Stand-alone GPS tracking, Endomondo, My Tracks etc.

[scaots]

I had another small glitch today where I only had one point recorded over a couple minutes. From the graph it's clear that HR from my polar and GPS both had same behavior. Everything came back on its own. I fixed the track in RunKeeper web interface and export the gpx and change the timestamps to GMT and import to Strava (after deleting the incorrect activity since it won't let you add one at same time). Not sure if that was something with using the external HRM or just something that happened. I will definitely keep an eye on it.

Posted via the Android Central App v2. 9.0 since v2.9.7 doesn't think I'm logged in.

 

[mdw1995]

I had another small glitch today where I only had one point recorded over a couple minutes. From the graph it's clear that HR from my polar and GPS both had same behavior. Everything came back on its own. I fixed the track in RunKeeper web interface and export the gpx and change the timestamps to GMT and import to Strava (after deleting the incorrect activity since it won't let you add one at same time). Not sure if that was something with using the external HRM or just something that happened. I will definitely keep an eye on it.

Posted via the Android Central App v2. 9.0 since v2.9.7 doesn't think I'm logged in.

Wearing the wristband for this run? I know for ghostracer if the GPS doesn't record it doesn't record HR either.

 

[scaots]

Good to know that the HRM recording is tied to GPS point, that does make sense for saving data. I was wearing wrist band, but it was overcast and spitting and the wristband was probably getting pretty soaked with sweat since it was warm and very humid. There was one point in the middle of the issue recorded and the GPS was generally not as good as I'm used to with the wristband so I am attributing it to GPS problem for now. I'm glad it at least came back and kept going.

Posted via the Android Central App v2.9.0 since v2.9.7 doesn't think I'm logged in.

 

[scaots]

I went for a run today without the external HRM. I used the wristband as usual. I couldn't get a GPS signal with ghostracer until .78 miles into my run. When I started it was taking a while to get a lock so I opened maps and it quickly identified my position. I switched back to ghostracer, saw a two bar lock and headed out. I immediately saw that it wasn't tracking, but I didn't have time to mess with it and on the pause screen it showed that it was still searching. After a while it finally started tracking. Disappointed that I am not getting a reliable position.

Posted via the Android Central App v2.9.0 since v2.9.7 doesn't think I'm logged in.

 

[mdw1995]

I went for a run today without the external HRM. I used the wristband as usual. I couldn't get a GPS signal with ghostracer until .78 miles into my run. When I started it was taking a while to get a lock so I opened maps and it quickly identified my position. I switched back to ghostracer, saw a two bar lock and headed out. I immediately saw that it wasn't tracking, but I didn't have time to mess with it and on the pause screen it showed that it was still searching. After a while it finally started tracking. Disappointed that I am not getting a reliable position.

Posted via the Android Central App v2.9.0 since v2.9.7 doesn't think I'm logged in.

Do you normally have the watch paired to your phone through cell data when tracking runs? I know if I'm not paired it takes a lot longer to get a lock and it's harder to maintain a signal. If you are paired, then I'm not sure what would cause it. I usually get a lock, with 3 to 4 meter accuracy according to Wear GPS, and 4 bars on ghostracer within 15 seconds when I'm paired.

 

[scaots]

This morning it wasn't paired because I still had my phone in airplane mode from overnight to avoid notifications. (I should really use the do not disturb but I don't want to remember to turn that off or have it buzzing away when I decided to sleep in.) I have seen the behavior before. Google Maps must use AGPS on the watch because it can quickly get a lock, but even after doing that ghostracer still insists on the regular satellite lock (seemingly when disconnected). When I have a chance, I may test a couple other apps and see if they can lock as quickly as Maps. Strange part is that even if I have location off on the phone it seems to help. Maybe it is only getting data through the watch app for AGPS. Perhaps AW2.0 and an app update could help with standalone apps.

Posted via the Android Central App v2.9.0 since v2.9.7 doesn't think I'm logged in.

 

[mdw1995]

.....Strange part is that even if I have location off on the phone it seems to help. Maybe it is only getting data through the watch app for AGPS.....

That's what I think. I never have location active on the phone but it seems to help get a lock on the watch when I'm paired to the phone through cell data.

 

[xendula]

I had another small glitch today where I only had one point recorded over a couple minutes. From the graph it's clear that HR from my polar and GPS both had same behavior. Everything came back on its own. I fixed the track in RunKeeper web interface and export the gpx and change the timestamps to GMT and import to Strava (after deleting the incorrect activity since it won't let you add one at same time). Not sure if that was something with using the external HRM or just something that happened. I will definitely keep an eye on it.

Do you fire up Wear GPS before and let it search for satellites before you start your tracking app? Doing that makes all the difference when I track my runs.

 

[scaots]

I'll have to remember to try that. It would be good to see how many satellites it actually has and how strong the signal is. I haven't been using it recently.

The other day watch was connected to my phone but when I opened ghostracer it worked up to 3 bars for location then started searching again a moment later. Once it locked the second time I started and didn't have any issues.

 

[scaots]

I have not had a good track in weeks. Always some segment where GPS is lost. I thought I had a good short 30min run the other day, but it stopped for a bit on the home stretch. It seems to typically recover in about a quarter mile or a couple minutes. I'm still using ghostracer because it is such a great app and on a computer I can fairly easily fix tracks it uploads to RunKeeper. The Strava upload just ignores the missing sections including the time so at least it keeps pace info straight. I need to try a different app, but really believe it is the GPS and not going to change from the app except how the lack of data is handled. Also might try my old Omate TrueSmart along side to see if it still keeps solid tracks like it used to.

