UKH

I installed what I thought was a firmware update on my 735XT a week or so back, after it had been pestering me to do so for some time.  I immediately noticed that a few obvious settings had been changed as part of the update, but it was only when I used it on our Hogmanay walk that I noticed that it had failed to record a track for the activity.  It did report a total distance, but that was about 60% longer than the actual length of the route which we've done many times before, so I've no idea where it pulled that number from (maybe a wildly inaccurate estimate based on flaky "step counting"? - which I never take any notice of, same as the flaky wrist heart rate sensors).

I checked all the obvious settings I could find and AFAICS everything now seems to suggest that tracks should be being recorded for all activities.  I gave it a test this afternoon when I popped out to the local shops: I checked that it was showing GPS ready before starting, and during the outing the app that I have that displays my location as an OS grid reference seemed to be working, but on returning home I found that it had again failed to record a track for the activity

I've not been into the settings much since I first got the watch in 2019, when I set it up for my normal exercise activities - walking, cycling and skiing.  It's been working fine since then until just recently, post the update.

Having checked my activity history on Garmin Connect, it seems that the actual watch firmware hasn't been updated since mid-August 2020 when I installed version 9.80, which is the same version it is reporting as having now.  So what was the update that it had been bleating at me about through most of December?

As I see it, there are a few possibilities here:

1. The update - whatever it was - has knackered the watch's track recording functionality. Which case I probably need to back it out, if that's possible.  If it was an app update rather than a firmware update, which now seems likely, then the simplest solution would probably be to uninstall the app;
2. The update reset a setting which I've forgotten in the 4+ years since I first set it up - in which case does anyone know what that setting might be?
3. I'm an idiot and the solution should be blindingly obvious.

I had been planning to use the watch on my upcoming ski holiday, but this problem will make it effectively useless for that, so I'd like to get to the bottom of it sooner rather than later if possible!

Well, it seems either my post was far too boring to deserve a reply (no real surprise there) and/or no-one who could be bothered to trawl through could offer any advice.  Which is fine: it's unrealistic to expect the UKC hive mind to be able to come up an answer every time!

As it is, it looks like the problem was caused by a rogue IQ Connect app/widget/data field.  I actually uninstalled all the ones I had on the watch - most of which were there to give me an OS grid reference, and thus would have been using the watch's GPS - and the problem went away.  I found an alternative for the OS grid reference data field (which was the only one I used at all often) on IQ Connect and with that installed the watch is still producing activity tracks <thumb up>.

The other apps and widgets I can easily manage without for now, and look in to reinstalling or replacing them - if I decide that I do need them - when I get back from the Alps.

I've got a 735 and whilst I don't recognise your specifics,  I've had issues at times when its updated.

Typically I've done a full factory reset and its then been fine for quite some time.  I know its a pain as you lose apps and settings but it seems to clear up issues.

Also could try the garmin forums to see if others have the issue?

As JamButty noted, Garmin forums might have the solution. Your issue isn't something I've ever encountered, or heard of, before your post. Thats ny excuse for not replying!

On my Garmin ( which is newer, the 955, so may be different ) you don't need to add a 3rd party app/data-field to get the OS grid ref, you can get it from the pre-installed Fields. It's called Location and is in the Navigation Fields group.

In order to get OS rather than Lat/Long you may have to change the grid reference type - in Settings -> System -> Format -> Pos. Format -> British Grid .

Apologies if all that's only on the newer watches and doesn't apply to the 735

Not a lot of luck on the Garmin forums I'm afraid.  Perhaps not surprisingly, given that it seems to have been an independently developed Connect IQ app/widget/data field which was causing the problem.

The most concerning reports I did find online were about the 735XT taking ages to get an initial GPS fix with 9.8 firmware installed.  Glacially slow GPS fixes were another symptom of the problem on mine, but since it turned out that I'd installed that version of the firmware back in 2020 and the problem hadn't emerged until the end of 2023, it seemed unlikely that it was the cause in my case.  And it turned out that, whichever the offending app/widget/data field was, once it was gone the watch is back to getting initial GPS fixes in just a few seconds, as before.

No such group on my 735XT I'm afraid, and no grid reference type option in the Format settings either.  Thanks for the suggestion, anyway.

The navigation function on the 735XT is actually fairly rudimentary.  I've never felt the need to use it, being happy working from maps (paper or electronic as appropriate).  I only really bought the watch to record my routes and related data.  I've never used any of the training functions, or the virtual partner, nor do I use it to count my daily steps, monitor my heart rate 24x7, or track my sleep activity.  I basically bought it as a smaller, easier to carry upgrade (with more data sources e.g. exercise heart rate, cadence etc) from my entry level eTrex when that was rendered irredeemably obsolete.