What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Garmin Pilot (Android) Problem

boomer

Well Known Member
Anyone having a problem with Garmin Pilot for Android since the latest update? I opened Pilot on my Nexus 7 (2013) yesterday and found it had updated. It said that I needed "an additional one time download of aviation data", but his will not download, despite being connected to WiFi. It just sasys "Download in Progress" but never downloads.

This leaves Pilot broken, which has happened the past two updates: had to delete Pilot, reinstall and download all my data. What a pain!

-John
 
Garmin ok

I am running Garmin Pilot 4.1.1 dated 2014-11-25 on a Nexus 7 with no problems. I just added a GDL 39 to the mix and it seems to be working as well. I also have the same version running on a Samsung Galaxy S5 with no problems.
 
I had the same problem.

I was able to fix by going into application manager and deleting data and cache, that way it kept my settings, pilot and plane info.
 
Another issue

Anyone having a problem with Garmin Pilot for Android since the latest update? I opened Pilot on my Nexus 7 (2013) yesterday and found it had updated. It said that I needed "an additional one time download of aviation data", but his will not download, despite being connected to WiFi. It just sasys "Download in Progress" but never downloads.

This leaves Pilot broken, which has happened the past two updates: had to delete Pilot, reinstall and download all my data. What a pain!

-John

After the update to 4.1.1 on my 2013 Nexus 7 the sectional charts are too blurry to read unless zoomed way in. NOT good. They worked Perfect before the update.

I've emailed the help desk :mad:

Mark
 
Interesting about the sectionals becoming blurry... I just noticed the same thing using FltPlanGo on my Android device. The latest update made the sectionals there much blurrier as well, less usable when zoomed in.

I wonder if someone is trying to save bandwidth costs at the FAA by reducing the image quality?
 
android 5.0

When my nexus 7 (2013) updated to lollipop, garmin pilot crashed. It took garmin over a week to fix the problem. Running android 5.0 with garmin pilot 4.1.1 seems to render the sectional in high resolution.
 
After the update to 4.1.1 on my 2013 Nexus 7 the sectional charts are too blurry to read unless zoomed way in. NOT good. They worked Perfect before the update.

I've emailed the help desk :mad:

Mark

Update:
I called Garmin support. They are unaware of any issue with the rendering of the sectional charts. He suggested I uninstall/reinstall Garmin Pilot. That didn't help.

I also have Naviator installed and the sectionals look great there!
And Garmin Pilot on my phone (Droid Maxx) is fine also. But it's still running Garmin Pilot 4.0.1

I've set my Nexus NOT to automatically update apps!

Mark
 
Email from Garmin

Update:
I called Garmin support. They are unaware of any issue with the rendering of the sectional charts. He suggested I uninstall/reinstall Garmin Pilot. That didn't help.

I also have Naviator installed and the sectionals look great there!
And Garmin Pilot on my phone (Droid Maxx) is fine also. But it's still running Garmin Pilot 4.0.1

I've set my Nexus NOT to automatically update apps!

Mark


I got an email from Garmin this afternoon. They do know about the blurry sectionals and are working on it.

I understand things happen and it's good to know they are working on a fix.

See Garmin's reply below:



Good Evening Mark,

There is a known issue with the resolution on the map when zooming out past about 10NM. The developers are looking for a solution and will release an update when they have one.

Garmin updated map performance and as a byproduct, this affected the map resolution.

My apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

Thank you for contacting Garmin,
Garrett

.
.
 
I got an email from Garmin this afternoon. They do know about the blurry sectionals and are working on it.

I understand things happen and it's good to know they are working on a fix.

See Garmin's reply below:



Good Evening Mark,

There is a known issue with the resolution on the map when zooming out past about 10NM. The developers are looking for a solution and will release an update when they have one.

Garmin updated map performance and as a byproduct, this affected the map resolution.

My apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

Thank you for contacting Garmin,
Garrett

.
.


I got a somewhat more detailed message from them explaining why the sectional and IFR enroute charts are blurry. They say they are working on it, as mentioned, but offer as a medium term workaround that you can get slightly better resolution if you use the "+" and "-" zoom buttons rather than the two finger zoom drag. The two finger drag causes the system to interpolate and digitally zoom between levels, leaving blur. The button zoom takes you to predefined zoom levels where the graphical data are not scaled.

They said this has to do with devices with higher pixel densities requiring more predefined zoom levels. They did not commit to going back to more zoom levels. It sounded to me like they made the change to reduce the size of the data update downloads and made a compromise that doesn't work out so well for those of us with high pixel density displays.

Still, I am pleased that they went into the level of detail that they did to explain it to me. In general, I have been very pleased with the responsiveness and level of support Garmin (or Digital Cyclone, the developer of the app) has for Garmin Pilot.
 
