Does the Fenix 9 Pro use a different GPS chip to the Fenix 8?

Unconfirmed. The GPS firmware version and satellite behaviour point toward a change, but no teardown has settled it yet.

What is GPS constellation shedding?

It’s when a watch drops a weaker satellite constellation mid-activity to save power, rather than tracking every available system throughout.

Why does the Fenix 9 Pro drop GLONASS specifically?

GLONASS is typically the least accurate of the four major constellations. Dropping it saves power with little effect on position quality, leaving more budget for GPS, Galileo and BeiDou.

Does the Fenix 9 Pro support tri-band GPS?

No. Garmin’s own marketing still describes dual-frequency tracking, identical wording to the Fenix 8.

GNSS chipset Archives -

Garmin Insider News

Fenix 9 Pro’s GPS constellation shedding-Opinion-new chipset

4 September 2026

the5krunner

The Fenix 9 Pro drops an entire GNSS constellation mid-run to save power, confirmed by testing.…