Another thumbs up to linking to the Concept 2 rowing machine, or at the very least offer rowing as an option in the sports! It does seem a very strange omission, it's a very common exercise machine to use.
I know this doesn't solve the problem...but I did write an excel program to create a TCX file from a Concept 2 PM4 to then import to GC manually. Please see this thread
I start my F3 at the same time as the app so the info is on my watch (for recovery time/TE) but delete the automatically uploaded file from GC and use the manually uploaded TCX file created from the app.
Note that you will need to use an older style HRM (not the HRM-RUN) to get valid heart rate with the PM4.
Current PM5 firmware should work: More/Turn Wireless ON/Or Connect with ANT+ and the older watches FR60/70/210/310/610/910 (I'm making that list from memory, don't hold me to it!) should work. Newer watches (920, 230, 235, vivoactive, fenix3, etc. google 'ConnectIQ compatible devices') are all ConnectIQ based and would require an app; and cannot use the ANT+FE profile Concept2 follows. There is a newer profile ANT+FE-C which Concept2 is working on (write to me via email directly or look for upcoming beta firmware), but someone will need to write an app to load on these newer watches. If you are a ConnectIQ developer and reading this, feel free to contact me via email and we can talk.
So for the Fenix3 and other connect IQ we somehow need to encourage someone to write an app. I would make a donation towards or pay for an app for sure if anyone takes on the project.
Garmin would need to make their technology available to Concept2 in order for the PM4 to "talk" to the new devices. Concept2 is working on creating an interface for this to work. Our developer is not certain if any new capability will be rolled back to the PM4, but will be a function of the current PM5 monitor.
Now we just need someone who knows how to write a program for IQC ....
Is there some reason to believe that the folks at Concept2 aren't already looking into this?
Also, ConnectIQ doesn't currently provide a mechanism to record data that it would get from an external device. If the PM5 did broadcast the appropriate data, it could be displayed but not recorded... Yet.
What exactly are you looking for? Do you want the data to be displayed and optionally recorded, displayed only, recorded only? I'm guessing you'd want both. What data might you want to display (time, distance, pace, average pace, estimated 500 time, ... and lap/last lap variations of those)?
I'm thinking you'd want something very similar to the built-in Run/Cycle/Swim apps, but that talks to the rower for data. It would have user-configurable data screens, be able to record the workout, and automatically upload the data to Garmin Connect just like the native apps do. Right?
Yes, that would be the perfect app but I didn't know the apps couldn't record, what a bummer. I'm guessing that it only picks up standard Ant+ devices like power, cadence, speed and HR?
Travis you describe a perfect app. I don't care if data is displayed at all, I'm to busy dying on the erg to look at it :) It would just be great if the rowing data, at least some of it, like distance/power/cal/spm/time/pace could somehow later be uploaded into garmin connect. The data is there and available in other formats, like in rowpro log or saved to usb directly from the pm5. Any innovative ways of getting some of this into Garmin connect?
My erg and Garmin are going through an unwanted divorce.
Any innovative ways of getting some of this into Garmin connect?
I have no idea what format the data that is stored on the PM5 looks like. Assuming it is in some open format, it should be possible to translate it into a format that Garmin Connect will accept (.fit, .tcx, .gpx). As pointed out above, there is already software available to do this, some of which is free.
That said, I don't think it would just sit tight. Garmin has announced that they are trying to provide a way for ConnectIQ to insert data into the .fit file data stream. Once this functionality is available, a ConnectIQ application *should* be able to record data that comes from the fitness equipment. Once it is recorded, it should upload to Garmin Connect just like anything else. The one hitch may be that there might not be the infrastructure on Garmin Connect to complete the circle. i.e., you may be able to upload the data to Garmin Connect, but it may not know how to present it in a useful way.