By the way, folks, keep the pressure up on Garmin to fix this. They seem to be open to doing so, but I think they'll need a lot of constant and polite pressure. If only very few people contact them, they won't have it as high a priority as it should be.
 
More pressure needed apparently

By the way, folks, keep the pressure up on Garmin to fix this. They seem to be open to doing so, but I think they'll need a lot of constant and polite pressure. If only very few people contact them, they won't have it as high a priority as it should be.

Garmin released an update this week for Garmin Pilot Android. Version 4.1.3

This update did not fix the blurry sectional issue.
In fact it made it worse!!!

Now only using the + button will sharpen the image, the - button no longer sharpens it !! This on a Nexus 7 .

I find this hard to accept.

I went with the "big name" company to avoid issues like this.
And now the cheaper competitors have crystal clear sectionals.

Mark
 
Sorry to hear of your troubles, that can be very frustrating. I just opened Garmin Pilot on my Nexus 7 and it downloaded the newest version (4.1.3). Sitting at home and playing with it; direct to, zoom in/out with fingers and + / - , I see no issues. Zoomed way in and way out. I haven't flown with the new version as I'm in the middle of an oil change on the "other" plane (RV not flying yet).

My only issue with the app so far has been that the map will occasionally not keep up with the flight. I'll get the checkered screen where the map is not keeping up and eventually I'll fly off of the map and into the checkered screen. To fix this, I will just exit the app and then restart. Comes right back with no issues.
 
Last edited:
Nexus 7 has been OK

Not great, but OK. It's needed a few program restarts at times. Overall, I would buy it again. I haven't bought a paper chart in over a year.
 
Sectionals still blurry

Garmin Pilot android has a new release. 4.2.0

This update did not fix the blurry sectionals. Three months now with no fix.
I get the feeling they are not concerned about it.

With the latest update I can integrate with the G3X touch. Really?
So do pilots with a G3X use their $200 Nexus to navigate?

Mark







Mark Burns8 said:
Garmin released an update this week for Garmin Pilot Android. Version 4.1.3

This update did not fix the blurry sectional issue.
In fact it made it worse!!!

Now only using the + button will sharpen the image, the - button no longer sharpens it !! This on a Nexus 7 .

I find this hard to accept.

I went with the "big name" company to avoid issues like this.
And now the cheaper competitors have crystal clear sectionals.

Mark
 
Garmin Pilot sectionals look fine here...

Garmin Pilot android has a new release. 4.2.0

This update did not fix the blurry sectionals. Three months now with no fix.
I get the feeling they are not concerned about it.

I have an LG G Pad with Android 5.0 and just updated to 4.2.0, the sectionals look good at all zoom levels.

At what zoom level are you experiencing this problem?

With the 20nm scale displayed sectional text is unreadable but that's more of a hardware limitation issue (scale is displayed in lower left hand corner when pinch zooming).


With the latest update I can integrate with the G3X touch. Really?
So do pilots with a G3X use their $200 Nexus to navigate?

Mark

I would think this would be handy for the GIB or passenger pilot's display.

From Garmin - "Garmin Pilot is now fully integrated with the G3X Touch navigator to wirelessly transfer flight plans, including airways, to and from the application. In addition, GPS and AHRS information is trasmitted from the navigator to Garmin Pilot to enhance situational awarness."
 
Does not even load

I updated Garmin pilot hoping to transfer flight plans to the g3x. Not only did that not work because I need a new module but I can not even load the app. At first the issue was that my flight plans could not be edited now the app just loads and crashes... Support said there is nothing they can do. Never had one issue with foreflight. If you have not upgraded your app don't. I am leaving on a trip tomorrow and not I have to try and get paper plates and maps. 2 different "support" guys said they would email or call me back today which has not happened. Garmin is going the right direction and have some awesome stuff, just needs to work.
 
Blurry sectionals

2NM zoom level is great
5NM zoom level just a tad blurry
10NM zoom level unreadable

This on a Nexus 7 (2013) running Android 5.0.2 and Garmin Pilot 4.2.0

My main gripe is that they broke it!
Version 4.0.1 was fantastic!

Maybe the map does refresh a little faster now, but then you can't read it so what's the point?

And now you can't go back:mad:

Thank goodness I didn't upgrade it on my phone:)
Still running Garmin Pilot 4.0.1 on my Droid Max phone and it is very sharp!

Mark



I have an LG G Pad with Android 5.0 and just updated to 4.2.0, the sectionals look good at all zoom levels.

At what zoom level are you experiencing this problem?

