InReach mini - how do track points sync?

My issue is that I have inReach set to 1 min log interval and a 10 min send interval. If I follow along live on the Mapshare site or explore.garmin.com, my track is showing up live with the 10 min sends. This is an acceptable interval for hiking but unless riding on a freeway in a straight line is a complete mess for a car/motorcycle when they draw straight lines connecting random positions every 10 mins....

So, eventually I get to a point where Mapshare and Explore both will update for my 1 min log data but I can't figure out what the trigger is. Here are some ideas I have seen but haven't been able to confirm:
1) Every 10 mins the inReach sends data through satellites and provides all 1 min track points - this appears not to be the case as my initial track will always show 10 min intervals and then at some future point get updated rather than updating with 10 points every 10 mins.
2) Earthmate is paired with mini and will pull 1 min data and send to Explore whenever it has a wifi or cell connection (I have enabled cell data for Earthmate in its settings). If this is how it should work it is not working for me.
3) Earthmate will send 1 min data to Explore when you hit the "sync" button. Tried this a # of times while in car as passenger with my wife driving, monitoring on Mapshare page and Explore and didn't appear to update.
4) Earthmate will sync to server but only over WIFI when you get home... this is plausible based on my testing but never read this as a actual restriction anywhere so seems odd if this is the case and just not documented anywhere (or I missed it)
5) The sync is not real-time and when you sync with Earthmate it will eventually at some point update on Explore, when would depend on a variety of factors that the end user has no visability or control of .... this would explain my confusion.

Also can't figure out in my testing whether there is any relationship between syncing/logging and when you "stop tracking"... I.e., perhaps will the Inreach not provide the log points until the track has finished and not during its tracking? Not 100% sure but finishing tracking and then going into Earthmate and syncing at least does not immediately provide updates.

If anyone actually knows how this is meant to work that would be very helpful to me!

0 twolpert over 3 years ago

TL;DR: Logged points are NOT intended to provide anything approaching real-time tracking. You should depend on sent points for this. That's what they are for. If the sent points track on the web map is not usable because of odd connections between points, this is a bug. You should open a support ticket.

I don't think anyone knows the answers to this at this level of detail.

Certainly, delivery of the LOGGED points to the web site depends on a sync. You can do this either with the Earthmate app (WiFi or cellular data will work) or with a the desktop sync program via a USB connection between the device and the PC running the sync program (clearly not practical from the field).

I have some vague recollection that there is a buffering lag between the paired device and the Earthmate app, or (more likely) between the app and the web. Almost like somebody is accumulating "enough data to be worth sending" before actually syncing.

There is also the known bug in Earthmate with regard to login credentials. Sometimes, Earthmate appears to "forget" the stored login credentials on startup. If you go to the Account & Sync page, you won't see any credentials. It will not sync successfully with the web site in this state. Swipe it closed (on iOS) and reopen it. Chances are that the credentials are present again.

It is also unclear how frequently (or upon what trigger) the app syncs automatically with the web site. In my experience, the only way to ensure a timely sync is to go to Account & Sync and tap the Sync button.

The whole system has way too many moving parts. It's almost impossible to infer how things (ought to) behave.

With regard to your complaint about bad connections between sent track points (the 10 minute interval points) on the web map: The map has been buggy since day one. You might try zooming in and out (particularly out) and/or panning the map. In my experience, it appears that the map is more likely to create odd connections between points when only a small subset of the points are visible. If this behavior is persistent, you should probably open a support ticket.

With regard to your point (1) - Logged points are NEVER transmitted via satellite.

With regard to your point (2) - Yes, this is how it is supposed to (and does) work. The issue is the TIMING of the syncs and possible buffering lag, not the overall mechanism.

With regard to your point (3) - Yes, tapping sync in Earthmate will sync whatever it has to the web. But again, there is possible buffering lag.

With regard to your point (4) - As long as the app is permitted to use cellular data, I think it will work fine over a cell connection. I do not believe that is is specifically looking for a WiFi connection. You can probably test this by selectively enabling and disabling WiFi and cell data on your phone.

With regard to your point (5) - Yep. There are variables here, such as any delay by the device in providing points to the app, or a delay in the app as it accumulates "enough points to be worth sending", that aren't understood.

Bottom line: Logged points are NOT intended to provide anything approaching real-time tracking. You should depend on sent points for this. That's what they are for. If the sent points track on the web map is not usable because of odd connections between points, this is a bug. You should open a support ticket.