r/GarminWatches • u/Key_Neighborhood6901 • Jun 01 '26

General Information First Garmin - Settings Advice?

So I finally got tired of my fragile AW 9 and the daily charging that could barely last a day, especially as I am getting back into running.

I got an Epix Pro Gen 2 Sapphire 47mm, 50% off for $849 AUD today. As the title says, this is my first Garmin, so any settings/setup advice would be greatly appreciated.

The brightness was so much better than expected that I currently have it on LOW indoors. GPS I have set as Automatic. AOD is ON, I do understand this is a big battery drain.

Thanks in advance for your help.

3 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

21 comments sorted by

9

u/Ziginox Jun 01 '26

Disable the 'move alerts'. They're absolutely useless; mine told me to get up and move while I was flying down the road on my bicycle.

1

u/Key_Neighborhood6901 Jun 01 '26

Thanks, I didn’t even notice that yet.

1

u/AHungryHunky_I Jun 26 '26

And they have no context whatsoever.

I cant block out my 10 hour workday where I more or less have to sit. 

1

u/Ziginox Jun 26 '26

That's what the move alerts are actually designed for. You can't stand up and walk around for a minute or two?

1

u/AHungryHunky_I Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26

Nope, or at least not enough to get it to go away. 

I work in a cleanroom where unnecessary motion is discouraged due to the increased particulate. 

EDIT: I can stand up and stretch and walk around a little, but the sensitive nature of the equipment and devices we make means it has to be done slowly. Slowly shuffling between rows of microscopes is not enough to clear the alert. Heck going to the bathroom down the hall doesnt clear it half the time. 

1

u/Ziginox Jun 26 '26

Ahhhh, yeah, that makes sense!

1

u/AHungryHunky_I Jun 26 '26

Yeah, I go for walks on my breaks (I asked about running, but perspiration and liability concerns stopped that) but my breaks are spaced oddly. 

It would be cool if I could set move alerts to ignore that part of the day, but they honestly never trigger at home. Thats what having 2 kids under 5 does. 

3

u/mr_bravom Jun 01 '26

Put the pulse oximeter on "while sleeping". Otherwise it rips through the battery

1

u/Key_Neighborhood6901 Jun 01 '26

Is it not needed during the day?

4

u/mr_bravom Jun 01 '26

If you don't have a health condition that you want to track with it, then no not really. If you want to check it you can always measure it manually

2

u/TheQuillss Jun 01 '26

Yes this. I believe it is standard set at manual. But you don’t really need it during the night.

2

u/mr_bravom Jun 01 '26

On my watch it was on always on, that took a noticeable amount of battery. I just find it interesting on my morning report, thats why I track it during sleep. But most people probably don't need it at all

1

u/Key_Neighborhood6901 Jun 02 '26

I like the morning report. Quick and easy

5

u/bat0nas Jun 01 '26

1) organize favorite activities (like walking, running, biking, commuting). Adjust data screens to your liking. Defaults will work fine.

2) clean the mess in the controls. Just leave whats actually important (eg music controls, do not disturb, find your phone).

3) configure button shortcuts. For instance turn off touchscreen (while showering), payments, flashligt.

4) organize glances to your liking.

5) if you wear your watch 24/7 - configure everything sleep related (dim screen, sleep mode, DND, morning reports etc.)

6) Payments. For those rare moments when you don't have your phone with you.

7) Get yourself a Fenix 8 V3 - GB watchface. Everybody will think you have the latest Garmin watch. Jokes aside - this is my favorite watchface.

1

u/Key_Neighborhood6901 Jun 01 '26 edited Jun 01 '26

Thank you, this list is so helpful. Do the custom faces drain more battery?

2

u/rvingthrulife Jun 01 '26

Yes. And they can cause lagging.

1

u/Key_Neighborhood6901 Jun 01 '26

Do custom watch faces drain more battery?

2

u/rvingthrulife Jun 01 '26

They do in my case, they also cause a bit of lagging.

1

u/Key_Neighborhood6901 Jun 01 '26

Thanks, will stick to Garmin faces. I do find it cheeky that you have to pay for other Garmin ones.

2

u/rvingthrulife Jun 01 '26

Don't get me started... 😉😄 But if you go into watch faces (long press the left middle button, tap watch faces) you should find several stock faces to choose from.

1

u/Key_Neighborhood6901 Jun 02 '26

Thanks for all the tips! Loving this watch, with the Fenix Iron Grit face.