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Backlight Settings Query

Not sure if I am missing something obvious, or whether anyone has any neat tricks?
I'm finding the backlight annoying at this time of year.

If I go for a night run, I end up going all the way into system settings and setting the delay to always on, so I can see what I'm doing. Or if I forget I cant see the watch.
Then if I got for a run in the day I need (or want) to switch the backlight off so I dont drain the battery really quickly.

Sometimes I forget, and the backlight isn't really noticeable when running in daylight, so the battery just drains again unneccecerily without me even realising.

The wrist turn would sound like the solution, but doesn't really seem to work very well (for me at least). And even then I dont really want the wrist turn to put the backlight on during the day.

Has anyone found any solutions, or does this not bother anyone else? I wondered whether there might be some IQ apps that could adjust the system settings depending on the time of day or something like that, but have not found anything.

Obviously I can put in a feature request, but thought I'd ask first. Even a quick access to the backlight menu from the run activity menu once started would be handy, or a simple on/off or day/night setting available from there. It seems daft having to go all the way into system settings before commencing a run.

Thanks

0 chunkywizard over 8 years ago

That's why I use Wrist turn, its not always on then.

CW

0 KR17 over 8 years ago

Having now worked out that you can duplicate and customise activity profiles, I think this could be fairly easily solved by moving the backlight settings into the activity settings.
This makes logical sense as you are not going to want to have the same baclight settings for indoor run as you would for outdoor run.
On top of that an icon to show the backlight is on would be handy, as its pretty much impossible to tell during the day.

I'll suggest this to garmin, just not sure of the best way about it. Having searched around there are other people complaining about this, so whilst it doesn't bother everyone it isn't just me.

Just need to work out the best way of raising it to the software team, as Garmin 1st line support isn't the best and will most likely suggest I perform a reset of the watch :( - anybody got any ideas as to the best way to raise this?

0 kitenski over 8 years ago

I seem to have gone a bit "old fashioned" here. I generally want backlight on all the time when running in low light but don't really need it coming up on "randomly" for wrist turn, alerts otherwise.

So I have turned it off for keys & alerts and wrist turn but set timeout to Always on.

When I want it on or off, I just press the Light button...

thanks for the above, seems an obvious way to do it which I've never thought of!!

0 asecis over 8 years ago

wrist turn when now workout

There is a backlight setting on the FR735XT for activating the backlight on wrist turn, which will apply when you're running, so that should free you of your nightmare. (Yes, unlike the setting on the vívoactive‑HR, this also applies to when you aren't running, but higher power consumption is not part of the nightmare you described.)

Wrist turn is kind of nice feature, but its behavior is not thought through well. The backlight delay setting is working only during the workout , if you just press backlight button when you do not do the workout, it turns off after a few sec, duration does not depend on the setting. At the same time wrist turn work all the time, it is very annoying if you wear a watch during all the day and night, it runs on all the time when you just shake a hand or turn in the bed.

0 kalamarios over 8 years ago

I seem to have gone a bit "old fashioned" here. I generally want backlight on all the time when running in low light but don't really need it coming up on "randomly" for wrist turn, alerts otherwise.

So I have turned it off for keys & alerts and wrist turn but set timeout to Always on.

When I want it on or off, I just press the Light button...

I am like you TIMGROSE but as the OP mentioned, it's rather easy to go for a run during the day and forget the light on as it is not visible.

0 ASmugDill over 8 years ago

but its behavior is not thought through well. The backlight delay setting is working only during the workout ,

Yes to the latter, but I don't see it as evidence of the former. Having the backlight on in watch‑face/low-power mode is simply not an option available to the user. I acknowledge some users want it (and on occasion I wished I had it too, when fiddling with my watch's settings before bed but trying not to disturb my girlfriend with an external light), I acknowledge Garmin can implement whatever it wants, and I acknowledge there's a gap between the two – but making users subjectively happy is not the highest priority (over battery life, which is key to some of the company's marketing claims), and so putting other concerns over the user's preferences does not necessarily mean something wasn't well thought out.

it is very annoying if you wear a watch during all the day and night, it runs on all the time when you just shake a hand or turn in the bed.

I don't see how that's an annoyance, even if I wear the watch on my right wrist, because when I shake hands the watch face would be facing away from me. As for being in bed, my eyes are usually closed when I'm asleep, and I can't say I've been woken up by the watch's light in the whole year I've had my Forerunner (235).

it's rather easy to go for a run during the day and forget the light on as it is not visible.

That isn't going to interfere with either the running or the watch's function, however, unless you're doing ultra-running and rely on a full charge of the battery lasting the whole way.

0 Former Member over 5 years ago in reply to ASmugDill

Is there a way to turn up the brightness of the background light? I have a forerunner 735XT. My light seems dull.

0 tmk2 over 5 years ago in reply to Former Member

There is no way to adjust backlight brightness on the FR735XT.