Garmin 530 pairing

ugo.santalucia
ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,170
edited October 2019 in Road general
Can't pair it to my phone... admittedly my phone is shoot and in the past it proved useless to read the chip in my passport, for the EU settlement scheme... so I suspect there isn't much I can do and it's probably a bluetooth issue.

Downloaded app, turned on the bluetooth, turned on the device, went into the pairing mode, asked the phone to pair... it doesn't happen...
left the forum March 2023
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Comments

  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 25,589
    I find that if I have problems then it helps if you have Garmin Connect open on the phone.
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • PBlakeney wrote:
    I find that if I have problems then it helps if you have Garmin Connect open on the phone.

    I did... that's the way to first pair it... basically my phone and my 530 do not talk to each other... I can't make it to talk to the 530 the first time
    left the forum March 2023
  • it's not a massive issue as I am a technophobe and pretty sure with bluetooth connection comes troubles and reduced battery life...

    Ultimately I bought the 530 for battery life and navigation, not for the bling and instant upload
    left the forum March 2023
  • My 520 is paired to my phone, but the only messages I get are when a text comes in. Nothing I can do gets any info regarding phone calls to show on the screen.

    I don't worry about it. I go out on the bike to get away from all that stuff. Anyway what can I do about anything if I'm 30 miles from home?

    My phone is in my back pocket and I only answer it if it's been ringing for long enough to indicate that something important is happening.
  • I guess it was about being able to upload rides without having to go the USB route... but there are downsides too, like when people upload stuff they don't mean to
    left the forum March 2023
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 25,589
    I guess it was about being able to upload rides without having to go the USB route... but there are downsides too, like when people upload stuff they don't mean to
    A third option is home wifi. That might automatically upload it to Garmin Connect and any linked apps when you get home. Maybe...
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • PBlakeney wrote:
    I guess it was about being able to upload rides without having to go the USB route... but there are downsides too, like when people upload stuff they don't mean to
    A third option is home wifi. That might automatically upload it to Garmin Connect and any linked apps when you get home. Maybe...

    Does the VM home hub talk Bluetooth?
    left the forum March 2023
  • paulwood
    paulwood Posts: 231
    Mine refused to pair. Gave up trying and then had another go a few weeks later. Worked fine but I did nothing different.
  • Sorry, I misread.
    I have Garmin Connect on the phone. The unit talks to that via my home Wifi. Not bluetooth, but I don't know why not. Garmin Connect talks to Strava, and uploads my ride. I could use my 4G connection instead of wifi, but I'm on a limited monthly allowance so let wifi do the work.

    The only delay is waiting for home wifi to get it's act together and talk to my phone, but by the time I've put the bike away and taken shoes off my ride is usually uploaded. Ride is initially loaded to Connect and from there to Strava, but the delay is minimal.

    I've no idea why bluetooth doesn't do anything, but home wifi is perfectly usable for me.
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 25,589
    PBlakeney wrote:
    I guess it was about being able to upload rides without having to go the USB route... but there are downsides too, like when people upload stuff they don't mean to
    A third option is home wifi. That might automatically upload it to Garmin Connect and any linked apps when you get home. Maybe...

    Does the VM home hub talk Bluetooth?
    RTFM :lol::lol: No bluetooth required.
    https://www8.garmin.com/manuals/webhelp ... AE861.html
    Not clear if the set up is once only or every occasion though. :roll:
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • Perhaps I should add that the pairing is all done through Connect. Install that. Pair the unit to it, and give it your Strava details. After all is set up you don't need Connect anymore. Just leave it running in the background.
  • pilot_pete
    pilot_pete Posts: 2,120
    Perhaps I should add that the pairing is all done through Connect. Install that. Pair the unit to it, and give it your Strava details. After all is set up you don't need Connect anymore. Just leave it running in the background.

    This. As soon as I stop my ride, press save it uses Wi-fi to download it to Garmin Connect, which has my Strava account linked to it and the ride appears on Strava by the time I can open my iPad and open Strava.

    PP
  • Pilot Pete wrote:
    Perhaps I should add that the pairing is all done through Connect. Install that. Pair the unit to it, and give it your Strava details. After all is set up you don't need Connect anymore. Just leave it running in the background.

    This. As soon as I stop my ride, press save it uses Wi-fi to download it to Garmin Connect, which has my Strava account linked to it and the ride appears on Strava by the time I can open my iPad and open Strava.

    PP

    Yup. Works first time every time.
  • Perhaps I should add that the pairing is all done through Connect. Install that. Pair the unit to it,

    ... that's the bit that doesn't work
    left the forum March 2023
  • pilot_pete
    pilot_pete Posts: 2,120
    Have you worked your way though the Garmin troubleshooting help?

    https://support.garmin.com/en-GB/?faq=r ... minconnect

    PP
  • Why not ring Garmin and talk to a real live human being? They are very helpful and patient. They will talk you through what you need to do. UK based so no expensive phone bills. And if they are busy they will ring you back. What have you got to loose?
  • pilot_pete
    pilot_pete Posts: 2,120
    Another thing to check is that the software is the latest version on both your Garmin and your phone, and also make sure your phone is compatible (mine is really old, so can’t get the latest up to date software from Apple as they stopped supporting it a few years ago), which can cause issues.

