Garmin Descent MK2

[kanonen]

so I used my mk2i to record my skiing last week. And this is when I realized how bad the button design is.
It kept pausing and saving my activity as I flex my hand and hit the buttons against the glove, coat etc.

Even as I locked the buttons, it found a way to unlock it. I assume I managed to hit one of the buttons long enough to unlock it.

They need to find a way to make the unlock buttons only on the left side of the watch (the right side buttons are easier to hit against clothing or the hand), and the time needed to unlock must be longer than holding for 2 seconds.

I don't know if this problem is the same on thinner Garmin watches.

 

[stuartv]

so I used my mk2i to record my skiing last week. And this is when I realized how bad the button design is.
It kept pausing and saving my activity as I flex my hand and hit the buttons against the glove, coat etc.

Even as I locked the buttons, it found a way to unlock it. I assume I managed to hit one of the buttons long enough to unlock it.

They need to find a way to make the unlock buttons only on the left side of the watch (the right side buttons are easier to hit against clothing or the hand), and the time needed to unlock must be longer than holding for 2 seconds.

I don't know if this problem is the same on thinner Garmin watches.

That is a bummer.

I have had accidental button presses on a Shearwater Perdix, while diving. I personally know 3 people who even had inadvertent gas switches happen on their Shearwater without them knowing it.

I have never had an accidental button push on either of my Terics.

For instruments intended to be used for drysuit diving or snow skiing, the manufacturers really ought to design them so those accidental button presses don't happen. Or, at least, are MUCH less likely to happen. I wish the Shearwater Petrel/Perdix buttons were on the front, instead of the sides, like the Ratio or ScubaPro brick computers.

 

[waterone]

so I used my mk2i to record my skiing last week. And this is when I realized how bad the button design is.
It kept pausing and saving my activity as I flex my hand and hit the buttons against the glove, coat etc.

Even as I locked the buttons, it found a way to unlock it. I assume I managed to hit one of the buttons long enough to unlock it.

They need to find a way to make the unlock buttons only on the left side of the watch (the right side buttons are easier to hit against clothing or the hand), and the time needed to unlock must be longer than holding for 2 seconds.

I don't know if this problem is the same on thinner Garmin watches.

There is a big chance that you are wearing the watch too tight with gloves and everything over your wrist. I recorded snowboarding all last season (well over 30 days) and it recorded fine.

I did have an issue with the mk2i recorded speed incorrectly. This supposedly got fixed in a recent update and I will see tomorrow.

I have also used the mk1 for over twice as many days over the winters and it also was not an issue. It even always recorded the speed properly

 

[kanonen]

There is a big chance that you are wearing the watch too tight with gloves and everything over your wrist. I recorded snowboarding all last season (well over 30 days) and it recorded fine.

I have also used the mk1 for over twice as many days over the winters and it also was not an issue. It even always recorded the speed properly

I am sure not everyone wears their watch, gloves and other garments similarly. I wear my watch snug, but not tight. That being said, I didn't have high expectation for accuracy with the GPS as the watch is under my ski coat, but it did well.

My recommendation remains that they need to issue a firmware update and switch the unlock button to just one, the top left button. For sure, the hold time needs to be a little longer than 2 seconds.

 

[waterone]

Yes, I am sure many wear their watches differently. I also wear mine snug which is about 2 holes from tight, but it still has room to shift slightly which is the same as I do for daily wear. It will also read pulse and ox better without it being too tight.

With it setup like this there is no issue for me.

 

[scrane]

There is a big chance that you are wearing the watch too tight with gloves and everything over your wrist. I recorded snowboarding all last season (well over 30 days) and it recorded fine.

I did have an issue with the mk2i recorded speed incorrectly. This supposedly got fixed in a recent update and I will see tomorrow.

I have also used the mk1 for over twice as many days over the winters and it also was not an issue. It even always recorded the speed properly

Did you happen to notice how accurate the Garmin was in determining altitude? I have a Mk1 I use for hiking and altitude readings are very unreliable.

 

[waterone]

Did you happen to notice how accurate the Garmin was in determining altitude? I have a Mk1 I use for hiking and altitude readings are very unreliable.

Always within ....a FEW hundred .....now. But for a while it had occasional large jumps (+1000) and think an update must have helped with that.

Now it is about as accurate as some sport specific altimeter's that I have had in the past, but I do not believe that would it be good enough to track small elevation changes for hiking or climbing. For skiing/snowboarding it does pretty well though and the GPS seems to track even the smallest of trails.

 

[kanonen]

Did you happen to notice how accurate the Garmin was in determining altitude? I have a Mk1 I use for hiking and altitude readings are very unreliable.

are you calibrating it using GPS ?

 

[scrane]

are you calibrating it using GPS ?

Yes, both using GPS and data entry many times. Auto calibration and not. I wish it could base real time readings on GPS and not the barometer.

 

[kanonen]

so I used my mk2i to record my skiing last week. And this is when I realized how bad the button design is.
It kept pausing and saving my activity as I flex my hand and hit the buttons against the glove, coat etc.

Even as I locked the buttons, it found a way to unlock it. I assume I managed to hit one of the buttons long enough to unlock it.

They need to find a way to make the unlock buttons only on the left side of the watch (the right side buttons are easier to hit against clothing or the hand), and the time needed to unlock must be longer than holding for 2 seconds.

I don't know if this problem is the same on thinner Garmin watches.

So I found a solution for my issue.

The Garmin actually allows you to program a button combination for specific tasks. I reprogrammed the lock/unlock function to holding both top right and bottom left buttons.

Issue solved.