Fenix 6 Sapphire gps not accurate

What does "Set to 1 sec." mean? 

Gps data point set to 1 second. By default its on smart

Thanks. Where's the setting located?

System> Data Recording

Thanks, again 

GPS is designed to not be 100% accurate unless you’re a military user. The US government, who own GPS, delicately make it this way. 

Very expensive kit can increase accuracy but unless you’re a military or commercial user with a paid premium licence for gps then you won’t get a track with accuracy less than a few metres. 

This isn’t a Garmin fault or issue. This is how gps is designed. 

And why do you need such pinpoint accuracy? GPS is meant to show the route you took. It doesn’t matter if it shows you on the pavement or in the middle of the road. Why zoom in to that level on a satellite image?

You need to understand the system before you criticise it. 

I understand the system, not asking for .1 m accuracy, even not asking the accuracy i get on gps devices that garmin sells. But when u pay 700 usd u expect a device close to those cheap garmin gps car devices. Also, i didn't know that our car gps system or other gps devices had military approval to use that much accuracy. Don't try to prove ur point by being rude. I ran again today and the lines where zigzag when I was always on track. If u cannot provide a solution or agree to a clearly visible issue, then don't comment.

Hawk said:

What does "Set to 1 sec." mean? 

This is how frequently the data points are saved to the activity file.  The watch is computing location multiple times a second but doesn't save all of that to the file.  In Smart recording, if you are going in a straight line, HR isn't changing, etc, it might only record a data point every few seconds.  That should have no impact on distance as it is still basing distance off of all the data it has and not just the data points it saves to the file.

First, he is actually correct. Consumer level GPS isn't designed to be as accurate as you seem to want it.  I want it to be that accurate too.  We all do.  But it's unrealistic.  When you look at the math and timing, it's a miracle it's as good as it is.  The only way to really get smoother lines is remove some of the data.  Apple does this and there tracks look great, except they are actually generally less accurate.

But more importantly, you don't really say what kind of terrain or obstructions you might be running around.  Anything that blocks or reflects the satellite signals will have an impact on your accuracy.  Tall buildings, trees, canyons, will all block signals and reduce the accuracy.  Tall buildings, canyon walls and shiny surfaces like water will also impact accuracy with their reflection.  Your location is being calculated by the time it takes the signal to go from the satellite to your watch.  So if the signal your watch receives is from the reflection of a building, rock wall, or water, it's taking longer to get to your watch.  So that will throw off the calculations.  But with multiple satellites, it is able to adjust for a lot of that.

When I do trail runs with tall pine trees, my accuracy definitely goes down.  When I go for a road ride, my track will usually be perfect where I can see what side of the road I'm riding on.  I don't do any urban running or riding as the tallest build in my town is 4 stories so I'm not impacted by that.

Walking also tends to give me worse tracks than running.  Not sure exactly why, but probably something to do with how you swing your arms and with running, you have your arms in front of you.  Your body can actually block some of the signals.

Still, compared to other devices, it can be better. Some are not really better while using the same GPS chipset. But some are doing better. I would say that the Fenix are doing ok for the GPS. If to have a very clean GPS track is very important, then the Fenix should not be the first choice. So it's partly Garmin fault, since it's possible to have better tracks. But they are not perfect either, let's be honest. Until we get proper dual band GPS in action, it won't be perfect, and even with a better GPS technology, the size of the antenna and of the watch could be a limiting factor.