Watchface: M2

This is the support thread for the M2 watchface:

 has created a Facebook group for designs here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/423319952037948

And this PDF files contains a quick visual index to the designs posted in this thread: >>>    ForumProfiles1.pdf    <<<

To create your own design or modify one, install & use the M2 Designer app on your watch. These are the steps you would go through:

  • Optionally paste a text code into the "Profile Text" setting of M2 Designer & save the settings, or load one of your previously saved designs (either via the settings or the in-app menu).
  • Run the M2 Designer app (found underneath your activities list) and create your design.
  • Once you've finished, open the Garmin settings for M2 Designer.
  • The text code in "Profile Text" will now represent whatever your design looks like, so copy the text code from "Profile Text" - and be careful to select the whole text.
  • Close the settings for M2 Designer.
  • Open the Garmin settings for M2 (watchface) instead.
  • Delete any text that was already in "Profile Text" - this step helps to avoid potential problems
  • Paste the text code into "Profile Text".
  • Save the settings.
  • Now when you view the M2 watchface it will show your changes.

A guide for accessing the Garmin settings is here: https://forums.garmin.com/developer/connect-iq/w/wiki/14/changing-your-app-settings-in-garmin-express-gcm-ciq-mobile-store.

Profile text for the default display = 01Ys2525111WDPO1011WwWO020Vc121VZ11WwXw03X7C11WwVd035C13NC13XDC19010000

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Notes on 12-hour and 24-hour display options - see 4 posts down (with Oldest first) ...

See the latest posts by clicking newest (if it is visible just below) or using the page navigation (if visible at the very bottom).

  • My watch is fenix 5s+, fw. 11.00

    i mean, that the alarm won’t ring. It did work with the original watchface from Garmin 

  • Ok, thanks Slight smile

    It should be impossible for a watchface to stop the alarm ringing, so that must be something else ...

  • I had been having issues with profile switching as well but recently got it working.  (after much trial and error)

    From what it looks like with my troubleshooting it seems like when there is a leading 0 in the time, that breaks something and it reverts to 00:00 when saved.  So, for example, I wanted watchfaces to switch at 7AM so I had to enter 7:00 as opposed to 07:00.  I had assumed the leading 0 was necessary so that's how I had been trying to enter it.

    Once I started entering those times simply as 7:00, the setting would stick and I'm now able to get the profiles to switch successfully.

    Also, I had initially been leaving the days blank thinking that would default to every day.  However, I started entering 1234567 and that seems to be retained as well now.

    I hope that helps others get this working!


     Could you speak to the Status Update Rate setting a bit and better explain some of the effects of that?  Is that setting saved with each profile separately so that each profile can have different update rates?  It doesn't seem like it does, but I could be wrong.  How much of an effect does that setting have on battery life or watchface performance?

    Do you have recommendations on when you would use a low setting such as 5 seconds vs 30 or 60 seconds?

  • thanks for that info on the activation times - it's very useful Slight smile I'll check these combinations and other ones at the weekend.

    The "Status Update Rate" is an overall setting for the watchface (so not saved with any profile). It affects how often M2 will check for a change in phone connection or the number of notifications you have. Note this only gets done if you have something which has depends on one of those statuses. Checking for a change won't cost anything at all. But if there is a change, and something depends on that change, e.g. an icon changes visibility when the phone is connected, or you display the number of notifications pending, then M2 will force a full redraw of the whole display.

    And a full redraw is expensive - normally only done once a minute (at 0 seconds). If you set a status update rate of 60 seconds, then it basically turns off any extra updates, as the redraw at 0 seconds always occurs anyway (that's just how Garmin have programmed the watchfaces).

    Setting a faster status update rate than 60 seconds - will just mean you get faster feedback on your watch when a status changes.

    Normally, setting a fast update rate isn't a problem. Unless you happen to get tons of notifications coming in every few seconds all day long - then it could force a lot of redraws. Or if your Bluetooth connection to your phone became bugged (I think this can happen rarely ...) and your phone connection started turning off & on every few seconds - then that would also force a lot of redraws.

    So if you're worried about having random battery drains set the update rate to a high number of seconds, or if you don't care about the watchface status taking up to a minute to update.

