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Altitude all wrong

iafrate505
over 3 years ago

Hello,

I have an edge 530, and it is mostly... well... ok... it sometimes freezes on starting up or recommencing a paused activity, but my issue here is much greater. I have searched the forums for similar but can't find any (perhaps I haven't searched thoroughly enough...) anyway, my altitude is plain wrong, I have tried calibrating to no avail, but for me that isn't important, what I want to know is how much climbing and descending I have done, not too bothered about the absolute elevation if I am honest. For example, I will ride along a quite steep climb, but it shows negative gradient, I can be stood still and the altitude reading either drifts down or up, I can be riding downhill and have a positive gradient, or any combination of the above. I have now resorted to correcting elevation on strava, but if I am out challenging myself to a particular elevation gain target, it is pointless because I have no idea how much I have achieved. Does anyone have any idea as to what is going on? I have seen some threads saying their temp/altitude readings are wrong and it points to the sensor, but my temperature read out seems to be ok....... one final question - why can't we have an option to set altitude by GPS etc? - seems much more simple.

  • 0 over 3 years ago

    Why can't you use the GPS for altitude?  Because then you would be complaining about how poor the altitude readings from GPS are.  GPS altitude is a lot less accurate than the horizontal position which is why GPS device makers often use pressure sensors to increase the altitude accuracy.

    A faulty sensor could cause your problems.  Apart from that if the altitude is changing while you are not moving then the air pressure is changing.  Barometric altimeters are affected by the weather.

  • 0 over 3 years ago

    When you are outside and switch on your device in an unobstructed area, the moment it gets GPS signal, it will (read: should) start acquiring satellite data to calibrate the altimeter. I can see this on my device when I check the elevation graph, it will slowly drift and settle on my correct elevation. Usually doesn't take longer than 20 seconds. My device's altimeter is usually only out by 10-20m depending on the weather changes we've had.

    Perhaps try using a different satellite source from what you are currently using. I'm happy with GPS only, but have sometimes read about temporary issues with Galileo causing some issues on devices.

    How long does your unit take to acquire satellite signal in unobstructed areas?

    Otherwise you may have a faulty sensor... perhaps you could try reinstalling the current firmware using Garmin Web Updater. Resetting all settings and trying again.

  • 0 over 3 years ago

    I'm having the same problem. Last week it increased by altitude by 2,000 ft. each ride. The total ascent and descent seemed accurate, but while the top of the 3500 ft climb felt like 11,000 ft of altitude, alas, it was "only" 9,000. I've never noticed an elevation error this large before. This was after two hours of riding with full GPS lock, so it's not a case of poor reception. There is a bug somewhere.

  • +1 over 3 years ago in reply to Martin

    Uh, it isn't a complaint about inaccuracy. No system, GPS or otherwise will ever be truly accurate, my issue is it just doesn't work. ever changing elevation readings completely defeats the purpose. and drifting ambient air pressure - which I also understand - is not going cause the variations I am seeing.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to Martin

    Thanks, signal acquired very quickly, and elevation initially is oK. I tried a re-set and firmware is up to date, but no good, within a short time the elvation drifts from +86m to negative values, and then up to +150m. so frustrating. I've tried GPS, GPS/Galileo and GPS/GLONASS, nothing solves the issues.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to zuccheroch

    The bug is Garmin - I am never buying another one.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to iafrate505

    Elevation is nothing to do with satellite lock.  It is derived totally from the pressure sensor.  The only time GNSS is used with elevation is if you use the calibration function so the elevation is set to the current GNSS altitiude.  I would create a support ticket with Garmin about your issue.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to Wongataa

    Yup, that is what I have now done. Let's see if they come up with the goods. I hope it is a simple fix, and covered by warranty as I have only had the unit for 6 months! fingers crossed.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to iafrate505

    I have had the same problem with multiple resets of elevation. It usually gives an accurate starting elevation at my house but is off 800 ft when i get to work at sea level. It often shows a drop in elevation when I am climbing. Discussions with tech online and phone suggest it is in margin of error with the usual operating system but especially unlikely. This is evident when you enable elevation correction on the computer application for elevation for specific rides. 

  • 0 over 3 years ago

    Running version 5.50.0.0 on my Edge 530.

    Started noticing wrong elevation data for a while but now it is going completely nuts. I live in the Netherlands, everything is flat here.

    Got a elevation yesterday of 1286 meters on a 78 km ride. When I manually correct it in Garmin connect it gives me 125 meters!!

    Any solution to this, or can I give input to garmin to troubleshoot this issue? Or is my device just broken?