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Improving GPS Accuracy, Distance, and Speed Readings on a Garmin Instinct Watch

When using a Garmin watch, following some best practices will ensure that the device will provide the most accurate information possible. Here are some of the best practices to remember to ensure that the watch is ready before beginning the activity.

With a strong satellite signal, the GPS position reported by a watch should be accurate to about 3 meters or 10 feet. A weaker satellite signal may decrease that positional accuracy, in turn affecting the accuracy of the distance and speed readings that will be reported by the watch. The sections below provide information about a number of factors that can affect the accuracy of the position, distance, and speed readings that appear on the watch. There are steps that can be taken to prevent or minimize that loss of accuracy.

If your step tracking distance is inaccurate, see - .

Environmental Factors and GPS Drift

It is important to remember that the GPS signal is not powerful enough to travel through most solid objects. When using a watch in an area such as a densely wooded path or in the middle of a city with tall buildings, you may experience the watch taking a longer time to acquire a satellite signal. Once you have acquired a satellite signal, you may also see a degraded performance with your GPS track (as shown in the image below) as well as in your running/walking pace. 
Red Line on a Satellite Image of a City

Also, as GPS satellite signals pass through the atmosphere and interact with other environmental factors (such as trees, hills, mountains, buildings, cars, reflective surfaces and more) they can become distorted. In the past, this would often cause a loss of position altogether, but with modern GPS watches that have higher sensitivity receivers, only the weakest signal will prevent the watch from locating your position. As a result, GPS drift can occur, causing your position to appear to be moving even though you are standing still.

The effect of GPS drift can be seen in the image below where the hiker stopped briefly to take a break without pausing their activity.

Red Line on a Satellite Image

To minimize these factors, it is best to begin the satellite acquisition period when you still have a clear view of the sky, even if you are going to start the activity where the view is more limited. And, if you are going to be stationary for a while, pause the activity during that time, or enable the auto-pause feature on the watch, to help limit the amount of inaccuracy introduced by GPS drift.

Enabling Auto Pause When Stopped

  1. From the watch face, press and hold Up/Menu to access the main menu.
  2. Scroll to or select Settings.
  3. Select Activities & Apps.
  4. Select an activity.
  5. Select the activity settings.
  6. Select Auto Pause.
  7. Select When Stopped.

The unit will now pause data recording when stopped, minimizing the impact of GPS drift.

GPS Soak and Update EPO/CPE Data

Before starting an activity allow the watch to GPS soak; this means to wait for an additional two minutes or more after the watch reads GPS ready. Giving the watch additional time to lock on to more satellites before beginning your activity timer can give increased GPS accuracy due to having more signal. Once it locates satellites, it is also easier for the watch to reacquire the signal again within a shorter timeframe if the connection is interrupted for any reason. If your watch is taking a long time to locate satellites, you may need to check that your watch's EPO or CPE information is current. The EPO/CPE information is automatically updated whenever the watch syncs with Garmin Express or the Garmin Connect app. See Related for more information.

Checking EPO/CPE Status on Instinct and Instinct Solar Series Watches

  1. From the watch face, press and hold the Up/Menu button.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Select About.
  4. Scroll down repeatedly until the EPO/CPE status screen.
    NOTE: The Instinct Standard watch will just show the status for EPO. 

Checking CPE Status on Instinct® 2 Series Watches

  1. From the watch face, press and hold the Up/Menu button.
  2. Select System.
  3. Select About.
  4. Scroll down repeatedly until the CPE status screen.

Enable Multi-Band GPS (Instinct® 2X Series Watches Only)

The Instinct 2X series watches feature "Multi-Band" or Dual-frequency GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) capability, which can help to improve location accuracy when environmental factors are difficult to avoid. For more details, and instructions for enabling this setting, see - Using a Dual GPS Frequency Garmin Watch.

Recording Method

Many of Garmin's watches offer the choice between Smart Recording or Every Second Recording. This setting refers to the interval at which GPS data is recorded into an activity file.

Smart Recording records key points where the watch changes direction, speed, heart rate or elevation. This recording type allows the user extended recording time given that it is recording less track points, thus taking up less memory. It is important to note that Smart Recording does not affect the performance of an activity as it pertains to the data being recorded.

Every Second Recording records the activity information every second no matter if the watch changes direction, speed, heart rate or elevation. This recording type provides a more defined track log of your activity for the most accurate position, distance, and speed information. However, overall watch memory will be filled up faster using this setting.

The difference between these options can be seen in the image below. The upper track represents Smart Recording while the lower track represents Every Second Recording.

Two Blue Lines Showing Different Paths

Enabling Every Second Recording

  1. From the watch face, press and hold Up/Menu to access the main menu.
  2. Scroll or select Settings.
  3. Select System.
  4. Select Data Recording.
  5. Select Every Second.

The watch will now record track data every second, providing the most defined and accurate data.

Using Secondary Satellite Systems

Turning on secondary satellite systems allows your watch to connect to additional positioning satellites. This can help maintain a GPS connection.

  1. From the watch face, press and hold Up/Menu to access the main menu.
  2. Scroll to or select Settings.
  3. Select Activities & Apps.
  4. Select an activity.
  5. Select the activity settings.
  6. Select GPS.
  7. Enable desired option.

The watch is now set to use multiple satellite systems.

Checking Pace and Distance Data Source (Instinct 2 Series and Instinct Crossover Series Watches Only)

If you are using an HRM-Pro™ or HRM-Pro Plus paired to your watch, check the source of your distance or pace data. If you are running outside, consider having the HRM as the distance and pace source for only indoor activities, so that the watch is relying on GPS tracking for your outdoor data. Since terrain can impact stride length, using GPS tracking outside can help with accuracy. If you want to learn more about using the HRM-Pro or HRM-Pro Plus to track pace and distance see - Using the HRM-Pro/Pro Plus Running Pace and Distance Feature.

To check the HRM-Pro or HRM-Pro Plus pace and distance settings follow these steps:

  1. Put on the heart rate monitor.

  2. Press and hold the Menu button of the watch.

  3. Scroll and select Sensors & Accessories.

  4. Select HRM-Pro or HRM-Pro Plus.

  5. Select HRM Pace & Distance to adjust settings.

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