No, I believe it's a "feature" of Garmin watches. By default custom watch faces run in low power mode, which means they only update once a minute. If the watch detects the owner moving the watch in order to look at the display, then it briefly switches the watch face into high-power mode, which means it gets updated every second. Custom watch faces can respond to this by displaying ticking seconds, but only for a short duration.
Excerpt from the New Developer FAQ:
7. Why does the seconds hand disappear from my watch face?
Preserving battery life is something important for all Garmin devices, especially the wearable kind. Our wearables are typically in a low power mode, which updates the screen once every minute. When the device is raised to check the time, it automatically enter a full power mode and updates the screen once every second for about eight seconds. Many watch face creators will take advantage of this full power mode and display a second hand during those few moments, and then hide the second hand when the device goes back into low power mode. This is just one way we work to keep your devices operating for days or weeks between each recharge!
Yes, you can! However, a priority of Connect IQ is the preservation of battery life, so we have a system in place that governs how often watch faces may be updated. Watch faces update at once a minute in low power mode, and once a second when in full power mode. The watch will enter full power mode for a few seconds when the user gestures to look at it, and then return to low power mode. Developers will often detect this transition to full power mode, display a seconds indicator for a few moments, and then hide the seconds indicator once the device returns to low power mode. You can find out more about the low power and full power mode transition in the User Experience Guide, or read about the specifics of detecting these transitions in the API Docs.
7. Why does the seconds hand disappear from my watch face?
Preserving battery life is something important for all Garmin devices, especially the wearable kind. Our wearables are typically in a low power mode, which updates the screen once every minute. When the device is raised to check the time, it automatically enter a full power mode and updates the screen once every second for about eight seconds. Many watch face creators will take advantage of this full power mode and display a second hand during those few moments, and then hide the second hand when the device goes back into low power mode. This is just one way we work to keep your devices operating for days or weeks between each recharge!
