Garmin watches consistently rank among thebest fitness trackersand smartwatches. These powerful tools help us stay healthy and active by offering features like heart rate monitoring, GPS tracking, and personalized workout plans. With so much technology packed into one device, knowing some basic troubleshooting is essential for a smooth experience.
Even thetop-of-the-line Garmin watchescan occasionally encounter hiccups. Whether it’s a minor software glitch or a temporary freeze, knowing how to restart your watch is the first step in resolving these issues. This guide shows you how to restart your Garmin watch, ensuring it continues to operate at its best.
Why restart your Garmin watch?
Continuous use of Garmin watches for running, sprinting, or exercising may lead to technical issues. These issues can affect step counting, distance tracking, and calorie-burning calculations. When such problems arise, restarting the device can resolve the problem, restore accurate functionality, and get things back on track.
How do fitness trackers and wearables measure vital signs?
Your heart rate isn’t going to measure itself
The following are some reasons why you might need to restart your Garmin watch:
Restart your Garmin smartwatch
The process for restarting your watch may differ based on the model and whether it has actual buttons or a touchscreen display. The easiest way to fix little bugs or malfunctions without losing your data is to perform a soft restart. Here’s how to restart your Garmin watch:
Sync your data before performing a soft reset, as some data may be lost during the reboot.
How to reset your Garmin smartwatch
Some Garmin watches, like the most recentForerunnerand Instinct models, allow you to reset the default settings without losing your activities, personal data, or music. This is done through theReset Default Settingsoption. This clears the device’s cache, which assists in resolving persistent issues.
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Although a medium reset usually takes slightly longer than a soft restart, data and settings are still saved.
Beware when attempting to resettheDefault Settings. Some recent Garmin watches offer aRestore Defaultsoption, which performs a hard reset.
Hard reset your Garmin smartwatch
Consider a hard or factory reset if a simple restart isn’t effective. This more drastic option wipes out your personal data, settings, and activity history, restoring your Garmin watch to its original factory defaults.
There are slight variances in the hard reset method for different Garmin watches:
Hard resets should be used only as a last option, as it removes any settings or data from the watch.
Keep your Garmin watch in top form
Just like you need breaks after intense workouts, sometimes your Garmin watch needs a refresh. Restarting and occasionally resetting it ensures peak performance. Additionally, maintaining your smartwatch’s physical condition is equally important. For guidance on cleaning the watchband, case, and screen, check out our guide onhow to clean your smartwatch.
