Related
Options

Question to previous Instinct owners regarding Garmin's (beta) update policy ...

Former Member
Former Member over 3 years ago

Hi you all,

first time Instinct (2s) owner here, only tried Instinct 1 Solar for a week, returned it because of size.

How is Garmin's update / beta update policy regarding Instinct series?

Are there many updates and beta updates coming over the years like on the Fenix series? I am a Fenix owner and there was a new update coming very often, around 1 a month at least I think. And also many new features and activities over the years.

And how about implenting new featues and new activities? Where there some new features and activities coming to the Instinct too oder just some bug fixes over the years?

I know there are watches which get regular updates and also some new features, and some watches get almost no updates at all (945 LTE f.e.).

Thx.

  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 3 years ago
    and some watches get almost no updates at all (945 LTE f.e.).

    Do you mean the FR945 LTE which released beta 5.07 the day before you started this thread?  Lol. 

  • 0 over 3 years ago

    Not wanting to sound facetious, but why not just look at the Instinct forums? Every time there's been a firmware or beta release, there'll have been an official announcement on there.

  • 0 over 3 years ago

    The best way to know, is checking the firmware changelog of Instinct. Unfortunately Garmin moved them away from their original location, and I do not know where they are now, but you can still see them in Google cache, or at Archive.org. The following one is from January 2022. BTW, those are only the official releases. There were usually 1-3 beta versions preceeding each public release.

    https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:N4joFbRvz54J:https://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp%3Fid%3D14485+&cd=4&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=fr

    Change History

    Changes made from version 16.00 to 16.50:

    • Improved altimeter calibration.
    • Fixed display of Strength activities in Last Sport widget.
    • Fixed potential issue where watch face would not display in the correct orientation.
    • Fixed explore course sync issue.

    Changes made from version 15.40 to 16.00:

    • Fixed potential issue where reps would not be recorded in Strength activity.

    Changes made from version 15.10 to 15.40:

    • Fixed map issue where navigation line appeared to be fragmented.

    Changes made from version 14.40 to 15.10:

    • Made improvements to DogTrack widget.
    • Fixed battery drain issue after disconnecting from a paired inReach device.
    • Fixed potential issue where alarms enabled in GCM would not be enabled on device.
    • Fixed potential issue where workout step names would not display.
    • Fixed possible issue where watch would restart after powering down.

    Changes made from version 13.20 to 14.40:

    • Fixed issue where device could randomly freeze and become unresponsive.
    • Fixed course navigation issue where the course would not be found again after going off-course.
    • Fixed potential compass performance issue.
    • Fixed possible crash when syncing with Explore App.

    Changes made from version 12.20 to 13.20:

    • Fixed a crash that can occur when saving an activity
    • Fixed a lock up that can occur after removing from charge cable
    • Various Explore Sync fixes and improvements

    Changes made from version 11.00 to 12.20:

    • Added support for Explore Navigation Sync, where one can select lines, waypoints or generic points on the map within the Explore app and start navigating on device.
    • Improved the accuracy and reliability of elevation data during activities.
    • Fixed InReach display verification.
    • Fixed issue where Recovery HR was displayed when there was no heart rate source.
    • Fixed rare issue where elevation would jump after starting an activity.
    • Fixed an issue where the device may seem unresponsive the next morning after updating software overnight.

    Changes made from version 10.10 to 11.00:

    • Improved Broadcast Heart Rate and added support for simultaneously broadcasting through ANT+ and Bluetooth.
    • [Tactical] Added ZULU time zone option to time zones list.

    Changes made from version 10.00 to 10.10:

    • Fixed issue where some language files may be missing after installing a software update. (Use Garmin Express to reinstall the lost language files.)

    Changes made from version 9.20 to 10.00:

    • Added support for viewing recovery heart rate from the activity paused menu.
    • Added ability to delete and reinstall language files on device (Menu > Settings > System > Language).
    • Made improvements to Alarms and Timers.
    • Fixed potential crash during navigation.
    • Fixed an issue where the device would intermittently fail to save an activity.
    • Fixed stress recording during Yoga activities.
    • Fixed issue with Hourly Alert setting when accessed from SET menu.
    • Fixed issue where map data field was not visible after using pan/zoom.
    • Fixed rare issue with MGRS coordinate entry.

    Changes made from version 8.70 to 9.20:

    • Made improvements to Hunt and Fish activities.
    • Made improvements to battery life estimates.
    • Made improvements to Open Water Swimming.
    • Fixed an issue where wrist heart rate was not being turned off when starting an Expedition activity.
    • Fixed an issue where weather widget could show incorrect wind speed.
    • Fixed an issue where non-GPS activities were displayed in the Navigation menu.
    • Fixed potential issue where the “Go” option was missing when trying to navigate an activity.
    • Fixed potential issue with True North compass mode.
    • Fixed potential issue where leading 0 was missing on Set Time With GPS page.
    • Fixed an issue where activities were not able to be selected from the list when accessed via Options Menu > Activities.

