Thanks, I had actually already read the WAAS site but could not understand why that would be set to Off for units shipped to the U.S. Oh well, thanks for your help.
Garmin fenix - An Ongoing Review in Several Parts
Suunto introduced the AMBIT GPS/ABC watch and now Garmin has introduced their version - the fenix.
What I would like to do is invite you to join me in exploring the various aspects of the Garmin fenix as I find out about its capabilities, features, drawbacks, surprises, etc.
Since I would like to wear the fenix as an everyday watch, the first question that comes up is just how well does it do as a simple digital watch - ignoring for the moment all the other features.
Here is how it arrived today:
![]()
The contents are the watch, an AC charger/USB adapter, USB to watch cable, product safety information booklet in 12 languages, and two quick start guides - one in English and one in Spanish:
![]()
Deciding to read the booklets later, I turned the watch on, selected English as my language and opted to automatically sync time and date info with the GPS signal:
![]()
I was in my office and expected to have to go closer to a window, or even outdoors, to successfully obtain my first cold sync, but before I could even stand up, the watch had sync'd and was displaying correct time and date info:
![]()
Honestly, I was amazed. Note in the picture above that the computer display actually reads 18:30 (I was a bit too quick on the trigger taking the picture) which is the same as 6:30 PM shown on the watch. My past experience with GPS units of all types has been that if a unit is a long way from its last sync location, it requires some time to gather satellite info thus making for a longer "Cold" start. Subsequent "Warm" and "Hot" starts take less time because the unit knows generally where it is.
My first Cold start was less than a minute and subsequent Hot starts were virtually instantaneous. All indoors. I am thoroughly impressed.
Before doing anything else, I thought it would be a good idea to fully charge the watch using the supplied AC adapter. So at 6:38 PM with the watch at 52% charge, I started charging:
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One hour and 32 minutes later, the watch was fully charged:
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Since I like 24-hour time, I then switched the watch over to a 24-hour display:
![]()
Then I plugged the fenix into a USB port on my computer and went to the Garmin site to register it and check for any software updates.
The watch looked like this when connected:
![]()
And the Garmin site advised me that updates were indeed available:
![]()
The updates were for System software and several language options in addition to the language options already in the watch:
![]()
Details of the system updates:
![]()
The watch updating:
![]()
After a couple of minutes:
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And the watch was on my wrist:
![]()
The display is very easy to read and may get even better once I have a chance to adjust the display contrast.
The stock (Polyurethane?) band is soft, comfortable and is not a dust magnet. The keeper has a lug on its underside which engages the slots in the tail end of the strap so that the keeper stays in place. Lug width is 26mm. The strap is affixed to the watch with two T10 Torx screws which screw into a metal bar in place in the end of the strap. It is a very secure setup. It appears that the metal bar in the end of the strap can easily be removed thus allowing for the easy adaptation to a NATO/Zulu type of strap. Watch for that soon.
There are many main time display options, but note in the picture above that I have chosen continuous display of Hour, Minute, Seconds, Month, Day and Date. All automatically sync'd to the GPS signal.
Other display options include variations on this theme:
![]()
And constant display of battery charge and Sunrise data:
![]()
There are many more options available - too many to show here.
It's always problematic accurately representing a backlight in a photo, but here is my attempt with the watch in semi-darkness with the backlight off and on:
![]()
The watch caseback is pretty straightforward:
![]()
It is comfortable on the wrist with no protrusions or irregular surfaces which could cause discomfort.
There are multiple alarms which can be set for one time only or to repeat daily, to alert with a tone, vibration or both. Alerts which tie into the GPS. A programmable alarm based on time until sunset. Interval timers. A countdown timer settable to the second. A stopwatch.
I've only just scratched the surface of the WATCH capabilities of the fenix, and it has every conceivable timing/time feature I can think of.
One last note for those who live in an "odd" time zone - the watch can be set to sync time/date info with the GPS signal, but you can choose to set your time zone manually.
That's all for the first installment. Next I'll start exploring some of the ABC and Fitness/training features of the fenix.
Please feel free to ask any questions or request any pictures that I have not included.
Hope you all enjoy reading about the fenix as much as I enjoy learning and writing about it.
HTH
What I would like to do is invite you to join me in exploring the various aspects of the Garmin fenix as I find out about its capabilities, features, drawbacks, surprises, etc.
Since I would like to wear the fenix as an everyday watch, the first question that comes up is just how well does it do as a simple digital watch - ignoring for the moment all the other features.
Here is how it arrived today:
The contents are the watch, an AC charger/USB adapter, USB to watch cable, product safety information booklet in 12 languages, and two quick start guides - one in English and one in Spanish:
Deciding to read the booklets later, I turned the watch on, selected English as my language and opted to automatically sync time and date info with the GPS signal:
I was in my office and expected to have to go closer to a window, or even outdoors, to successfully obtain my first cold sync, but before I could even stand up, the watch had sync'd and was displaying correct time and date info:
Honestly, I was amazed. Note in the picture above that the computer display actually reads 18:30 (I was a bit too quick on the trigger taking the picture) which is the same as 6:30 PM shown on the watch. My past experience with GPS units of all types has been that if a unit is a long way from its last sync location, it requires some time to gather satellite info thus making for a longer "Cold" start. Subsequent "Warm" and "Hot" starts take less time because the unit knows generally where it is.
