How to change position format?

This feature is available only the higher-end hiking-oriented watches, like the fenix series, and on the 935, since it's practically a fenix 5 in a plastic case. AFAIK, no other garmin watch has this feature. You might have some luck with an IQ app, though.

This feature is available only the higher-end hiking-oriented watches, like the fenix series, and on the 935, since it's practically a fenix 5 in a plastic case. AFAIK, no other garmin watch has this feature. You might have some luck with an IQ app, though.

This is incredibly frustrating!

I don't want a 935 as it's too big, and I don't want a Fenix 5S/+ as it's too heavy.

The 645 is a perfectly capable hiking watch and shares the same sensors as the other high-end Garmin watches (Fenix series, 935), so why does Garmin deliberately restrict the software on the 645?

If it could do everything a 935 could do, it would likely cost as much. In Hike2, I allow 4 formats for lat/lon, but no country specific formats (well, except MGRS which is native to the watch.) There's no ABC widget, but there are CIQ widgets that do that. And there are DFs that allow different formats for lat/lon. And for sensors, there is a difference, in that the 645 doesn't support the batch mode HR possible with the HRM-Tri and HRM-swim on the 935.

If it could do everything a 935 could do, it would likely cost as much. In Hike2, I allow 4 formats for lat/lon, but no country specific formats (well, except MGRS which is native to the watch.) There's no ABC widget, but there are CIQ widgets that do that. And there are DFs that allow different formats for lat/lon. And for sensors, there is a difference, in that the 645 doesn't support the batch mode HR possible with the HRM-Tri and HRM-swim on the 935.

The Fenix is more expensive because it's higher build quality, has a larger battery and therefore the cost of production is probably higher. It's then marketed at people who want a luxury do-it-all sports/adventure watch. My point is that the software on the 645 seems to have been deliberately limited, presumably to move people towards the more expensive Fenix series. It's frustrating for people like me who want a do-it-all watch but want it to be light for running.

My point is that the software on the 645 seems to have been deliberately limited, presumably to move people towards the more expensive Fenix series. It's frustrating for people like me who want a do-it-all watch but want it to be light for running.

Of course it's deliberate and it makes good business sense. Why would Garmin make Vivoactive, Forerunner and Fenix series devices that all have the same capabilities? Device size and weight all depend on the watches capabilities and hardware needed. What you feel would be the perfect watch wouldn't be the same for everyone. As it stands, you have to make a choice on what features are most important. Do you prefer a lighter watch for running, or are the bells and whistles more important to you?

Yes that’s how market segmentation works unfortunately. Both hardware and software are deliberately limited. The price of a device isn’t the cost of production or the bill of materials, it’s what the user is willing to pay. Garmin also has marketing, R and D and hardware/software development costs which are fixed with respect to the number of units sold, so it also isn’t fair to just look at the cost of production.

Fenix 5 is more expensive because Garmin has identified a segment of customers willing to pay more money. The additional features and “premium” hardware are what’s used to justify that price.

I realize it can be frustrating, especially when the decisions seem arbitrary (why didn’t 735xt have a baro??? Why can Fenix 5 and VAHR disable the lap key but not 935??) but as long as it doesn’t veer into outright discrimination (like, say, Amazon showing different prices to different users), I can live with it, even if I wish my watch had that one feature the Fenix 5 has over it.

You might be surprised at how many software and hardware designs start with the most expensive model first — the marketing department then systemically removes features to create midrange and lower end products. Maybe it would help if you think of it that way, instead of picturing Garmin starting with the most basic watch possible and adding features. Just look at the release order of the recent generation of Garmin running watches: Fenix 5, 935, 645M. Each successive model was cheaper and had less features (besides music).

There’s obviously a line that companies won’t cross when it comes to reducing functionality because it would annoy or bewilder users, like say, only allowing music playback on Tuesdays, but I don’t think Garmin has crossed it yet.

Of course it's deliberate and it makes good business sense. Why would Garmin make Vivoactive, Forerunner and Fenix series devices that all have the same capabilities? Device size and weight all depend on the watches capabilities and hardware needed. What you feel would be the perfect watch wouldn't be the same for everyone. As it stands, you have to make a choice on what features are most important. Do you prefer a lighter watch for running, or are the bells and whistles more important to you?

Surely it depends on the user. For some people (runners) a heavy watch is not a good thing. I would personally not buy a watch that is much over 50 grams in weight for comfort reasons, hence why I would only consider the 645 and 935 in Garmin's current line up. For adventurous outdoor types, heavy might create a perception of being more rugged, robust, and of premium design, even though in reality it's functionally no different and the glass on the non-sapphire models will get scratched as much as the running watches will if you mistreat them. Even the stainless steel on a Fenix will show up scratch marks very easily if you knock the watch against a rock or a wall.

The point I was getting at is that a watch with a walking profile, an electronic compass and barometric altimeter like the 645 should have the ability to change position formats so you can use it with local maps. You can get around this by using a coordinate converter app on your phone, but it's just annoying that this has been deliberately left out in the watch's software. It's the same with the altimeter widget, but you can get around this by downloading a 3rd party widget from the Connect IQ store.

You could also argue that the triathlon mode on the 935 is a very simple software tweak that could have easily found its way into the 645, but Garmin want to differentiate the watch line-up so that people who regularly do triathlon will buy the more expensive watch.

All things considered I will buy the watch that feels the most comfortable for running and fits my wrist as I can live without the inherent limitations of the 645 and you can at least work around some of them. I am still not convinced though that the 645 is accurate enough as it seems to record pace about 6 seconds per mile slower than the 935 based on my limited testing.

On the 645 I can't seem to find any way to change the position format from the default WGS-84 to British National Grid. In the 935 and Fenix there was an option to change this under System > Units. Now, when I look at my Saved Locations of places in the UK, the locations are all in WGS-84 degrees.

Hey Scott. I'm not familiar with the British National Grid. Would this widget help

https://apps.garmin.com/en-US/apps/07b03259-24c8-4828-b949-2e48ef04a2c5#0

Hey Scott. I'm not familiar with the British National Grid. Would this widget help

https://apps.garmin.com/en-US/apps/07b03259-24c8-4828-b949-2e48ef04a2c5#0

That's useful - thanks. But I want to edit my Saved Locations in British National Grid format so I can then pull up the Navigate option during a walk and navigate to one of them? I can do this but it shows the coordinates as WGS 84.

scotthunter2 This may be a bit of a pain in the ass, but maybe an option until something better comes along. Can you save the location (WGS84), use the widget to get the BNG and then edit the location name with the BGN coordinates? It would still save locations WGS84, but also provide the info you need?