Garmin Connect app won't even show you data sync'd from a watch unless its online and connected. Simple things like hours slept, or miles walked will not show. Right now it just has a "server maintenance" message, and won't show anything that uses a graph, or historical data...nothing is stored locally.

On my recent hiking trip, the watch had no problem recording and sync'ing tracks, but the connect app refused to render any of that data until mobile data was connected again.

Update: it won't load the weather anymore either. I'm fairly sick of the 'cloud' in general nowadays

I can see current stats in app... steps, weakly activity and so on. Sync doesn't work properly, but high level stats are there.

Just never use apps that require cloud connection to store your data.

I was give a garmin vivofit 3 as a gift and was soured by the fact that I had to create an account and log in to set the time.

I've been very slowly working on a fork of gadgetbridge[1] to support the vivofit 3 for a while now and can successfuly set the time with no account!

1: https://github.com/mjsir911/gadgetbridge

Exactly the same here, except I got Vívomove HR. My fork with WIP implementation for Garmin is at https://github.com/mormegil-cz/Gadgetbridge/tree/garmin-wip Basically everything (time, FIT data sync) is working except the primary thing I wanted (notifications) which seems to work fine, except it does nothing. (And the code is ugly and sometimes problematic.)

> to set the time.

A month or two ago I was stumped by this on my Forerunner 735: the time was wrong but I could not find a way to set it, even after a factory reset. Turns out the time sets itself from GPS after a solid lock, but you have to make it trigger a lock, by e.g starting an activity. Only after the on-device setup and having a correct time did I sync it with the app (it wasn’t even phone paired)

Do they? Last Garmin product I had was a Vivosmart HR: an internet connection and a Garmin connect account was required to change basic settings such as the display orientation. And there was no way to disable syncing.

My Forerunner 935 is basically the same story today. I can't do anything on it via the mobile apps. I guess I probably could do something with their desktop app and the USB cable, but it's really struck me how crippled the device seems today with their servers down, basically nothing is available or works at all through either Garmin Connect or ConnectIQ mobile apps. The apps don't appear to have any recent data cached locally either.

I'd consider my Forerunner 220 almost completely un-crippled. I went for a run this morning, tracked it and got pace and distance information the whole time. If I look at my wrist, it tells me correctly that the time is currently 9:49 AM. If I unlock the device and scroll to the History tab, my run, and all previous runs since last September and their details are visible there. It acquires the GPS satellites the same as it always has. If I push the start button, it starts a new run.

It's true that I can't open my phone or PC and view past activities, but that's a very small part of the way I use my watch.

What are you doing with the mobile apps that makes your watch crippled without the Connect apps?

I can't alter a watch face - i.e. alter the fields displayed. I'm not wanting to download a new face, just alter one already download and present in the app and on the watch, or alter any data fields around specific activities.

I get syncing to any 3rd party service is clearly totally out unless I manually transfer the .fit file via USB and I understand why this would need their servers, although it would be good if the mobile app allowed transfer of these files, without requiring a laptop and USB cable.

There's no reason for the entire mobile app to be totally and utterly broken because their servers are down. There's a huge amount of functionality in there that should just work locally without needing an internet connection. I can't even set an alarm via their app without it needing an internet connection!?

There is absolutely no reason for requiring an internet connection for basic features such as setting an alarm or the 12/24h time format. I contacted Garmin customer support and they replied with corporate PR stuff, not answering my questions. I sold the watch a couple weeks later, won't buy Garmin again.

On my Garmin 935 I can set an alarm directly on the device without using the mobile app.

I can do all of that directly on my 735.

I agree that the mobile app shouldn't be broken with the server down, but I've got a FR 935 and can alter my watch face and set alarms through the watch.

Watch Face

1. Hold down up/menu

2. Hit start

3. Select Watch face

4. Hit start

5. Select customize

Alarms

1. Hold down up/menu

2. Click down to select clock

3. Hit start

4. Hit start again to select alarm clock

5. Navigate down to add alarm

Unlike on fitbit, I can set an alarm directly on my Garmin watch. (Vivoactive 3).

I consider this a huge +

The inability to change settings or sync data from a local device connected via Bluetooth is a huge flaw. The inability to view historical data in the app is more understandable but still a major shortcoming, especially since mine appeared to be cached until the last cloud update timed out and the cached data disappeared.

I'm fairly certain memory isn't an issue for my devices to continue collecting data, but there's no good reason to prevent Bluetooth comms between phone and watch when the internet is unreachable.

source: I use a Forerunner 945 for fitness & all-day tracking, and a Vivosmart 4 for sleep tracking

That's how the higher end Forerunners work, too, for that basic functionality -- but the more advanced stuff that the 220 doesn't offer are the things being discussed here.

many people (I have no actual data to say whether it's "most" or not) buy these things and pay the related premium prices so they can use many more of the features they come with that the basic ones you list.