My first Cold start was less than a minute and subsequent Hot starts were virtually instantaneous. All indoors. I am thoroughly impressed.
Before doing anything else, I thought it would be a good idea to fully charge the watch using the supplied AC adapter. So at 6:38 PM with the watch at 52% charge, I started charging:
One hour and 32 minutes later, the watch was fully charged:
Since I like 24-hour time, I then switched the watch over to a 24-hour display:
Then I plugged the fenix into a USB port on my computer and went to the Garmin site to register it and check for any software updates.
The watch looked like this when connected:
And the Garmin site advised me that updates were indeed available:
The updates were for System software and several language options in addition to the language options already in the watch:
Details of the system updates:
The watch updating:
After a couple of minutes:
And the watch was on my wrist:
The display is very easy to read and may get even better once I have a chance to adjust the display contrast.
The stock (Polyurethane?) band is soft, comfortable and is not a dust magnet. The keeper has a lug on its underside which engages the slots in the tail end of the strap so that the keeper stays in place. Lug width is 26mm. The strap is affixed to the watch with two T10 Torx screws which screw into a metal bar in place in the end of the strap. It is a very secure setup. It appears that the metal bar in the end of the strap can easily be removed thus allowing for the easy adaptation to a NATO/Zulu type of strap. Watch for that soon.
There are many main time display options, but note in the picture above that I have chosen continuous display of Hour, Minute, Seconds, Month, Day and Date. All automatically sync'd to the GPS signal.
Other display options include variations on this theme:
And constant display of battery charge and Sunrise data:
There are many more options available - too many to show here.
It's always problematic accurately representing a backlight in a photo, but here is my attempt with the watch in semi-darkness with the backlight off and on:
The watch caseback is pretty straightforward:
It is comfortable on the wrist with no protrusions or irregular surfaces which could cause discomfort.
There are multiple alarms which can be set for one time only or to repeat daily, to alert with a tone, vibration or both. Alerts which tie into the GPS. A programmable alarm based on time until sunset. Interval timers. A countdown timer settable to the second. A stopwatch.
I've only just scratched the surface of the WATCH capabilities of the fenix, and it has every conceivable timing/time feature I can think of.
One last note for those who live in an "odd" time zone - the watch can be set to sync time/date info with the GPS signal, but you can choose to set your time zone manually.
That's all for the first installment. Next I'll start exploring some of the ABC and Fitness/training features of the fenix.
Please feel free to ask any questions or request any pictures that I have not included.
Hope you all enjoy reading about the fenix as much as I enjoy learning and writing about it.
HTH
18
261 - 280 of 1344 Posts
Heh, that friend would be me.
Indeed, as noted, the total ascent/descent was *way* off, as seen in the track I took with my new Fenix during the race:Run Rabbit Run 100+ miler by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details
After hobbling around for a few days, I got out for my usual morning jog the past few mornings: Green by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details Green, FIT by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details
Both mornings, I ran the exact same loop. As you can see, the ascent/descent for those two are pretty consistent, and quite reasonable (not way off, like the track from the race was). Both of those tracks were uploaded as FIT files, while the race was uploaded as a GPX. That got me thinking that perhaps the GPX files only give GPS elevation, not barometric. So to check, I uploaded this morning's route as a GPX also: Green, GPX by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details Nope, apparently that wasn't the problem.
In summary, I have no idea why the track from the race was so far off. It was done in Ultratrac; perhaps that's the culprit? Dunno...
Meanwhile, I'll point out that the ASCENT data item is totally hosed. It reads silly numbers, even when I haven't started moving yet. Seems to be a Garmin bug. The LAP ASCENT appears fine.
I owned an Ambit for a little while before switching to the Fenix. In my thus-far limited experience, the Ambit's altimeter is substantially better. The Fenix just seems to dither more, obfuscating things like VERT SPEED when going up/downhill on foot (it'll bounce around a lot, whereas the Ambit offered a smoothly-varying reading).
Regardless, I'm very satisfied with the Fenix. For me, it's a great choice.
Cheers,
- Fred
hello FredHeh, that friend would be me.
Run Rabbit Run 100+ miler by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details
After hobbling around for a few days, I got out for my usual morning jog the past few mornings: Green by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details Green, FIT by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details
- Fred
. Thanks for being kind enough not to mention you got a lot more data than I did. Guess you found me here. I will have to talk to you more about the fenix. One think I like is using Basecamp to make prospective routes. It is a lot easier than what I did for RRR 100! I may have to try a fenix and then make a decision---I can just hear Jennifer's voice in my head.....another watch!?Brad
When I ran my battery consumption tests above, WAAS was enabled on my fenix. With WAAS enabled, it exceeded the spec of 16 Hours when GPS was in Normal mode. If there is any decrease in battery life when WAAS is enabled, then it is not enough to shorten the battery life to less than the specification.
