Is a WatchFace allowed to works with Delegates ?

Hi all,

I am working on Watchface for Fenix 3 HR. ( i own really one ).

Is there a way to give to a simply watchface project ( as generated by new project, watchface... ) a delegates behaviour ?
I try to add "input" sample files to the watchface project, then on the simulator pressing button doesn't fire anything.
Same when i added the MenuTest sample delegates file to the same basic watchface project.

Curiously, when i added watchface lines inside the input Delegate, it works...

My goal is allow the user change on his device some settings without need to use his smartphone or Garmin express.

Regards.

Dom

jim_m_58 over 8 years ago

Nope. there is no way for a watchface to get input, along with not being able to do other things like accessing Comm, sensors, vibrations, tones, etc.

Watchface are very limited in what they can do (it's all about the battery!).

From the programmer's guide:

Input and App Types
Not all app types have access to input. Watch faces and data fields cannot handle input, though widgets can receive input (may be limited on some devices) and watch-apps will have the most input capability.

DomdeLek over 8 years ago

Thank you Jim.

DomdeLek over 8 years ago

Share some settings ?

So, can we imagine that the Watchface can read some settings shared with a Widget ( on this widget the delegates are allowed ) ? Then the widget would manage and set some "common" settings, so the watchface would read and use them to set itself.
If the user manages the watchface and the widget to be near on the scroll, it makes the illusion of a watchface having two screens, first one to display the Date/Time and the other one to display any other information and input the sets.

Best regards

jim_m_58 over 8 years ago

You can't share settings or the object store between two CIQ apps. (widget/watchface, widget/device-app, watchface/device-app, etc).

The only real way to configure a watchface is with app-settings (from Garmin Express or Garmin Connect Mobile)

jim_m_58 over 8 years ago

Oh, before app settings, there were a few developers that did find a way to configure something like colors on a watch face, but I think all were dropped right after app settings came out.

For example,

timing how often the user would enter/leave a watch face in a certain amount of time. (so you could swipe back and forth to a widget and if you did so fast enough it would change the color scheme.
setting something like weight/height in the device settings to a specific value, running the watchface, which would set the color based on the "magic numbers", and then changing weight/height back to their correct value
or something like the first one, where doing something like leaving low power mode a few times quickly (with a wrist gesture) would change things.

They "kind of" worked, but were hard to describe, and could also happen by mistake.

App settings are MUCH simpler! :)

DomdeLek over 8 years ago

App settings are MUCH simpler! :)

You are right.

Thank you Master Jim.