I have two concerns with my new Instinct Solar which I already used for about 50 hours while hiking.

1- While I'm on the economy mode, the distance hiked is not accurate. The gap is more than 50% with the real distance done. Is it normal? I really need to know the distance I hiked while on expedition.

2- The altimeter is accurate for a while if I do calibrate it manually every time I leave for a hike, but it doesn't last long. I know that the watch has to be cleared from any clothes and so it is. While I'm a an expedition in the wild, I need to get the elevation, not necessarily perfectly accurate but at least not far from the exact elevation. Is there a way that I could fix that with that watch?

  • Both normal.

    1. Ultra track only works in really open terrain when moving slow. But with how frugal instinct solar is there is no point. Just use normal GPS mode, forget ultra track.

    2. Altimeter measures barometric pressure which changed every day and with every lcation. Altitude is calculated based on change in barometic pressure. So every altimeter (including instinct) have to be calibrated before the hike.

  • Another option for recalibrating the altimeter is to turn off the GPS for a moment, then turn it on. I usually do so, when I stop for a longer break. This usually does the trick and it saves some battery.

    It is inconvenient, but it is how this technology works. Even altimeters on airplanes need to be calibrated every once in a while for safety reasons.