Altitude »
Weather & Temperature »
Compass »
Review Mode »
Calibration »
INDIGLO® Night-light »
Watch Screen »
Water Resistance »
Battery »
Strap »
Altitude
Q: I calibrated to my current altitude before heading out on a camping trip, but after a few hours of climbing, the reading was wrong.
A: An altimeter sensor measures the change in pressure, and because of this it is very sensitive to weather changes. In order to get accurate readings, you should re-calibrate your altimeter as frequently as possible– especially if the weather is changing while you’re using it (i.e.: starts to rain, storm clears up, temperature drops, etc.) To make this easy, you can use the WS4 altitude reference points to store known altitudes in advance, and then recalibrate with one press of a button once you arrive at those locations.
Q: I keep trying to set my current altitude, but the watch doesn’t seem to accept it.
A: Make sure you’re not forgetting the last step of calibrating. After you enter in a value and hit DONE, you still need to press and hold STOP/RESET to calibrate to that value. Otherwise the watch assumes you are storing that value as a reference point for future use.
Q: I’ve skied all day, but when I go into the altitude mode it only shows minimal gain.
A: If you want to record Total Descent or Total Ascent, start the Chronograph at the beginning of your activity. At any time while the chrono is running, or after you’ve stopped it, you can find this information in Review Mode. If you are going into Altimeter mode only, you will be able to see current altitude, max altitude and accumulated altitude (which is a net of your ascent and descent.)
Weather & Temperature
Q: The temperature reading on my watch is always wrong
A: If you’re wearing the watch on your wrist, the temperature reading will be impacted by your body heat. In order to get an accurate reading, remove the watch from your body and put it in the shade. Depending on the starting temperature, it may take up to 30 minutes for the watch to re-adjust to air temperature.
Q: The weather icon shows rain, but it’s sunny out.
A: Remember that the weather icon is a future forecast, not your current weather. Make sure you’ve recently calibrated the weather– you should calibrate to current weather temperature, and then allow four hours for the watch to take readings on barometric pressure changes to provide an accurate forecast. After this calibration period is complete, the watch will provide a forecast for 12-24 hours out.
Compass
Q: I know my office faces due north, but my compass is giving me a different reading.
A: First, make sure you’ve set the declination angle. Every location has a different declination angle– you can look up your declination angle online at the National Geophyical Data Center. By entering your local declination angle, you are telling the watch to account for the difference between magnetic north and true north. Second, large metal objects and electronics can interfere with a compass reading. So you may not get an accurate reading in an office building. To get an accurate reading, calibrate your compass in the same environment you plan to use it. For example, if you’re heading into the backcountry, calibrate your compass at the beginning of the trip, away from your car and computer.
Q: What on earth is a declination angle, and do I need to know this to use the compass?
A: To account for the difference between true north and magnetic north, a compass uses a declination angle setting. Declination angles vary by location– for example New York City has a declination angle 12° W, while Seattle has a declination angle of 17° E. of Westerly declinations are subtracted from the computed compass heading while easterly declinations are added. If you don’t know your local declination, you can leave it as 0 when calibrating the compass.
Q: Why does my compass keep going blank?
A: To save battery power, the compass will time out after 30 seconds. Press the START/SPLIT button to get another reading
Review Mode
Q:My Review Mode isn’t working.
A:You need to start the Chronograph in order for your WS4 to start collecting data in Review Mode. So if you want to see your stats on a climb, a ski trip or a cross-country drive, start the chrono at the beginning of that activity. You will be able to see data in Review Mode while the chrono is running, or after you’ve stopped it. Once you reset your chronograph, the data in Review Mode will reset as well.
Calibration
Q: Do I need to calibrate altimeter, barometer and weather?
A: You only need to calibrate the altimeter OR the barometer (they are calculated from the same sensor); and you should always calibrate the weather to current conditions.
Q: How often do I need to calibrate?
A: It depends on how accurate you need the information to be, and what conditions you’re using the watch in. Some who demand extreme accuracy, like Heli Ski Guides, calibrate hourly. If you are hiking, try calibrating every time you come to an altitude marker.
INDIGLO® night-light
Q: My INDIGLO stopped working!
A: INDIGLO takes a lot of battery power, so this is often the first sign that your battery is getting low. First, try replacing the battery. If you’re still having problems, contact Timex Customer Service at
Watch Screen
Q: In cold weather my watch screen gets very faint and sometimes the digits disappear all together.
LCD screens are sensitive to extreme temperatures. The WS4 operates best when the watch (not the A: air) is between 14°F and 122°F. If you’re using your WS4 in extremely cold temperatures, and the watch gets colder that 14°F, it may seem sluggish or the screen could go completely blank. It doesn’t mean your watch is broken-- simply allow the watch to warm back up and it should start operating normally.
Water Resistance
Q: Can I swim with the WS4?
A: We do not recommend swimming with your WS4. The WS4 is 50 meter water resistant, and the general rule of thumb for any watch is: 30 meter can be safely splashed; 50 meters is safe in a shower; 100 meters is safe in the pool; and 200 meters is safe for snorkeling or light diving.
Battery
Q: How do I replace the battery?
A: Your WS4 has a battery hatch, allowing you to change the battery on your own. Just use a coin to unscrew the back of the watch, and remove the old battery. The WS4 takes a common watch battery– CR2430– that can be found at most stores. To screw the battery hatch back in, first do a π turn to the counter-clockwise to align the threads, then screw battery hatch shut by turning clockwise until tight.
Q: What is the battery life?
A: It depends how you use the watch. (note: the compass and INDIGLO features use the most battery power.) Based on average use, you can expect a new battery to last about 15 months.
Strap
Q: Can I replace the strap on my WS4?
A: Unless you have the WS4 with an XL elastic strap (which can be removed completely), the strap on the WS4 was not designed to be removed and replaced. If your strap breaks, you can contact Timex Customer Service at
