Approach® S44 watch
Approach® S50 watch
Approach® S70 | Approach® S70 watches
D2™ Air | D2™ Air X 10 watches
D2™ Bravo watch
D2™ Charlie watch
D2™ Delta | D2™ Delta PX | D2™ Delta S watches
D2™ Mach 1 | D2™ Mach 1 Pro watches
Descent™ G1 | Descent™ G1 Solar | Descent™ G1 Solar - Ocean Edition watches
Descent™ G2 watch
Descent™ MK1 watch
Descent™ Mk2 | Descent™ Mk2i | Descent™ Mk2S watches
Descent™ Mk3 | Descent™ Mk3i watches
Edge® 1000 cycling computer
Edge® 1030 | Edge® 1030 Plus | Edge® 1030 Bontrager cycling computers
Edge® 500 cycling computer
Edge® 510 cycling computer
Edge® 520 | Edge® 520 Plus cycling computers
Edge® 530 cycling computer
Edge® 800 cycling computer
Edge® 810 cycling computer
Edge® 830 cycling computer
Enduro™ watch
Enduro™ 2 watch
Enduro™ 3 watch
epix™ watch
epix™ (Gen 2) - Standard Edition | epix™ (Gen 2) - Sapphire Edition | epix™ (Gen 2) - Porsche Edition watches
epix™ Pro (Gen 2) - Standard Edition | epix™ Pro (Gen 2) - Sapphire Edition watches
fēnix® 2 watch
fēnix® 3 | fēnix® 3 HR | fēnix® 3 Sapphire watches
fēnix® 5S | fēnix® 5 | fēnix® 5X watches
fēnix® 5S Plus | fēnix® 5 Plus | fēnix® 5X Plus watches
fēnix® 6 - Standard Edition | fēnix® 6 - Solar Edition | fēnix® 6 - Pro and Sapphire Editions | fēnix® 6 - Pro Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 6S - Standard Edition | fēnix® 6S - Solar Edition | fēnix® 6S - Pro and Sapphire Editions | fēnix® 6S - Pro Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 6X - Pro and Sapphire Editions | fēnix® 6X - Pro Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 7 - Standard Edition | fēnix® 7 - Solar Edition | fēnix® 7 - Sapphire Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 7S - Standard Edition | fēnix® 7S - Solar Edition | fēnix® 7S - Sapphire Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 7X - Solar Edition | fēnix® 7X - Sapphire Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 7 Pro - Solar Edition | fēnix® 7 Pro - Sapphire Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 7S Pro - Solar Edition | fēnix® 7S Pro - Sapphire Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 7X Pro - Solar Edition | fēnix® 7X Pro - Sapphire Solar Edition watches
fēnix® 8 - AMOLED Edition | fēnix® 8 - Solar Edition watches
fēnix® CHRONOS watch
fēnix® E watch
Forerunner® 55 watch
Forerunner® 165 | Forerunner® 165 Music watches
Forerunner® 230 watch
Forerunner® 235 watch
Forerunner® 245 | Forerunner® 245 Music watches
Forerunner® 255 | Forerunner® 255 Music | Forerunner® 255S | Forerunner® 255S Music watches
Forerunner® 265 | Forerunner® 265S watches
Forerunner® 310XT watch
Forerunner® 570 watch
Forerunner® 610 watch
Forerunner® 620 watch
Forerunner® 630 watch
Forerunner® 645 | Forerunner® 645 Music watches
Forerunner® 735XT watch
Forerunner® 745 watch
Forerunner® 910XT watch
Forerunner® 920XT watch
Forerunner® 935 watch
Forerunner® 945 | Forerunner® 945 LTE watches
Forerunner® 955 | Forerunner® 955 Solar watches
Forerunner® 965 watch
Forerunner® 970 watch
Instinct® - Standard Edition | Instinct® - Tactical Edition | Instinct® - Esports Edition watches
Instinct® Solar - Standard Edition | Instinct® Solar - Camo Edition | Instinct® Solar - Surf Edition | Instinct® Solar - Tactical Edition watches
Instinct® 2 - Standard Edition | Instinct® 2 - Camo Edition | Instinct® 2 - Surf Edition | Instinct® 2 - dēzl Edition watches
Instinct® 2S - Standard Edition | Instinct® 2S - Camo Edition | Instinct® 2S - Surf Edition watches
Instinct® 2 Solar | Instinct® 2 Solar - Tactical Edition | Instinct® 2 Solar - Surf Edition watches
