Garmin Fenix 6 Sapphire GPS accuracy problem??? PLEASE OFFICIAL HELP

I can see by all the other threads, that 19.20 does not seem to be a smooth update for a lot of people.  My guess, and is only a guess.. is that this has something to do with it.  So, I think for now we wait and let Garmin issue another update to fix many issues this caused and then set your device to NOT auto update, and wait longer between updates / check to see if people are having issues etc before allowing the device to update.  This is typical of Garmin..  sometimes an update can cause issues to what was once working perfectly fine.

Vivoactive 4 has better (not perfect) GPS tracks than fenix 6, and it costs less. 

9834031 said:

I knew that I was around 5:40 min/km (and confirmed from my friend running next to me), and it showed me 7:40 or similar, then 6:20, then 5:00 then 8:50 etc. and on every 1km report it showed (I hope) values that I expected e.g. 5:42 min/km

This isn't anything to do with the latest 19.20 update - pace has always been like this. A member here @AndersB has developed a datafield that improves things somewhat, but yes if you are running at 8:00 /mi it's quite common to see pace fluctuating wildly between for example 6:30 / mi then 9:30 /mi and back.

This isn't something Garmin support can help you with - the pace issue has been reported since the Fenix 5 days and possibly earlier. To some extent, but not exclusively, this is due to the limitations of GPS.

Other workarounds are to install CIQ datafields that report the last 5 or 10 seconds average pace, or use lap pace.

If that's the only solution, I'll do it tomorrow then, thanks!

I disagree with this! Pace for me, at least with my Fenix 6 was perfect. As I said previously, it was showing me really accurate values, when I speed up or slow with even really minor changes in tempo, it always showed me those slight changes in tempo, and I got used to it (except when running under the trees or near high buildings, which is normal to fluctuate regardless of device). So I think it should be something related with software, I'll see with local support!

9834031 said:

Pace for me, at least with my Fenix 6 was perfect.

Interesting! Well I'll take your word for it, but in the numerous inaccurate pace threads we've had here over the years, even the most obvious Garmin fan boys (and this place is teaming with them!]) say that GPS pace just isn't accurate.....naturally mentioning it isn't for competitors either, but even they'll say it's not accurate or reliable.

But if you search, exactly what you wrote about has been discussed here for years, and it's not something support has been able to fix. Talk to at @AndersB and try his datafield)

No harm in trying support, but they'll just have you doing factory resets, checking your GPS settings and checking .CPE is up to date....

Thanks for your reply, I'll also try to be completely honest. 

I'm well aware of the watch hardware and software, and probably that is the problem for Garmin fan boys (which I am not, generally I'm not a fan of smartwatches), who are simply emotional. I don't expect from the watch that it can measure 100% accurate pace/speed, heart rate etc., because it is simply the hardware that predicts something. Or in real life, if I change pace from 6 min/km to 5 min/km in 3 seconds, and then I expect that within those 3 seconds my watch shows me that change, it would be completely unfair to me. However, if it shows me that change afterwards in just a few seconds, so 6-7 seconds instead of 3, to me that is more than fair, and this is what I had previously. Probably some Garmin boys think that immediate change is possible, perhaps it is with some even better devices, I think it's not.

I also have luck to run most of my  times in a city near river with almost perfect conditions for gps and running (trees close, but not to close to interfere), thats why I know what to expect based on previous experiences.

Again, thanks for your reply ;-)

I'll let you know how it all ended up.

Greetings

5135968 said:

Other workarounds are to install CIQ datafields that report the last 5 or 10 seconds average pace, or use lap pace.

This. Instantaneous GPS pace is ... problematic ( https://fellrnr.com/wiki/GPS_Accuracy ) - I find using a 5 second averaged pace gives me the best compromise between the short and long term.  AndersB datafield has had a lot of success for people as well.

A cheap footpod will also help as well, as then for pace calculations it uses the accelerometer data from the pod, and bypasses the issues GPS has at this sort of speed/distance with watches. I bought a dirt cheap MilestonePod from eBay JUST for pace for my faster runs and it helps a lot. Before Garmin I used Samsung and WearOS watches and its a weird problem. For some its bad, for others its fine.

I think part of the problem is that if you're a faster, shorter distance runner (i.e your focus is faster times, not longer distances) then the problem is a much bigger one. I'm not a speed runner (too old lol!) and so I go for distance. For me a 5 second averaged pace and concentrating on lap pace helps me - but horses for courses... this is one case where the sauce for the goose isn't necessarily good for the gander!

Thanks 5135968 and @Ɛpsilon, I have been busy with other stuff for a while but I will improve my data field some more this week. 

If someone want to try it out you can find it here:

https://apps.garmin.com/en-US/apps/6f188030-90a3-4e79-9b28-dd7b8c47e64d