    PP
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 25,589
    Perhaps I should add that the pairing is all done through Connect. Install that. Pair the unit to it,

    ... that's the bit that doesn't work
    I get that your phone isn't connecting. No PC to use for wifi setup as above?
    Can't help past that as my set up works and I'm not upsetting it. :wink:
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • I am trying to figure out whether I want to pair it all. I seem to be able to do everything I want without having to go via the phone (uploading routes, navigate, uploading rides)... I confess I worry that if I pair it all the troubles people talk about with Edge units will materialise...
    I'll wait and see if I really need to pair it and if so, I'll figure something out talking to people at Garmin

    PS: my phone is a J3, probably the cheapest Samsung that ever existed
    left the forum March 2023
  • pilot_pete
    pilot_pete Posts: 2,120
    I’m still on a iPhone 4 - does what I need it to do - WhatsApp cycling group chats for ride details (and piss taking!), a way of finding out which son is in A&E (again...!) and what I need to ‘just pick up’ from the supermarket when I’m out doing other things.... :mrgreen:

    As for pairing it to my Garmin, I have but to be honest I don’t care who’s sending me a text when I’m riding! :wink:

    PP
  • Ugo,
    You might have tried/done this.
    Is the unit connected to your home WiFi?
    If so like a couple of people said it won’t need to go via connect... all you need is a connect account and the 530 added to that account... not nescessarily via the phone either....
    I’m thinking the Samsung J3 has probably got limitations which is why it’s not fully connected via phone too.
    I’ve got 530 on an oldish iPhone and connects up okay,
    I think their phone compatibility tests don’t run too deep to be honest!!
  • Ugo,
    You might have tried/done this.
    Is the unit connected to your home WiFi?
    If so like a couple of people said it won’t need to go via connect... all you need is a connect account and the 530 added to that account... not nescessarily via the phone either....
    I’m thinking the Samsung J3 has probably got limitations which is why it’s not fully connected via phone too.
    I’ve got 530 on an oldish iPhone and connects up okay,
    I think their phone compatibility tests don’t run too deep to be honest!!

    Thanks,
    I'll probably connect it to the home wifi via th ecomputer then... it seems a less stress way of doing things.

    BTW, first ride in... the navigation is brilliant, I like that I can stay on the numbers screen but still get the turn by turn pop ups with a standard GPX file which was not designed to have turn by turn navigation.

    When I am on the navigation screen, I am not sure what the green bar at the bottom is supposed to represent...

    Finally, how do I get ride of the annoying notifications every 5 km with my lap time? I'm not doing laps...

    EDIT: the green bar apparently is elevation profile, but this side of the world it just looks like a power bar... :lol::lol:
    left the forum March 2023
  • wongataa
    wongataa Posts: 1,001

    Finally, how do I get ride of the annoying notifications every 5 km with my lap time? I'm not doing laps...

    EDIT: the green bar apparently is elevation profile, but this side of the world it just looks like a power bar... :lol::lol:
    Turn off auto lap to stop the notification every 5km. You can hide the elevation profile on the map screen if you want to.
  • Done,

    also reduced the 6 field screen to 4... not sure why people want to know the calories consumed when this number is clearly unrealistic
    left the forum March 2023
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 25,589
    Done,

    also reduced the 6 field screen to 4... not sure why people want to know the calories consumed when this number is clearly unrealistic
    Justifies a full English while watching rugby. :wink:
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • wongataa
    wongataa Posts: 1,001
    Done,

    also reduced the 6 field screen to 4... not sure why people want to know the calories consumed when this number is clearly unrealistic
    It isn't unrealistic if you have a power meter. I suppose if you are really dedicated on eating while riding you might want to see the calories while riding. Most people will find a lot of the possible data fields pointless though.
  • wongataa wrote:
    Done,

    also reduced the 6 field screen to 4... not sure why people want to know the calories consumed when this number is clearly unrealistic
    It isn't unrealistic if you have a power meter. I suppose if you are really dedicated on eating while riding you might want to see the calories while riding. Most people will find a lot of the possible data fields pointless though.

    The imprtant thing is that it is customisable. For long Audax rides having battery left, time of the day and maybe temperature is more relevant than speed/average speed and time ridden
    left the forum March 2023
  • philbar72
    philbar72 Posts: 2,229
    once you do get the Bluetooth working fine in the device, its pretty good. not that that helps. what I did was switch the garmin on and have the phones Bluetooth off. (clear the existing partnership if there is anything on the phone). Clear the existing partnership on the garmin, and rename it to something unusual so the phone will see it as aaa1 or something like that.

    Power on Bluetooth on both devices and switch on garmin connect on the phone. Let it manage everything. It works, sometimes it takes a couple of goes…

    Once done its great…
  • wongataa
    wongataa Posts: 1,001
    I've never bothered using the Bluetooth connection with my Edge 830 as I don't really have the need to use it.
  • slowbike
    slowbike Posts: 8,498
    The imprtant thing is that it is customisable. For long Audax rides having battery left, time of the day and maybe temperature is more relevant than speed/average speed and time ridden
    Yes it is - so make sure you've got the back light turning off and - I dunno if it's available on the 5xx - battery save mode - turns the whole screen off - just records data and prompts you with Nav ... the battery will last all day and all night like that ...

    Oh yes -
    Turning On Battery Save Mode

    Select Menu > Settings > Battery Save Mode > Enable.
    Select the alerts that wake up the screen during an activity.