Instinct® 2S Solar | Instinct® 2S Solar - Surf Edition watches
Instinct® 2X Solar | Instinct® 2X Solar - Tactical Edition watches
Instinct® 3 - AMOLED | Instinct® 3 - Solar watches
Instinct® 3 Tactical Edition - AMOLED | Instinct® 3 Tactical Edition - Solar watches
Instinct® Crossover - Standard® Edition | Instinct® Crossover Solar | Instinct® Crossover Solar - Tactical Edition watches
Instinct® E watch
Legacy Hero - Captain Marvel | First Avenger watches
Legacy Saga - Rey™ | Darth Vader™ watches
MARQ® Adventurer | MARQ® Athlete | MARQ® Aviator | MARQ® Captain | MARQ® Commander | MARQ® Driver | MARQ® Expedition | MARQ® Golfer watches
MARQ® Adventurer (Gen 2) | MARQ® Athlete (Gen 2) | MARQ® Aviator (Gen 2) | MARQ® Captain (Gen 2) | MARQ® Golfer (Gen 2) watches
MARQ® Adventurer (Gen 2) - Damascus Steel Edition | MARQ® Athlete (Gen 2) - Carbon Edition | MARQ® Athlete (Gen 2) - Performance Edition | MARQ® Commander (Gen 2) - Carbon Edition | MARQ® Golfer (Gen 2) - Carbon Edition watches
quatix® 3 watch | quatix® 5 watch | quatix® 6 watch | quatix® 7 watches
tactix® 7 - AMOLED Edition | tactix® 7 - Standard Edition | tactix® 7 - Pro Edition | tactix® 7 - Pro Ballistics Edition watches
tactix® 8 - AMOLED | tactix® 8 - Solar watches
tactix® Bravo watch
tactix® Charlie watch
tactix® Delta - Sapphire Edition | tactix® Delta - Solar Edition | tactix® Delta - Solar Edition with Ballistics watches
Venu® watch
Venu® 2 | Venu® 2S watches
Venu® 2 Plus watch
Venu® 3 | Venu® 3S watches
vívoactive® 3 | vívoactive® 3 Music | vívoactive® 3 Music (Verizon) watches
vívoactive® 4 | vívoactive® 4S watches
vívoactive® 5 watch
vívoactive® 6 watch
vívoactive® HR watch
Smart Recording vs. Every Second Recording on Garmin Devices
When it comes to the GPS track log, many Garmin® Fitness devices offer the choice of Smart Recording or Every Second Recording. Data Recording settings will typically be found under Settings > System on your Garmin Device. For specific instructions on how to adjust Data Recording, refer to your owner's manual.
Smart Recording
Smart Recording captures key data points as changes occur in direction, speed, heart rate or elevation. This method is recommended as it saves space on your device and has no negative impact on GPS accuracy. This setting will also be the most beneficial to your battery life.
Every Second Recording
Every Second Recording will record a GPS point once per second, regardless of direction, speed, heart rate, or elevation. Every Second Recording can produce more detailed tracks of your activities. A more detailed track will lead to more accurate speed and distance data but uses significantly more memory and battery life due to tracking data points more often.
Why Should I Choose One Option Over the Other?
When choosing which option to set your watch to, you will have a few things to consider:
Battery Life
File Size
GPS Accuracy
The more data points your watch records, the smoother and more accurate your track will be. The trade off for this is that it will consume more battery life, as well as more space in the device's memory. If you need a longer battery life or need to make sure you have more space for a longer activity, you will want to choose Smart Recording. If you want more accuracy and a track that follows your movement based on points that are recorded more often, you will want to choose Every Second Recording.
Which Devices Have This Feature?
Select the following to reveal a list of devices that you can change the GPS recording type.