I just picked up a Garmin 620 and did my first two runs with it. The first run was an easy 5 miles at a steady effort. Clear skies and no foot pod - no problem with signal or erratic pacing. The second run was 8 miles with some intensity sprinkled in - half mile to full mile at what was supposed to be 6:15 pace. Heavy clouds on the second run. My pace was all over the place with no correlation to RPE. It was jumping from 3:00 to 10:00 min/mile so I’m not talking about minor swings. I got fed up with it and paired my foot pod.
This is my first GPS watch so I’m getting used to its idiosyncrasies. I’ve done a fair bit of reading though I’m still a bit unsure how this watch operates and would appreciate it if someone could open my mind. From my understanding it’ll pull GPS until signal is lost at which point it’ll switch over to the internal accelerometer. If GPS is switched off, it’ll use the internal accelerometer unless it’s paired with a foot pod. I get the feeling that my issues stem from the internal accelerometer. Is there a way to disable this and have the watch pull data from the foot pod when GPS is lost? Or will I have to start my run first to find out the GPS signal is crap and then manually switch to the foot pod? I’m coming from 3.5 years with a foot pod watch and right now I’m regretting my investment in the 620.
The watch has software version 2.90 and GPS version 3.10. I realize updating the software may help with some minor issues but I don’t think it’ll change the order of operations for how it calculates your pace.
Thanks.
I haven’t had any issues with my 220 (yet). I would check out some of DC Rainmaker’s articles and reviews on the 620. He may have something in there on your issue. I read through them when I was looking at which watch I wanted. I believe he said that when you’re on GPS, it’s not reading the foot pod at all. It will only read that indoors on the treadmill when you don’t have GPS. I don’t have a footpod, I just use the GPS and internal accelerometer as most of my runs are outdoors. It’s pretty consistent when I run on the treadmill, but it’s not accurate. Always reads my pace faster than what’s on the treadmill, no matter what treadmill I’m on. I would try updating the software first and see if that fixes it and just give it a few more runs. I bought mine used so maybe it went through some of those growing pains for the original owner. None for me though.
You should update the software. The latest rev substantially improved the GPS tracking.
As well, even though the watch may be in “ready” mode indicating that it has a gps fix, best practice is to wait until indicated pace goes to 0 while standing still, before you start your run. The gps lock will improve, and you will get better pacing and tracking.
Having said that, instantaneous pacing via a gps signal is always going to be sketchy. The built in accelerometers “learn” over the course of your runs so that after about 10 runs, things get mych better.
i have the 220 and do not experience the erratic swigs you mention. call garmin, they may have some troubleshooting tips
I’ve had the Garmin 405, then the 610, and now the 620 for the past several months. I love the light weight, long battery life and immediate GPS pick-up of the 620, but it is the least accurate of any watch I’ve had. Mostly it measures correctly and marks miles at the same places my previous watches have indicated for many years of running. But occasionally it measures long. This morning I ran a short 3 miles per the Garmin with a stupid slow pace and noted the first mile was way off. Checked the route on map my run which had it at 3.28. The 620 was way off. Yes, I’ve updated to the latest software. In fact, I had to last week to get it to even work. It had stopped measuring miles altogether…just the time as if it were a stopwatch. E.g. 45 mins to cover 0.01 miles. The software update took care of that but the inconsistent distance measurement is maddening. I’m beginning to think the 620 is a lemon.
whats the date of the latest firmware update?
You should update the software. The latest rev substantially improved the GPS tracking.
As well, even though the watch may be in “ready” mode indicating that it has a gps fix, best practice is to wait until indicated pace goes to 0 while standing still, before you start your run. The gps lock will improve, and you will get better pacing and tracking.
Having said that, instantaneous pacing via a gps signal is always going to be sketchy. The built in accelerometers “learn” over the course of your runs so that after about 10 runs, things get mych better.
have all the bugs been corrected in this firmware update?
You must update the software of your watch. The problem is only due to the software. If you already updated it then again try. Also go for the testing of the Hardware of your device. The problem might be there in any of the component.
low cost pcb