With the 20nm scale displayed sectional text is unreadable but that's more of a hardware limitation issue (scale is displayed in lower left hand corner when pinch zooming).




I would think this would be handy for the GIB or passenger pilot's display.

From Garmin - "Garmin Pilot is now fully integrated with the G3X Touch navigator to wirelessly transfer flight plans, including airways, to and from the application. In addition, GPS and AHRS information is trasmitted from the navigator to Garmin Pilot to enhance situational awarness."
 
If they don't get their **** together, I'm buying an iPad. I have had SO MANY software issues with that program that have severely impacted my flights. One more and it's toast. Get it together, Garmin
 
Why use the sectionals? Sorry, I know that may be what people want. But why??? What makes Garmin Pilot so valuable to me is the VFR (and IFR) dynamic/vector charts. They perfect for zooming with no loss in resolution and the color contrasts are incredibly readable on my Samsung Note 4.

It is a little annoying that Garmin says they are having trouble, or whatever, keeping the Android app at the same level of development as the Apple (specifically on the 3-D terrain, etc.). OK. It's a great app that works on my Android device that I already carry with me everywhere and is very readable in my bubble canopy plane.
 
Last edited:
Fast Find Garmin Pilot

Do you guys that use Garmin Pilot on an Android see the "fast find" function in the flight planning tab? I do not. If you don't know what I mean by "fast find" watch the Garmin tutorial on flight planning on YouTube. When you add a way point on the flight planning button (second button) and start typing Garmin Pilot is suppose to present suspect way points based on your typing and location. I don't see that on my droid. I've tried a Samsung and Nexus. Does anyone else? Without fast find making a flight plan with Garmin Pilot is cumbersome cause you have go elsewhere to find the code. I've sent them an email. Perhaps I've gotta switch to iPAD. I hope not.
 
I don't see fast find on my Nexus. I'm waiting for Garmin to hit the gas on the Garmin Pilot Android app to catch with the iPad version. My first preference would be add terrain. The iPad has had terrain for a couple of years now. On the plus side the Nexus was only $200. I haven't bought a map since began using it. There is a map shop at Lunken airport in Cincinnati. I plan to stop in there and buy some WAC charts soon. I really don't want the paper maps to disappear.
 
Last edited:
If they don't get their **** together, I'm buying an iPad. I have had SO MANY software issues with that program that have severely impacted my flights. One more and it's toast. Get it together, Garmin

Unfortunately, Garmin pilot has stopped.... navigating on friends android.. constantly. . Making me not go with Garmin when time comes for mine.
 
Unfortunately, Garmin pilot has stopped.... navigating on friends android.. constantly. . Making me not go with Garmin when time comes for mine.

I think this has more to do with the open nature of Android, the many versions of Android, the customization's that different manufacturers of hardware make to Android and all the different hardware than actually Garmin Pilot itself.
It runs like a dream on my Galaxy Tab S 8.4 with Lollipop. Runs OK as well on my LG G3 phone. So far I have just been lucky to use it on hardware and OS firmware that plays nice with it. May change when I update my phone, who knows???

Many of the advantages Android has over iOS also brings a ton of complexity that software vendors have to deal with. This is obvious in how the Android version always lags behind the iOS version. Less variables means faster development.

While it does appear to work fine in the air, 98% of my use of Garmin Pilot or any other portable app is on the ground or as a method to display approach plates/entertainment for the passenger. As connected to technology as I am, I still think avionics and primary means of navigation belong mounted in the panel in a configuration well proven to work reliably.
 
Last edited:
Unfortunately, Garmin pilot has stopped.... navigating on friends android.. constantly. . Making me not go with Garmin when time comes for mine.

That's unfortunate. It runs very well and very reliably on my Samsung Note 4. Bought and used a GDL-39 on my Oshkosh trip this year. It synch'd and ran flawlessly - and quickly - every time I started it up. I'm really pleased with the product.
 
This is a Galaxy tab 3 we were using. It was a warm day in an rv12.....

Interestingly just crashed while learning app here in the fbo..just now.

I agree maybe device related . Pain though.
 
Nexus 9 Android

I'm using Garmin Pilot on my Nexus 9. No problems. BUT, as per post 21, I use the dynamic/vector charts. Matter of fact, that's why I haven't done Foreflight, ie, they don't offer the Dynamic Vector charts. Don't like using the sectionals. They're so "busy" you can't see the forest for the trees. (Try finding waypoint/intersections on a sectional) I just pulled up the sectionals on my 9, and per post 19, at 5 mile scale, the writing is sharp and clear. If I pinch pull to roughly 7 miles, I can still see it, but its really small. As he said, at 10 miles you can't see the forest for the trees. (Must be an echo in here:rolleyes:)
 
Back
Top