Try creating a relatively complex multi-step workout without garmin connect now that the old win 3.1 looking desktop app doesn't work anymore

> My Forerunner 935 is basically the same story today. I can't do anything on it via the mobile apps.

I also have a 935.

Today I've so far recorded two activities. I can see my heart rate, and RHR for the last 7 days, I can see my training status (including VO2 max, lactate threshold, etc), I can see footsteps taken today and over the last 7 days, I can see my calendar, I can see my calorie burn today and over the last 7 days and I can see details about activities recorded on the device all the way back to December 18th.

The device isn't at all crippled.

I could see all of that stuff (Garmin Instinct) until the app refreshed, and it all disappeared. Now only shows my steps and calories.

That said, I don’t care too much. I only use the app to track my weight and look at historical data for runs. Honestly the watch doesn’t lose much value to me

It's still there for me too on my Vivoactive 3.

They prompt you when you download Garmin Connect about whether you want to upload your data or not. If you choose not to upload then they'll store a local copy and let you look at some basic stats.

It's under Settings > Profile & Privacy > Data > Device upload. But it constantly shows "an error has occured now".

Depends on the product. Something like an Edge bike computer will be fine at least.

Although I do wonder if my ride this morning actually happened because it's not on Strava... :P

In case you don’t know this, you can connect your garmin device to a pc and manually upload the .fit file (the device looks like a usb storage device to pc/Mac) from the device to strava

The Vivosmart is more like a Fitbit. I don’t see it as a stand-alone device.

Does it still count steps and track your heart rate without internet?

I tracked a 20 day trip down the Grand Canyon on my VivoSmart.

I think it has the storage for a few months worth of continuous tracking before it needs to sync to free space.

Based on my experience using a Vivosmart 4 for sleep tracking, often in remote areas w/o mobile signal, it does store that data to be synced later. Obviously it has a finite memory but I don't recall having ever lost data from the device.

I seem to recall my iWatch syncing fine without cell service. I've got a Forerunner 945 right now, it's always stunned me that the app caches nothing. You cannot so much as see how many steps you had or how many hours of sleep you got without data service to your own. And Garmin software is... not exactly first-rate, let's put it that way.

FYI for anyone else reading: Google maps lets you download maps for offline use.

Getting that to work consistently is a real pain in the ass. I drive around Europe a lot and I'll download maps to save on roaming data and often I've downloaded a place and my phone still wont be able to generate directions for me. I don't know if I miss little spots that are needed to connect my end points or if it is just broken. It's been this way for quite a while. I've downloaded routes themselves and had that fail as well.

It has a transactional guarantee of "maybe". I would _definitely_ not rely on this functionality for anything other than non-critical or time sensitive casual navigation on roadways.

When I'm out in the bush, I need my device to be up and working locally. It seems that stuff designed in SV just assumes the lifestyle of 100% connectivity is universal.

Do you have any recommendations for digital mapping solutions that “just work” without connectivity?

Gaia GPS is fantastic. You can mix and match layers, and specify what bounds you want to download for a trip.

Right now I've got 3 GB stored locally, some of that for the usual locations that I wander out of connectivity, and some for a trip next week.

Garmin (formerly Delorme) Earthmate despite their other issues is great for state or province wide vector maps. Not as great for fine navigation and tracking (as it's designed to be paired with and control an InReach), but good for point of interest exploration.

I love Gaia on my iPhone and iPad, but I’ve had real problems with map layers not displaying lately. MapBox Streets and Gaia Streets are both hosed and I can’t figure out why.

Forgive the potential facetiousness of my reply because I know it's not exactly what you're asking for, but if you know where you'll be then save the images somehow. Knowing how flakey Apple Maps is without connectivity, if it's important, then I'll take screenshots of the route before I leave, for the same reason I'll print out important slides of a presentation because even a lo-fi plan B is better than total failure.

Are online maps really that much better than a paper map? The only real improvement is the same as that of mp3 over carrying a walkman and bunch of tapes. There's not much beyond that, for all the hype.

Like so many things (Amp/SPA websites; social media; 24 hour rolling news…) they seem to me to not really improvements over what we had, because someone somewhere tried to lock the customer in. Maybe that's just misanthropic luddite me.

Typical satnav devices work fine without internet connectivity. Of course, such a device won't work if it can't connect to satellites providing positioning data but I think that was not what you had in mind when you said "connectivity".

OSMAnd.

https://osmand.net/

I installed it on my old phone (and the new one and my tablet .) I placed it on a handlebar mount and I'm mapping and navigating my vacation.

