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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 seilogramp

    Thanks!  Your guidance worked.  When I got up this morning GCM was displaying a message on my iPhone asking if I wanted to set up a reminder. When I clicked "Yes", nothing ... but the steps you outlined above worked just fine.  Hopefully it reminds me again this evening.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to wgourley05

    What a surprise . Unlike Omron and other serious company's , you must understand that when you buy Garmin you must be prepared to be a betatester. Even if it's it something so important as blood pressure. 

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to TheSalamander

    They really do need to show all 3 readings. That seems to be a big oversight IMO.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to wgourley05
    wgourley05 said:
    Maybe it's just me but my Index BPM is horribly inaccurate

    I've been comparing the accuracy/consistency of my Garmin Index BPM to my Omron IA2 for the last few days and both devices are reading within 1-4 mmHg of each other every time. I am comfortable enough that the Garmin Index BPM is consistent with the Omron IA2 readings that I am no longer using the Omron.

    I have no idea why you are getting such different readings, and whether it is user error or an issue with the device, but I am having a positive experience with my Index BPM

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    One minor visual glitch: in GCM for Android, the little icon for BPM in the Yesterday and Last 7 Days sections of My Day is too big, noticeably bigger than the rest of the icons.

    Also, more annoying is that the BP card in My Day continues to appear and disappear, seemingly at random.

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    I've been comparing to the Omron BP786N, which I've had for years. So far with 5 days of data, the 2 devices are close. Nothing extreme like the numbers mentioned by  or 

    At this point, I'm comfortable enough with the data from the Index BPM to stop using the Omron BPM. Also, noted that the status being reported by both systems is identical. There is no "interpretation" of the data, it is straight from the American Heart Association, as is mentioned in the Index BPM manual.

     

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    I received mine.  Agree that cuff is huge.

    I am questioning the accuracy of readings.  Mine have been significantly higher than my other unit.  Today I visited physician and we compared results.  The Garmin was showing 158/106, the nurse was getting 132/84.

  • 0 over 2 years ago

    I checked mine against Omron and Withings for about a week or so.  My Garmin is so out of whack that I am returning it today.  Already started the return process.  From what I've seen on this forum, mine does seem to be the exception to the rule but mine is also not the lone bad unit.  I'll try again in a few months.  Hopefully, they'll fix whatever issues by then.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to Josh

    They recently lowered the recommendations for stage 1 high blood pressure.

    I've struggled with high blood pressure for a long time since at least my mid-30s, I'd only bother seeing a doctor about it if it was consistently in stage 1.

  • 0 over 2 years ago in reply to wgourley05

    Nothing new here. with the previous history of the useless index scales i was surprised when they named it Index.