Develop app independent of smartphone?

I don't own a smartphone, so naturally I can't use some of the features on my Venu. However I do own a PC.

So I'm wondering why I can't get the same functionality on my PC that the smartphone app provides.

In short, I'd like to create an app that does the following:

1. Add to-do items on my PC

2. When my watch is in range (bluetooth or wifi) or connected via USB, automatically sync the todo items to my watch from my PC (not smartphone).

3. Use the app on the watch to complete/edit todo items.

4. Sync the todo items back to the originating service (perhaps by even calling a webservice directly from the device?)

Of course all of this would presuppose an internet connection, which I think is available on the Venu via wifi, right?

flowstate over 5 years ago

For a CIQ app to connect directly to the internet, I believe watches need to support music and not just wifi (e.g. 935 supports wi-fi but not music -- the wifi is only used for syncing activities / communication with Garmin servers). Yes, your Venu supports both wifi and music.

However, I will quote Jim on this one, since I don't own a Garmin that supports music:

forums.garmin.com/.../makewebrequest-json-error--400-invalid_http_body_in_network_response

"Music devices are very rarely connected to wifi (only downloading music or syncing). It's actually hard to try a ciq app using wifi on those."

So I'm not sure if your app can connect to wifi "on demand" as opposed to just "happening to be connected to wifi".

I imagine that Garmin has optimized for the opposite case: people who have a smartphone and not a PC.

jim_m_58 over 5 years ago

Some edge devices will connect to wifi if you aren't recording an activity (could be the same with some handhelds, I'm not sure), Wifi is a power drain so you won't see the same on watches. Some watches won't even use wifi to sync music unless you are plugged into a charger

The simplest solution for you might be to pick up a cheap phone or tablet (you don't need cell service on them), and run GCM on it. That's what I do if I get an new phone. The old one (that had a $15 trade in) doesn't have cell service, but I have it connected to a second garmin account where I have old/retired devices. The phone/tablet just uses wifi for it's data connection, and ble to talk to the garmin device. No monthly charges. A cheap solution.

kakins over 5 years ago in reply to jim_m_58

jim_m_58 Thanks for the response. I'll give some thought to the simpler solution you mentioned.

But I'd like to also nail down whether or not a watch-only solution is possible. I'd actually be fine with the requirement to have the device charging/plugged-in in order to sync over wifi. I have to USB-connect my device anyways to do several things, like transfer music, so doing other stuff at the same time wouldn't hurt.

That said, do you think it's not possible or just difficult? Difficult is fine for me, I like experimenting.

If it could be possible, I've noticed the Garmin API docs but haven't dug into them yet. I've also seen some previous posts on the forum from people asking a similar question. Basically, it's "Can I make arbitrary http requests from the watch?" I think that's essentially what I'd need, assuming the API allows me to recognize when the device is connected and can begin the sync process with a web service.

kakins over 5 years ago in reply to flowstate

@FlowState thanks for the response! I see Jim's response below. Going to do a bit more digging before I give up completely

kakins over 5 years ago in reply to kakins

Also, after reading a bit more, I've stumbled across items like makeWebRequest. My guess is that I'll run into issues others have already seen. I'd definitely like to avoid going down a dead end.

jim_m_58 over 5 years ago in reply to kakins

kakins said:
That said, do you think it's not possible or just difficult? Difficult is fine for me, I like experimenting.

Not possible