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New VA4 - Live review

7187100
over 5 years ago

So, i'll use this thread to live review the VA4 as we go along. I do a lot of swimming and cycling, coming from an AW3 and Huawei GT.
Tried a Venu before but returned it due to miscalculations on pool swimming and erratic HR spikes post-workout (pool swimming) and very high RHR values compared to AW3 (+10 on average).

I'll give VA4 a try. So unpacked today, turned on, configured. FW update appeared, now i'm on 2.70 don't seem to get the 3.50 yet.
Some disconnections from phone (IOS) noted when opening the Connect app. Data sync errors once in a while. Created a custom watch face from a picture on my phone, uploaded with ConnectIQ but on the watch the image doesn't appear, only the face itself...strange.

Compared to the Venu: noticed that the PulseOX values are not shown in the health widget, but in its own widget that needs to be added. Maybe due to FW difference between 2.70 and 3.50 that was on the Venu? Also in the pool swimming settings, i cannot add alerts for laps, only for distance, and this minimum 250m. On the Venu you could go down to 100m. No way to get alerts on every lap of a 25m pool, or even every other lap (at 50m).

More to follow as i use the device.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to Ryu

    no reply whatsoever, even to PMs sent to Garmin staff on this forum.
    GT2 much better deal but stuck in Huawei ecosystem, no 3rd party integration, not much customization, etc.
    If you're fine with that, definitely go for GT2. Just try it, it's not a bank-breaker, if you don't like it, return it to the store or sell it.

  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 5 years ago in reply to 7187100

    Impressed that AW3 recorded your lengths and distance accurately. My VA3 either adds or misses extra lengths when I swim. What good are all those Garmin Connect data analytics when the source data is wrong? My VA3 counts a length almost immediately after the flip, or if I bang my (non-watch) arm on the lane rope, or swim really really slowly (even steadily). Still, I love my Garmin watch and wouldn't trade it for anything in the world right now. But maybe around AW version 6 or so....

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to Former Member

    AW3/4/5 not only records accurately laps/distance, but also HR in water, leading to accurate calories burn. Also a good metric is HR recovery, it measures every second for 2min after workout end to see how fast your BPM goes down.

    Garmin watches don't do that.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to 7187100

    This article is an interesting read on why the Apple swim tracking is good.

    https://www.popsci.com/inside-apple-watch-swim-tracking/

    I only swim breaststroke and stroke detection seemed ok for me. I tried a back to back test with SwimSports+, but it seems there are a few bugs with Connect on release.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to 7187100

    Garmin watches surely show HR recovery. Just wait a min or two upon stopping the workout, but not saving it - it will show. This should be in the manual. 

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to oleksiy.yergiyev

    Yes I have seen this once, but I wasn't sure how. Thanks for posting. Recovery isn't listed as a feature. I'm not sure if this is because it differs to recovery on forerunners.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to oleksiy.yergiyev

    Thanks for posting. I've seen this once, but I wasn't sure how. Recovery isn't listed as a feature. Maybe it differs slightly from recovery on Forerunners.

  • 0 over 5 years ago

    Update: i think i figured out with the help of Garmin support why the algorithms messed up. Did several tests on a fenix 6x since and all are ok.
    nevertheless, considering i have to adjust my cadence among other things in order for Garmin to pick up correct data - where other watches seem to handle my style just fine - means half the problem is solved.

    so yeah, garmin is pretty picky on movement detection algorithm in water, but it can be fixed with certain style adjustments.

    i didn't know there's a recovery HR metric, but seems pretty stupid to wait 2 min after workout end to stop it, for it to appear.
    i don't have to do anything like this on a AW, it records and displays automatically. I mean the HR sensor never stops recording before, during and after an workout so why the hell implement it this way?!