 

[mdw1995]

I have not had a good track in weeks. Always some segment where GPS is lost. I thought I had a good short 30min run the other day, but it stopped for a bit on the home stretch. It seems to typically recover in about a quarter mile or a couple minutes. I'm still using ghostracer because it is such a great app and on a computer I can fairly easily fix tracks it uploads to RunKeeper. The Strava upload just ignores the missing sections including the time so at least it keeps pace info straight. I need to try a different app, but really believe it is the GPS and not going to change from the app except how the lack of data is handled. Also might try my old Omate TrueSmart along side to see if it still keeps solid tracks like it used to.

If you're still wearing a wristband and you are paired to your phone through cell data before starting runs, not sure what's causing the issue. I've had perfect recordings for several months now in a couple different states and while visiting family in France. If I don't wear the wristband or don't pair to the phone, it's a different story. What does Wear GPS app show on the watch before runs?

 

[scaots]

I still use the wristband and paired with good cell coverage. WearGPS in just a minute I have solid signal with 8+ sats and in a minute more almost double that with most of them green. Jump into ghostracer and it has to find position again. It almost seems as if ghostracer is not using assisted GPS capability and can take another minute or two to get a lock with one or two bars then usually quickly gets to 3 bars but then can take quite a while to hit 4 bars on the GPS status. If I go to maps it gets a quick accurate location. No idea what the deal is. I might try uninstall and reinstall the app. I reset my watch the other day because heart rate monitor was going nuts and running for minutes every half hour, so I want to try again and see if anything improved after the reset and if not try the app reinstall.

 

[mdw1995]

....It almost seems as if ghostracer is not using assisted GPS capability and can take another minute or two to get a lock with one or two bars then usually quickly gets to 3 bars but then can take quite a while to hit 4 bars on the GPS status. If I go to maps it gets a quick accurate location. No idea what the deal is. I might try uninstall and reinstall the app...

Once Wear GPS gets a good lock, which usually doesn't take long before accuracy is at 4m-5m, I close and open ghostracer. It usually only takes 10 seconds before it's at 4 bars after using Wear GPS. Not sure what's going on. I have the 'Force Watch GPS' selected in wear settings of ghostracer, under recording settings I have distance interval at 3m and time interval at 10 seconds and I'm using version 0.9.4.2. If you have similar settings, hopefully a reinstall/reset will improve tracking.

 

[scaots]

I have v0.9.5.1 so if I keep having issues I will try rolling back. I should have a backup of the previous version, but not sure which that is exactly. Mine is set with the recommended settings of 2sec and 10m recording.

 

[Bart Childers]

Thanks for the WearGPS / GhostRacer tips!
Very useful and it mostly works - Somehow Ghost Racer was in Bicycling mode when I ran this morning. I couldn't figure out how to change it from the watch. It still collected stats and uploaded to RunKeeper just fine.

Using GhostRacer in stand-alone mode with music streaming *eats* the battery. I doubt it would last a half-marathon (1h50m or so). I guess I will bring my phone with me. No biggy.

 

[mdw1995]

Thanks for the WearGPS / GhostRacer tips!
Very useful and it mostly works - Somehow Ghost Racer was in Bicycling mode when I ran this morning. I couldn't figure out how to change it from the watch. It still collected stats and uploaded to RunKeeper just fine.

Using GhostRacer in stand-alone mode with music streaming *eats* the battery. I doubt it would last a half-marathon (1h50m or so). I guess I will bring my phone with me. No biggy.

I always use ghostracer in standalone mode, paired to my phone through cell data while playing music through my bluetooth headset. I could easily finish a half marathon and, if I was faster, possibly a marathon but it all depends on cell reception. With my setup I use about 25-30% of battery an hour. I could get up to 4 hours but my cell and GPS reception is usually pretty good. I keep the screen in 'ambient' mode in ghostracer when running and set the auto lap to vibrate every mile so I don't look at the screen much. I also turn on audio feedback in the 'accessibility' settings on the watch to have any texts dictated in my ear without looking at the watch. Probably doesn't save battery, but I think it is a neat feature.

 

[scaots]

Like mdw says, poor signal will definitely eat up battery. If you don't have a good signal try turning cell off and might as well turn off wifi also. If you are actually streaming music that would definitely kill the battery. But I always play cached music over bluetooth and it doesn't seem hard on it. My experience with good cell signal is 15-33% battery for 30-50 minutes run.

 

[triolight]

Any changes in GPS behaviour on Wear 2.0? ( accuracy, time for fix, etc)

 

[m1r4c]

Just went back to Android Wear 1.0 after using 2.0 (DP4) for a couple of weeks, GPS was spotty for me, not sure if it was actually the GPS or if it was just the apps themselves freezing up as that was an issue i was having as well. One re-occurring problem with both Strava and Ghostracer was that when you had done a run and and marked it as finished, the app stalled and then crashed when saving the run, with no way to recover.

 

[mdw1995]

Just went back to Android Wear 1.0 after using 2.0 (DP4) for a couple of weeks, GPS was spotty for me, not sure if it was actually the GPS or if it was just the apps themselves freezing up as that was an issue i was having as well. One re-occurring problem with both Strava and Ghostracer was that when you had done a run and and marked it as finished, the app stalled and then crashed when saving the run, with no way to recover.

I know ghostracer has an option on the phone app in the wearable settings to "re-sync watch". This tells the watch to resend last activity (one option I like with ghostracer, it has saved several runs using AW 1.5). This also failed in the 2.0 preview 4? If the activity never saved successfully on the watch, I'm guessing it would fail.