291–300 of 317 posts
A nice story similar to Nokia/Kodak/Netscape but with a happy ending.
Kodak in particular killed its novel R&D to protect its cash cow, instead of investing in R&D. So pretty much the opposite of Garmin.
Interesting article. My partner bought an Apple watch a couple of years ago and I was shocked at what a poor value proposition it was. Very expensive and wouldn't even hold a charge for a day. I guess you get used to it but having to charge my watch every day would drive me mad. Obviously there are things it will do better than a Garmin (and things it can do that a Garmin simply can't) but overall it didn't make sens…
The Apple Watch is also a terribly designed device for running. Too much of its functions rely on interacting with the touchscreen, something you are either unable to do with sweaty hands when running or don't want to do as it draws your attention away for a prolonged amount of time and hurts your form. Garmin's unwavering commitment to physical buttons and how you can customize what they do is what makes them the go…
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Yet I can't use my new Forerunner 55 watch without connecting it to Garmin servers. They make sure it takes about an hour to have a reliable GPS position unless your make it regularly connect to an active Garmin account, either via Garmin Express (dekstop) or Garmin Connect. I switch to GadgetBridge but without updating the AGPS files, no reliable GPS. How open of them.
> sure it takes about an hour to have a reliable GPS position Any feedback from Garmin on this issue? It sounds like a bug, unless they have documented a non-technical policy dependency between GPS and cloud login.
Garmin is undoubtedly already aware that you need cloud login for their devices to download almanac and ephemeris over the internet.
10 years ago, they had a hand full of different models with clearly distinguished features. And there was one does-it-all model.
Now, they’re releasing 20 different watches a year which are all clearly based on the same hardware - just with different features enabled via software. There’s no top-of-the-line model anymore that has ALL the features.
And while I was able to turn my Fenix 5 Plus into a D2 Delta via a simple firmware patch, they’re now using encrypted firmwares in all newer models. I.e. they’ve wasted lots of development hours on implementing encryption instead of fixing some of the various bugs reported in their forums or implementing some of the feature requests.
And don’t get me started on their nav units. They’re using maps from HERE. And after fixing mapping errors yourself in HERE’s MapCreator, it takes AT LEAST a year until they finally show up on a device. If you’re lucky.
Also, my motorbike unit’s manual explained a feature where it would warn you of upcoming bad weather. However, this feature never materialised and newer manuals don’t mention it anymore.
Interesting article. My partner bought an Apple watch a couple of years ago and I was shocked at what a poor value proposition it was. Very expensive and wouldn't even hold a charge for a day. I guess you get used to it but having to charge my watch every day would drive me mad. Obviously there are things it will do better than a Garmin (and things it can do that a Garmin simply can't) but overall it didn't make sens…
I just don't understand how Apple, supposed masters of design and aesthetics, ever thought it was a good idea to release a square watch. It just looks so dumb.
And try reading a longer notification on a round display. It just doesn’t make any sense.
I'm amazed apple has got by with a 3/4 day charge for 10 generations while garmin has had products with a 7+ day charge for years.
Once you give up sleep tracking as a feature, it doesn't matter too much as people can charge their watch nightly. I'm very much on the other side of that decision - I find sleep tracking to be a killer feature, but you can see how Apple got away with it.
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Once you give up sleep tracking as a feature, it doesn't matter too much as people can charge their watch nightly. I'm very much on the other side of that decision - I find sleep tracking to be a killer feature, but you can see how Apple got away with it.
From my research, none of the available sleep tracking solutions are reliable, unless you attach electrodes to your head. When using multiple sleep tracking solutions in parallel, they all report significantly different results.
The sleep quality and breathing measurements are based on movement - which doesn’t make sense when you have another person or pet with you in the bed that also tends to move at night.
That’s why we still have sleeping labs. However, the watch’s data can be an indicator that something is wrong and get people to at least mention it to their doc.
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I was in the same boat with genetics and cholesterol. It is all the diet. At some point I realized I had to stop eating cheese completely. No pizza, no nachos, no tacos with cheese. I can stay in good shape with a once a week cheat night but I don't have the genetics to deal with the cholesterol like that. It sucked at first but the things I do enjoy now, I enjoy them just as much.
Consuming cholesterol, like in cheese, has little effect on serum cholesterol levels. Almost all of the cholesterol in your body is endogenously produced.
Garmin Watch 30 days battery life Fitbit 5-7 days Apple 1 day
Another example of a tech company that would not exist without the military
Because the military invented GPS? The military (sort of) invented the Internet too, so no tech company would exist without the military.
Computers, and networks, were largely funded by DoD for artillery calculations, and then the Manhattan project.
Companies like HP were very involved in the high tech arms industry.