Garmin not showing correct cycle journey distance

[bluezelos]

Is there something I have to tap on app or garmin to do this:

Sync your device to the Garmin Connect Mobile app using your Bluetooth® enabled smartphone.
While connected to your Garmin Connect account, the device downloads several days of satellite data, allowing it to quickly locate satellite signals.

does it do it automatically?

 

[ColinJ]

I imagine that you do the Garmin Connect thing at home once or twice a week to make sure the GPS knows what it is doing?

GPS devices can find out what they need to know from the satellite transmissions themselves. My old GPS can take a few minutes to do that if I haven't used it for a while and maybe 45-90 seconds otherwise. My phone can do it in seconds, though it may be using the phone signal to get a rough idea of where it is and then using the GPS to zoom in on the exact location?

The GPS should show you a message saying something like "Acquiring Satellites" and/or display a graphic that shows you how it is getting on.

 

[berty bassett]

personally i would restore to factory settings and start again , paying attention to satellite settings . not sure if the 820 has choices in the settings for what satellites but i would choose all . have you got a sensor on your wheel ? , and i would certainly plug into connect and update if needed and then take outside and leave it to settle

 

[Dogtrousers]

My old GPS can take a few minutes to do that if I haven't used it for a while and maybe 45-90 seconds otherwise. My phone can do it in seconds, though it may be using the phone signal to get a rough idea of where it is and then using the GPS to zoom in on the exact location?

Getting a GPS fix entails first picking up the satellite signals and then downloading some info from the satellites. Then you're good to go.

If your last downloaded data is still fresh you skip some or all of the second step, which is why a recently used device gets a fix quicker (provided last use was in broadly the same location)

As you can imagine the download speed from a collecation of flying dustbins thousands of km away is a bit crap. Network connected devices like phones cheat and use Assisted GPS that does the download step over the internet, which is why their time to first fix is so much faster.

 

[bluezelos]

I take it the 5 green vertical bars are the gps/satellite signal reading? At the moment I have been turning it on and off regularly (in my house) and it keeps saying 'GPS ready' and all 5 green bars lit. I take it this indictates everything is good to go when it reads this? I'm hoping to test it out soon, but the weather is preventing me from doing so. Thanks again for the replies.

berty bassett - no sensor on my wheel, just the garmin. I'll give it one more try now it seems to be showing gps ready before I reset.