The Subscription Surprise That Wasn’t
Unlike many commentators expressing outrage on Reddit and other forums, I wasn’t shocked by the subscription model for Garmin Connect Plus. Having followed AI development closely since the advent of ChatGPT, I understand the significant underlying costs involved.
Running AI models isn’t cheap – API costs for models like Claude can range from $1 to $5 per million tokens, and whether Garmin is paying for API access to large providers like Google, Anthropic, or OpenAI, or bearing the compute costs of running models on their own servers, there’s a tangible expense involved.
This cost is likely what many critics overlook when questioning the $6.99 monthly or $69.99 annual subscription fee. From my perspective, offering such compute-heavy features entirely for free might not have been feasible for Garmin at this stage.
Critiquing the Current Offering
Despite understanding the potential costs, I want to clarify that I’m not currently endorsing the Garmin Connect Plus model in its present form, particularly because it isn’t free. I believe an alternative approach could have been a beta program, perhaps initially limited to users with premium devices, although I acknowledge Garmin likely aimed for a broader release.
The core issue I see is the perceived value proposition right now. The AI component, called Active Intelligence, is currently in beta, and while other features like the Performance Dashboard and enhanced LiveTrack might potentially justify a Plus tier for users with specific needs, the overall package feels like a clumsy start.