The logic behind default GPS mode settings in different sports modes

[Łukasz Szmigiel]

FYI: Bug still persists with 2.14.12.

[Tomas5]

@łukasz-szmigiel I have kind of this issue too. But now when I play with it longer, i see that this behavior is somehow intertwined with note under battery mode Custom, it you change to GPS accuracy with OK, than it in note there is “Your own settings”, but when I choose GPS accuracy to Good than in note there is “No custom settings”. In this case When I choose Good accuracy, next time I get to sports mode I am switched to Endurance mode. When I switch to Best, than note says “No custom settings” and next time I am switched to Performance mode.

When I choose Endurance mode (and in custom I have “No custom settings” note and GPS as Best). Next time I am switched to Performance Mode.

When I choose Performance mode (and in custom I have “No custom settings” note and GPS as Good). Next time I am switched to Endurance Mode.

From my point of view. When you have disabled display timeout, than GPS accuracy Best/Good just change if default Battery mode would be Performance/Endurance. If you choos GPS accuracy to OK, or if you enable Display timeout, than default Battery mode is your custom mode. This behavior is very strange, but now when I understand how it works, I can live with that.

But since Ambit 2S and movescount, I see that suunto promotes simplicity at the expense of functionality and usability. It is possible to see it in suunto app compared to movescount. There are less settings when defining own sport modes, for example you can’t use two different graphs in one sport mode for HR and Altitude. And there is many other simplified things. But maybe that is what mainstream demands from them.

[surfboomerang]

@tomas5

Isn’t Custom always the default, but if the profile matches Performance, Endurance or Ultra, it shows that profile?

I have one sport mode where I have the same settings as Performace except the display setting (turns off after 10 sec). Everytime I start that sport mode, Custom is selected. It doesn’t matter what mode I selected the previous time.

However, when I deselect the display option in the Custom mode (now the Custom settings are similar to Performance) the watch defaults to Performance everytime.

[Tomas5]

@surfboomerang it is something like that, I edited my post now with my latest results how it works in my case.

[Tomas5]

But for example now, I have 16h in Performance, 34h in Endurance, and 23h in Custom (Good) and Display timeout off, but still my custom is ignored next time and I am switched to Endurance. But there is some difference due remaining battery time difference. For example with Custom I have HR on but with Endurance there is HR off. So I am possible to create custom mode with Good GPS and HR, but I am not able to save it because next time I am switched to Endurence witch has same GPS settings, but there is not possibility to enable HR in endurance.

[Łukasz Szmigiel]

@tomas5 please take note that with S5 there is no battery mode that either makes a GPS fix per 60 seconds or a GPS fix per 120 seconds but with OHR on, however it’s possible to customize it with custom mode.

When custom mode is set to “Good” GPS quality (60 seconds fix) and HR on, it works only for current activity (accent color: blue). When you exit the activity screen (either by completing it or dismissing), it’ll default to Endurance (accent color: orange) mode which is 120 seconds GPS fix and no OHR.

Also, after the event occurs (ie. you’re stuck with endurance mode), you have to navigate to custom battery settings and set them as custom but similar to performance. This will make it “blue” for current activity and will switch to “performance” for next one. However, you can’t just navigate to battery settings and change it to default performance mode as it won’t work. The only way to return to performance when this bug occurs is to recreate settings for “performance” mode as custom mode.

[Dimitrios Kanellopoulos]

Just to comment. This issue / request is known it just didn’t reach this update (apparently and unfortunately)

[Tomas5]

@łukasz-szmigiel thanks for info, didn’t realise that there is difference in gps between “Custom good” and “Endurance”.

I am quite disapointed, this is obvious bug and as programmer i don’t see reason why it can’t be fixed yet. Looks like suunto is saving some money by reducing development team.

[Tomas5]

@dimitrios-kanellopoulos but why ? It is know more than 9 months, already 2 or 3 updates was released. First they should fix bugs, than bring new features. Looks like suunto doesn’t care much. I really liked suunto brand. I hope it is just some bad time period for them.

[Dimitrios Kanellopoulos]

@tomas5 well I suppose not a thing of such priority on the current phase.

