What They Have in Common
Both are Garmin's top-tier golf GPS products. Both pack 43,000+ preloaded courses, Virtual Caddie, wind data, green contours (with a $99.99/yr Garmin Golf membership), automatic shot tracking, plays-like distance, strokes gained, and hazard views. Both charge via USB-C. Both are tournament-legal with the appropriate setting. Same ecosystem, same app.
Where They Differ
Form Factor: Handheld vs Wrist-Worn
This is the fundamental split. The G82 is a 308g handheld — you're carrying it in your hand or mounting it to a cart. It's a 5-inch touchscreen that's easy to read, but you're pulling it out of your pocket or picking it up off the cart mount for every yardage check. The S70 is 44g on your wrist. When you walk up to your ball, you glance down. That difference in friction adds up over 18 holes.
If you ride carts exclusively and like a dedicated device, the handheld format has advantages — bigger screen, easier button tapping with a glove on, no wrist fatigue. If you walk, or if you use a push cart and actually move around the ball, a watch is considerably less annoying.
The G82's Launch Monitor — Real Differentiator, Real Niche
Here's what makes the G82 genuinely interesting: it has a radar-based launch monitor built in. Ball speed, club head speed, smash factor, estimated distance, putting metrics (tempo, stroke length, ball speed). It has a dedicated driving range mode, target practice mode, tempo training, and a virtual round mode. You can warm up with it before a round and get actual data.
That's not a feature you'll find on any golf watch at any price. If you're the golfer who hits the range twice a week and wants swing data without buying a separate unit, the G82 is effectively two devices in one. The tradeoff: launch monitor mode chews through battery at 8 hours versus the 25-hour GPS mode. Plan accordingly.
The S70 doesn't have anything like this. Its Virtual Caddie is arguably more sophisticated for on-course use — it factors in wind, elevation (via built-in barometer), swing history, and shot dispersion for club recommendations — but it won't tell you your club head speed at the range.
Smartwatch Features vs. Golf-Only Device
The S70 is a real smartwatch. Heart rate monitor, sleep tracking, fitness profiles (running, cycling, etc.), smart notifications, Garmin Pay contactless payments, 16GB of music storage. Between rounds, it's a fully functional wearable. Battery life in watch mode is 10 days; GPS mode is 15 hours on the course.
The G82 has none of that. No heart rate, no notifications, no music, no payments. It turns on when you want golf data and that's it. Its 5-inch transflective display is arguably better in direct sunlight than the S70's AMOLED — MIP and transflective displays tend to handle harsh sunlight without washing out, where AMOLED can struggle on bright days — though the S70's AMOLED will look noticeably sharper and more vibrant in normal conditions.
Subscription & Cost
Same deal on both: Garmin Golf membership at $99.99/yr unlocks green contours and aerial imagery. Both work without it — you still get F/C/B distances, hole maps, hazard views, and Virtual Caddie. The membership adds the premium layer. Over three years, that's an extra $300 on top of either device. Worth factoring in.
Who Should Buy Which
Get the Approach S70 (42mm) if:
- You walk the course regularly and want yardages without fishing a device out of your pocket
- You want a device you'll use every day, not just on the course (fitness tracking, notifications, music)
- You care about a sleek, watch-sized form factor — 44g is genuinely unobtrusive
- You want the more refined Virtual Caddie that incorporates barometric elevation data
- You're comparing it to a standalone GPS watch and want Garmin's best smallish-case option
Get the Approach G82 if:
- You want a built-in launch monitor and don't already own one (SkyTrak, Mevo, etc.)
- You hit the range frequently and want data without a separate device
- You ride carts exclusively and prefer a dedicated, easy-to-see screen
- You're replacing both a handheld GPS and a standalone launch monitor — the G82 combines them
- You play in bright sun conditions where a larger transflective display may outperform AMOLED
The Bottom Line
These two devices are more complementary than competitive — a golf watch and a golf handheld-plus-launch-monitor are solving slightly different problems. But if you're picking one for on-course GPS use, the S70 (42mm) wins by being the thing you actually wear. The convenience of wrist-based yardages over 18 holes is hard to overstate, and the smartwatch features make it useful every day. The G82 earns its keep only when the launch monitor matters to you. If range sessions are central to your practice routine, it's a genuinely clever two-in-one. If you mostly just want great on-course GPS and a watch that earns its $650 price tag beyond the golf course, the S70 is the pick.
Get the Garmin Approach S70 (42mm).