Trailforks is power hungry but is great if you're on-trail. If you're off trail, hilariously Garmin Explore I think is pretty good, you can download Topo and USGS maps, but logging in isn't working right now :) so look elsewhere

Here Maps for vehicle nav. If you download the maps of course. OSMAnd and Windy Maps w/ on device maps for outdoor. Here is also used on Audi's satnav I think. The voice is the same and the missing roads are the same.

maps.me has saved me many times in places with zero connectivity. I can also import my planned adventures as kml files to be sure I'm on track.

Osmand has full offline navigational functionality for free and uses as well as contributes to the open street maps data set instead of a proprietary one. I've used it to save my bacon a few times when I tried to start navigation well away from cell coverage.

Last time I tried, Google maps wouldn't do any kind of offline routing for walking or cycling, amongst other annoying limitations.

That's because Google requires their servers to offload their patented Most Dangerous Path algorithm for cycling directions.

The Graphhopper routing service is great for cycling. It even has different bike profiles, walking and hiking. The bike profile is essentially a touring bike and the algo is tuned to avoid slopes. Road bike sticks to the road, MTB uses backroads and footpaths. Hiking prefers more scenic route even if they're longer.

Here we go (silly name) allows for offline maps as well and it's pretty good software.

There are also quite a few offline navigation and hiking/adventure apps. Standalone GPS devices can be rugged but that's about their only advantage. It's silly to complain about smartphones not working off the grid when all you have to do to fix that is tap a button before you leave home.

And given that GPS services are free, it's fantastic when you need to find your way around a town in a foreign city. I was using it to find my way around the medina in Marrakech last year.

I can't add a new device. just got a garmin index scale and it's a paperweight until they solve this.

Don't worry, even if you could add the scale to your profile the scale doesn't currently work.

Ouch. Index 2 is being released this autumn.

What about their Inreach products, which are designed for backcountry SOS emergency calls to search and rescue? That certainly needs a network.

Messaging and SOS are up, billing is the only thing that's down: https://status.inreach.garmin.com/

InReach messaging was down for quite some time. It worked wed am, did not work at all after that (either sending or receiving) through mid day fri at which point sending was very spotty (messages sent to groups were not received by all group members). Appears to have improved by Friday evening but not 100% even then. Saturday 25th it seems to be working... no idea if SOS was similarly impacted but I would suspect it may have been.

From my understanding it doesn't rely on the internet or Garmin servers. I believe it was called Iridium satellite network. It needs to work anywhere on the planet. It is a separate subscription based service.

They do use Iridium, but its not clear who runs the end-service...if you use the SOS feature, it contacts a Garmin center (i believe), who then dispatch the appropriate services. Its not an actual sarsat plb.

So if Garmin's system is down, there is a very real risk that these services won't have anyone on the other end to answer the call.

It doesn't contact Garmin. It's a shared emergency response center akin to some home security system companies. They share with a few tracker services.

Update: The use GEOS https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=garmin+...

Do you happen to know the name of the company? I didn't see one while i've been browsing for it, and it doesn't seem to be iridium themselves

edit: Thanks!

GEOS https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=garmin+...

For anyone considering an InReach: If you only need it for SOS (not for messaging), it’s a very bad investment. You can get a cospas/sarsat based PLB which has the same SOS functionality with no subscription fee. It’s funded by various governments.

About two weeks ago, my wife, young sons, and father-in-law saved the life of a hiker in Colorado using an InReach. The messaging helped dispatch decide to send helicopter. According to doctors, she had less than an hour to live by the time she arrived.

Also, having the messaging functionality meant that we knew they weren't injured.

Beacons don't allow you to provide details, but they are better than nothing. Out of 30 hikers that passed by, my family was the only one with satellite-based emergency reporting capability.

All devices function as USB mass storage devices as far as I know, so no data is lost.

I was planning to load a bike route from komoot on to my FR735 later today which will take an additional minute without Garmin servers. They're surprisingly optional.

except for possibly the data that is in the cloud and not stored locally any longer.

I can upload basic metrics from my Fenix 3 (steps, HR, etc) and see them in the app but I can't upload an activity I did earlier today (a run) to see the stats on it.

You can upload the activity via PC: the FIT files are directly accessible via USB mass storage in the "Activity" directory. This allows you to upload FIT files to cloud-based services such as Strava to see your running stats, or into a PC-based application to do the same locally.

I concede the point though changing settings on some of their devices should not require the cloud. I appreciate their design allows you to change stuff from their web console and apps, but the dissenters in this thread make great points with good counter examples.

I can't use the express app with my watch, even though I got the link to the express app from my watch's documentation page :D good grief