Warning Re Garmin Direct UK Purchases

I understand the frustration with receiving a partly-used item when you expected a new one. Not sure what your options are.

Can you update us when you've done a few runs with the new watch? You probably couldn't get worse GPS data than the first run out of the box. Your older watch might have had a better read on the satellites, who knows. It could just be the variability of one run.

I definitely want to figure out if a bigger problem is going on. The first step will be for you to collect more data so we can tell whether your watch issue is a true defect or a temporary glitch.

I wasn't going to bother doing any more runs with it to be honest.

I went through the same process in January, spending weeks running with an old Forerunner 10 on one wrist and the 35 on the other. I do a lot of my mileage going around my local park which is a 1.4 mile loop. The 35 consistently failed to track the lap accurately. On pretty much every run it would jump off for at least part of the multi lap route. The old Forerunner 10 has very, very rarely gone wrong over years of use on the same circuit. Whereas the failure pattern on this new watch is exactly the same.

Getting a watch which had been used before is annoying but honestly if it was reliable it would have just kept it given the sale price.

However now I'm wondering if there's a bigger issue at play re the Forerunner 35's GPS receiver in general? Surely this should not be so poor compared with a much older device. Nor should I have encountered the same fault on two consecutive copies of the same model.

Hm...that really sucks. Sounds like you really investigated. I have a 35 (purchased May 2019), but I haven't had GPS problems. I think I recall someone else starting a thread about this type of issue on a 35 as well.

Yeah, it's really annoying - it's not even like when I've had issues with the 10. Then it was just that it was slightly off - maybe running parallel to where I actually ran and sometimes going off directionally when making 90 degree turns for a while before having jumping back to the correct location.

With this it can be correctly on the route for a lap or two then just randomly jumps completely off in another direction before correcting. Very annoying.

I'm glad yours works. I really like the design - the watch face is quite slim and doesn't look so much like a sports watch. The HRM and Bluetooth uploading are the only things upgrade wise I was looking for but it's really annoying to have received one which had obviously been returned and not checked by Garmin just reissued.

Weird as well as I'm sure I've read on here several times that Garmin are supposed to have really good customer service. However clearly they are just sending out returned stock I guess hoping someone else who's never had a GPS watch won't know any better. Really poor.

Hmm I just bought a Garmin 45s for my girlfriend from Garmin directly and it arrived today. I'll definitely be checking for any old activities!

Interesting. Let us know how the 45 goes.

I was considering that but I liked the look of the 35 more, plus it did everything I needed and it was cheaper. Also just before the lockdowns I was on holiday and met some guy at my hotel who had a 35 and was very happy with it, no problems like the one I'd had before.

Would be good to hear if anyone had any in-depth knowledge of the difference in receivers used by the Garmin devices. Really surprises me that my ancient 10 is still perfect in terms of GPS, yet two copies of a much newer model were hopeless.

UPDATE

Guys I would think very, VERY hard before dealing with Garmin UK directly at the moment.

I returned this watch - which remember had an activity already on it - over a week ago now.

Tracked Royal Mail says they received it on Monday but they have yet to even acknowledge receipt never mind processing my refund. There is no person to speak to in person at the moment - due to Coronavirus which didn't seem to effect them taking / posting the order in the first place.

I fear something is very wrong here, i.e. list previously returned items at a very good sale price, send out previously used / returned faulty stock, then either claim not received back or return "lost in the post".

Anyway just an update on the warning in case anyone is looking for a new watch this weekend. Don't get caught out like me...

I just went through a return process in the US that went smoothly. Were you in contact with them before mailing your defective watch?

Trail Zealot wrote:

I just went through a return process in the US that went smoothly. Were you in contact with them before mailing your defective watch?

Glad your return went well.

Yes, I had to start the return process off online which gave me a return code which formed part of the return address.

I also did an online chat with them to query why I was having to pay the return p&p for a watch which had clearly been used previously and was defective in terms of its tracking. Not sure re the situation in the US but here if the item is being returned due to a fault the seller is liable for the return postage.

Again this something they have thus far refused to acknowledge. I have a horrible feeling that I am going to be out of pocket not only for the return but for the watch itself and will land up having to get compensation for a "lost" mail item. Although I've no idea how that will work since Royal Mail claim it was delivered.