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Garmin Charge Power Pack Questions

Hi,

I have an Edge 1030 and just pre-ordered the Garmin Charge Power Pack for it, about which I have some questions...

1) The user manual states "The battery pack may charge slowly when using a third-party USB cable or power source." Can you explain, technically, what exactly is required to be provided by the cable and charger in order to charge the device at it's maximum speed? ie, does the supplied Garmin USB charger implement an existing quick-charge standard (Qualcomm, Apple), or something proprietary?

2) Just to clarify, I understand if the Charge Pack is connected to an operating Edge, it will first charge the battery of that Edge to 100%, even while it's in operation, and then the Edge will continue operating directly from power supplied by the Charge Pack, until the pack is fully depleted, at which time the Edge will automatically resume operating from, and depleting, it's own internal battery?

3) If I connect an external power source to the "Input power Micro-USB port" of the Power Pack, while it's connected to the Edge, is it safe to assume power will be supplied from that external source directly to the Edge, first charging the battery in the Edge to 100%, and then being used by the Edge for operation without depleting it's own internal battery?

4) If an external power source is connected to the Power Pack, is it safe to assume that it does *not* support "through charging" to a connected Edge device, and the pack will *not* charge itself while also simultaneously supplying power to the Edge?

5) I understand from the user manual that I can use the "device key" on the Power Pack to stop/resume charging of the Edge device it is connected to. Is it safe to assume that, if I use that button to stop charging the Edge, it is at that time the pack will then begin recharging itself from a connected power source?

6) Will the Power Pack sense a connected Edge device being shut off, and then automatically start charging from an external power source if connected, without having to press the device key?

7) If I connected USB power from a dynamo to the Power Pack and it's connected Edge (during operation), I assume I will have to use the "device key"/button on the pack to choose between using that external power to operate the Edge or charge the pack (as per question 5). This question is about if I slow down, and not enough external power is provided as a result... (a) If the external power was *operating* the Edge, will the the pack automatically take over supplying power? And (b) if I was *charging* the pack, will the pack automatically start supplying power to the Edge again, or will it just shut off, and require another button press to resume supplying power to the Edge and prevent it's internal battery from depleting?

8) If, using external USB power from a dynamo, and I decelerate and then *accelerate* again to resume external power supply to the pack - (a) Will the pack just shut off on power loss, and then do nothing when I accelerate, unless I press some buttons? And (b), if external power was being "forwarded" to operate the Edge, will it just resume charging the pack when power is restored? And (c), if the pack is 100%, will the resumption of power then not do anything without pressing buttons, resulting in depletion of the Edge's internal battery?

9) Dynamo power can be a bit unstable at times, and it's advisable to utilize a power bank which supports "through charging" to isolate an Edge device from any power surges or shortages. I assume (as per question 4), that the Power Pack is *not* such a device, and as such, will *not* do anything to isolate the Edge device from the power being provided by an external dynamo, and just forward whatever power is being provided to the pack (surges, shortages, and all) onwards to the Edge, after having pressed the button in order to do so?

Much Thanks!

p.s. All this should be answered in the product manual / specifications ;-)
  • You certainly have some good questions. I think the power packs are just starting to ship and since this is a user forum I doubt you will get many answers here since few have a power pack yet. I think you need to ask Garmin tech support.
  • I've been waiting for my Power Pack since I got my Edge 1030 on September 30. I haven't heard from my local bike shop that the order is any closer to fulfillment, but the Garmin web site shows the wait time down from 5 - 8 weeks to 3 - 5 weeks.

    All in all, however, I don't know why you're asking these questions. The Edge's internal battery is giving me over 20 hours on a single charge, and the Power Pack is supposed to double that. Forty or more hours of operation should take care of your needs for a week at least. (I ride a lot, and that would carry me thru almost two weeks.) And you can recharge both units at some time by then....

    So is your interest merely academic? I figure when you get a Power Pack, you can experiment and answer all of the questions. I'll even read your report!
  • I'm signed up for the Tour Divide this year.
  • Ah, that's a serious endeavor! 4400 km could just overreach the Garmin units' combined battery life - by a lot! You probably need 200 hours of battery life. Will you have a chance to "resupply" along the route? Can you pass your old battery packs to someone to charge them for you?

    Jackery Mini units supposedly have the same capacity as the Garmin Power Pack - 3500mAh. And they cost about $10 - $12 bucks each, rather than $130.
  • My local bike shop notified me yesterday that my Power Pack just shipped, and they expect to have it next Tuesday. So I'll finally be able to play with the Edge 1030 and the Power Pack together. I have repeatedly run my Edge 1030 for up to 20 hours without recharging, so it should be fun to run it close to or beyond 40 hours.
  • I'd be very interested to know if the 1030 will reliably record an entire ride that requires the power pack. I've had my 800 crash around the 170-250 mile mark a few times and lost the data (it never crashes below 160 miles) and have ended up resorting to saving the ride at 150 miles and recording the rest separately to avoid that (then using fitfiletools to stitch them together)..
  • My local bike shop notified me yesterday that my Power Pack just shipped, and they expect to have it next Tuesday. So I'll finally be able to play with the Edge 1030 and the Power Pack together. I have repeatedly run my Edge 1030 for up to 20 hours without recharging, so it should be fun to run it close to or beyond 40 hours.


    I'm told the order I placed with my LBS is scheduled to ship 2/7 (I am not in the first batch of shipments).
  • I'd be very interested to know if the 1030 will reliably record an entire ride that requires the power pack. I've had my 800 crash around the 170-250 mile mark a few times and lost the data (it never crashes below 160 miles) and have ended up resorting to saving the ride at 150 miles and recording the rest separately to avoid that (then using fitfiletools to stitch them together)..


    The edge800 has a 1meg activity file limit. If it exceeds that while recording it will shutdown and wont restart .It happened to me 3/4 of the way through a 300k ride. I started to record my rides to the sd card after that so if it happened again I could remove the card and get the edge 800 working again.
    The newer edges are much much better and can handle much bigger files.
  • Biketiresdirect.com has the power pack in stock with free shipping.
  • Biketiresdirect.com has the power pack in stock with free shipping.


    Thanks for the heads up. I just ordered one.