This discussion has been locked.

You can no longer post new replies to this discussion. If you have a question you can start a new discussion

Wi-fi always on kills battery life. A toggle on/off switch would be great

It would be great to either be able to save Wi-fi passwords on the device, allowing the ability to switch Wi-fi on or off without the need to forget network and then reconnect and re-enter Wi-fi password….. or better still, a toggle switch for Wi-fi on/off. Having Wi-fi constantly on kills battery life enormously. Battery drains 50%+ in a day with Wi-fi always on.

Top Replies

All Replies

0 jgdtoit over 3 years ago

Maybe set the following to Off : Settings/Connectivity/Wi-Fi/Auto Upload/Off

That will at least keep it from not auto connecting to WiFi to sync.

There might be music apps which tries to connect via WiFi the whole time which might add to your problem. Check all your music and other 3rd party apps as well.

0 Scott over 3 years ago

How are you measuring the battery drain of WiFi being on? I didn't think the watch used WiFi unless to checked for updates from the watch.

0 fallingrock over 3 years ago in reply to Scott

Updates and downloading from a music service.

0 Hookturn over 3 years ago in reply to Scott

I don’t use any music streaming or download services.From the moment I enter my Wi-fi password the battery starts to drain super quickly. ie 50% inside of 10hrs. This happened reliably over 2 days. I then used the “Forget Network” function. ie stopped connection to the Wi-fi network & battery drain was about 6% over a 10hr period. I’ve done this exercise several times & the logical conclusion is that Wi-fi is having an enormously negative impact on the battery life.

0 Scott over 3 years ago in reply to Hookturn

Thanks, I might try forgetting the WiFi network on mine to see if it makes a difference. I suppose I don't really need the WiFi connection since I don't use music streaming either. Everything streams from my phone over Bluetooth.

0 Former Member over 3 years ago in reply to Scott

Scott said:
I didn't think the watch used WiFi unless to checked for updates from the watch.

I think there's an assumption that WiFi is always on and draining the battery. If you sync your watch your WiFi turns on and if in range to a setup network the WiFi will connect to that over the Bluetooth. If you complete an activity, it will look for a WiFi connection first, (it will time out after a couple of minutes), before it downloads the activity on Bluetooth. It will search for a WiFi signal for I believe Garmin said 30 secs. If none is found, it will turn on and check every 5 minutes for an hour before it gives up. During those connections is when your CPE file, music and updates download. So, you are correct. Other than that, Wifi is not running in the background. There has to be a trigger.

support.garmin.com/.../

0 Hookturn over 3 years ago in reply to Former Member

Unless it’s always searching for a Wi-fi signal….

0 Former Member over 3 years ago in reply to Hookturn

It's not like Bluetooth that's always searching when turned on. It only turns on WiFi when needed. Did you read the link I posted from Garmin Support? It clearly states it's not connected/searching 24/7.

0 fallingrock over 3 years ago in reply to Former Member

Exactly, wifi is for heavy lifting data transfer and will only be used when necessary.

0 Hookturn over 3 years ago

So, are you guys not experiencing faster battery drain with wi-fi enabled?