Related
This discussion has been locked.
You can no longer post new replies to this discussion. If you have a question you can start a new discussion

How to properly set Apple Health app to gather information only from my Garmin Device ?

nessip.
over 5 years ago

It seems that Apple Health ignore steps value from Garmin Connect App. For example I've made 3000 steps with my Garmin watch on wrist...but only half time with my iPhone in my pocket. So...Garmin Connect shows 3000 steps...but Apple Health shows only 1500. But it also shows last runs, trainings etc. So connection and write/read permissions are set but somehow data from iPhone has higher priority than data from Garmin device. Is there any way to disable iphone collecting steps and use Garmin data instead ?

Best Regards,

nessip

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    Actually, Apple Health has the ability to filter out dups, but garmin is not properly creating the steps record, which is causing the behavior you are seeing. It’s garmin, not apple

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    Steps is one of the few things that Garmin didn't implement completely wrong in HealthKit, so I'm surprised it's not working for you.  Short answer first:  Go into Steps in Health, and scroll to the bottom where it says "Data Sources & Access".  Then scroll down to where it lists data sources.  Click 'edit' in the top right and then drag Connect to the top of the list.  That should do what you want but still allow you to use iPhone data as a fall back.  You can also uncheck any sources you don't want used at all (in this case your iPhone) but that will mean you will never have data stored from that device or software.

    Garmin writes steps in 15 minute intervals, Apple writes them as they happen, with no spans longer than 10 minutes from what I have seen.  So a person with a Garmin watch carrying an iPhone who walks 15 steps at 8am and then 15 steps at 8:05am will have two entries from the iPhone.  One that says that from 08:00:07 to 08:00:20 you took 15 steps and one that says from 08:05:12 to 08:05:27 you walked 15 steps.   You will also have one entry from connect that says from 08:00:00 to 08:14:59 you walked 30 steps.   Regardless of which you have prioritized you still should see 30 steps in the graphs/charts.   

    I haven't tested this, but I suspect the problem is a scenario where you take 15 steps at 8:00, put your iPhone down, and then take 500 steps at 8:05, finishing before 8:15.   You will now have two entires:  One from the iPhone that says from 8:00:07 to 8:00:20 you took 15 steps and one from connect saying that from 8:00:00 to 8:14:59 you took 515.  I THINK that when Health decides what to show, if you have the iPhone prioritized it will say ok, I know for a fact about those 15 steps, but that time overlaps with another lower priority data source, so I will throw the other one away because it has no idea when in that 15 minute window the steps occurred.  Thats why Apple (and every other app I've used) writes the data based on when it starts and stops rather than arbitrary windows of time.    If you have Connect prioritized over the phone, you would get all 515, but if you even took your watch off halfway through the window and just used a phone (or app, or Apple Watch) you would lose the steps that Connect didn't report.  Doing it the way Garmin did is fine if you assume you are the ONLY source of data that a person will have.  no iPhone info, no Apple Watch, no third part apps, or other hardware..... just Garmin Connect. 

    And I actually consider this metric as working compared to most of how Garmin implemented HealthKit because they at least time stamp it!

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to WizardlyHat

    Great answer, so detailed. Unfortunately I'm not able to uncheck iPhone from data sources. I have my Garmin Connect at the top but iPhone still puts data into Health Disappointed I think thats iOS fault that can't really respect other data than own.

    https://photos.app.goo.gl/nZMwJX8Yxs7SBhix5

    https://photos.app.goo.gl/4fYgsoG9DMHT2mSb8

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to nessip.

    Two things.  First, the iPhone should still put that data into health.  That doesn't change.  Apple's view is that they should store all the data, but Health will follow your prioritization when it reports out. That way you can change your mind later, or compare what each device recorded/etc.  This is a much better model than failing to record the data at all.   Was Connect at the top before or did you just move it today?   If you just changed it, look at the total it is giving for steps in Health, not what data is behind the scenes.  Sorry about the check mark, I forgot you can't change that one.  If you go into your iPhone settings, look for "motion & fitness" and turn off fitness tracking, that should stop the iPhone from recording.  I can't speak to what else it might do though since I've never messed with that setting.

    Also, did you manually total up the entries from Connect and compare them to what you are seeing in the connect app to make sure they match?  I would think they should, but I've never validated that and wouldn't be surprised if Garmin had something wrong there as well. 

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to WizardlyHat

    Another great comprehensive answer with questions. Connect was on the top all the time but Fitness tracking was enabled I don't know why because I remember that I disabled it some time ago. I have disabled it again and we'll see how it will work now. 
    Thanks @WizardlyHat (odd that mention doesn't work) for analyse and pointing things to look for :)

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    I've made a petition that I have been sharing that will help everyone get the proper Apple Health integration. You can sign it here : https://chng.it/MTBWNzs9Fh