Barometer "Watch Mode" settings on Fenix 5 Series

I figured out by performing some testing on a pressure chamber:

The "Barometer" option means that when the device is in watch mode, changes in pressure will be interpreted as changes in weather/temperature. Altitude readings will therefore not be affected.
The "Altimeter" option means that when the device is in watch mode, changes in pressure will be interpreted as changes in altitude.
The "Auto" option means that watch will try to figure it out on its own.

Try figuring that one by reading the manual !!

Jesus

Hey Jesus,

That sounds right to me, but I'm checking with the device team just to make sure.

Thanks,
-Coleman

Hey Jesus,

That sounds right to me, but I'm checking with the device team just to make sure.

Thanks,
-Coleman

Thanks Coleman, does the latest SDK now have a way to read the ambient pressure? (as opposed to sea-level pressure, which is what Sensor info returned last time I checked.) I ask because I recall recently spotting an app or watch face that displays ambient pressure.

Thanks
Jesus

Jesus,

Thanks for the question. I don't recall any specific additions to this SDK for ambient pressure. There are three possibilities. First, the developer could be using a custom calculation (I'm not totally sure how that would work). Second, it could be a misnomer due to an assumption by the dev. Third, it could be that we have something amiss in the docs. I'll be checking this out with the CIQ and Sensor teams to verify. As of right now, I believe that you are correct.

Thanks,
-Coleman

UPDATE: See the post at the end of the thread by jim_m_58 for updated info.

Has this "watch mode" setting really influence in watch mode only? What about during activity, do it use the auto mode always?
In FAQ https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?fa...Type=noProduct ("Manually Selecting a Mode" section) it refers to "your activity"...it is not clear...
Today MTB activity with barometer watch mode set to "Barometer" gave me half ascent meters than reality. Past activities with barometer mode set to "Auto" gave reliable ascent values.

Sounds strange. If the device was really in barometer mode during the activity, you should per definition have had 0 ascent meter.

Thanks Coleman, does the latest SDK now have a way to read the ambient pressure? (as opposed to sea-level pressure, which is what Sensor info returned last time I checked.) I ask because I recall recently spotting an app or watch face that displays ambient pressure.

Thanks
Jesus

Starting with CIQ 2.4.x, ambient, raw ambient and MSL pressure are all available in CIQ by way of Activity.Info.
I doubt that the setting for watch mode (baro/alt) impacts elevation that's used in an activity - Probably just what's displayed on native WFs or the native pressure widget.

There are options to show the ambient and baro pressure in native data fields on some watches though...