[Tomas5]

@dimitrios-kanellopoulos hopes you are right and they will fix it later. I still love suunto and suunto 5 watch are great. But this small bugs or simplified features reduce the user experience.

[Tomas5]

Still an issue in 2.14.16

[Dimitrios Kanellopoulos]

@tomas5 not going to be fixed soon. In a way it works as designed they say.

[Łukasz Szmigiel]

@dimitrios-kanellopoulos to me it clearly looks like a bug. The only way to get 1 min fix in S5 is via custom battery settings and while they are being saved, the watch doesn’t default to custom. Rather - watch defaults to endurance, but if one goes to battery settings and just selects custom - it seems to remember last custom settings (ie. 1 min fix). So it’s not a matter of the watch not remembering the custom settings but somehow wanting to default to one of its main modes - performance or endurance.

So it’s less than a battery customisation issue (which in essence works OK) but rather a smaller issue of watch forcing the predefined mode instead of custom.

[Tomas5]

@dimitrios-kanellopoulos well it is clearly a bug. When you select custom mode to best. Next time it switch you to performance. This can be accepted because it is same. But when you change custom to good. Next time it switch you to endurance. But endurance means no whr but custom gps good means that you can have whr enabled.

Next problem is that when i choose performance mode or endurance mode i can switch between them by upper right button. When i switch to custom with gps good i can switch between custom (blue), performance (green), endurance (orange) but next time i want do this excercise i am switched to endurance and i can no logner switch by upper right button to custom mode (blue) i need to go to setting again.

It should switch to performance every next time and allow to change by upper right button between green,orange,blue. Or it should save and next time stay on prefered setting meaning if i choose performance next time it will be performance, if i choose endurance next time it sill be endurance, if i choose custom (best,good,ok) i should next time stay with my preference.

But keep it fair, it is not painful bug, at least to me. I need to change to custom very rarely.

[Dimitrios Kanellopoulos]

I won’t argue. But unfortunately I cannot push anymore for this one. My bug report got denied.

The reason I am saying this and taking the time to post here , is not to convince you it’s not a bug but rather to indirectly (and now directly) perhaps bother support with this.

I am not pleased with Suuntos take on this bug tbh.

[Tomas5]

@dimitrios-kanellopoulos yeah, i know you do your best. Thanks for feedback.

[Łukasz Szmigiel]

@dimitrios-kanellopoulos I appreciate your effort. Thank you. I’m simply puzzled why it’s so low priority and I get it that it probably won’t be fixed

[Dimitrios Kanellopoulos]

@łukasz-szmigiel to be honest and without really knowing , maybe it’s going to be completely reworked or attached to a more bigger task.

I thought there was at least a workaround for this but I might be wrong.

Anyways. Additionally I would say ping me back here in eta 3 weeks after the product + fw is launched to push them again

[Łukasz Szmigiel]

FYI: This is even more buggy than I initially thought. I just realized it as I was too lazy to change it to either Custom or Performance so I left it on broken post-custom Endurance. However when looking at path it seemed strange to me that the points plotted on the map are more like in 1 min fix instead of 2 min fix. So I’ve downloaded GPX from QS and it’s indeed 1 min fix.

It seems that S5 doesn’t switch to Endurance from Custom. It seems so from the UI but judging from the GPX - the track is actually saved in 1 min intervals, so:

There’s no OHR because the watch enforces Endurance and the UI changes to orange.

But the GPS mode is as defined in custom (Good = 1 min).

So what results is some kind of weird amalgamation Not a custom sports mode and not a default Endurance either.

Steps to reproduce:

1. Go to any outdoor mode
2. Go to battery modes, set custom
3. Set OHR on, set GPS good
4. Confirm custom
5. Notice start screen turns blue
6. Either exit start screen or start the activity (doesn’t matter, it’ll work this time)
7. Go to the same activity
8. Notice the UI changes color to orange, indicating the watch defaults to Endurance
9. Start the activity and record ~15 min or more
10. Check GPX for timestamps - after initial few minutes of 1 sec it defaults to 1 min.

@Dimitrios-Kanellopoulos I know what you said before about this issue, so no additional pressure - just reporting my additional finding as it seems really buggy now.