    Changes made from version 7.20 to 8.70:

    • Fixed issue where heart rate sensor would stay on when watch is removed from wrist.
    • Improved reliability of bluetooth communication with smartphone.

    Changes made from version 7.00 to 7.20:

    • Fixed wind direction in the Weather widget.
    • Fixed potential issue with silent updates.

    Changes made from version 6.60 to 7.00:

    • Added support for inReach display verification, when using authentication.
    • Improved pairing experience with Garmin Dual ANT+/BLE Sensors.
    • Fixed Instinct Tactical default position format.
    • Fixed issue with Explore app where synced activities would be duplicated.
    • Fixed issue where alarms would not go off at the correct time after daylight savings time change.
    • Fixed potential issue where altimeter would reset to 0.
    • Fixed issue where the watch face steps chart would draw off the screen.
    • Fixed potential issue where low battery alerts would not display.

    Changes made from version 6.10 to 6.60:

    • Added Body Battery widget. (Settings > Widgets > Add Widgets > Body Battery)
    • Added low abnormal heart rate alert. (Settings > Sensors & Accessories > Wrist Heart Rate > Abnormal Heart Rate Alerts > Low Alert)
    • Added autorest setting for pool swim activity. (Settings > Activities & Apps > Pool Swim Settings > Autorest)
    • Added swim time data field for pool swim activity.
    • Added support for a ‘Silent’ option to the Smart notifications Sounds alert settings. (Settings > Phone > Smart Notifications > During Activity/Not During Activity > Sounds)
    • Made improvements to altimeter calibration.
    • - Added “During Activity” and “Not During Activity” auto calibration settings (Altimeter > Auto Cal.).
    • - Added option to manually calibrate altimeter to DEM (Altimeter > Calibrate > Use DEM).
    • Fixed potential issue where activities synced from other devices would display incorrect speed in activity history.
    • Fixed rare issue where the watch could freeze during a Ski activity.
    • Fixed graphical glitch affecting the key lock icon.

    Changes made from version 5.70 to 6.10:

    • Fixed an issue where waypoint icons appeared as a black square on the map.
    • Made improvements to floors climbed tracking.

    Changes made from version 5.50 to 5.70:

    • Added support for Argentina Standard Time in time zones widget.
    • Fixed issue where waypoint icons and straight line navigation track were not visible on map with black background.

    Changes made from version 5.10 to 5.50:

    • Fixed an issue where the device wouldn't receive iOS notifications intermittently.
    • Added additional localization support.

    Changes made from version 4.00 to 5.10:

    • Explore Sync improvements.
    • Fixed possible crash on workout timer page.
    • Fixed issue with repeated 'on course' notifications.
    • Fixed issue where hourly alerts would not occur exactly on the hour.
    • Fixed issue with sunrise/sunset alerts not occurring at the correct time.
    • Fixed rare issue where Ski activities would not upload to Connect.
    • Fixed possible issue where saved locations would have the wrong default icon.
    • Fixed possible crash when repeatedly selecting a toggle menu item.
    • Fixed a crash that could occur when saving an activity.

    Changes made from version 3.20 to 4.00:

    • Explore Sync improvements.
    • Fixed issue where estimated finish time data field was highly inaccurate.
    • Fixed coordinate entry issue when using user grid.

    Changes made from version 3.10 to 3.20:

    • Fixed a potential issue with GPS distance not being reported correctly.
    • Fixed rare watch face refresh issue.

    Changes made from version 2.80 to 3.10:

    • Improved system stability during rep counting activities.
    • Fixed rare issue where the watch face could fail to update the time.
    • Fixed personal record date getting cut off in history menu.
    • Floors climbed improvements.

    Changes made from version 2.60 to 2.80:

    • Added support for Moon Phase widget. Accessible from Settings > Widgets > Add Widgets > Moon Phase and Settings > Controls > Add New > Moon Phase.
    • Added UTC offset to time zone setup menu.
    • Fixed an issue where the total length fields were not updating correctly during a pool swim.
    • Fixed an issue where the device was displaying the incorrect baro trend icon on the watchface.
    • Fixed an issue where the spelling for Ukrainian was incorrect, in the device language list.
    • Fixed an issue where the activity elevation plot would not update.
    • Fixed an issue where the map page would not draw the full screen.
    • Fixed an issue where the ascent remaining field on the future plot page was not visible.
    • Fixed an issue that could cause elevation to jump after starting an indoor activity.
    • Fixed an issue where the sunrise and sunset times in New Zealand were not taking daylight savings into account.
    • Fixed an issue where the barometer trend line always stayed flat.
    • Made improvements to timer feature.
    • Explore sync fixes and improvements.

    Changes made from version 2.10 to 2.60:

    • Initial Release.
  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 3 years ago in reply to trux

    Thx, very nice. Ok so quite a few updates but after a few months mostly bug fixes and not many additions. But as long as it works probably. That gives meh hope for those issues I have like huge lags sometimes in UI etc.