Instinct 2x has API lvl 3.4.0 instead of 4.2.0

FlowState said:

Garmin will continue to get rid of MIP screens wherever they can

"wherever they can"

I already guessed above that Enduro, Fenix (and maybe Instinct) will continue to have MIP screens in the near future. (Many others have guessed the same thing, so I'm not claiming to be original)

As DC Rainmaker already commented on one of his reviews, the MIP ship has sailed for Forerunners, and I'd guess for any line which has gone full AMOLED.

I also see that a Tactix AMOLED edition has been released, which makes me wonder what "Fenix 8" (or whatever) will look like. EDIT: Now I see that the new Tactix is an Epix Pro variant which makes a lot of sense.

As a runner I don't really care about Fenix that much anyway since I wouldn't buy a Fenix for running. (They're too big and heavy for me. I've seen ppl have GPS issues in the past, possibly because of the metal construction. Not sure if that's still an issue or not, though.)

Oh well, all new tech has downsides, but when it's "good enough", people will usually ignore the downsides (and that's ok). Just too bad that I don't see MIP existing alongside AMOLED 2 to 5 years from now, unlike say, Wi-FI and wired ethernet.

dpawlyk said:

I tried to do my part!

forums.garmin.com/.../display-quality

Thank you! Garmin also tried to sell people on the benefits of transreflective screens, but apparently failed. I linked this before: Garmin Chroma Display. Funny that if I search for "Garmin Chroma Display", the 2nd result is a Garmin forum post entitled "Really disappointing screen Fenix 5 Plus Saphire" from 2018.

I think the problem is once you have to "convince" someone with "facts and logic" that product X is better than product Y despite the evidence of their lying eyes, you've already lost the war. I mean if someone looks at AMOLED and MIP side-by-side (especially indoors) and decides that AMOLED looks much nicer, it's pretty hard to tell them that their opinion is "wrong".

Just like when I tried to explain why Garmins are better in some ways than Apple Watch to a coworker training for his first marathon in 2019.

Him (rocking an apple watch): "Why do you guys wear garmins???"

Me: [useless iPad / Kindle analogy, followed by unsuccessful appeals to outdoor readability and battery life *]

Other coworker (who was also wearing a garmin): Well, Garmin was there first

The apple watch guy ended up implying that we were basically running snobs who look down on non-garmin users ("well I guess I'm a f--- loser for wearing an apple watch :/")

(*)

Me: My Garmin is super readable in bright daylight!

Him: So is my apple watch!

Me: I get great battery life from my Garmin!

Him: I just charge my watch every night

Me: I like to wear my Garmin to sleep so I can track sleep metrics and resting HR

Him: I'm not really interested in that stuff

etc.

(I do think AMOLED is probably a *lot* better for maps, so that's the one exception where I'd find it to be the superior choice of display tech for a forerunner.)

Seems, that in new update Garmin will add API for flashlight beta 14.09 

Nope, it doesn't. 

In released version 14.12 changelog is

Enabled Torch support for CIQ apps.

But in emulator and on real device i can't see that this api is working.

I use this check to show menu item:

    if(Attention has :setFlashlightMode){
        ...
    }

And menu item does not shows

Also i've noticed that for setFlashlightMode changed API lvl to 3.4.3 instead of 4.2.0 but Instinct 2x does have 3.4.2 API lvl.

I've checked that device does have 3.4.3 CIQ.

Have you tried that code on a real device? The device file in the SDK has not been updated to 3.4.3, it still says 3.4.2 so if the function is only available on 3.4.3 I'd not expect it to be available in the sim. But if a real watch is on 3.4.3 then it should be available on the real thing.

Hi gasteropod,

Yes, i have tried code on real device and can't confirm that torch api is working. But i'm assuming that did something wrong. I'll create test app to check this issue more deeply.

I've made simple app with this code

    if(Attention has :setFlashlightMode){
        dc.drawText(self.w/2, self.h/2, Graphics.FONT_SMALL, "Flashlight api exists", Graphics.TEXT_JUSTIFY_CENTER | Graphics.TEXT_JUSTIFY_VCENTER);
    }else{
        dc.drawText(self.w/2, self.h/2, Graphics.FONT_SMALL, "Flashlight api \nDOES NOT exists", Graphics.TEXT_JUSTIFY_CENTER | Graphics.TEXT_JUSTIFY_VCENTER);
    }

and get negative result, means that func setFlashlightMode does not exists. I did check on real device.