Garmin Forerunner 955: The Premium Level Smartwatch with Music Playback
Garmin has always been a frontrunner in the smartwatch market, and their latest release, the Forerunner 955, is no exception. This premium-level watch offers many features that set it apart from other models on the market, including music playback. If you’re looking for a way to add an extra level of motivation to your fitness regime, then this watch is perfect for you! In this article, we’ll discuss how you can use the music features on the Forerunner 955 to your advantage. Stay tuned!
Does the Forerunner 955 have Music?, yes there is 3 different playback options, and is compatible to multiple music files.
The Forerunner 955 Has 3 Different Playback Options
The great thing about smartwatch’s is that the next generation watch will progressively advance. As for the Forerunner 955 it is no different. Over it’s predecessor, the music playback will provide a more improved user experience.
There are three different music playback options for your Forerunner 955 watch.
- Third-party provider music
- Personal audio content
- Music stored on your phone
You can store audio content on your Forerunner 955 watch, and then listen to it when your phone is not nearby. You can connect Bluetooth headphones to the watch to listen. If you want to keep your phone out of the equation altogether, you can load music onto the watch from a computer using Garmin Express.
Connecting Your Forerunner 955 With a Third-party Music Provider
Before you can download music or other audio files to your watch from a supported third-party provider, you must connect the provider to your watch.
If you haven’t already done so, create an account with a supported third-party music provider. For example, if you want to download Pandora stations, create a Pandora account at pandora.com.
From the watch face, swipe to scroll through the widgets until you find the Music widget. Press and hold Select an option:
- To add a new provider, select Add Account.
- To connect an existing account to your watch, select an account from the list. If you have multiple accounts with the same provider, you’re prompted to choose which account to connect.
- To remove a provider from your watch, select the provider, and then select, then remove.
Downloading Third Party Audio Content
The first thing you need to do is download some music onto your phone. This can be done through any number of ways, but we’ll assume you’re using either iTunes or Google Play Music. Once you have some tunes downloaded, it’s time to get them on your Forerunner.
There are a few different ways to transfer your music over to the watch, but we’ll focus on the two most popular methods: using a computer or downloading directly from your phone.
If you want to use your computer, you’ll need to connect your Forerunner to it using the provided USB cable. Once it’s connected, open up either iTunes or Windows Media Player (depending on what you use) and select the Forerunner from the list of devices. From there, you can drag and drop any music files you want onto the watch.
The other option is to download directly from your phone. This is probably the easiest method, but it does require that your phone have an active data connection. To do this, simply open the Garmin Connect app on your phone and select the music icon from the bottom of the screen. From there, you can browse your music library and select which songs you want to transfer. The watch will do the rest!
Downloading Personal Content to the Forerunner 955
The first thing you need to do is get your own tunes onto the watch. The Forerunner supports MPD and WMA files, and there are a couple of ways to get these onto your device. You can either sideload them from a computer using the Garmin Express application, or you can transfer them directly from your phone using the Garmin Connect app.
Once you’ve got your music files sorted, it’s time to create a playlist. This is done in the same way as creating a workout on the device – just head to the main menu, scroll down to ‘Music’, and select ‘Create Playlist’. From here, you can add whatever tracks you want to your playlist, and even give it a custom name.
The Forerunner 955 Can Store 2000 Songs
What can I say. The amount of music storage in the Forerunner 955 is pretty impressive. In comparison to it’s predecessor, the Forerunner 945 could store up to 1000 songs. Even that is still a very big number. Still though that’s a lot of songs that you wont get to power through during your work out’s.
Music Formats You Need To Know
Garmin devices that support music storage can store up to 2000 songs. The Forerunner supports MP32, AAC, and WAV music file formats. You can use the Garmin Connect Mobile app to load your favorite tunes onto your watch.
You do have to be aware of any windows media files as they are not supported natively on the device and must be synced over to the device using Garmin Express. This is a pretty easy process and the software will walk you through it.
The other file formats to be aware of is the m4b format. This format is typically used by recorded pod casts. The problem with this format is that the file can not be skipped over like other music files, which isn’t ideal when you are out on a run. This issue is not resolved yet. A future update by Garmin will be released to fix this issue.
Protected AAC music files can also be an issue as well. These types of music files are typically from a music subscription service like iTunes. The files have to be DRM-free in order for them to play on the Forerunner 955. DRM (digital rights management) is a form of copyright protection for digital media.
If you want to know more about the music formats, check out the support forum by Garmin
Synchronising Music Playlists Can Drain Your Battery Fast
When you sync playlists from third-party music providers, your watch connects to the internet. This uses a lot of power. The longer the watch is connected to the internet, the more power it uses. So we recommend that you sync your playlists when your watch is close to a Wi-Fi hotspot. When the watch is close to the hotspot, it downloads music more quickly and uses less battery life.
Final Conclusion
So, the Garmin Forerunner 955 can play music! And not just any music, but high-quality tunes that will help you push past your personal best. This smartwatch is perfect for athletes who want to have some extra motivation during their workouts. The Forerunner’s 955 Bluetooth connectivity means that you can connect it to wireless headphones or earbuds without impacting your battery life. Plus, the Forerunner’s music features are easy to use and make it a great choice for athletes who want to enjoy their favorite tunes while they work out. Thanks for reading! we hope you enjoyed this article.
