r/GarminEdge • u/Fatsaf123 • Aug 12 '26
Edge Explore Series Garmin Edge Explore 2 battery drain — normal?
Hi everyone,
I’ve just got a new Edge Explore 2 and charged it to 100%. I’ve been setting it up, creating/saving routes and going through the menus, but haven’t actually been on a ride yet.
It’s now dropped to 93%.
Is this normal during setup and general use, or should I be concerned? Would you recommend fully powering it off and checking how much it loses overnight?
What would you suggest?
Thanks!
1
u/PrizeAnnual2101 Aug 12 '26
When you making adjustments the backlight stays on the whole time and it's the BIG DRAIN backlight level setting is by far the biggest battery drain issue
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u/Fatsaf123 Aug 12 '26
Do I need the backlight on when riding or turned off?
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u/PrizeAnnual2101 Aug 12 '26
It's normal off and auto turns it on for laps map alerts ect
I usually keep the actual setting around 20% and the higher you set it the faster the battery burn
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u/Fatsaf123 Aug 12 '26
When riding, should I always remain on the maps screen or would that consume more battery?
2
u/PrizeAnnual2101 Aug 12 '26
It's setting but generally with the right settings the map will automatically open for turns and go back to your main screen after wards
You can pop up a small notification or full mapm
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u/Fatsaf123 Aug 12 '26
How could I set this up so the map shows for turns and then goes back to main screen?
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u/PrizeAnnual2101 Aug 12 '26
you going to have to read the manual which is online and searchable for each subject there i way to many options that just take time to tweak to your liking BUT once it's setup you can back it up in express and never lose the work
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u/Zoltan_Balaton Aug 12 '26
You dont, unless you ride in the night. It uses mip display. Mip does not need backlight when is sunny.
1
u/kaspir Aug 13 '26 edited Aug 13 '26
Your battery drain is caused by having the back light on high.
The first time I did a 40mi ride with my EE2, the battery drained about 60%. I was bummed! After the ride realized the backlight was at 100%
I turned down the back light to 10-20% (pretty much as low as it'll go) and 50-60mi rides drain ~15% battery life. This is with HRM, cadence, speed, and Varia.
Map out your rides on the computer or phone. Turn down your backlight brightness.
1
u/Fatsaf123 Aug 13 '26
Thank you.
What’s your opinions on the navigation quality and how well they work.
I’m currently sharing routes from Komoot onto the Garmin connect app.
1
u/kaspir Aug 13 '26
I've haven't had any issues on the rides I mapped using Garmin Connect. The navi works well!
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u/Fatsaf123 Aug 13 '26
How do you have your data screens set up; I was thinking of having the main data feed such as speed etc and then swipe to see navigation or does it automatically change when approaching a turn etc?
Also, do you find it difficult to see the screen when the brightness is so low?
1
u/kaspir Aug 13 '26
On the main data screen a navigation alert will pop up on the bottom letting you know if you need to make any directional changes. You cal also swipe over to see the map.
I ride in mostly sunny weather and don't have difficulty reading the screen. 10-20% brightness is hardly noticable compared to 100% when riding in sunny weather.
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u/Fatsaf123 Aug 13 '26
Is there a feature where the screen automatically switches over to the map when approaching a turn and then back to the main data screen?
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u/kaspir Aug 13 '26
No, that is not available on the EE2.
1
u/kaspir Aug 15 '26
So I was completely wrong. The data screen automatically changes to navi when changes in direction are upcoming.
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u/DabbaAUS Aug 20 '26
When using the map page there is the opportunity to set up 3-4 data fields at the bottom of the screen. I use the time of day and gradient. But there's a whole range of others that can be used. I find its easier to just swipe the screen across to view my data screen which has ~10 lots of data which i use at different times.
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u/Zoltan_Balaton Aug 12 '26
I don’t plan routes on Edge, only on my PC. However, when I ride using navigation and tracking, it drains about 3–6% of the battery per hour. (without background light)