Here is the WAAS coverage map:
Seems that if you are in North America, you're going to benefit from WAAS.
Here is how it manifests itself on the fenix and how you can tell if you are receiving WAAS correction data:
HOME>Setup>System>WAAS>On
This enables WAAS on your fenix.
Then go to:
HOME>GPS Tools>Satellites(wait for a fix)then scroll up or down until you see this display:
At first, all of the signal strength "boxes" will be plain boxes like satellites number 18 and 22 in the pic. After a while, however, if you are receiving WAAS correction Data, a small letter "D" will be displayed in the upper left corner of the box which denotes correction data for that satellite has been applied.
How do I know the little "D" has anything to do with WAAS? Turn WAAS Off and all the little "D" markers no longer display.
Further, the GPS fix I have shown here was accomplished indoors, in my office, about 30 feet from the nearest window. So I don't think the WAAS data is unusually difficult to receive. Those satellites are probably not as low on the southern horizon as you suspect.
My guess is that since Garmin ships these all over the world, and since WAAS is only for North America, they felt it was easier to explain to North American users why they should turn ON a feature, than to explain to the rest of the world why they should turn OFF a feature.
I thought the Garmin explanation was pretty good: Garmin | What is WAAS?
As I see no evidence of reduced battery life in the fenix when WAAS is enabled, I wonder how germane discussion of battery life in other models is.
My conclusion based on observation and use so far is that if you are in North America, there is no downside to enabling WAAS on your fenix.
HTH
Edit to add:
Upon further investigation, WAAS will only work when GPS is in Normal Mode, it will not work when GPS is in UltraTrac mode.
This is evidently the case because in UltraTrac mode, the GPS is not on long enough to acquire the necessary data. It may also be the case that Garmin software will not allow the fenix to attempt to gather WAAS data, even if WAAS is set to Enable, when in UltraTrac mode.
Note: Satellites #48 and #51 are the two satellites transmitting the WAAS data and their corresponding strength bars will never display the "D" symbol.
2
You can see on that long run that GPS lost signal in one place.Heh, that friend would be me.
Run Rabbit Run 100+ miler by fredecks at Garmin Connect - Details
...
In summary, I have no idea why the track from the race was so far off. It was done in Ultratrac; perhaps that's the culprit? Dunno...
Meanwhile, I'll point out that the ASCENT data item is totally hosed. It reads silly numbers, even when I haven't started moving yet. Seems to be a Garmin bug. The LAP ASCENT appears fine.
Another is you used Ultratrack and if it was 1min interval thats the source of elevation problem and I guess also problem with distance.
Using Ultratrack with 1min when running is not good idea, you can see there is a lot of shortcuts on the track you linked.
HUGE distance! Maybe Ultratrack 30s would be good on that but not for sure. That was 30hours run! What about Ambit's battery and GPS interval, can we see that track?
Hmm, did your test occur in the same office you mention later? See below.
I'm interested in why you think the FAA's flight coverage for WAAS above 200-300ft above ground level for aircraft is applicable to people on the ground? It is true, that in many places with clear view of the horizon, handheld users will get good signal. This does not mean that just as many will have no signal at ground level.Here is the WAAS coverage map:Seems that if you are in North America, you're going to benefit from WAAS.![]()
I'm surprised, so I tried the same. In my office, I receive no gps signals at all. I did receive WAAS in the office parking lot, fairly strongly. I then left the watch on for the ~10 mile drive home. The WAAS satellite signal was gone shortly after leaving the parking lot. All 'D'ifferential data disappeared within about 5-10 minutes. I did not receive any indication of WAAS over the entire drive home.I'd suggest you try it outside your office in some more real world usage. ;-)Here is how it manifests itself on the fenix and how you can tell if you are receiving WAAS correction data:HOME>Setup>System>WAAS>OnThis enables WAAS on your fenix.Then go to:HOME>GPS Tools>Satellites(wait for a fix)then scroll up or down until you see this display:At first, all of the signal strength "boxes" will be plain boxes like satellites number 18 and 22 in the pic. After a while, however, if you are receiving WAAS correction Data, a small letter "D" will be displayed in the upper left corner of the box which denotes correction data for that satellite has been applied.How do I know the little "D" has anything to do with WAAS? Turn WAAS Off and all the little "D" markers no longer display.Further, the GPS fix I have shown here was accomplished indoors, in my office, about 30 feet from the nearest window. So I don't think the WAAS data is unusually difficult to receive. Those satellites are probably not as low on the southern horizon as you suspect.![]()
While you are technically correct that WAAS is North America only, there are systems in other countries using the same correction technique. I would expect Garmin to support them as well.
261 - 280 of 1344 Posts
