- A recent Garmin Connect update has disconnected users’ wearables
- The issue appears to be limited to iOS, with Android unaffected
- Solutions have been suggested, but they may not work for everyone
Garmin Connect has proven controversial since it launched, but that has mostly been limited to how it locks certain features behind an expensive paywall. But now the discontent has widened as the latest update to the software has disconnected many users’ wearables and smartwatches from the service, leaving them unable to sync their progress.
The issue has been variously reported to have occurred with the 5.21 and 5.21.1 updates, and users are venting their frustrations across social media. Posts are flooding Reddit, for example, as discovered by Gadgets & Wearables. That has left users annoyed by the disruption to their routines and by Garmin Connect’s inability to work with their existing devices.
Writing on Reddit, user Fantastic-Class-8252 explained that “I just updated my app on iPhone and now it says I have no watch connected to the app!!” That was backed up by other users, including PrimaryHuckleberry11, who said in another post that they “updated today on my iPhone and I lost all devices from the app.”
Incidentally, the issues appear to be limited to iOS, with Android users of Garmin Connect indicating that their app ran without issue. This suggests that the problem lies with how the Garmin Connect app interacts with some element of iOS and that the latest update broke that functionality.
We’ve asked Garmin if it’s aware of the issue or has an estimated time frame for a fix to roll out, and we’ll update this story as soon as we hear back.
What can you do?
Some users have posted solutions in the comment sections of Reddit posts, claiming they were able to get things working again.
For example, one user explained that they first had to remove their wearable device from the Garmin Connect web app. They then removed their wearable from the list of paired Bluetooth devices in the iOS Settings app. Once that was done, they were able to add their device back into the Garmin Connect app.
For others, the solution was a little different. This user suggested opening the Garmin Connect app while it’s looking for connected devices, switching to the settings screen on your Garmin watch, and going to Connection > Phone > Pair Phone. This should make your watch appear in the app, after which you can set it up as a new device in Garmin Connect.
That said, not everyone has had success with these methods. The issue also appears to affect a number of Garmin wearables, so there’s no guarantee that what works for one product will work for another.
If you have fallen victim to this problem, it is worth trying the methods mentioned above. However, if you still can’t connect your wearable, you may need to wait for a patch to be released to get things working again.
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