There is a great passion for the dials that allow you to customize Garmin smartwatches, which sees, on the one hand, those who buy the smartwatch and want to personalize it to the maximum, and on the other, those who make this dream come true.
As users of Garmin smartwatches (VivoActive, Venu 2, Venu 2 Plus and Venu 3s) we tried all the dials we liked most. And among the best watchfaces for Garmin we point out two of those created by ReedWorks, which are the ones we chose to customize Venu 3s.
Original, versatile, they are aimed at two different audiences: Gradient is suitable for those who want to keep everything under control, love order, linearity and colour. Rails is perfect for those who want to see big (quite literally, the creator’s choice was to make each element clearly visible).
Garmin smartwatch faces: the importance of choosing the right one – Gradient
The suggestion we can give you is not to stop at the first watchface, and to look for the one that is best suited to your needs. So we did too, and Gradient and Rails turned out to be so suitable, that we thought we’d point them out to you.
One of the most interesting features of the Gradient dial is that you can see at a glance how much you are progressing, for each item of interest to you: for data with a positive value, the color level increases and highlights them, while for data with a negative value (from too short a sleep, to a too discharged “body battery”) the color level decreases.
All fields are horizontal, allowing you to see the progress of your statistics, such as steps or calories, or compare the current value with their respective minimums and maximums (for example, current temperature compared to the daily forecast), but also makes the The appearance of the watch is alive and changing, changing with your rhythm.
The free version offers many options, while the premium version is truly spoiled for choice, as there are many possible customizations for each item.
Rails: a watchface that enhances your Garmin smartwatches
What, however, distinguishes Rails is that it highlights the time correctly, with very large characters and well-harmonised contrasting colours, and, at the same time, allows you to customize all the items of interest to you.
Rails, like Gradient, offers many options even in the free version, but if you like it we suggest purchasing the pro version. The developer is very helpful and responds very quickly if you have any doubts or questions to ask.
Creating watchfaces: how and why a passion is born
But how did the idea of creating watchfaces come about? We asked “ReedWorks”, which is the “nom de guerre” of the engineer who developed these, and many other dials (which you can view here reed.works)
“In my engineering career I always liked jobs that involved measuring different things, developing user interfaces, and doing it on small devices rather than more powerful computers.
So when Garmin launched the Connect IQ system it was like a perfect match: I could do all of this, while making watch faces for Garmin.
Another key point (and I think many developers would say the same) is that from the beginning I was thinking about a watch face that I would like to use myself.
Selfish, of course, but this makes you believe in what you do and put your heart into it.
So when you find that others appreciate your creation too, it’s very rewarding.
Then there’s user feedback, lots of good ideas keep coming, so I’m never short of inspiration :)”.
In short, an idea born as a challenge, which then became a real passion. On the Reed Works website you can find detailed explanations of the two dials, as well as the others he created. And certainly, more will come.
To know more:
- the link to download: Connect IQ Garmin, for Apple and Android
- ReedWorks website: reed.works
Note: Images of the Gradient and Rails dials are courtesy of the author
The reviews published on Encanta.it are independent and decided by the editorial staff.
