Fenix 5 - Altimeter/Barometer Major Issues

Former Member
Former Member
Background:
I recently purchased the Fenix 5 watch around Christmas time. I live in Boulder, CO and do a lot of trail running, backcountry skiing, and general outdoor activities. I was a Suunto user for the past 5 years, but I wanted to give Garmin due to a variety of perceived upgrades. There are a lot of things I like about my move to Garmin, but a major issue seems to be surfacing regarding elevation reading and tracking. For the past few weeks I was under the impression that I didn't understand the Barometer/Altimeter settings and that this was likely the source of my problem. However, after trying different settings and reading information on these forums I've unfortunately concluded that regardless of what setting I have the elevation is simply never accurate.

Issue:
Inaccurate elevation reading and tracking throughout the day and during activities.

Most Recent Examples:
1) I calibrated my watch manually last night before bed. When I woke up, the elevation reading changed from approximately 5,300 ft to approximately -6,700 ft.
2) I calibrated my watch manually when I arrived at the office and since I have typed this message I've gained roughly 3,000 ft in elevation.
3) I went for a run and upon finishing my watch informed me that I gained roughly 2,700 ft when I know for a fact it was only 1,500 ft. This is really troubling since I'd hope that when GPS is on that the elevation would be accurate, but evidently this isn't the case.

On other random days I've looked at my watch and it has varied from -65,000 ft to 67,000 ft. I simply have no idea how it is even registering those types of elevations.

HELP!!!! This is a very frustrating issue. Am I correct to think my only option is to send the watch back to Garmin and hope to receive a replacement that has functioning sensors?

Any thoughts or suggestions are appreciated.
  • How hard is it to understand that if the true ambient pressure around you is different from yesterday, you can't have the same altitude reading as yesterday without a new calibration of your barometric altimeter?




    So please explain me, how can my watch do something like this in the video?
    I understand that the pressure is changing, but the altitude should not change so dramatic.
    I calibrated the altimeter this mornig, my altitude was 328m over the sea level. Now it's -23901m ...

    I reseted the watch to it's factory settings. And the problem was gone for a couple days until today.

    https://vimeo.com/316563253
  • You are confusing two different topics.

    The topics I was talking about, is the weather induced variations of some 100 meters which should be expected for a barometric altimeter which actually works as intended. If one doesn't want that, one will need to make sure that the altimeter is calibrated frequently, which can be done manually or automatically.

    The topic you are talking about, is a barometric altimeter which doesn't work as intended. It is either broken, or - as other users have experienced - sensitive to static electricity. In either case, calibration will not help you.

    ... and did you really need to revive a 9 months old thread for this?
  • B0lek I would suggest that you try to clean the ports on your device since soap, dirt, or salts from sweat could clog the sensor ports. The suggested way to clean the ports is by soaking the watch in warm water with a little mild detergent.
    If that does not work, then please contact your local Garmin support team to talk to us about exchanging your device.
  • As an owner of a watch that is working fine I can say this works pretty well (if it works). Barometer does show changes but the Altimeter shows very precisely and independent on what floor I'am, I can see the difference between being at home and at work, even if I move up a some floors for a few minutes. Almost constant Altimeter levels corresponding to where I am at, while the barometer is dropping for the coming storm. Of course over several days it can drift a little, but thats ok I guess.
  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 6 years ago
    Garmin what about a hardware fix for the static electricity from clothing affecting sensors? I get the sensors readings messed up when wearing polyester jackets. I know it was asked before. Well one more try.
  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 6 years ago
    I am not seeing anything funny here. I think it is pretty sad. I fear that Garmin at some time in the future will remove the barometric altimeter from their watches because too many ignorant users will not accept simple physics and instead complain about the watch.


    I agree with you 100%! I'm always reading post that my run, bike ride or walk started and ended at the same location, but my broken watch is showing 150' difference. Some of these post also say that Garmin agreed to replace their "defective" device, or that they're currently on their 2nd or 3rd "defective" device. Hopefully, Garmin won't abandon the barometric altimeter and maybe they'll give users the option to turn it off and use elevation based on GPS geographical surveys for those that don't understand how their barometric altimeter works. Because we all know how much more accurate that is. :rolleyes:
  • Well there seems to be some real trouble, a friends watch goes up and down 100 meters while my watch stays at a constant height with both staying in the same location. Also her barometer shows the exact opposite of mine. Going up while the trend on mine is downwards (in sync with the weather report).
  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 6 years ago
    Well there seems to be some real trouble


    Nobody's disputing that there can't be faulty barometers out there as it appears with your friend's watch. My comments are based on the many post you read on the forums for watches with barometric altimeters. They post their experiences and it's very clear that if they understood how their baro alt worked they'd realize there isn't an issue at all.
  • Well there seems to be some real trouble, a friends watch goes up and down 100 meters while my watch stays at a constant height with both staying in the same location. Also her barometer shows the exact opposite of mine. Going up while the trend on mine is downwards (in sync with the weather report).


    When the surrounding air pressure at your location is changed by the weather, and the ambient pressure sensor in the watch consequently sees a changed ambient pressure, the watch has to guess whether this ambient pressure changed was caused by:
    1. The watch being moved to another altitude
    2. The air pressure at your altitude being changed.

    Depending on the result of this guess, the watch will either change its display of altitude or its display of barometric pressure.

    Your watches have a setting for which choice to take in these situations. The available options are:
    Barometer Mode.
    Altimeter Mode.
    Auto Mode.

    My guess is that different options are selected in this setting in your friend's watch and your watch.