Disappointing battery life

Gr4z I truly understand where you are coming from and that is why I took the time to give you my wordy reply. (Sorry everyone that it was so long.) I just wanted you to know that we care, and to feel free to reach out to us. If you are seeing differences between devices, then we want to know. That is why I was trying to explain some of the stuff that we are looking for and I personally wish you and everyone else would call in with that data. As watches get smarter and do more, the troubleshooting of something like a battery just adds more factors. So the simple fix of please reset your watch and try again is a good troubleshooting step but honestly, we at Garmin are moving away from that due to the fact that we want to get as much information as we can so we can keep improving your devices with software updates. That is why some people here in the forums have commented about how Garmin is asking for files and a lot of questions. Also, my door is always open too, if you want to just talk to me one on one, just message me and we will troubleshoot together. If you decide to do something else, I understand too, just know that we at Garmin are here for you and honestly want to hear back from you.

Gr4z I truly understand where you are coming from and that is why I took the time to give you my wordy reply. (Sorry everyone that it was so long.) I just wanted you to know that we care, and to feel free to reach out to us. If you are seeing differences between devices, then we want to know. That is why I was trying to explain some of the stuff that we are looking for and I personally wish you and everyone else would call in with that data. As watches get smarter and do more, the troubleshooting of something like a battery just adds more factors. So the simple fix of please reset your watch and try again is a good troubleshooting step but honestly, we at Garmin are moving away from that due to the fact that we want to get as much information as we can so we can keep improving your devices with software updates. That is why some people here in the forums have commented about how Garmin is asking for files and a lot of questions. Also, my door is always open too, if you want to just talk to me one on one, just message me and we will troubleshoot together. If you decide to do something else, I understand too, just know that we at Garmin are here for you and honestly want to hear back from you.

PM sent...

I have a Fenix 5 plus Sapphire Ti which is a brand new factory replacement for one that froze. I purchased this model as an upgrade to my Fenix 5 so am very familiar with how these watches should work. The new watch is only 2 weeks old and I am using it in the same manner as the older model.

There is definitely something wrong with either the battery or battery gauge on the watch. Although I do not have exact measurements, I can see a much higher discharge rate with this model of watch over the older Fenix 5. I also see the higher discharge rate after an activity that others have reported. What I do constantly see is a problem with the charging level as shown on the gauge.

This morning I charged the watch to 94% it then jumped to 100%.
I disconnected the watch and the gauge showed 100%.
Restart showed 94%
Charged and again jumped from 95% to 100%
Disconnected and showed 100%
Restart showed 95%
Charged and jumped from 96% to 100%
Restart showed 96%
I did this cycle one more time and gave up at 97%

This is consistent with what others have seen and my own personal experience charging the watch since I got it. I will begin tracking the actual discharge on the watch going forward starting at the 97% level the gauge currently shows.

Is my watch defective and do I need to return the watch or are we going to see a software update to fix these battery problems?

I would not pay $900 for a watch that doesn't function perfectly.

That said, I've now returned three 5+ Ti units for various reasons, including buttons not working, the above battery issue mentioned and massive post-activity drain. There is something wrong with this watch. The F5 was perfect, never had an issue.

As [sic] least they come closer and closer to releasing the Fenix 6 and finally don't care the Fenix 5 plus anymore.
OUCH... did they care much about the Fenix 5 plus since the beginning at all??

I figure I'll either continue returning F5+ watches because of manufacturer defects until the F6 is released, Garmin will get sick of used watches coming back, or maybe they fix the problem? I know, that last one feels like a stretch at this point.

Edit: the fact that I'm post #375 in a thread about battery issues should say everything. Are there any other threads with this amount of action? How is this not a major priority?

So here is an update over the last 24 hours for my watch:

10/11 1:15 PM 97%

10/12 7:00 AM 91%
43 Minute running activity
8:00 AM 86%
1:15 PM 79%
Restart 79%

With 1 activity in 24 hours the watch lost 18% of it's battery charge per the following:

1st 18 hours the battery drain was .33% per hour.
5% more during the activity which was using the GPS.
After the activity it lost 1% per hour. Something indeed seems to be wrong.

I asked this question in my last post but Garmin nor anyone else has responded. "Is my watch defective and do I need to return the watch or are we going to see a software update to fix these battery problems?"

I've been looking to buy a Fenix 5+ and found this forum a few weeks back. The battery life issue is probably the only reason why I haven't pulled the trigger yet. This thread is very interesting to say the least.

I commend Garmin for trying to help out, offering exchanges, and even providing direct contact information, but it's strange why a couple of these issues cannot be reproduced at Garmin. For instance, I 100% believe the stories of users experiencing strange battery drain on their watch after an activity. At that point, it sounds reasonable for Garmin to have that watch shipped to their HQ for further testing and replaced with a brand new unit. Has this been done?

I've been looking to buy a Fenix 5+ and found this forum a few weeks back. The battery life issue is probably the only reason why I haven't pulled the trigger yet. This thread is very interesting to say the least.

I commend Garmin for trying to help out, offering exchanges, and even providing direct contact information, but it's strange why a couple of these issues cannot be reproduced at Garmin. For instance, I 100% believe the stories of users experiencing strange battery drain on their watch after an activity. At that point, it sounds reasonable for Garmin to have that watch shipped to their HQ for further testing and replaced with a brand new unit. Has this been done?

They have offered exchanges under a RMA for some people, not all. I am still suffering frustrating issues as with others.

1) Battery drain after activities
2) General poor battery life
3) Battery stuck at 100% after a charge until a reboot
4) Watch hanging during activity (new one today!)

I charged my watch last night to 100%, went to bed. This morning still at 100% until I rebooted, then 98%.
Played golf for 3.5 hours this morning, lost 18% battery. Watch hung twice during my round and the start & back button refused to work, had to reboot twice. Lost 90 mins of HR activity during the round and after ending the game it saved my activity but did not save my score!
1 hour after finishing lost another 2%. Using stock watch face.

Very very frustrating on something that is so expensive, my experience seems to get worse.

I am happy to help Garmin try and sort these out, but then for the cost I should not be a beta tester. Its even more annoying that my 935 has been flawless for the last 14 months. I only upgraded to get a better look with Spotify/Garmin Pay an added bonus.

Any news of this? Are Garmin working on a fix?

I went to a store to day and they literally opened two brand new boxes of the 5 Plus and 5x plus so I could try them on.

I can't wear the 5x, it's too big and the strap is too wide. Not for 24/7 usage for me. So i'm left with the 5, but I think I would be pretty annoyed by this PABD issue. Plus it doesn't do much for the batteries life span.

This morning I tested for the issue regarding battery meter after charging. I charged overnight with using a charger (not through PC).

disconnecting cable - battery 100%
reset - battery 100% (holding controls button til shut down - then quick press to start)

9 hours later repeated the check
battery before and after reset was the same at 98%

Yikes. I charged my watch to 100% and immediately started syncing a new playlist to Spotify. I ended up falling asleep while my 5+ synced via wifi and the Spotify app was left open all night (no music was playing). I woke up to 53% battery left and it dropped to 40% after another few hours in smartwatch mode.

So, don't do that.