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Fenix 6X Sapphire - Problem with GPS Total Distance.

Beowolfs
over 4 years ago

Been using the Fenix 6X Sapphire (Sony GPS chip) and have noticed,  it always shows a shorter distance traveled than my other Garmin products.

Last week (In order to test it) I went on a short hike. I brought along my Oregon 650, Fenix 3 Sapphire and the new GPSMAP 66i.

After the hike, the total travel distance was:

Fenix 3 Sapph. 7.59mi

Oregon 650      7.55mi

GPSMAP 66i    7.57mi

and

Fenix 6X Sapph 7.46 

So far, the Fenix 6X always reports the shortest distance.  I hope Garmin becomes aware of it and sends a fix in the near future.

  • 0 over 4 years ago

    The key problem inside the Fenix 6X Sapphire (Sony GPS chip) is that it used two conventional noisy switching mode DC-DC converters for the core 1.8V and 0.7V power rails.  The purpose is to provide longer battery life with a much higher power conversion efficiency, but it is with compromises in performance. In the GPS industry, skilled and experienced engineers know using DC-DC converters would degrade the performance and accuracy because of the noise problem of the switching mode power supply. However, a breakthrough has been provided by a company called TransSiP.  uBlox had an announcement in their press release that they mentioned about the TransSiP PI that it had been able to enhance the GPS performance while achieving maximum energy saving.  Hope Garmin could adopt it too.

  • 0 over 4 years ago

    The key problem inside the Fenix 6X Sapphire (Sony GPS chip) is that it used two conventional noisy switching mode DC-DC converters for the core 1.8V and 0.7V power rails.  The purpose is to provide longer battery life with a much higher power conversion efficiency, but it is with compromises in performance. In the GPS industry, skilled and experienced engineers know using DC-DC converters would degrade the performance and accuracy because of the noise problem of the switching mode power supply. However, a breakthrough has been provided by a company called TransSiP.  uBlox had an announcement in their press release that they mentioned about the TransSiP PI that it had been able to enhance the GPS performance while achieving maximum energy saving.  Hope Garmin could adopt it too.

  • 0 over 4 years ago

    For me Fenix 6X is the most accurate comparing to my previous Garmin watches.

    As example my Fenix 3 showed 10.3-10.4 km during offcial 10k runs with attested distance.

    Distance measured by Fenix 6X shows 10.02-10.06 on exactly the same route.

  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 4 years ago in reply to eres72

    Which firmware and GPS settings?

  • 0 over 4 years ago

    Have performed one run outside since I got the Fenix 6x Sapphire earlier this week. I ran my standard 9k (380 altimeters) route and the GPS responded almost exactly at all the 1k checkpoints.

    I will do a 30k longrun next week where I know where the exact 5k checkpoints are too se if the GPS is as off as some here claims.

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to eres72

    In the GPS industry for sports watches, we test them at the standard 400 m athlete course because the distance of the courses are well calibrated. Garmin uses the same method. This is the most accurate method in that class for running and walking purposes including errors due to turns at various speeds.  In our experience for decades of doing GPS, the Garmin always has at least 10m errors even within 400m (i.e. 2.5%).  So Fenix 6X is impossible to have an error of 0.2% for a 10km distance and the general 10km distance is not calibrated either.

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to Fnet

    Yeah - sure...

    So all official street runs do not have attested distance according to your logic. How about marathons during olimpics? Not calibrated either?

    Here are official 10k run registered by my F6X:

    https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/4242179016

    connect.garmin.com/.../4129729881

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to eres72

    Those activities are set to private, we can't see them

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to Former Member

    You can check my runs in other reply.

    Currently I am running on FW 4.30 and GPS 2.60

  • 0 over 4 years ago in reply to C.sco

    should be visible now

    Here one of those runs from previous year on the same route with F3 - shows 10,23k:

    connect.garmin.com/.../3153617725