    And if you need the watchface to update immediately, then set it to a low number of seconds.

  • Markdotai, thank you again for your quick reply. Please see below the settings your requested:

    Profile 1

    • The profile text - 01ZC2525111W3KO1011X6Wk023VnR22VmR21VnR1XgVZ13VeF14R0Vd1WHW924S0O3VfF13QF13VgF1BAF11YMW904T0O3WHF13QF13ViF1BPF11X6YD03X7H13NF135H13NF13XDH17010X6WXYn17050X6XrYh11X6Yn04H14YQVX0RZCVX0Vd3VaG13UG11WdVZ24L0VV3VVF1
    • The profile number - 1
    • Activation days - 1234567
    • Start & end time - 06:00 & 19:20
    • Any other useful setting I missed - Nothing

    Profile 2:

    • The profile text - 01ZC5225111W3KO1011X6Wh023Vm122Vm121Vm11X6YJ03X7G13NF136G13NF13XDG11X6Yq04H02YgVX0RYwVX0VeZCVX0Vd3VaF1
    • The profile number - 2
    • Activation days - 1234567
    • Start & end time - 19:25 & 05:50
    • Any other useful setting I missed - Nothing
  • Hello everyone, just like you I do have some issues with the switch between profile 1 and 2 as the second one does overwrite the first right from the moment it is displayed (it means even if I set up the 1 after the 2, the 1 is displaying until the time of the 2 comes and from there it never comes back..). Can't figure why ? Both are well saved as 1 and 2.

    load 1 set up : start from 10h00 / end 00h00 (I have tried 23h59 too)

    load 2 set up : start from 00h00 / end 00h00 (have tried 0h00 / 0h00 - also 00h00 / 9h59 or 10h00) ...

    No success for now !

    I do have another question : I don't think that's possible to show a different color on an element - the first hour digit for ex - depending on the steps count. Ex white from 0 to 1000 - Red from 1000 to 8000 - Yellow from 8000 to 10000 - Green over 10000

    Cheers everyone (and sorry for my english!),

    Lionel

  • Hey Lionel,

    I can confirm the same behavior.  Per my previous post, I had finally gotten the watchfaces to switch on their own but then it seemed to only work once as you described.

  • It is still on my to do list to add the FR375 - but it's actually an involved change for me to try this and has a lot of implications due to the non circular display!

    Things like the seconds indicator and all the rings/arcs around the outside will no longer work as they are now, and the offsets of items on the display would need modifying. If you tried to load a profile from a circular watch, and something was off the top of the display on the 735, then should be it be shifted down, or should it be deleted instead. What about half visible, half not!

    Maybe I could try making this a separate watchface - but I still need to think about it Slight smile

  • Yes, that semiround display is very annoying. I don't know why they made it.

  • I've just been looking into the problems with profile loading Slight smile My description above of how it works was actually wrong, so apologies for that! (I've deleted that description to avoid confusion, and I'll write a new one below). It's been a while since I've used it properly, which is why my memory of it was incorrect (or of M1 maybe ...)

    It actually appears to be working as intended from my tests, and these are the key points I've relearned:

    1. There is no default profile <<<<<< this is a crucial flaw in my previous explanation. (If there was, then it wouldn't be possible to switch to others manually from the settings, as it would keep returning).
    2. Lower number profiles take priority if two are set to be active at the same time (I was correct about this one)
    3. It's always safest to set the Profile Management to “Load” or “Save” in order to load or save the activation times for a profile so you are sure which profile is being affected. (If you leave it on "Current Profile" then the profile number in the settings isn't used and it applies to whichever profile is currently active).

    But given the above, you can set up your own “default profile” which M2 will always return to – you actually want to use a high number profile, e.g. 24 (although it could be number 2 if you only use 2 profiles). And set your "default profile" to activate on all days 1234567, and all the time 00:00 to 24:00 (or also 00:00 since they are the same ...)

    Then you can create some lower number profiles which will temporarily override this one. E.g. set profile 1 to activate on all days 1234567, but only between 01:00 and 08:00

    Hopefully this makes things a bit clearer now Slight smile