If you have a Garmin Fenix 6 on your wrist and had spent months seeing race predictions that did not match your fitness, beta 29.02 arrives precisely for that. Garmin has revived software support for the watch it launched in 2019 with an update that fixes Race Predictor, the tool that estimates potential 5K, 10K, half-marathon and marathon times from training and metrics such as VO2 max.
A single fix: Race Predictor
The changelog for version 29.02 lists a single item, and it is precisely the one affecting day-to-day use: Garmin fixes a bug that caused Race Predictor to generate incorrect values. The update is distributed through the public beta program and installed from the watch itself, using the “Check for Updates” option and a Wi-Fi download, with no computer required.
There are no new features or performance changes in the release note. It is a small update technically, but a relevant one in practice: it restores trust in one of the metrics many runners check before a race.
Why the times looked unrealistic
The issue became visible during the summer, when several owners began reporting predictions that suddenly improved after logging an activity. One user saw their 5K estimate go from around 27 minutes to nearly 18, without their VO2 max changing in any equivalent way. Those kinds of jumps do not match a real change in fitness, let alone within a single session.
Garmin acknowledged the problem and said in July that its engineers had identified the cause. The fix was expected in August, but it has only appeared now with beta 29.02. The previous software version, 28.02, dated from March 2025, so this beta breaks roughly 18 months of silence on the platform.
The Fenix 6, a 2019 generation that is still alive
More than seven years after launch, the Fenix 6 is still receiving maintenance, which is unusual in the smartwatch world. The update also reaches models that share the platform, such as the original Enduro, the Tactix Delta, the Quatix 6 and the first MARQ models.
For many owners, staying with this watch is not nostalgia: the hardware still covers what a runner or an outdoor user needs. Maps, navigation, PacePro, training metrics and battery life measured in days remain valid arguments. For context, we have already reviewed the tally of faults on the Fenix 9, the most recent generation, where the number of open issues shows the opposite end of a watch’s life cycle.
What changes for you
If your Fenix 6 has been giving predictions you do not believe for months, beta 29.02 is designed exactly for that and is worth installing. Keep in mind that it is beta software: if you use the watch daily for training and would rather not take on the risk of an occasional glitch, you may prefer to wait until the fix reaches the stable channel.
If what is on your mind is switching watches for other reasons — display, new sensors or more training features — this update does not change that decision. It only extends the useful life of a watch that, seven years on, still does the job for anyone who does not need more.
