Garmin Devices

I’m getting a lot of questions regarding the support of Garmin devices. My goal is to support as many devices as I can. Unfortunately, with Garmin, it’s not so easy to do. Here I summarized all the information regarding this request to help you understand the current situation.

SDK option

There is an official SDK that lets 3rd party apps (like STAmina) access the real-time feed of sensors data (such as HR or SpO2). Unfortunately, it’s not free:

Commercial Use: License Fee or Minimum Device Order Quantity

As an indie developer, even if I qualify as a Garmin partner, I cannot afford to pay enterprise-level fees or order a fairly large quantity of Garmin devices.

For those who ask about diving computers (MK1, MK2 series): at the moment even the official SDK doesn’t list them as supported devices. Here is the complete list from the official page:

vívosmart®, vívoactive®, vívomove®, vívosport®, Venu®, Forerunner®, fēnix®, Instinct®, tactix®, MARQ®, Enduro™, Lily™

API option

Another option is to use the official API that lets 3rd party apps download activity logs. Workflow, in this case, looks like this:

  • Start a workout that tracks HR/SpO2 on your Garmin device;
  • Start and complete an exercise in STAmina (note that STAmina will not display any sensors data during the exercise);
  • Complete the workout on the Garmin device;
  • After synchronization, you’ll be able to see HR/SpO2 charts on the history page;

To access the official API, I also need to get approval from Garmin, but the API itself is free.

Status

At the moment, I’m in the middle of communication with Garmin. It’s hardly possible that the SDK option will work, but there is a chance with the API option. I’ll keep this page up-to-date with the latest available information.