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First impressions

Frbky
over 2 years ago

Got it! My Index BPM arrived today, straight from Garmin. I was pleasantly surprised that it shipped ahead of Garmin's estimated schedule. I'm amazed that I'm the first to post here about actually having it, and that I haven't seen any reviews anywhere yet! I seem to be the first!

First impressions:

  • Normal Garmin gray box
  • Made in China, like the Index S2 smart scale, but unlike most of Garmin's products which are made in Taiwan
  • Included Duracell batteries are also made in China
  • Cuff is somewhat heavy and feels sturdy and durable
  • I'm a thin guy but not tiny. I was toward the smaller side of using the cuff, with a lot of fabric left over. You'd have to have huge biceps/triceps for the cuff to be too small.
  • Pairing with Garmin Connect via Bluetooth was quick and easy, as was setting up Wifi.
  • It was easy to take a measurement, but my very first measurement did not sync with GCM and is missing. The second measurement, a few minutes later, synced to GCM.
  • Like the Index S2, it syncs via Wifi. Unlike the Index S2, you can also reconnect to Bluetooth to sync and to change settings. (On the Index S2, after initial setup, sync is exclusively via Wifi.)
  • Settings in GCM include Appearance (just your name or initials), User settings (Gender, weight, height, birthdate), General (just Wifi), and Manage Users.
  • There's nothing on the device or in GCM about firmware version or firmware updates, and I wasn't prompted to do an update. GC Web says software version is 1.05.
  • In GCM, the blood pressure card showed in my My Day after the second, successfully synced measurement, at the bottom of the list. You can then rearrange the cards as usual.
  • Blood pressure is also available in the Health section of GCM, and in the Daily Summary of Garmin Connect Web.
  • I'm not using multiple users so I can't comment on that.

Honestly, I wasn't in the market for a blood pressure monitor - I got this because I always like putting more health data in Garmin Connect!

I'll add more later if I have more to add. Add your own thoughts or questions!

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to Josh

    After how many readings? There is a setting to take 3 readings back to back. Also, I like to sit and relax a bit before taking a BP reading. Think happy thoughts and wait for my pulse to get near resting level. 

    I received the Index BPM today and was pleased that it is very close to the readings from my Omron BPM.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to Frbky

    I haven't used it enough to know if the numbers are incorrect, but to me they don't seem right. Garmin reads my numbers much higher than my doctors BP cuff does. Also, I definitely think their interpretation of stage 1 needs adjusted. I work in the medical field and told everyone my BP numbers and told them my garmin says im Stage 1 and they laughed. 

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to Josh

    I will continue testing to see if my results also show suspicious readings. My doctor's reading is always higher. I usually chalk it up to white coat syndrome. Slight smile

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to seilogramp

    I mean I took the readings like 10 minutes after I woke up and it says I'm Stage 1 lol. Maybe their interpretation needs adjusted because a cardiologist told me they don't think anything is high until it gets way above my reading. It kind of freaked me out to see my numbers honestly. Didn't really give any insight on lowering blood pressure etc. I am a pretty young guy so not sure how its "as high as it is" according to garmin. I have the Index S2 scale and with all the problems with that I am basically assuming there are problems with this too

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to Josh

    Consider the range of accuracy (from the manual)...

    Blood pressure value: ± 3 mmHg or ± 2%

    Pulse: ± 5%

    Also consider this regarding the chart, also from the manual...

    This chart is not intended to provide medical diagnosis. You must consult your physician to interpret the measurements.

    The data in this chart is provided by the American Heart Association®

    My suggestion is that you consider your data in those contexts, and if you still think that Garmin and the American Heart Association  are from left field you should probably send your unit in for a refund and have your blood pressure checked by someone or something that you have more confidence in.

     

     

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    Has anyone set up a schedule reminder?  I connected my Index BPM successfully to Garmin Connect and the last step is to set reminders, but when I click on it, nothing happens.  The reminders was one of the reasons I chose the Index (along with integrating with all my other health stats via Garmin) so bummed its not working.  Otherwise the Index BPM is simple enough to use. The buttons are really hard to see, it would be nice if the symbols were printed on or next to the buttons; I do struggle getting the cuff to fit properly, but this seems related to it being new and having been folded up in the box.  Seems to be either too snug or not snug enough.  Again, I think use will sort this out with some use.  I would appreciate some help with the reminders tho.  Thanks!

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to KayaKenn
    KayaKenn said:
    Has anyone set up a schedule reminder?

    It works fine on my Android phone.

    • Tap on the Blood Pressure widget
    • Tap on the 3-button menu
    • Select Reminders
    • If there are currently no reminders set, tap on Add a Reminder (the app defaults to the current time and 7 days a week)
    • Configure the time, tap OK, tap ADD

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to seilogramp

    and, you may need to scroll up a little to see the blue Add a Reminder button at the bottom. I looked for it for about 30 minutes before finding it.

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    Maybe it's just me but my Index BPM is horribly inaccurate.  I have an Omron wrist BPM, an Omron bicep cuff, and a Withings bicep cuff.  Those 3 are all within a 10 point variation.  For sys, garmin is 30 points higher, and about 10-20 points higher on the dys.  At one point, Garmin said I was 170/104 and Omron said 134/86 a few minutes later.  I'm returning mine if there's no software update in the next week to correct this.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to wgourley05

    Reminds me of the Index S2 scale with the 10000 problems… I may return mine too